148 A Book of Precious Stones
peasants
of the Basque province. Another belief was that during the waxing of
the moon it was an efficacious love charm; while during the moon's
waning it would enable its wearer to foretell future events. If there
is any basis in fact for this belief, it should be the favourite gem of
tipsters of the race tracks and stock market.
A
sort of cousin-german of the moonstone is the sunstone, which however
is a far less important luminary in the firmament of gems. Although
various minerals may be termed " moonstones," the true moonstone is the
opalescent variety of orthoclase-feldspar, also bearing other names,
but usually identified by the name adularia—a name which it derives
from Mount Adula, one of the highest peaks of St. Gothard in the Alps,
where it is found. The Greeks called it Aphroseline, signifying the splendour of the moon. The Romans called it Lunaris. A
transparent, fibrous, lustrous gypsum, found in England, selenite,
which derives its name from its soft lustre, suggestive of moonshine,
and literally signifying " moonstone," may be merely mentioned here,
but this soft substance is. entitled to no place in a list of even the
semi-precious stones.
