Chaps. 32-44.

Chap. 32.—Chalcanthum, or Shoemakers’ Black: Sixteen Remedies.

The Greeks, by the name [Χαλκοῦ ἄνθος. “Flower of copper.”—B.] which they have given to it, have indicated the relation between shoemakers’ black [“Atramentum sutorium.” It was thus called from its being used for colouring leather. Under this name he probably includes green vitriol, or sulphate of the protoxide of iron, and blue vitriol, or sulphate, and hydro-trisulphate of copper, the former of which is, properly, our copperas. See Beckmann, Hist. Inv. Vol. I. p. 181, et seq. Bohn’s Edition. See also Note above.] and copper; for they call it “chalcanthum.” [In reality, the “chalcanthum” of Dioscorides was the small scales separated from molten copper by the application of water. See Chapters and above.] Indeed there is no substance [Of this kind, probably. See Beckmann, Hist. Inv. Vol. I. p. 182.] so singular in its nature. It is prepared in Spain, from the water of wells or pits which contain it in dissolution. This water is boiled with an equal quantity of pure water, and is then poured into large wooden reservoirs. Across these reservoirs there are a number of immovable beams, to which cords are fastened, and then sunk into the water beneath by means of stones; upon which, a slimy sediment attaches itself to the cords, in drops of a vitreous [From this vitreous appearance of the crystals of vitriol, it is most probable that vitriol derives its name. See Beckmann, Vol. I. p. 184.] appearance, somewhat resembling a bunch of grapes. Upon being removed, it is dried for thirty days. It is of an azure colour, and of a brilliant lustre, and is often taken for glass. When dissolved, it forms the black dye that is used for colouring leather.

Chalcanthum is also prepared in various other ways: the earth which contains it being sometimes excavated into trenches, from the sides of which globules exude, which become concrete when exposed to the action of the winter frosts. This kind is called “stalagmia,” [“Drop,” or “globule” chalcanthum.] and there is none more pure. When its colour is nearly white, with a slight tinge of violet, it is called “lonchoton.” [Possibly a corruption of “leucoion,” “violet white.”] It is also prepared in pans hollowed out in the rocks; the rain water carrying the slime into them, where it settles and becomes hardened. It is also formed in the same way in which we prepare salt; [He has described the mode of procuring salt, by evaporating the brine in shallow pits, in B. xxxi. c. 39.—B.] the intense heat of the sun separating the fresh water from it. Hence it is that some distinguish two kinds of chalcanthum, the fossil and the artificial; the latter being paler than the former, and as much inferior to it in quality as it is in colour.

The chalcitis which comes from Cyprus is the most highly esteemed for the purposes of medicine, being taken in doses of one drachma with honey, as an expellent of intestinal worms. Diluted and injected into the nostrils, it acts detergently upon the brain, and, taken with honey or with hydromel, it acts as a purgative upon the stomach. It removes granulations upon the eye-lids, and is good for pains and films upon the eyes; it is curative also of ulcerations of the mouth. It arrests bleeding at the nostrils, and hæmorrhoidal discharges. In combination with seed of hyoscyamus, it brings away splinters of broken bones. Applied to the forehead with a sponge, it acts as a check upon defluxions of the eyes. Made up into plasters, it is very efficacious as a detergent for sores and fleshy excrescences in ulcers. The decoction of it, by the contact solely, is curative of swellings of the uvula. It is laid with linseed upon plasters which are used for relieving pains. The whitish kind is preferred to the violet in one instance only, for the purpose of being blown into the ears, through a tube, to relieve deafness. Applied topically by itself, it heals wounds; but it leaves a discoloration upon the scars. It has been lately discovered, that if it is sprinkled upon the mouths of bears and lions in the arena, its astringent action is so powerful as to deprive the animals of the power of biting.

Chap. 33. (13.)—Pompholyx.

The substances called pompholyx [It is difficult to ascertain the exact nature of the substances treated of in this Chapter. Ajasson has some judicious remarks upon them, in which he points out what appear to be inconsistencies in the account given of them, and of their relation to each other.—B. Ajasson says that there is no doubt that a mammose or terreous carbonate of copper is meant under these names. These substances are no longer known, but our tutty, or impure oxide of zinc, bears some resemblance to them.] and spodos [See B. xix. c. 4, and Chapters and of this Book.] are also found in the furnaces of copper-smelting works; the difference between them being, that pompholyx is disengaged by washing, while spodos is not washed. Some persons have called the part which is white and very light “pompholyx,” and say that it is the ashes of copper and cadmia; whereas spodos is darker and heavier, being a substance scraped from the walls of the furnace, mixed with extinguished sparks from the metal, and sometimes with the residue of coals. When vinegar is combined with it, pompholyx emits a coppery smell, and if it is touched with the tongue, the taste is most abominable. It is useful as an ingredient in ophthalmic preparations for all diseases of the eyes, as also for all the purposes for which spodos is used; this last only differing from it in its action being less powerful. It is also used for plasters, when required to be gently cooling and desiccative. For all these purposes it is more efficacious when it has been moistened with wine.

Chap. 34.—Spodos: Five Remedies.

The Cyprian spodos [A Greek word, signifying “ashes,” or the residuum after combustion.—B.] is the best. It is formed by fusing cadmia with copper ore. This substance, which is the lightest part of the metal disengaged by fusion, escapes from the furnace, and adheres to the roof, being distinguished from the soot by the whiteness of its colour. Such parts of it as are less white are indicative of incomplete combustion, and it is this which some persons call “pompholyx.” Such portions of it as are of a more reddish colour are possessed of a more energetic power, and are found to be so corrosive, that if it touches the eyes, while being washed, it will cause blindness. There is also a spodos of a honey colour, an indication that it contains a large proportion of copper. All the different kinds, however, are improved by washing; it being first skimmed with a feather, [From the corresponding passage in Dioscorides, there is some doubt whether the account of this process here given is correct.—B.] and afterwards submitted to a more substantial washing, the harder grains being removed with the finger. That, too, which has been washed with wine is more modified in its effects; there being also some difference according to the kind of wine that is used. When it has been washed with weak wine the spodos is considered not so beneficial as an ingredient in medicaments for the eyes; but the same kind of preparation is more efficacious for running sores, and for ulcers of the mouth attended with a discharge of matter, as well as in all those remedies which are used for gangrene.

There is also a kind of spodos, called “lauriotis,” [So called from Laurium, a district in Attica, in which there were silver mines. See Pausanias, B. i.—B.] which is made in the furnaces where silver is smelted. The kind, however, that is best for the eyes, it is said, is that produced in the furnaces for smelting gold. Indeed there is no department of art in which the ingenuity of man is more to be admired; for it has discovered among the very commonest objects, a substance that is in every way possessed of similar properties.

Chap. 35.—Fifteen Varieties of Antispodos.

The substance called “antispodos” [Meaning “Substitute for spodos.”] is produced from the ashes of the fig-tree or wild fig, or of leaves of myrtle, together with the more tender shoots of the branches. The leaves, too, of the wild olive [See B. xxiii. cc. 38, 63.] furnish it, the cultivated olive, the quince-tree, and the lentisk; unripe mulberries also, before they have changed their colour, dried in the sun; and the foliage of the box, pseudo-cypirus, [See B. xxi. c. 26, and B. xvi. c. 20.] bramble, terebinth and œnanthe. [See B. xxi. c. 95.] The same virtues have also been found in the ashes of bull-glue [See B. xi. c. 94.—B.] and of linen cloth. All these substances are burnt in a pot of raw earth, which is heated in a furnace, until the earthenware is thoroughly baked.

Chap. 36.—Smegma.

In the copper forges also smegma [“Detersive composition.”] is prepared. When the metal is liquefied and thoroughly smelted, charcoal is added to it and gradually kindled; after which, upon it being suddenly acted upon by a powerful pair of bellows, a substance is disengaged like a sort of copper chaff. The floor on which it is received ought to be prepared with a stratum of coal-dust.

Chap. 37.—Diphryx.

There is another product of these furnaces, which is easily distinguished from smegma, and which the Greeks call “diphryx,” [From Δὶς φρυγέσθαι.—“being twice calcined.”—B.] from its being twice calcined. This substance is prepared from three different sources. It is prepared, they say, from a mineral pyrites, which is heated in the furnace until it is converted by calcination into a red earth. It is also made in Cyprus, from a slimy substance extracted from a certain cavern there, which is first dried and then gradually heated, by a fire made of twigs. A third way of making it, is from the residue in the copper-furnaces that falls to the bottom. The difference between the component parts of the ore is this: the copper itself runs into the receivers, the scoriæ make their escape from the furnace, the flower becomes sublimated, and the diphryx remains behind.

Some say that there are certain globules in the ore, while being smelted, which become soldered together; and that the rest of the metal is fused around it, the mass itself not becoming liquefied, unless it is transferred to another furnace, and forming a sort of knot, as it were, in the metal. That which remains after the fusion, they say, is called “diphryx.” Its use in medicine is similar to that of the substances mentioned above; [The Scoriæ, Cadmia, and Flos, which are described in Chapters, and.—B.] it is desiccative, removes morbid excrescenses, and acts as a detergent. It is tested by placing it on the tongue, which ought to be instantly parched by it, a coppery flavour being perceptible.

Chap. 38.—Particulars Relative to the Servilian Triens.

We must not neglect to mention one other very remarkable fact relative to copper. The Servilian family, so illustrious in our annals, nourishes with gold and silver a copper triens, [A Roman coin, equal to the third part of the “as.”—B.] which devours them both. The origin and nature of this coin is to me incomprehensible; [We most fully coincide with Pliny in this sentiment, but we are constrained to differ from him in giving credit to the alleged fact, as he appears to have done.—B.] but I will quote the very words of the story, as given by old Messala [See the list of authors at the end of this.] himself—“The family of the Servilii is in possession of a sacred triens, to which they offer every year a sacrifice, with the greatest care and magnificence; the triens itself, they say, appears sometimes to increase in size and sometimes to diminish; changes which indicate the coming advancement or decadence of the family.”

Chap. 39 (14).—Iron Ores.

Next to copper we must give an account of the metal known as iron, at the same time the most useful and the most fatal instrument in the hand of mankind. For by the aid of iron we lay open the ground, we plant trees, we prepare our vineyard-trees, [“Arbusta:” trees on which vines were trained. See B. xvii. c. 35.] and we force our vines each year to resume their youthful state, by cutting away their decayed branches. It is by the aid of iron that we construct houses, cleave rocks, and perform so many other useful offices of life. But it is with iron also that wars, murders, and robberies are effected, and this, not only hand to hand, but from a distance even, by the aid of missiles and winged weapons, now launched from engines, now hurled by the human arm, and now furnished with feathery wings. This last I regard as the most criminal artifice that has been devised by the human mind; for, as if to bring death upon man with still greater rapidity, we have given wings to iron and taught it to fly. [Holland has the following Note upon this passage: “O Pliny, what wouldst thou say, if thou didst see and hear the pistols, muskets, culverines, and cannons in these days.” Vol. II. p. 513.—B.] Let us therefore acquit Nature of a charge that here belongs to man himself. [The charge that death is always the work of Nature.—B.]

Indeed there have been some instances in which it has been proved that iron might be solely used for innocent purposes. In the treaty which Porsena granted to the Roman people, after the expulsion of the kings, we find it expressly stipulated, that iron shall be only employed for the cultivation of the fields; and our oldest authors inform us, that in those days it was considered unsafe to write with an iron pen. [Or “stylus.”] There is an edict extant, published in the third consulship of Pompeius Magnus, during the tumults that ensued upon the death of Clodius, prohibiting any weapon from being retained in the City.

Chap. 40.—Statues of Iron; Chased Works in Iron.

Still, however, human industry has not failed to employ iron for perpetuating the honours of more civilized life. The artist Aristonidas, wishing to express the fury of Athamas subsiding into repentance, after he had thrown his son Learchus from the rock, [See Ovid, Metam. B. iv. l. 467, et seq.; and Fasti, B. vi. l. 489, et seq. —B.] blended copper and iron, in order that the blush of shame might be more exactly expressed, by the rust of the iron making its appearance through the shining substance of the copper; a statue which still exists at Rhodes. There is also, in the same city, a Hercules of iron, executed by Alcon, [An artist mentioned also by Ovid and Pausanias.—B. And by Virgil.] the endurance displayed in his labours by the god having suggested the idea. We see too, at Rome, cups of iron consecrated in the Temple of Mars the Avenger. [“Mars Ultor.” In the Forum of Augustus, in the Eighth Region of the City.] Nature, in conformity with her usual benevolence, has limited the power of iron, by inflicting upon it the punishment of rust; and has thus displayed her usual foresight in rendering nothing in existence more perishable, than the substance which brings the greatest dangers upon perishable mortality.

Chap. 41.—The Different Kinds of Iron, and the Mode of Tempering It.

Iron ores are to be found almost everywhere; for they exist even in the Italian island of Ilva, [The Isle of Elba, which has been celebrated for the extent and the richness of its iron mines both by the ancients and the moderns.—B. Ajasson remarks that it appears to be a solid rock composed of peroxide of iron.] being easily distinguished by the ferruginous colour of the earth. The method of working the ore is the same as that employed in the case of copper. In Cappadocia, however, it is peculiarly questionable whether this metal is present due to the water or to the earth; because, when the latter has been saturated with the water of a certain river, it yields, and then only, an iron that may be obtained by smelting.

There are numerous varieties of iron ore; the chief causes of which arise from differences in the soil and in the climate. Some earths produce a metal that is soft, and nearly akin to lead; others an iron that is brittle and coppery, the use of which must be particularly avoided in making wheels or nails, the former kind being better for these purposes. There is another kind, again, which is only esteemed when cut into short lengths, and is used for making hobnails; [“Clavis caligariis.” See B. viii. c. 44, B. ix. c. 33, and B. xxii. c. 46.] and another which is more particularly liable to rust. All these varieties are known by the name of “strictura,” [There have been numerous opinions on the meaning of this word, and its signification is very doubtful. Beckmann has the following remarks in reference to this passage:—“In my opinion, this was the name given to pieces of steel completely manufactured and brought to that state which rendered them fit for commerce. At present steel comes from Biscay in cakes, from other places in bars, and both these were formerly called ‘stricturæ,’ because they were employed chiefly for giving sharpness to instruments, or tools, that is, for steeling them. In speaking of other metals, Pliny says that the finished productions at the works were not called ‘stricturæ’ (the case, for example, with copper), though sharpness could be given to instruments with other metals also. The words of Pliny just quoted are read different ways, and still remain obscure. I conjecture that he meant to say, that some steel-works produced things which were entirely of steel, and that others were employed only in steeling—‘ad densandas incudes malleorumve rostra.’ I shall here remark that these ‘stricturæ ferri’ remind us of the ‘striges auri,’ (see B. xxxiii. c.), such being the name given to native pieces of gold, which, without being smelted, were used in commerce.”—Hist. Inv. Vol. II. p. 327. Bohn’s Edition.] an appellation which is not used with reference to the other metals, and is derived from the steel that is used for giving an edge. [“A stringendâ acie.” The iron was probably formed into thin, long bars, in thickness resembling a steel used for sharpening. The French word acier, meaning “steel,” may possibly come from the Latin “acies”—“edge,” as Beckmann has suggested.] There is a great difference, too, in the smelting; some kinds producing knurrs of metal, which are especially adapted for hardening into steel, or else, prepared in another manner, for making thick anvils or heads of hammers. But the main difference results from the quality of the water into which the red-hot metal is plunged from time to time. The water, which is in some places better for this purpose than in others, has quite ennobled some localities for the excellence of their iron, Bilbilis, [Situate at the spot now known as “Bambola,” near Calatayud. The river Salo ran near it, the waters of which, as here mentioned, were celebrated for their power of tempering steel. The poet Martial was a native of this place.] for example, and Turiasso [Supposed to be the modern Tarragona.] in Spain, and Comum [See B. iii. c. 21.] in Italy; and this, although there are no iron mines in these spots.

But of all the different kinds of iron, the palm of excellence is awarded to that which is made by the Seres, [See B. vi. cc. 20-24, B. vii. c. 2, and B. xii. cc. 1, 41. This Seric iron has not been identified. Ctesias, as quoted by Photius, mentions Indian iron. Sec Beckmann, Vol. II. p. 228. Bohn’s Edition.] who send it to us with their tissues and skins; [Thought by Beckmann, quoting from Bottiger, possibly to bear reference to a transfer trade of furs, through Serica, from the North of Asia. See Vol. II. p. 307. As to the Seric tissues, see B. xxxvii. c..] next to which, in quality, is the Parthian [Or “Persian.” The steel of Damascus had in the middle ages a high reputation.] iron. Indeed, none of the other kinds of iron are made of the pure hard metal, a softer alloy being welded with them all. In our part of the world, a vein of ore is occasionally found to yield a metal of this high quality, as in Noricum [See B. iii. cc. 24, 27. Horace speaks of the “Norican sword” on two occasions.—B.] for instance; but, in other cases, it derives its value from the mode of working it, as at Sulmo, [See B. iii. cc. 9, 17.] for example, a result owing to the nature of its water, as already stated. It is to be observed also, that in giving an edge to iron, there is a great difference between oil-whetstones and water-whetstones, [See B. xviii. c. 67, and B. xxxvi. c..] the use of oil producing a much finer edge. It is a remarkable fact, that when the ore is fused, the metal becomes liquefied like water, and afterwards acquires a spongy, brittle texture. It is the practice to quench smaller articles made of iron with oil, lest by being hardened in water they should be rendered brittle. Human blood revenges itself upon iron; for if the metal has been once touched by this blood it is much more apt to become rusty.

Chap. 42.—The Metal Called Live Iron.

We shall speak of the loadstone in its proper place, [B. xxxvi. c..] and of the sympathy which it has with iron. This is the only metal that acquires the properties of that stone, retaining them for a length of time, and attracting other iron, so that we may sometimes see a whole chain formed of these rings. The lower classes, in their ignorance, call this “live iron,” and the wounds that are made by it are much more severe. This mineral is also found in Cantabria, not in continuous strata, like the genuine loadstone, but in scattered fragments, which they call “bullationes.” [Properly “bubbles,” or “beads.”] I do not know whether this species of ore is proper also for the fusion of glass, [See B. xxxvi. c.. In the account of the loadstone referred to above, he informs us that this mineral was employed in the formation of glass.—B. Beckmann is of opinion that Manganese is here alluded to. See Vol. II. p. 237.] as no one has hitherto tried it; but it certainly imparts the same property as the magnet to iron. The architect Timochares, [Another reading is “Dinochares,” or “Dinocrates,” for an account of whom, see B. v. c. 11, and B. vii. c. 38.] began to erect a vaulted roof of loadstone, in the Temple of Arsinoë, [Wife and sister of Ptolemy Philadelphus. See B. vi. c. 33, and B. xxxvi. c..] at Alexandria, in order that the iron statue of that princess might have the appearance of hanging suspended in the air: [Some accounts state that the statue was to be of brass, and the head of iron. It is said that the same thing was attempted with respect to the statue of Mahomet, in his tomb at Medina.—B.] his death, however, and that of King Ptolemæus, who had ordered this monument to be erected in honour of his sister, prevented the completion of the project.

Chap. 43. (15.)—Methods Oe Preventing Rust.

Of all metals, the ores of iron are found in the greatest abundance. In the maritime parts of Cantabria [We learn from Bowles that the celebrated mine of Sommorostro is still worked for this metal.] which are washed by the Ocean, there is a steep and lofty mountain, which, however incredible it may appear, is entirely composed of this metal, as already stated in our description of the parts bordering upon the Ocean. [See B. iv. c. 34.—B.]

Iron which has been acted upon by fire is spoiled, unless it is forged with the hammer. It is not in a fit state for being hammered when it is red-hot, nor, indeed, until it has begun to assume a white heat. By sprinkling vinegar or alum upon it, it acquires the appearance of copper. It is protected from rust by an application of ceruse, gypsum, and tar; a property of iron known by the Greeks as “antipathia.” [Both the reading and the meaning of this passage are very doubtful.] Some pretend, too, that this may be ensured by the performance of certain religious ceremonies, and that there is in existence at the city of Zeugma, [See B. v. c. 21.—B.] upon the Euphrates, an iron chain, by means of which Alexander the Great constructed a bridge across the river; the links of which that have been replaced are attacked with rust, while the original links are totally exempt from it. [We may presume that Pliny supposed that the ancient links had been protected by some of the substances mentioned above, although this is not distinctly stated.—B. Or rather by some religious ceremony as above alluded to.]

Chap. 44.—Seven Remedies Derived from Iron.

Iron is employed in medicine for other purposes besides that of making incisions. For if a circle is traced with iron, or a pointed weapon is carried three times round them, it will preserve both infant and adult from all noxious influences: if nails, too, that have been extracted from a tomb, are driven into the threshold of a door, they will prevent night-mare. [“Nocturnas lymphationes.”—B.] A slight puncture with the point of a weapon, with which a man has been wounded, will relieve sudden pains, attended with stitches in the sides or chest. Some affections are cured by cauterization with red-hot iron, the bite of the mad dog more particularly; for even if the malady has been fully developed, and hydrophobia has made its appearance, the patient is instantly relieved on the wound being cauterized. [The actual cautery, as it is termed, is occasionally employed, in certain diseases, by the moderns, but I am not aware that it has been tried in hydrophobia.—B. This precaution is sometimes used by country practitioners, at all events.] Water in which iron has been plunged at a white heat, is useful, as a potion, in many diseases, dysentery [I cannot agree with Delafosse in his remark that “this remedy also is much in use for cœliac and other affections at the present day.”—B. It is still recommended by old women in the country, for children more particularly.] more particularly.