CHAP. 61.—IDÆI DACTYLI. ICTERIAS. JOVIS GEMMA. INDICA.
ION.
The stones called Idæi dactyli, [Note] and found in Crete, are of
an iron colour, and resemble the human thumb in shape. The
colour of icterias [Note] resembles that of livid skin, and hence it
is that it has been thought so excellent a remedy for jaundice.
There is also another stone of this name, of a still more livid
colour; while a third has all the appearance of a leaf. This
last is broader than the others, almost imponderous, and streaked
with livid veins. A fourth kind again is of the same colour,
but blacker, and marked all over with livid veins. Jovis
gemma [Note] is a white stone, very light, and soft: another name
given to it is "drosolithos." [Note] Indica [Note] retains the name of
the country that produces it: it is a stone of a reddish colour,
and yields a purple liquid [Note] when rubbed. There is another
stone also of this name, white, and of a dusty appearance.
Ion [Note] is an Indian stone, of a violet tint: it is but rarely,
however, that it is found of a deep, full, colour.
