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Superstitions: Leonardus

With regard to the indestructibility of the diamond, Ben Mansur tells us that one laid upon an anvil, instead of breaking, is drawn into the anvil, so that the only plan of reducing it is to wrap it in lead, "which is fabulous," says Leonardus, "for I have seen many broke with a blow of the hammer." Boethius de Boot, speaking of precious stones as "the abode of angels," states that the diamond is not only proof against fire, but actually improves by exposure to its action for several days!

In ages succeeding those of the Greek and Roman philosophers, superstitious notions regarding precious stones were current. Chemical science was wanting to explain in its simple and natural way many perplexities and uncertainties. We find St. Jerome gravely writing that the sapphire conciliates to its wearer the condescension of princes, quells his enemies, disperses sorcery, sets free the captive, and even assuages the wrath of God Himself! This was no transient fancy or superstition of an individual writer, rather it formed part of a system handed on from age to age with undiminished vitality, as may be seen from reading the work on precious stones by Bishop Marboeuf, of Rennes, in the eleventh century, when he versified their talismanic efficacy. Among whole pages of similarly astounding nonsense, he gravely asserts that the heliotrope endows its bearer with the gift of prophecy, and is an immunity from poison, besides, with requisite ceremonies, rendering him invisible. The mysterious virtues ascribed to precious stones are mentioned in the annals of Richard I., who, in 1191, took the island of Cyprus, and is said to have found the castle filled with rich furniture of gold and silver--"Necnon lapidibus pretiosus, et plurimum virtutem habentibus." Camillus Leonardus, whom I have several times quoted, a physician of Pisaro, in Italy, wrote "The Mirror of Stones" (1502), dedicated to Caesar Borgia, his patron, and treating upon the virtues of jewels, remarks: "Whatever can be thought of as beneficial to mankind may be confirmed to them by the virtue of stones. Yet this is to be noted that in precious stones there is sometimes one virtue, sometimes two, sometimes three, and sometimes many, and that these virtues are not caused by the beauty of the stone, since some of them are most unsightly, and yet have a great virtue, and sometimes the most beautiful have none at all, and, therefore, we may safely conclude, with the most famous doctors, that there are virtues in stones, as well as in other things, but how this is effected is variously controverted."