gems, jade, amphibole jade, nephrite, New Zealand, punamu, Maori, Fischer

Peschel discusses Māori manufactures displayed at the General Exhibition in Auckland, New Zealand, describing traditional objects and the materials and techniques employed in their production. Particular attention is given to pounamu (greenstone or nephrite), highly valued by Māori and fashioned into weapons, tools, and personal ornaments, including mere and hei-tiki. He comments on the considerable labor required to cut, grind, drill, and polish this exceptionally tough material with traditional methods and on the value attached to finished objects. The article places these objects within a broader survey of Māori craftsmanship and material culture, providing a contemporary nineteenth-century European account of Māori nephrite working and the cultural importance of pounamu.

gems, jade, Fischer-Book, nephrite analysis from Swiss pile dwellings

Nephrite analysis from Swiss pile dwellings.

gems, jade, Fischer-Book

Galles reports the excavation of the large Neolithic tumulus of Le Moustoir near Carnac, Brittany, undertaken to compare its structure and contents with those of other megalithic monuments in the Morbihan, particularly Mané-Lud. He describes the tumulus, its associated dolmen and menhirs, the successive stages of excavation, internal stone structures, chambers, hearths, and deposits encountered, together with human and animal remains and archaeological objects. Finds included pottery and polished-stone objects, among them a small axe-shaped pendant, as well as a serpentine object and a variscite bead. Galles emphasizes careful recording of the excavation rather than speculative interpretation, regarding the monument as further evidence for understanding the construction and funerary practices represented by the great tumuli of the Carnac region.

gems, jade, Fischer-Book

Bonstetten presents a comparative study of dolmens and other megalithic tombs, examining their construction, geographical distribution, archaeological contents, and possible cultural relationships across Europe and North Africa. He classifies different forms of dolmen and draws upon excavated examples from France, Switzerland, Germany, Scandinavia, Britain, Algeria, and elsewhere, illustrating the monuments and associated artifacts with woodcuts, five lithographic plates, and a large colored map showing their distribution. Of particular relevance to jade and prehistoric lapidary studies are the polished stone axes, beads, and other objects recovered from megalithic burials, including artifacts made from distinctive green stones; one illustrated assemblage, for example, includes serpentine beads from a dolmen in Morbihan. The work belongs to the formative period of prehistoric archaeology, when scholars were beginning to compare megalithic monuments and their stone artifacts systematically across large geographical areas. Although some of Bonstetten’s conclusions concerning the common origin and builders of dolmens are now obsolete, the volume remains useful for its documentation of nineteenth-century discoveries, artifact assemblages, and early attempts to understand the distribution and exchange of prehistoric stone materials.

gems, jade, amphibole jade, nephrite, Fischer-Book

Leonhard’s Briefwechsel. Mittheilungen an Professor G. Leonhard comprises correspondence and short communications submitted to Gustav Leonhard on contemporary mineralogical and geological subjects. Of particular interest is Heinrich Fischer’s communication on pp. 448–449 concerning nephrite and related materials. Fischer discusses the identification of supposed nephrite specimens and the problem of distinguishing true nephrite from macroscopically similar stones, referring to material that he regarded as “pseudonephrite.” The note forms part of Fischer’s broader investigations into jade and jade-like substances and illustrates the increasing mid-nineteenth-century application of mineralogical criteria to materials that had previously been grouped together largely on the basis of appearance, toughness, and traditional use.

gems, jade, Fischer-Book, New Zealand

An important, early, and well-illustrated account of the geology and palaeontology of New Zealand. The second part with contributions by Moriz Hörnes, Franz Ritter von Hauer (both listed as co-editors), Franz Unger (on fossil plants), Karl von Zittel (Mesozoic and Tertiary Mollusca and Echinodermata, with additional contributions by Eduard Suess and Von Hauer), Tertiary Foraminifera by Felix Karrer, fossil Bryozoa by Ferdinand Stoliczka, more Tertiary Foramanifera by Guido Stache, and the skull of the extinct Moa, Palapteryx by Gustav Jaeger. All papers well-illustrated, and - except the last paper - including descriptions of many new species.

gems, jade, Fischer-Book

Del Castillo provides a concise catalogue of the mineral species and varieties then known to occur in Mexico, assembling information on their identification and geographical distribution from specimens, earlier literature, and contemporary mineralogical investigations. Despite its brevity, the work represents an early attempt to inventory Mexico’s mineral resources according to systematic mineralogical nomenclature rather than merely their economic uses. Of gemological interest are occurrences of precious and ornamental materials among the minerals listed, providing evidence for the state of knowledge of Mexican gem and lapidary resources in the mid-nineteenth century. The catalogue is an early contribution by Antonio del Castillo, who later became one of Mexico’s leading geologists and mineralogists, and is useful for tracing the development of systematic mineralogy and mineral-resource documentation in Mexico.

gems, jade, Fischer-Book

Rose’s Aristoteles Pseudepigraphus is a critical study and collection of works falsely or doubtfully attributed to Aristotle, examining the extensive pseudepigraphic tradition that developed around his name in antiquity and the Middle Ages. Drawing on Greek, Latin, Arabic, and other textual traditions, Rose identifies, describes, and compares writings on natural philosophy, medicine, astrology, magic, alchemy, physiognomy, and related subjects that circulated under Aristotle’s authority. Of particular relevance to the history of gems are the pseudo-Aristotelian lapidary traditions, in which precious stones are described according to their physical characteristics and supposed medicinal, magical, astrological, and talismanic powers. The work is especially useful for tracing the textual history and attribution of the influential Lapidary of Aristotle and related works transmitted through Arabic and medieval European literature. Rather than a work by Aristotle, the volume is Victor Rose’s nineteenth-century scholarly investigation of the large body of pseudonymous literature associated with his name.

gems, jade, Fischer-Book, New Zealand

Hochstetter and Petermann’s atlas presents an early systematic cartographic synthesis of the geology and physical geography of New Zealand, based principally on Ferdinand von Hochstetter’s geological investigations during the Austrian Novara expedition and supplemented by contemporary geographical information. Its maps depict geological formations, topography, volcanic districts, mineral occurrences, and other physical features, accompanied by explanatory text. Of particular relevance to jade studies is its treatment of the geology and mineral resources of the South Island and the regions associated with Māori pounamu or greenstone. The atlas helped place New Zealand nephrite occurrences within a geological and geographical framework and provided European researchers with important information for discussions of the origin and distribution of pounamu. It is a significant early contribution to New Zealand geological cartography and to nineteenth-century attempts to relate indigenous greenstone sources to regional geology.

gems, jade, Fischer-Book

Fischer discusses methods for testing minerals for the presence of water, particularly the water released when specimens are heated. He considers the practical difficulties of distinguishing structurally or chemically bound water from moisture and describes procedures for detecting the small quantities evolved from mineral samples. The note reflects the increasing importance of chemical and blowpipe tests in nineteenth-century mineral identification and analysis. Of relevance to gemology and Fischer’s later research on jade and prehistoric stone implements, determination of water content provided an additional means of characterizing minerals and distinguishing superficially similar substances. The paper is a brief contribution to analytical mineralogy rather than a study devoted specifically to gemstones.