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VIII.
Royal Commentaries•
.
I
•
CH AP.
XXIII.
Of the Emeralds, Torquoifes, and Pearls of
that
Coun·
trey.
·T
HE pretious Stones found
in
Peru,
in
the time
of
the
lnca1,
were Torquoi
fes,
Em~ralds,
and
CryO:al
of
th~
finefi:
fort,
though
t~ey
were not
~c
quainted with the
manner
how. to 'York: it_: the
Em~ra~ds_
grow
m
the M.o?nrams
of the Province of
Manta,
which 1s w1thm the Jurifd1thon of
Puerto
P'te;o;
but
yet the
Spttniard.r
have not been able, with all their endeavours, ro find out the
quarry of them, which is the reafon that they are fo fcarce and rare ; Cuch
o(
them as are found, are the bell: of that kind in
all
Peru :
Howfoever from that,
and other parts of the
weft-Jndie.r,
they have brought fuch great quantities ef
them into
Spain,
as have made them cheap, and difefteemed : howfoever the
E–
tneralds from other parts are not to be compared with thofe of
Puerto
Piejo;
rthe
which grow
in
their Qg_arries, and take their tincture from the nature of the Soil
from whence they are produced , ripening there with time, like fruit
in
their pro!
per feafons: The Emerald, when
it
firfi
begins, is of a paliH1 white?
parta~
of
a
grey colour mixed with
a
green; then as it grows ripe, or towards
its
perfection,
it
takes
at one end a tineture of green , perhaps at thar end
firfr
whicn points to–
wards the Eafi, after which that pleafant colour difperfes
it
felf over all theSr.one;
fo that as the Stone
is
when it comes from its Qiarry,
fo
it remains for everfllfter.
I
faw
in
Coz..co,
amongfi many Emeralds, two efpecially of fmgular note, ·being
of a perfeet round iliape, as big as ordinary Nuts, and bored through the mi8dle
~
one of thefe Stones was complete, and in all parts perfeet ; the other in the
mid–
dle, and at one of the corners, was perfett, and extremely beautiful1 ; the other
two parts, or corners, were not
fo
pleafing, being not come to their
full
beauty and
perfeetion, howfoever were not much
iliorc
of the befi; but the other whid1
was
oppolite
to
ir; \Vas
foul, and little worth, having received but a faint green, and
fuch as appeared worfe, by the beautifull lqfire of the others,
fo
that
it
feemed
a
piece of green
glafs
joyned co the Emerald. Wherefore _the Mafier of that
Stone
cut off that
part
from
the other,
for
which he
was
much blamed by curious
and inquifitive
Men;
who were of opinion, that
for
proof and evidence, chat the
Emerald grows by degrees to perfeetion
in
the Qg_arry ; he ought to have permit..
ted them to remain together ; and that the curiobty of the thing would have been
more valuable than the Stone
it
fe1£
I.
then being
a
Boy,
they gave me that part
which was cut off to
play
with, which
I fiill
keep, not being of any value.
The Torq_uoife is
a
Scone of
a
blew colour, fome of them of a more deep
azure, and finer than the others, but not
fo
much efi:eemed by the
Indians
as
the
Etnerald.
Pearls were not much ufed or worn in
Peru,
though they had a knowledge of
them: the reafon was, becaufe the
IncM,
who were always more tender of the
wel–
fare and fafecy of their people, than of their improvemencs in that which we call
Riches, forbad chem to expofe themfelves to that danger which
is
required
in
f!!hing for Pearls,
which
dierefore were not
in
ufe amongfi them. Since that
~me
they are become
fo
common, that
Acoffa
reports thus of them, which words
we £hall rehearfe
verbatim~
"
Since we have undertaken (faith he) to treat of the
::
pr~cipal
Riches,
which are brought from the
Indies,
we
mnfr
not omit Pearls,
cc
wh1di the Ancients called
Margarite.r;
the value of which were at firfi
[o
great,
" that they were efteemed Jewels
fit
and worthy onely for Princes and Royal Per-
fons : but now they are become
fo
common, chat even
Neger
Women wear
:: Strings of them. Then afterwards
in
another part ofthis Chapter, he proceeds,
ct
and fays, That Pearls are.
f~mnd
in diyers parts of the
Indies;
but the place;
,, where tl;ey abound mofi,
1S
m the South-Sea, about
Panttma,
where rhofe Illands
... are,
which
are
called
the
Pearl-IO.ands :
buc the heft and greateft quantity is
found