gems, bery, beryl, emerald, Pliny, history of gemology, etymology, Rome, Roman gemology

Pliny the Elder’s chapters on the smaragdus are so lacking in scientific detail that it is impossible to identify exactly the different minerals he includes under this term. Of the twelve varieties he mentions, the first is most probably the only one that ought properly to be translated as “emerald”: quantum smaragdi a gemmis distant, tantum Scythici a ceteris smaragdis. There are, however, two clues in the passage which, considered in light of information provided by other writers, help explain the broad application of the word smaragdus. The mineral in question may have been a hydrated carbonate found in many parts of the world, from Cornwall to Chile. Although its pleasing green color led to its use for ornamental purposes, its opacity excludes identification with at least some of the nine varieties associated by Pliny with copper (37.66): dos eorum est in colore liquido nec diluto, verum ex umido pingui quaque perspicitur.