Jauhari
This article is an extract from
THE TRIBES and CASTES of BENGAL. Ethnographic Glossary. Printed at the Bengal Secretariat Press. 1891. . |
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Jauhari
Dealers in precious stones may be either Muhammadans or Hindus, but the more eager purchasers are, as a rule, persons of the former creed. Many shopkeepers sell gems, but the Jauhari can alone distinguish the real from the spurious.
"'Ilm al-jawahir" is considered a distinct branch of oriental science, dealing with the qualities of gems, the art of distinguishing good from bad stones, and the knowledge of the virtues inherent in each.
According to oriental authorities, the most precious gems are nine in number,1 each representing a planet. Black is ascribed to Saturn, green to Jupiter, red to Mars, yellow to the sun, and white to the moon. The colour of gems either depend on the matrix in which they are found embedded, or on the direct influence of its particular planet. Transparent stones are supposed to be formed from drops of rain; opaque ones from water and earth, acted on by the sun and the internal heat of the mine (Hararat-i-ma'dan).
The "Nava-ratna," or nine gems, are the following:�
1. Manika, Yaqut, Lal. The ruby is regarded as the king of stones, and though found in Ceylon and Badakhshan, is said to be only genuine in Burmah. A large one exceeding six Ratis in weight is of priceless value; but should the slightest opacity, or flaw, be present, it is considered unlucky to wear it. A ruby, moreover, is believed to be a preservative against certain diseases, and a safe-guard against lightning.
The ruby mines of Badakhshan, which supplied the "Rubis balais" of the French, have been closed for many years.
1 The Vaijayanti, or necklace of Vishnu, is only set with five, namely, pearl, ruby, emerald, sapphire, and diamond. "Vishnu Purana," p. 158.
2. Mukta, Moti. Two varieties of pearls are distinguished, the Ceylon and Basra. According to oriental poets they are drops of venial rain congealed in oyster shells, and by the same fanciful conceit the origin of amber is ascribed to the tears of "sorrowing sea birds." Pearls found in the fresh water rivers of Bengal by the Bediyas as being of little value, are chiefly used in medicine. Tavernier mentions that at the court of Shah Jahan no person of quality ever appeared in public without wearing earrings having a pearl set between two coloured stones.
3. Hira, Vajra, Almas. Four varieties of diamonds are known in India, the white, red (Lal, Gulabi), yellow, and green, which, in accordance with the fanciful nomenclature in fashion are distinguished as Brahman, Kshatriya, Vaisya, and Sudra. The price of diamonds is estimated by their weight and cutting. The English brilliant is most valued, then the Dutch, Benares, "Takicha," and "Purab," or Eastern cutting, the two latter being ground according to the rough and faulty fashion peculiar to India. The value of a stone in native ideas is enhanced by being large and heavy, and the workmen think more of leaving the stone big than of unveiling its hidden beauties. A variety, from its hardness called "Kara," is spoken of as being so dark that no amount of polishing will brighten it. This is probably the "Carbonado," so much employed in boring rocks. Indian connoisseurs depreciate Cape diamonds as being dull and yellowish. A diamond with a pink or dark streak is considered by the natives of Hindustan as most unlucky.
4. Marakata, Harin-mani, Zummurud, Panna. The emerald is a very favourite stone with Muhammadans, being used to ornament sword hilts, scabbards, and gold cups. Tavernier1 asserts that it was unknown in India before the conquest of Peru in 1532 ; but he is undoubtedly wrong. In 1515, Andrea Corsali2 says, emeralds are in greater estimation in India than any other stone; Garcia de Orta,3 in 1563, mentions that Peruvian emeralds were then branded as spurious; and De Boot,4 in 1609, writes, that during the previous fifty years oriental emeralds had fallen in value, owing to the importation of specimens from the New World; but that the Oriental were really better and more perfect stones. Baldaeus,5 in the seventeenth century, describes three kinds of emeralds in India, the Scythian, Egyptian, and Peruvian, the first being most valued.
1 II, c. xvi.
2 "Ramusio," i, 180..
3 "Aromatum et simplicium , &c.," edition 1567, p. 190.
4 "Gemmarum et lapidum historia," p. 101.
5 "Churchill's Voyages," iii, 656.
Finally, Streeter1 describes the Indian emerald as of quite a different quality from those found in South America. Where the oriental emerald came from was unknown to De Orta and De Boot, but of late years the emerald mines of Egypt, mentioned by Pliny, have been described by M. Cailliaud.
The popular belief in Hindustan is, that the finest emeralds formed part of a cargo of a vessel wrecked on the west coast of India, belonging to Alexander the Great.
Many virtues have been, attributed to the emerald. Greeks and Arabs believed it to be an infallible preservative of chastity, and to facilitate-parturition. A dark coloured stone without flaws is, by Al Suyuti, and oriental nations generally, considered a safeguard against snake bites, and, being a surety against epilepsy, is recommended to be worn by the children of noble families. An emerald reduced to powder, and given in a draught, sures leprosy.
5. Indra-nila, Nilam, Nilmani, Cafir. The sapphire comes either from Burmah or Ceylon. In Europe it has always been considered to prevent evil and impure desires; in the East the owner, it is believed, will never become poor, but if it exhibits the slightest flaw he will certainly die suddenly.
6. Go-meda, Go-medaka. This is described as a red stone with a yellowish tinge, and is either an agate, or a topaz.
7. Lahsaniya, Chashmdar, 'Ain-ul-hirr. Indian jewellers distinguish three sorts of cat's eye, one with a yellow, a second with a pale green, and a third with a dark shade or streak. Should the gem possess one or more lines of lustre it becomes priceless, being venerated as a sacred stone. On approaching buried treasure the owner will find the stone leave its setting, and as long as he retains it his wealth will never diminish. It is a preservative against many diseases, and all forms of witchcraft. De Orta and Baldaeus preserve a superstition current in their day, to the effect that cloth rubbed with a cat's eye is rendered fireproof. The former believes in its truth, but the latter says, "I have found this contrary to truth by my own experience."
8. Prabala, Munga, Marjan. In India red coral is included among gems, being made into beads for necklaces, and into charms for armlets. Tavernier states that coral was used in the seventeenth century "by the meaner sort of people, all over Asia, more especially by the hillmen of Asam and Bhutan for bracelets and necklaces." At the present day, it is given by Hakims along with pearl powder to cure impotency, and by itself to correct bilious disorders.
9. Pitasman, Pukhraj, Topaz. The topaz was more valued in Europe in former days than it is now, but in the East it has always been a favourite gem being regarded by Muhammadans as the luckiest of stones, Muhammad is said to have worn one in a ring, which passed to his successors and ensured prosperity. The Khalifa Othman let it fall into a well, and this loss is believed to account for the tumults during his rule, and for his violent death. Confiding in the good fortune conferred by the stone, Aurangzib always wore one on state occasions, and Tavernier alludes to a topaz in his treasury which cost 18,000 pounds sterling.
These are the nine gems of the Hindus, but many other precious stones, being valued, are invested with preternatural virtues.
The Firizah, or turquoise, although cheap and common, is more frequently worn by Muhammadans than any other gem. The finest "Bashaqi," come from Nishapur in Khurasan, and Karman. If received as a gift the turquoise is believed to avert the evil eye, to be an antidote against poisons, to grow dim when the well-being of the giver is in danger, and to cure the stings of scorpions, as well as the bites of noxious animals. Another peculiarity attributed to it is that of becoming hazy when the sky is lowering or overcast.
Vaidurya, Lajaward, or lapis lazuli, is often substituted as one of the nine gems in place of the cat's eye. Mines of this stone still exist in Badakhshan, but, being lightly valued, is rarely seen in Bengal.
Jade, known in Persia as Sang-i-yashm, but more generally, throughout the East by its Turki name, "Kash," is not so much admired in Hindustan as in China and the Himalayas.
In India the grey, white, dark green, and red varieties are occasionally seen. The dark green was formerly most admired, and several drinking cups, belonging to Jahangir, are made of it. The different sorts are employed for ornamenting scabbards and the frames of mirrors. Trays, plaques, dagger and "Chaunri" handles, are often made of this mineral. When bows and arrows were in fashion, the ring worn to protect the thumb was generally formed of jade. Many superstitions virtues are attributed to jade in India, and no Zananah in Eastern Bengal is without a piece. Cups made of it are said to fly in pieces when poison is poured into them; a fragment is believed to protect the wearer against lightning; and when licked it allays palpitations of the heart. Jade is brought from the mines on the banks of the Karakash river in Khoten and Yarkand, which were visited by Goez in 1604, and by Shaw in 1868. The fragments found in the river bring three times the price of the quarried stone, which is injured by the fire used to splinter it. From Yarkand it is chiefly exported to China, and never reaches India in the raw state.1
Many of the poorer Muhammadans in Bengal wear either a carnelian ('Aqiq), or an agate2 (Sulaimani) ring, but a few fancy the moss agate, or Mocha stone ('Aqiq ul-bahr).
The carnelian is said to possess three properties; it calms a person excited by fear or passion; it stops haemorrhage, especially in females; and it cures bleeding from the gums, or scurvy. Al Tifashi distinguishes five kinds, red, flesh-coloured (Ratbi), blue, black, and white.
Amber, much admired in parts of India, is not valued in Dacca, but its electrical properties early attracted attention, and both its Sanskrit name, "Trina-grahin," and its Persian, "Kah-ruba," signify "straw drawing."
Amber is found on the eastern frontier along with lignite. Mines exist at Meinkhoon, north-east of Manipur, and the fossil finds a ready sale among the Singphos and Chinese.3
Many oriental works on gems have been written, which are still popular in the East, and at least two have been translated into European languages. The work of Ahmad ibn Yusuf ibn Muhammad Al-Tifashi (d. 1253), called "Azhar al-Afkar," was partially done into Latin by Sebald Rau in 1784, and into Italian by Antonio Raineri in 1818. A treatise by the famous Al-Suyuti (d. 1505) was translated by the Maronite, Abraham Ecchellensis, in 1647. An abstract of Al Kazwinis' (d. 1275) celebrated "'Ajaib al-Makhluqat," or Wonders of Creation, has also been published.4
Bengal jewellers, however, either follow the "Jawahir-sina," a work difficult to procure, or the "Jawahir-namah" of Muhammad bin Mancur, who lived in the thirteenth century. The latter, however, is a common title for books of gems, and one dedicated to Baber,5 and another published at Delhi, or Haidarabad, anonymously,6 are in use in India.
Gems are usually cut in India by Muhammadan Hakkaks; but always set by Hindu Karmakars.7
1 "Precious Stones and Gems," p. 151. 1 Regarding jade, more information is to be found in "Astley's Voyages." iv, 645; "Moorcroft's Travels," i, 375; Jule's "Cathay," i, 130; ii, 564; and Shaw's "Visit to High Tartary," p.474.
2 Aisha always wore an agate necklace.
3 "Journals of Travels," by William Griffith, i, 77.
4 "J.A.S. of Bengal," xiii, 632.
5 "J.A.S. of Bengal," i, 353.
6 "J.A.S. of Bengal," xxiii, 262.
7 In the "Institutes of Menu" (ix, 329), the Vaisya is directed to know the prices of gems, pearls, and metals.
