Another little bit of Kunz’s “Curious Lore of Precious Stones“.
Hematite
Azchalias, as cited by Pliny… asserted that the hematite, when used as a talisman, procured for the wearer a favorable hearing of petitions addressed to kings and a fortunate issue of lawsuits and judgments. It is a red oxide of iron, which when abraded shows a red streak; whence the name hematite, from the Greek haima, “blood.” As an iron ore and hence associated with Mars, the god of war, this substance was also considered to be an invaluable help to the warrior on the field of battle if he rubbed his body with it. Probably, like the loadstone, it was believed to confer invulnerability.
Kunz mentions you can make red streaks with haematite, and its red is what gives ochre its colour, so it may have some connection to House Jerbiton for art, or House Tytalus, for the weird red chalk drawings they make on the floor for cthonic magic. I’d suggest Rego Mentem +3 and Blood +6. Haematite can be found in large volumes at nine sites in Mythic Europe, so it’s one of the easier semiprecious stones to find.
Jacinth
I’d never heard of jacinths before this, presumably because in Australia we call them zircons. They are sometimes called “hyacinths” in some older English works, but the stone meant by this is unclear: most of these hyacinths are sapphires, garnets, or, in the case of Compostella hyacinths, a sort of red quartz. The world’s largest supplier of zircons is Australia, so we’ve driven the word “hyacinth” almost to extinction. Kunz, who were are quoting voluminously in this series, was a huge fan of coloured zircon jewellery, and suggested they be sold as “starlite”. At the time colourless faux diamonds were often made of zircon, and so the name was associated with a less luxurious product than he wanted to sell (he was a buyer for Tiffany’s.) I’m not sure of a Mythic European source for them: I know they are found in Sri Lanka, and there are some gems that have travelled that far to reach Europe.
The jacinth was more especially recommended as an amulet for travellers, because of its reputed value as a protection against the plague and against wounds and injuries, the two classes of perils most feared by those who undertook long journeys. Moreover, this stone assured the wearer a cordial reception at any hostelry he visited. It was said to lose its brilliancy and grow pale and dull if the wearer or any one in his immediate neighborhood became ill of the plague. In addition to these qualities the jacinth augmented the riches of the owner, and endowed him with prudence in the conduct of his affairs.
St. Hildegard, the Abbess of Bingen (d. 1179), gives the following details as to the proper use of the jachant (jacinth): If any one is bewitched by phantoms or by magical spells, so that he has lost his wits, take a hot loaf of pure wheaten bread and cut the upper crust in the form of a cross,—not, however, cutting it quite through,—and then pass the stone along the cutting, reciting these words: “May God, who cast away all precious stones from the devil … cast away from thee, N., all phantoms and all magic spells, and free thee from the pain of this madness.”
The patient is then to eat of the bread; if, however, his stomach should be too feeble, unleavened bread may be used. All other solid food given to the sick person should be treated in the same manner. We are also told that if any one has a pain in his heart, the pain will be relieved provided the sign of the cross be made over the heart while the above mentioned words are recited.
The wearer of a jacinth was believed to be proof against the lightning, and it was even asserted that wax that had been impressed by an image graven on this stone averted the lightning from one who bore the seal. That the stone really possessed this power was a matter of common report, it being confidently declared that in regions where many were struck by lightning, none who wore a jacinth were ever harmed. By a like miracle it preserved the wearer from all danger of pestilence even though he lived in an air charged with the disease. A third virtue was to induce sleep.
This seems handy to House Mercere. Different colours of zircon likely have different properties. The Victorians were keen on blue zircon mourning jewellery, so that might be tied to necromantic use. Blue hyacinth was worn by the priests of Apollo, and who was the lover of the deified human of the same name. Hyacinth died, and eventually Apollo was able to have him reincarnated as a minor God. He had a mystery cult in Sparta and dwelt with Apollo in Hyperborea part of the time. In the interim, while he was dead, Hyacinthus his spirit lived in a flower which has the Greek “ai-ai” written on the petals. This means “alas”, and so the stone and flower are linked to magic that causes despair.
Jasper
Jasper is a pretty common stone in the modern day, but was valuable to the ancients. It is found in small amounts in various places, but the big deposits in Mythic Europe are in Egypt and Russia. Jasper, at the time, was prized as a green stone, whereas today it is often red.
The jasper had great repute in ancient times as a rain-bringer, and the fourth century author of “Lithica” celebrates this quality in the following lines:The gods propitious hearken to his prayers,Whoe’er the polished grass-green jasper wears;His parched glebe they’ll satiate with rain,And send for showers to soak the thirsty plain.
Evidently the green hue of this translucent stone suggested its association with the verdure of the fields in an even closer degree than was the case with transparent green stones such as the emerald, etc. Another early authority, Damigeron, mentions this belief, and states that only when properly consecrated would the jasper do service in this way. Jasper was also credited in the fourth century with the virtue of driving away evil spirits and protecting those who wore it from the bites of venomous creatures. An anonymous German author of the eleventh or twelfth century recommends the use of this stone for the cure of snake bites, and states that if it be placed upon the bitten part the matter will come out from the wound. Here the cure is operated, not by the absorbent quality of the stone, but by its supposed power to attract poison or venom to itself, thus removing the cause of disease.
A popular etymology of the Greek and Latin name for jasper is reported by Bartolomæus Anglicus, who writes that “in the head of an adder that hyght Aspis is founde a lytyl stone that is called Jaspis.” The same authority pronounces this stone to be of “wunder vertue,” and says that “it hath as many vertues as dyvers coloures and veines.”
A lion or an archer, on a jasper, gives help against poison and cures from fever.
Finding the stone called jasper, bearing graven or figured a huntsman, a dog, or a stag, the wearer, with God’s help, will have the power to heal one possessed of a devil, or who is insane.
A curious amulet, apparently belonging to the Gnostic variety, and intended to bring success to the owner of a racehorse, is now in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, in New York. The material is green jasper with red spots. On the obverse the horse is figured with the victor’s palm and the name Tiberis; on the reverse appears the vulture-headed figure of the Abraxas god and the characters, “zacta iaw bapia,” which have been translated, “Iao the Destroyer and Creator.”Possibly this amulet may have been attached to the horse during his races to insure victory, as we know that amulets of this kind were used in this way.
Many explanations have been offered as to the origin and significance of the characteristic figure of the Abrasax god engraved on a number of Gnostic amulets. There seems to be no doubt that this figure was invented by Basilides, chief of the Gnostic sect bearing his name, and who flourished in the early part of the second century a.d. While the details of the type as perfected were undoubtedly borrowed from the eclectic symbolism of the Egyptian and western Asiatic world it is almost impossible to conjecture the reasons determining the selection of this particular form.
A jasper engraved with the famous Gnostic symbol was set in the ring worn by Seffrid, Bishop of Chichester (a.d. 1159). This ring was found on the skeleton of the bishop and is now preserved in the treasury of the Cathedral of Chichester. Undoubtedly the curious symbolic figure was given a perfectly orthodox meaning, and, indeed, it was not really a pagan symbol, as the Gnostics were “indifferent Christians,” although their system was a fanciful elaboration of the doctrines of the late Alexandrian school of Greek Philosophy and an adaptation of this to the teachings of Christian tradition. In many cases, however, gems with purely pagan designs were worn by Christians, designs such as Isis with the child Horus, which was taken to be the Virgin Mary with the infant Jesus.
Jasper: healing wounds 2, versus demons 2, Abaraxses have astological connections, but may also be used by theurgists.
Games From Folktales 