Tongue stone
According to Renaissance accounts, large, triangular fossilĀ teethĀ often found embedded in rocky formations were believed to be petrified tongues ofĀ dragonsĀ andĀ snakesĀ and so were referred to as “tongue stones” or “glossopetrae”.Ā GlossopetraeĀ were commonly thought…
Toadstone aka bufonite
TheĀ toadstone, also known asĀ bufoniteĀ (fromĀ LatinĀ bufo, “toad”), is a mythical stone orĀ gemĀ that was thought to be found in the head of aĀ toad. It was supposed to be anĀ antidoteĀ to poison and in this…
Lyngurium
Lyngurium or Ligurium is the name of a mythical gemstone believed to be formed of the solidified urine of the lynx (the best ones coming from wild males). It was included in classical and “almost every medieval lapidary” or book of…
Shaligram
AĀ shaligram, orĀ shaligrama shilaĀ (Devanagari:Ā ą¤¶ą¤¾ą¤²ą¤æą¤ą„ą¤°ą¤¾ą¤® ą¤¶ą¤æą¤²ą¤¾Ā ÅÄligrÄma-ÅilÄ), is a particular variety of stone collected from riverbed or banks of the Kali Gandaki, a tributary of theĀ Gandaki RiverĀ inĀ Nepal,Ā used as a non-anthropomorphic representation ofĀ VishnuĀ byĀ Hindus. They…
Madstone
In theĀ folkloreĀ of the earlyĀ United States, aĀ madstoneĀ was a special medicinal substance that, when pressed into an animal bite, was believed to preventĀ rabiesĀ by drawing the “poison” out. TheĀ Encyclopedia AmericanaĀ described it as “a…
Adder stone aka hag stone
AnĀ adder stoneĀ is a type of stone, usually glassy, with a naturally occurring hole through it. Such stones, which usually consist ofĀ flint, have been discovered byĀ archaeologistsĀ in bothĀ BritainĀ andĀ Egypt. Commonly, they are found…
Snake stone aka viper stone, snake pearl, black stone, serpent stone and nagamani
AĀ snake-stone, also known as a viper’s stone, snake’s pearl, black stone,Ā serpent-stone,Ā orĀ nagamaniĀ is an animal bone or stoneĀ used as folk medicine forĀ snake biteĀ in Africa, South America, India and Asia. The early Celtic…
Goa stone
AĀ Goa stoneĀ orĀ Lapis de GoaĀ was a man-madeĀ bezoarĀ that was considered to have medicinal andĀ talismanicĀ properties. Goa stones were made inĀ Goa,Ā IndiaĀ and exported to apothecaries in Europe from the mid-16th to 18th century.Ā Goa stones were…
Bezoar
AĀ bezoarĀ is a mass often found trapped in theĀ gastrointestinal system,Ā though it can occur in other locations.Ā AĀ pseudobezoarĀ is an indigestible object introduced intentionally into the digestive system. There are several varieties of bezoar,…
Chert
Chert is a hard, fine-grained sedimentary rock composed of microcrystalline or cryptocrystalline quartz, the mineral form of silicon dioxide (SiO2). Chert is characteristically of biological origin, but may also occur inorganically as a chemical precipitate or a diagenetic replacement, as in petrified wood. Chert is…
