Chapter II: Part 2

The court jeweller of James VI of Scotland and of this monarch after his accession to the English throne, as James I, was George Heriot (ca. 1563-1624), born in Edinburgh, the son of a member of the company of goldsmiths in that city. As the Scotch goldsmiths cumulated the profession of money-lending with that of goldsmithing, they were usually persons of considerable account among the citizens. Heriot became a member of the company in 1588, the year of the Spanish Armada. Despite the rather straitened circumstances of the Scottish court, considerable amounts were expended for jewels, especially as the queen, Anne of Denmark, was very fond of display. The nobility also, such of them at least as possessed the means, were inclined to deck themselves out with brilliant jewels and splendid ornaments of massive gold. Heriot's appointment as goldsmith to the queen dates from 1597; soon after this he was made jeweller and goldsmith to the king. He followed the court to London in 1603, when King James succeeded to Elizabeth, and at the time of his death, February 12, 1624, had amassed the sum of £50,000 by his profitable connection with the court, and had also acquired lands and houses at Rochampton, in Surrey, and St. Martin's-in-the-Fields, London. His residuary estate, which amounted to £23,625 ($118,125), he entrusted to the provosts, bailiffs, ministers, and ordinary town-council of Edinburgh for the erection of an institution to be called Heriot's Hospital, where a number of poor freemen's sons of the town should be educated.[18] This foundation still exists, and the excellent management of those who have had to do with the endowment is shown by the fact that the income it now produces equals the whole sum of the original bequest.

[Footnote 18: William Hone, "The Every-Day Book", London, 1838, vol. ii, cols. 748, 749.]

This great Scotch goldsmith fashioned a number of splendid rings for the queen. An old account furnished by Heriot lists them as follows:[19]

A ring with a heart and serpent, all set about with diamonds;

A ring with a single diamond, set in a heart betwixt two hands;

A great ring in the form of a perssed hand and a perssed eye, all sett with diamonds;

One great ring, in forme of a frog, all set with diamonds, price two-hundreth poundis;

A ring of a burning heart set with diamondis;

A ring in the forme af a scallope shell, set with a table diamond, and opening on the head;

A ring of a love trophe set with diamondis;

Two rings, lyke black flowers, with a table diamond in each;

A daissie ring sett with a table diamond;

A ryng sett all over with diamondis, made in fashion of a lizard, 120 l.;

A ring set with 9 diamonds, and opening on the head with the King's picture in that.

[Footnote 19: William Hone, "Every-Day Book", London, 1838, vol. ii, cols. 749, 750.]

Heriot also lists a ring delivered about 1607 to Margaret Hartsyde, one of the royal household, describing it as "sett all about with diamondis, and a table diamond on the head"; that is, in the bezel. He states that he had been given to understand that this was by direction of Her Majesty. His precaution in making this note appears to have been fully justified, for this Margaret Hartsyde was tried in Edinburgh, May 31, 1608, on the charge of having purloined a pearl belonging to the queen and valued at £110. Her excuse was that she had taken this and other pearls to adorn dolls for the amusement of the royal children, and that she did not expect the queen would ask for them. As, however, it was brought out in the trial that she had cleverly disguised some of the pearls she had taken, and had offered to sell them to the queen, she was condemned to imprisonment in Blackness Castle until the payment of a fine of £400, and to confinement in Orkney during the remainder of her life. Eleven years later, however, the king's advocate "produced a letter of rehabilitation and restitution of Margaret Hartsyde to her fame".[20]

[Footnote 20: "Every-Day Book", _loc. cit_.]

In Shakespeare's day the "goldsmiths" were also jewellers and gem dealers, and often money-lenders as well. The settings of the finest precious stones were at that time generally of gold, rarely of silver. Platinum, the metal that now enjoys the greatest furore for diamond settings, was then unknown in Europe; it was first brought to Europe in 1735, from South America, having been found in the alluvial deposits of the river Pinto, in the district of Choco, now forming part of the United States of Colombia. The Spaniards had named it _platina_, from its resemblance to _plata_, silver. The chief source in our time is Russia, the richest deposits being those discovered in 1825, on the Iss, a tributary of the Tura, in the Urals. Other valuable deposits are in the district of Nizhni-Tagilsk. Platinum also occurs in Brazil, California, and British Columbia, associated with gold, as well as in Borneo, New South Wales, Australia, and in New Zealand. Its use in gem-mountings began about 1870, and from 1880 onward it has become more and more favored, until now it has almost entirely superseded gold in the finest jewelry, especially for diamond settings. Long before the metal was known and used in Europe, ornamental use of it was made in South America, in the district we have mentioned, the material not being fused, but simply forged out of the nuggets found in the deposits.

That but few fine diamonds were in Europe when Shakespeare wrote has already been noted; indeed, the annual importation from India, then the only source, can hardly have exceeded $100,000 on an average, while at the present day the value of the diamonds from the great African mines imported into Europe and America amounts to from $40,000,000 to $60,000,000 each year.

In King James's reign, besides Heriot, William Herrick (brother of Nicolas) and John Spilman were appointed jewellers to the king, queen, and prince, the annual emoluments being £50 annually. It is stated that Herrick furnished jewels worth £36,000 to Queen Anne of Denmark. Such of her many jewels as were to be found when she died are said to have been left to her son, later Charles I, and none to her daughter Elizabeth, later Queen of Bohemia and ancestress of many of the sovereigns of Europe, as well as of the present reigning house in England. Unfortunately for her heir, a great part of the jewels had been embezzled, and could not be recovered, although models of many had been carefully preserved by William Herrick, who swore that the originals had been delivered to the queen. Less notable jewellers of King James's day were Philip Jacobson, Arnold Lulls, John Acton, and John Williams. One of them, Arnold Lulls, has left a fine set of contemporary drawings representing jewels of the epoch; these are now to be seen in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London. As an instance of the value of some of the jewels of his design, it is recorded that the sum of £1550 was paid for a diamond jewel with pearl pendants and two dozen buttons, furnished to the king to be bestowed upon the queen at the christening of the Princess Mary in 1605.[21]

[Footnote 21: H. Clifford Smith, "Jewellery", London, 1908, p. 302.]

While the jeweller's art in England was still under the influence of foreign goldsmiths in Elizabeth's time, it had to a considerable extent emancipated itself from foreign control in the latter part of her reign and in that of her successor. In addition to George Heriot, whom we have just noticed, several others are well worthy of mention, such as Dericke Anthony, Affabel Partridge, Peter Trender, and Nicolas Herrick,[22] the father of the poet Robert Herrick, who makes many a telling use of the colors and charm of precious stones and pearls in his dainty poems. To these must be added Sir John Spilman, of German birth, who made many jewels at the royal command.

[Footnote 22: H. Clifford Smith, "Jewellery", London, 1908, pp. 219, 220, 301.]

We should remember that for the cutting of precious stones steam-power was not then available, "man-power" being employed. A large turning wheel was pushed around by a man holding a bar extending from it. The motion of this large wheel was transmitted to other smaller ones. The number of revolutions per minute hardly exceeded a few hundred, while in modern times a speed of from 2000 to 2500 revolutions per minute is attained. The diamond cutting industry was largely in the hands of Jews in Lisbon.

The gem-cutting processes were not greatly modified for many years after Shakespeare's death, so that a representation of the wheel and mill used in 1750 gives a fairly good general idea of the _modus operandi_. The large wooden wheel, whose axis is the second pillar within the frame, is bent, and makes an elbow under the wheel to receive the impulsion of a bar that serves instead of a turn-handle. On the right side of the frame, where the boy stands, is the turn-handle which sets the wheel in motion by means of the elbow of its axis. So that if the wooden wheel be twenty times larger than the iron one, a hundred turns of the larger wheel will cause a thousand revolutions of the smaller one. The method of holding the diamond in place over the iron wheel, when in motion, so that it presses upon the latter and is polished thereby, is shown in the lower right-hand corner of the plate.

The German traveller, Paul Hentzner, who visited England in 1598, toward the end of Elizabeth's life, describes her jewelling in the following words:

"The Queen had in her ears two pearls with very rich drops; she wore false hair and that red; upon her head she had a small crown; her bosom was uncovered, and she had on a necklace of exceedingly fine jewels. She was dressed in white silk, bordered with pearls of the size of beans, and over it a mantle of black silk shot with silver threads; her train was very long. Instead of a chain, she had an oblong collar of gold and jewels".

In addition to this display the traveller tells us that the queen's right hand was fairly sparkling with jewelled rings.

Aside from his portrayal of jewels in his numerous portraits, Holbein ranked as the master designer of jewels in his day. Many of the finest of these designs have been preserved for us and can be seen in the British Museum, to which they were bequeathed by Sir Hans Sloane in 1753. There are 179 separate pieces, usually pen-and-ink sketches. The execution of the jewels from these designs is believed to have been mainly done by Hans of Antwerp, known as Hans Anwarpe, a friend of Holbein, who settled in London in 1514, and was appointed goldsmith to King Henry VIII, for whom he produced many jewels for New Year's gifts.[23]

[Footnote 23: H. Clifford Smith, "Jewellery", London [1908], pp. 211, 213.]

In judging of the jewels figured in portraits we must remember that the artist has often modified them to bring them into greater harmony with their immediate surroundings. This, in some cases, may lead him to make of a somewhat inartistically designed jewel a beautifully proportioned one. Again, he may be led to exaggerate the size of the precious stones or pearls, and to intensify or deepen their colors. A recent instance regards a portrait of the former queen of Spain by one of the foremost Spanish artists of our day. The royal lady was depicted wearing an enormous pearl; however, the artist informed the author that the real pearl was much smaller than the painted one, but that, in portraying it, a better decorative effect was obtained by increasing its size. Whether Holbein (1497-1543), with his Dutch exactness of portrayal, was led into any similar exaggerations we can never tell, as little as we can know anything definite regarding the true size of the jewels shown in the portraits by the Italian Zucchero (1529-1566), the Fleming Lucas de Heere (1524-1584), or by any other of the portrait painters of Elizabeth's time.

In a very modest way the addition of gilded scarf-pins, brooches, chains, etc., not owned by the sitters, was not uncommonly practised thirty or forty years ago, when colored tintypes were popular. These were painted on the photographs, much to the gratification of those who ordered them for distribution among their friends.

The court-jewellers of France in Shakespeare's day rivalled, though they did not excel, those of England. Among them a prominent place belongs to Francois Dujardin (or Desjardin), goldsmith of Charles IX (1560-1574) and Henri III (1574-1589). When a verification and an inventory of the French Crown Jewels were made on August 1, 1574, after the death of Charles IX, the expert examination was entrusted to François Dujardin, who is termed "orfebvre et lapidaire du Roy". The goldsmith's art was passed down from father to son in this family: a second F. Dujardin (b. ca. 1565) mounted the parures made for Elizabeth of Austria, daughter of Henri IV and Maria de' Medici. In the reign of Henri IV and the succeeding regency of Maria de' Medici, Josse de Langerac, received as master goldsmith in 1594, and the brothers Rogier, are noted as leading goldsmiths who, besides executing many fine jewels, frequently made loans of money to the Queen Regent, and seem to have experienced great difficulty in securing full payment. Corneille Rogier set the jewels worn at her marriage by Anne d'Autriche, wife of Louis XIII. Two brothers, each bearing the name Pierre Courtois, are also noted in old records. One of them, at the time of his death, in 1611, occupied two apartments with two shops in the Louvre; the shop of the other had the sign "Aux Trois Roys", probably referring to the "Three Kings of the East", the Magi of the Gospel, very appropriate patrons for goldsmiths.[24]

[Footnote 24: Germain Bapst, "Histoire des Joyaux de la Couronne de France", Paris, 1889, pp. 175, 176, 300, 304.]

Thierry Badouer, a German goldsmith-jeweller, received from the French court, in 1572, an order for 250,000 crowns' worth of jewels to be distributed as gifts at the approaching marriage of Henri de Navarre with Marguerite de Valois. He faithfully executed his part of the task and brought the jewels with him to Paris, but before he had been able to deliver them to the Royal Treasury they were stolen from him during the confusion of the St. Bartholomew Massacre. Eventually, in the reign of Henri IV, his widow was partly reimbursed for the loss, receiving one-quarter of the amount of her claim.[25] After the Massacre of St. Bartholomew, and as a result of it, many Protestants and Catholics left France for Hanau, Germany, where to this day they carry on the jeweller's art; and from this beginning Hanau became a jeweller's centre.

[Footnote 25: Op. cit., p. 289.]

The best reproduction of the First Folio of 1623 is the photographic facsimile, made in 1902, of the copy formerly owned by the Duke of Devonshire and now in the possession of Henry E. Huntington, of New York.[26] The original Folio, prepared by the managers of Shakespeare's company, John Heminge and Henry Condell, bears the imprint of Isaac Jaggard and Edward Blount, the printing house being conducted by William Jaggard and his son Isaac. It is believed that an edition of five hundred copies was issued, at one pound per copy. That the publication was essentially a commercial venture, although it may also have been a labor of love for some of the editors, is brought out clearly and quaintly in the preface addressed to "The great Variety of Readers", and signed by Heminge and Condell. This reads that the book was printed at the charges of W. Jaggard, Ed. Blount, I. Southweeke, and W. Apsley, 1623. The following passage from the preface is well worth quoting, its spirit is so delightfully modern:

The fate of all Bookes depends upon your capacities,
and not of your heads alone, but of your purses. Well!
It is now publique, & you wil stand for your priviledges,
wee know: to read, and censure.[27] Do so, but buy it
first. That doth best commend a Booke the Stationer
sales. Then, how odde soever your braines be, or your
wisdomes, make your license the same and spare not.... But
whatever you do, Buy. Censure will not drive a
Trade, nor make the Jacke go.

[Footnote 26: "Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies, being a reproduction in facsimile of the First Folio Edition of 1623, from the Chatsworth copy in the possession of the Duke of Devonshire, K.G., with introduction and censure of copies by Sidney Lee". Oxford, Clarendon Press, 1902, XXXV 908 pp. Edition limited to 1000 numbered and signed copies.]

[Footnote 27: Judge.]

The chief credit for bringing together the materials for the First Folio, in 1623, is believed to be due to William Jaggard. Some ten years earlier he had acquired the printing-privileges of certain of the quartos. Edward Blount, whose name appears as publisher on the title page with that of Isaac Jaggard, was merely a stationer, so that the actual printing was solely under the charge of the latter, who seems, at this time, to have been entrusted with this department of the business. However, Blount's services may have been valuable since he had better literary taste than the Jaggards possessed.

In spite of certain evident faults of proportion, the portrait of Shakespeare engraved by Martin Droeshout for the title page of the 1623 Folio bears internal evidence of being a fairly good likeness, for the face possesses a marked individuality. There is a belief that it was taken from the so-called "Flower" portrait, now in the Shakespeare Memorial Gallery at Stratford-upon-Avon, and which is conjectured to have been painted in 1609, at least during Shakespeare's lifetime, possibly by another Martin Droeshout, a Fleming, uncle of the engraver of the same name. This portrait was discovered, painted on a panel at Peckham Rye, bearing the inscription "Will Shakespeare^n, 1609". That it should be the original from which the Droeshout engraving was taken has been doubted, since it appears rather to resemble later states of the plate than earlier ones. While Ben Jonson, who had seen Shakespeare so often, may have been partly moved to bestow undue praise upon the Folio portrait, in the lines he furnished the publishers to be placed immediately facing it, by his wish to say a good word for their publication, he would scarcely have made use of such superlative terms had he not considered it to be at least a fairly good likeness. Jonson's lines have been so often printed that few are unacquainted with them, but as illustrating the above remarks they can be repeated here, in the old spelling and form of the First Folio:

TO THE READER.

This Figure, that thou here seest put,
It was for gentle Shakespeare cut;
Wherein the Graver has a strife
With Nature, to out-doo the life:
O, could he but have drawne his wit
As well in brasse, as he hath hit
His face; the Print would then surpasse
All, that was ever write in brasse.
But, since he cannot, Reader, looke
Not on his Picture, but his Booke.

B.I.

A most attractive and instructive exhibition of reproductions of the portraits of Shakespeare, or supposedly of him, was shown at the rooms of the Grolier Club, April 6-29, 1916. The catalogue[28] embraces 436 numbers, illustrating all the principal types. The exhibition also comprised the principal editions of the poet's plays, from the First Folio of 1623 to the great Variorum Edition by Dr. Furness, begun in 1871.

[Footnote 28: Catalogue of an exhibition illustrative of the text of Shakespeare's plays, as published in edited editions, together with a large collection of engraved portraits of the poet. New York, The Grolier Club, April 6-29, 1916, vi+114 pp.]

For the Tercentenary of Shakespeare's birth, celebrated in April, 1864, a special commemorative medal was struck in England, designed by Mr. J. Moore. The obverse shows a profile head of the poet, in the modelling of which the artist seems to have been chiefly influenced by the Stratford bust. This fundamental type he has not unskilfully combined with that of the Droeshout print in the First Folio, the dome-like forehead being evidently suggested by the latter. The nose is more accentuated than in the bust, and the mouth, though still small, is somewhat firmer. Toward the edge of the field are disposed the titles of his various works, as though radiating from the head, and in the exergue is his signature, framed by a half-garland over which extends a mace. The tribute offered to Shakespeare by the Muses, figured on the reverse, is a rather stiff and conventional composition.[29]

[Footnote 29: W. Sharp Ogden, "Shakspere's Portraits: painted, graven, and medallic", in The British Numismatic Journal, and Proceedings of The British Numismatic Society, 1910, London, 1911, pp. 143-198; see p. 189.]

For those who may wish to see the original form of the passages regarding precious stones in the text of the First Folio, of 1623, the page and column references have been given here. In this text the three sections into which the plays have been divided, Comedies, Histories, and Tragedies, are separately paged; moreover, the pagination offers a number of irregularities. _Troilus and Cressida_, added at the end of the "Histories", has page numbers on a couple of leaves neither connected with what precedes nor with what follows, the remainder of the pages bearing no figures; furthermore, there are several obvious, though unimportant, misprints. _Pericles_, first issued in Folio, in the Third Folio, of 1664, is therein separately paged, as are the other of the plays attributed to Shakespeare printed therein, in continuation of the series of the First and Second Folios. This play had, however, previously appeared six times in quarto in the years 1609, 1611, 1619, 1630, 1635 and 1639.

PRECIOUS STONES MENTIONED IN THE PLAYS OF SHAKESPEARE

PRECIOUS STONES MENTIONED IN THE PLAYS OF SHAKESPEARE

DIAMOND

I see how thine eye would emulate the diamond.
_Merry Wives of Windsor_, Act iii, sc. 3, l. 59.
"Comedies", p. 58 [50], col. A, line 31.

DIAMOND

Give me the ring of mine you had at dinner,
Or, for my diamond, the chain you promised.
_Comedy of Errors_, Act iv, sc, 3. l. 70.
"Comedies", p. 94, col. B, lines 61, 62.

DIAMOND

Sir, I must have that diamond from you.--
There, take it.
_Comedy of Errors_, Act v, sc. 1, l. 391.
"Comedies", p. 99, col. B, line 58.

DIAMOND

A lady walled about with diamonds!
_Love's Labour's Lost_, Act v, sc. 2, l. 3.
"Comedies", p. 137, col. A, line 6.

DIAMOND

A diamond gone, cost me two thousand ducats in
Frankfort!
_Merchant of Venice_, Act iii, sc. 1, l. 87.
"Comedies", p. 173, col. A, line 62.

DIAMOND

Set this diamond safe
In golden palaces, as it becomes.
_Henry VI_, Pt. I, Act v, sc. 3, l. 169.
"Histories", p. 116, col. B, line 54.

DIAMOND

A heart it was, bound in with diamonds.
_Henry VI_, Pt, II, Act iii, sc. 2, l. 107.
"Histories", p. 134, col. A, line 46.

DIAMOND

Not deck'd with diamonds and Indian stones,
Nor to be seen.
_Henry VI_, Pt. III, Act iii, sc. 1, l. 63.
"Histories", p. 158, col. B, line 25.

DIAMOND

One day he gives us diamonds, next day stones.
_Timon of Athens_, Act iii, sc. 6, l. 131.
"Tragedies", p. 89, col. B, line 56.

DIAMOND

This diamond he greets your wife withal.
_Macbeth_, Act ii, sc. 1, l. 15.
"Tragedies", p. 136, col. A, line II.

DIAMOND

Which parted thence,
As pearls from diamonds dropp'd.
_King Lear_, Act iv, sc. 3, l. 24.
Omitted in First Folio.

DIAMOND

This diamond was my mother's; take it, heart;
But keep it till you woo another wife.
_Cymbeline_, Act I, sc. 1, l. 112.
"Tragedies", p. 370, col. A, line 45.

DIAMOND

She went before others I have seen, as that diamond of
yours outlustres many I have beheld.
_Cymbeline_, Act i, sc. 4, l. 78.
"Tragedies", p. 372, col. A, line 53.

DIAMOND

I have not seen the most precious diamond that is, nor
you the lady.
_Cymbeline_, Act i, sc. 4, l. 81.
"Tragedies", p. 372, col. A, line 55.

DIAMOND

I shall but lend my diamond till your return.
_Cymbeline_, Act. i, sc. 4, l. 153.
"Tragedies", p. 372, col. B, line 59.

DIAMOND

My ten thousand ducats are yours; so is your diamond too.
_Cymbeline_, Act i, sc. 4, l. 163.
"Tragedies", p. 373, col. A, line 1.

DIAMOND

It must be married
To that your diamond.
_Cymbeline_, Act ii, sc. 4, l. 98.
"Tragedies", p. 389 [379], col. A, lines 42, 43.

DIAMOND

That diamond upon your finger, say,
How came it yours?
_Cymbeline_, Act v, sc. 5, l. 137.
"Tragedies", p. 396, col. A, line 51.

DIAMOND

To me he seems like diamond to glass.
_Pericles_, Act ii, sc. 3, l. 36.
Third Folio, 1664, p. 7, col. B, line 38;
separate pagination.

DIAMOND

You shall, like diamonds, sit about his crown.
_Pericles_, Act ii, sc. 4, l. 53.
Third Folio, 1664, p. 8, col. B, line 42.

DIAMOND

The diamonds of a most praised water
Do appear, to make the world twice rich.
_Pericles_, Act iii, sc. 2, l. 102.
Third Folio, 1664, p. 11, col. B, line 13.

RUBY

The impression of keen whips I'ld wear as rubies.
_Measure for Measure_, Act ii, sc. 4, l. 101.
"Comedies", p. 69, col. B, line 63.

RUBY

Her nose, all o'er embellished with rubies, carbuncles,
sapphires.
_Comedy of Errors_, Act iii, sc. 2, l. 138.
"Comedies", p. 92, col. A, line 49.

RUBY

Those be rubies, fairy favors.
_Midsummer Night's Dream_, Act ii, sc. 1, l. 12.
"Comedies", p. 148, col. A, line 35.

RUBY

Over thy wounds now do I prophesy,--Which,
like dumb mouths, do ope their ruby lips.
_Julius Caæsar_, Act iii, sc. 1, l. 260.
"Tragedies", p. 120, col. B, lines 34, 35.

RUBY

And keep the natural ruby of your cheeks,
When mine is blanch'd with fear.
_Macbeth_, Act iii, sc. 4, l. 115.
"Tragedies", p. 142, col. B, line 17.

RUBY

But kiss; one kiss! Rubies unparagon'd,
How dearly they do't!
_Cymbeline_, Act ii, sc. 2, l. 17.
"Tragedies", p. 376, col. B, line 18.

SAPPHIRE

Like sapphire, pearl and rich embroidery.
_Merry Wives of Windsor_, Act v, sc. 5, l. 75.
"Comedies", p. 51, col. A, line 66 (last).

SAPPHIRE

Her nose, all o'er embellished with rubies, carbuncles,
sapphires.
_Comedy of Errors_, Act iii, sc. 2, l. 138.
"Comedies", p. 92, col. A, line 49.

CHRYSOLITE

If heaven would make me such another world
Of one entire and perfect chrysolite.
_Othello_, Act v, sc. 2, l. 145.
"Tragedies", p. 337, col. A, line 5.

TURQUOISE

It was my turquoise; I had it of Leah when I was a
bachelor.
_Merchant of Venice_, Act iii, sc. 1, l. 126.
"Comedies", p. 173, col. B, line 32.

OPAL

For thy mind is a very opal.
_Twelfth Night_, Act ii, sc. 4, l. 77.
"Comedies", p. 262, col. B, line 45.

AGATE (CAMEO)

An agate very vilely cut.
_Much Ado About Nothing_, Act iii, sc. 1, l. 65.
"Comedies", p. 110, col. A, line 25.

AGATE (CAMEO)

His heart like an agate with your print impress'd.
_Love's Labour's Lost_, Act ii, sc. 1, l. 236.
"Comedies", p. 127, col. B, line 62 (last).

AGATE (CAMEO)

I was never manned with an agate till now.
_II Henry IV_, Act i, sc. 2, l. 19.
"Histories", p. 76, col. B, line 10.

AGATE (CAMEO)

Agate-ring, pirke-stocking, caddis-garter, smooth-tongue.
_I Henry IV_, Act ii, sc. 4, l. 78.
"Histories", p. 56, col. A, line 53.

AGATE (CAMEO)

In shape no bigger than an agate-stone
On the forefinger of an alderman.
_Romeo and Juliet_, Act i, sc. 4, l. 55.
"Tragedies", p. 57, col. A, lines 20, 21.

AMBER

Her amber hair for foul hath amber quoted.
_Love's Labour's Lost_, Act iv, sc. 3, l. 87.
"Comedies", p. 133, col. A, line 52.

AMBER

With amber bracelets, beads, and all this knavery.
_Taming of the Shrew_, Act iv, sc. 3, l. 58.
"Comedies", p. 223, col. B, line 62.

AMBER

Their eyes purging thick amber and plum-tree gum.
_Hamlet_, Act ii, sc. 2, l. 201.
"Tragedies", p. 261, col. B, line 42.

CORAL

Of his bones are coral made.
_The Tempest_, Act i, sc. 2, l. 397.
"Comedies", p. 5, col. A, line 54.

CORAL

I saw her coral lips to move.
_Taming of the Shrew_, Act i, sc. 1, l. 179.
"Comedies", p.211, col. B, line 57.

JET

There is more difference between thy flesh and hers than
between jet and ivory.
_Merchant of Venice_, Act iii, sc. 1, l. 42.
"Comedies", p. 173, col. A, line 18.

JET

What color is my gown of?--Black, forsooth: coal-black
as jet.
_II Henry VI_, Act ii, sc. 1, l. 112.
"Histories", p. 126, col. B, line 61.

JET

Two proper palfreys, black as jet,
To hale thy vengeful waggon swift away.
_Titus Andronicus_, Act v, sc. 2, l. 50.
"Tragedies", p. 49, col. B, line 7.

CARBUNCLE

Her nose, all o'er embellished with rubies, carbuncles,
sapphires.
_Comedy of Errors_, Act iii, sc. 2, l. 138.
"Comedies", p. 92, col. A, line 49.

CARBUNCLE

A carbuncle entire, as big as thou art,
Were not so rich a jewel.
_Coriolanus_, Act i, sc. 4, l. 55.
"Tragedies", p. 5, col. B, line 7.

CARBUNCLES

O'er sized with coagulate gore,
With eyes like carbuncles.
_Hamlet_, Act ii, sc. ii, l. 485.
"Tragedies", p. 263, col. B, line 50.

CARBUNCLE

Were it carbuncled
Like holy Phoebus' car.
_Antony and Cleopatra_, Act iv, sc. 8, l. 28.
"Tragedies", p. 360, col. B, line 57.

CARBUNCLE

Had it been a carbuncle
Of Phoebus' wheel.
_Cymbeline_, Act v, sc. 5, l. 189.
"Tragedies", p. 396, col. B, line 41.

EMERALD

In emerald tufts, flowers purple, blue, and white.
_Merry Wives of Windsor_, Act v, sc. 5, l. 74.
"Comedies", p. 51, col. A, line 65.

PEARLS

Full fathom five thy father lies;
Of his bones are coral made;
Those are pearls that were his eyes.
_Tempest_, Act i, sc. 2, l. 398.
"Comedies", p. 5, col. A, lines 51-33.

PEARLS

She is mine own,
And I as rich in having such a jewel
As twenty seas, if all their sand were pearl.
_Two Gentlemen of Verona_, Act ii, sc. 4, l. 170.
"Comedies", p. 26, col. B, lines 34-36.

PEARLS

A sea of melting pearl, which some call tears.
_Two Gentlemen of Verona_, Act iii, sc. 1, l. 224.
"Comedies", p. 30, col. B, line 2.

PEARLS

But pearls are fair; and the old saying is,
Black men are pearls in beauteous ladies' eyes
'Tis true; such pearls as put out ladies' eyes.
_Two Gentlemen of Verona_, Act v, sc. 2, l. 11.
"Comedies", p. 36, col. B, lines 10-12.

PEARLS

Like sapphire, pearl and rich embroidery
Buckled below fair knighthood's bending knee.
_Merry Wives of Windsor_, Act v, sc. 5, l. 75.
"Comedies", p. 51, col. A, lines 65, 66 (last).

PEARLS

Laced with silver, set with pearls
_Much Ado About Nothing_, Act iii, sc. 4, l. 20.
"Comedies", p. 112, col. B, line 65.

PEARLS

Fire enough for a flint, pearl enough for a swine.
_Love's Labour's Lost_, Act iv, sc. 2, l. 91.
"Comedies", p. 132, col. A, line 11.

PEARLS

This and these pearls to me sent Longaville.
_Love's Labour's Lost_, Act v, sc. 2, l. 53.
"Comedies", p. 137, col. A, line 59.

PEARLS

Will you have me, or your pearl again?
Neither of either.
_Love's Labour's Lost_, Act v, sc. 2, l. 458.
"Comedies", p. 140, col. B, line 58.

PEARLS

Decking with liquid pearl the bladed grass.
_Midsummer Night's Dream_, Act i, sc. 1, l. 211.
"Comedies", p. 147, col. A, line 6.

PEARLS

I must go seek some dewdrops here
And hang a pearl in every cowslip's ear.
_Midsummer Night's Dream_, Act ii, sc. 1, l. 15.
"Comedies", p. 148, col. A, line 38.

PEARLS

That same dew, which sometime in the buds
Was wont to swell like round and orient pearls.
_Midsummer Night's Dream_, Act iv, sc. 1, l. 57.
"Comedies", p. 157, col. B, lines 9, 10.

PEARLS

Rich honesty dwells like a miser, sir, in a poor house; as
your pearl in your foul oyster.
_As You Like It_, Act v, sc. 4, l. 63.
"Comedies", p. 206, col. A, line 12.

PEARLS

Their harness studded all with gold and pearl.
_Taming of the Shrew_, Introd., sc. 2, l. 44.
"Comedies", p. 209, col. B, line 33.

PEARLS

Fine linen, Turkey cushions boss'd with pearls
Valance of Venice gold.
_Taming of the Shrew_, Act ii, sc. 1, l. 355.
"Comedies", p. 217, col. B, line 32.

PEARLS

Why, sir, what 'cerns it you if I wear pearl and gold?
_Taming of the Shrew_, Act v, sc. 1, l. 77.
"Comedies", p. 227, col A, line 22.

PEARLS

This pearl she gave me, I do feel't and see't.
_Twelfth Night_, Act iv, sc. 3, l. 2.
"Comedies", p. 271, col. B, line 61.

PEARLS

Draws those heaven-moving pearls from his poor eyes.
_King John_, Act ii, sc. 1, l. 169.
"Histories", p. 4, col. B, line 55.

PEARLS

Our chains and our jewels.--
Your brooches, pearls and ouches.
_II Henry IV_, Act ii, sc. 4, l. 53.
"Histories", p. 82, col. B, line 28.

PEARLS

The crown imperial,
The intertissued robe of gold and pearl.
_Henry V_, Act iv, sc. 1, l. 279.
"Histories", p. 85 (bis, number repeated), col. B,
line 13.

PEARLS

Wedges of gold, great anchors, heaps of pearl,
Inestimable stones, unvalued jewels.
_Richard III_, Act i, sc. 4, l. 26.
"Histories", p. 180, col. A, line 12.

PEARLS

The liquid drops of tears that you have shed
Shall come again, transform'd to orient pearl.
_Richard III_, Act iv, sc. 4, l. 322.
"Histories", p. 198, col. A, lines 16, 17.

PEARLS

Her bed is India; there she lies, a pearl.
_Troilus and Cressida_, Act i, sc. 1, l. 103.
At end of "Histories", page irregularly numbered 79,
col. A, line 8. P. 589 of facsimile.

PEARLS

She is a pearl
Whose price hath launch'd above a thousand ships.
_Troilus and Cressida_, Act ii, sc. 2, l. 81.
Unnumbered page, 596 of facsimile, col. A, line 19.

PEARLS

I will be bright, and shine in pearl and gold.
_Titus Andronicus_, Act ii, sc. 1, l, 19.
"Tragedies", p. 35, col. B, line 30.

PEARLS

This is the pearl that pleased your empress' eye.
_Titus Andronicus_, Act v, sc. 1, l. 42.
"Tragedies", p. 48, col. A, line 21.

PEARLS

I see thee compass'd with thy kingdom's pearl.
_Macbeth_, Act v, sc. 8, l. 56.
"Tragedies", p. 151, col. B, line 32.

PEARLS

Hamlet, this pearl is thine.
_Hamlet_, Act v, sc. 2, l. 293.
"Tragedies", p. 281, col. A, line 15.

PEARLS

What guests were in her eyes; which parted thence,
As pearls from diamonds dropp'd.
_Lear_, Act iv, sc. 3, l. 24.
Omitted in First Folio.

PEARLS

Like the base Indian,[30] threw a pearl away
Richer than all his tribe.
_Othello_, Act v, sc. 2, l. 347.
"Tragedies", p. 338, col. B, line 53.

[Footnote 30: "Iudean" in text.]

PEARLS

He kiss'd,--the last of many doubled kisses,--
This orient pearl.
_Antony and Cleopatra_, Act i, sc. 5, l. 41.
"Tragedies", p. 344, col. B, lines 22, 23.

PEARLS

I'll set thee in a shower of gold, and hail
Rich pearls upon thee.
_Antony and Cleopatra_, Act ii, sc. 5, l. 46.
"Tragedies", p. 348, col. B, lines 10, 11.

ROCK-CRYSTAL

Did hold his eyes lock'd in her crystal looks.
_Two Gentlemen of Verona_, Act ii, sc. 4, l. 89.
"Comedies", p. 26, col. A, line 17.

ROCK-CRYSTAL

Methough all his senses were lock'd in his eye
As jewels in crystal for some prince to buy.
_Love's Labour's Lost_, Act ii, sc. 1, l. 243.
"Comedies", p. 128, col. A, lines 6, 7.

ROCK-CRYSTAL

One, her hairs were gold, crystal the other's eyes.
_Idem_, Act iv, sc. 3, l. 142.
"Comedies", p. 133, line 46.

ROCK-CRYSTAL

To what, my love, shall I compare thine eye?
Crystal is muddy.
_Midsummer Night's Dream_, Act iii, sc. 2, l. 139.
"Comedies", p. 154, col. A, line 54.

ROCK-CRYSTAL

With these crystal beads heaven shall be bribed
To do him justice.
_King John_, Act ii, sc. 1, l. 171.
"Histories", p. 4, col. B, lines 57, 58.

ROCK-CRYSTAL

The more fair and crystal is the sky,
The uglier seem the clouds that in it fly.
_Richard II_, Act i, sc. 1, l. 41.
"Histories", p. 23, col. A, line 41 (last).

ROCK-CRYSTAL

Go, clear thy crystals.
_Henry V_, Act ii, sc. 3, l. 56.
"Histories", p. 75, col. B, line 65.

ROCK-CRYSTAL

Comets, importing change of times and states,
Brandish your crystal tresses in the sky.
_I Henry VI_, Act i, sc. 1, l. 3.
"Histories", p. 96, col. A, lines 2, 3.

ROCK-CRYSTAL

But in that crystal scales let there be weigh'd
Your lady's love against some other maid.
_Romeo and Juliet_, Act i, sc. 2, l. 101.
"Tragedies", p. 55, col. B, lines 51, 52.

ROCK-CRYSTAL

Thy crystal window ope; look out.
_Cymbeline_, Act v, sc. 4, l. 81.
"Tragedies", p. 394, col. A, line 12.

The following table is arranged according to the frequency of precious stone mentions.

The plays rank as follows:

First[31] Probably
Published Written

1623. 1609. _Cymbeline_ 10
(diamond 7, ruby 1,
carbuncle 1,
rock-crystal 1).

1598. 1591. _Love's Labour's 8
Lost_ (pearl 3,
rock-crystal 2,
diamond 1, amber 1
agate 1).

1600. 1597. _Merry Wives Of 5
of (pearl 1, diamond 2,
Windsor_ emerald 1,
sapphire 1).

1623. 1591. _Comedy of 5
Errors_ (diamond 2, ruby 1,
sapphire 1,
carbuncle 1).

1600. 1595. _Midsummer 5
Night's Dream_ (pearl 3, ruby 1,
rock-crystal 1).

1623. 1596. _Taming of the 5
Shrew_ (pearl 3, amber 1,
coral 1).

1623. 1591. _Two Gentlemen of 4
Verona_ (pearl 3,
rock-crystal 1).

1594. 1593. _Titus 3
Andronicus_ (pearl 2, jet 1).

1603. 1602. _Hamlet_ 3
(pearl, amber,
carbuncle).

1623. 1606. _Macbeth_ 3
(diamond, ruby,
pearl).

1609. 1607. _Pericles_ 3
(all diamond).

1623. 1608. _Antony and 3
Cleopatra_ (pearl 2,
carbuncle 1).

1597. 1591. _Romeo and 2
Juliet_ (rock-crystal,
agate).

1623. 1592. _I Henry VI_ 2
(diamond and
rock-crystal).

1623. 1592. _II Henry VI_ 2
(diamond and jet).

1597. 1592-3. _Richard III_ 2
(both pearl).

1600. 1594. _Merchant of 2
Venice_ (turquoise, jet).

1623. 1594. _King John_ 2
(pearl,
rock-crystal).

1623. 1597. _II Henry IV_ 2
(pearl, agate).

1600. 1598. _Henry V_ 2
(pearl, crystal).

1600. 1599. _Much Ado About_ 2
_Nothing_ (pearl, agate).

1623. 1599. _Twelfth Night_ 2
(pearl, opal).

1609. 1603. _Troilus and 2
Cressida_ (both pearl).

1622. 1604. _Othello_ 2
(pearl, chrysolite).

1608. 1606. _Lear_ 2
(pearl, diamond).

1623. 1611. _Tempest_ 2
(pearl, coral).

1623. 1592. _III Henry VI_ 1
(diamond).

1597. 1593. _Richard II_ 1
(rock-crystal).

1598. 1597. _I Henry IV_ 1
(agate).

1623. 1599. _As You Like It_ 1
(pearl).

1623. 1601. _Julius Cæsar_ 1
(ruby).

1623. 1604. _Measure for 1
Measure_ (ruby).

1623. 1607. _Timon of Athens_ 1
(diamond).

1623. 1608. _Coriolanus_ 1
(carbuncle).

[Footnote 31: Data of first publication contributed by Miss Henrietta C. Bartlett.]

PRECIOUS STONES MENTIONED IN THE POEMS OF SHAKESPEARE

PRECIOUS MENTIONED IN POEMS OF SHAKESPEARE.

DIAMOND

The diamond--why 'twas beautiful and hard.
"Lover's Complaint", l. 211.

SAPPHIRE

The heaven-hued sapphire and the opal blend
With objects manifold.
_Idem_, l. 215.

PEARLS

Her tears began to turn their tide,
Being prison'd in her eye like pearls in glass.
"Venus and Adonis", l. 980.
G, verso, l. 1, 2.

PEARLS

And wiped the brinish pearl from her bright eyes.
"Lucrece", l. 1213.
I 2, l. 2.

PEARLS

Those round clear pearls of his, that move thy pity,
Are balls of quenchless fire to burn thy city.
_Idem_, l. 1553.
L. 2, verso, l. 6, 7.

PEARLS

Of paled pearls and rubies red as blood.
"Lover's Complaint", l. 198.

PEARLS

Ah! but those tears are pearls which thy love sheds.
Sonnet XXXIV, l. 13.
C 4, l. 13.

PEARLS

Bright orient pearl, alack, too timely shaded!
"Passionate Pilgrim", l. 133.
B 4, l. 3.

OPAL

The heaven-hued sapphire and the opal blend
With objects manifold.
"Lover's Complaint", l. 215.

RUBY

Once more the ruby-colour'd portal open'd.
"Venus and Adonis", l. 451.
D ii, verso, l. 1.

RUBY

Of paled pearls and rubies red as blood.
"Lover's Complaint", l. 198.

EMERALD

The deep-green emerald, in whose fresh regard
Weak sights their sickly radiance do amend.
_Idem_, l. 213.

ROCK-CRYSTAL

But hers through which the crystal tears gave light,
Shone like the moon in water seen by night.
"Venus and Adonis", l. 491.
D iii, l. 16, 17.

ROCK-CRYSTAL

Nor thy soft hands, sweet lips, and crystal eyne.
"Venus and Adonis", l. 633.
E ii, l. 15.

ROCK-CRYSTAL

The crystal tide that from her two cheeks fair
In the sweet channel of her bosom dropt.
_Idem_, l. 957.
G, l. 3, 4.

ROCK-CRYSTAL

Her eyes seen in the tears, tears in her eye;
Both crystals, where they view'd each other's sorrow.
_Idem_, l. 962, 963.
G, l. 8, 9.

ROCK-CRYSTALS

Through crystal walls each little mote will peep.
"Lucrece", l. 1251.
I 2, verso, l. 19.

ROCK-CRYSTAL

A closet never pierced with crystal eyes.
Sonnet XLVI, l. 6.
D 2, verso, l. 6.

ROCK-CRYSTAL

Favours from a maund[32] she drew
Of amber, crystal, and of beaded jet.
"Lover's Complaint", l. 37.

[Footnote 32: Basket, or hamper.]

ROCK-CRYSTAL

Who glazed with crystal gate the glowing roses.
"Lover's Complaint", l. 286.

AMBER

With coral clasps and amber studs.
"Passionate Pilgrim", l. 366.
D 4, verso, l. 2.

AMBER

Favours from a maund she drew
Of amber, crystal, and of beaded jet.
"Lover's Complaint", l. 37.

JET

as above.

CORAL

That sweet coral mouth
Whose precious taste her thirsty lips well knew.
"Venus and Adonis", l. 542.
D iv, l. 20, 21.

CORAL

Her alabaster skin,
Her coral lips, her snow white dimpled chin.
"Lucrece", l. 420.
D 3, l. 7.

CORAL

Like ivory conduits coral cisterns filling.
_Idem_, l. 1234.
I 2, verso, l. 2.

CORAL

Coral is far more red than her lips' red.
Sonnet CXXX, l. 2.
H 4,1. 2.

CORAL

A belt of straw and ivy buds.
With coral clasps and amber studs.
"Passionate Pilgrim", 1. 366.
D 4, verso, l. 1, 2.[33]

[Footnote 33: References are here given to the original editions of "Venus and Adonis", 1593 (unique copy in the Malone Collection in the Bodleian Library, Oxford); "Lucrece", 1594; "Passionate Pilgrim", 1599, and Sonnets, 1609. As there is no continuous pagination, the letters and numbers refer to the page signatures and to the line of the page.]

While it cannot be regarded as certain that whenever Shakespeare writes of jewels or of rings he means those in which precious stones were set, several of the passages more or less clearly indicate this, and we therefore present here the more characteristic of the lines in question:

A Death's face in a ring.
_Love's Labour's Lost_, Act v, sc. 2, l. 616.
"Comedies", p. 142, col. A, line 36.

The dearest ring in Venice will I give you.
_Merchant of Venice_, Act iv, sc. 1, l. 435.
"Comedies", p. 181, col. B, line 27.

_Diana_. O behold this ring
Whose high respect and rich validity
Did lack a parallel; yet for all that
He gave it to a commoner of the camp,
If I be one.

_Count_. He blushes, and 'tis it:
Of six preceding ancestors, that gem,
Conferr'd by testament to the sequent issue,
Hath it been owned and worn.
_All's Well That Ends Well_, Act v, sc. 3, l. 191-198.
"Comedies", p. 253, col. A, lines 1-8.

My daughter! O my ducats! O my daughter!
Fled with a Christian! O my Christian ducats!
Justice! the law! my ducats and my daughter!
A sealed bag, two sealed bags of ducats,
Of double ducats, stolen from me by my daughter!
And jewels, two stones, two rich and precious stones,
Stolen by my daughter! Justice! find the girl;
She hath the stones upon her, and the ducats.
_Merchant of Venice_, Act ii, sc. 8, l. 15-22.
"Comedies", p. 171, col. B, lines 23-30.

I would my daughter were dead at my foot, and the
jewels in her ear!
_Merchant of Venice_, Act iii, sc. 1, l. 92.
"Comedies", p. 173, col. B, lines 1, 2.

Sweet are the uses of adversity,
Which, like the toad, ugly and venomous,
Wears yet a precious jewel in his head.
_As You Like It_, Act ii, sc. 1, l. 13-15.
"Comedies", p. 190, col. A, lines 10-12.

Win her with gifts, if she respect not words:
Dumb jewels often in their silent kind
More than quick words do move a woman's mind.
_Two Gentlemen of Verona_, Act iii, sc. 1, l. 89-91.
"Comedies", p. 29, col. A, lines 63-65.

I frown the while; and perchance wind up my watch,
or play with my--some rich jewel.
_Twelfth Night_, Act ii, sc. 5, l. 64-66.
"Comedies", p. 263, col. B, lines 32, 33.

A jewel in a ten-times-barr'd-up chest
Is a bold spirit in a loyal breast.
_King Richard II_, Act i, sc. 1, l. 180, 181.
"Histories", p. 24, col. B, lines 28, 29.

This royal throne of Kings, this scepter'd isle,
This earth of majesty, this seat of Mars,
This other Eden, demi-paradise,
This fortress built by Nature for herself
Against infection and the hand of war,
This happy breed of men, this little world,
This precious stone set in the silver sea,
Which serves it in the office of a wall
Or as a moat defensive to a house,
Against the envy of less happier lands,
This blessed plot, this earth, this realm, this England.
_King Richard II_, Act ii, sc. 1, l. 40-46.
"Histories", p. 28, col. B, lines 17-23.

In argument and proof of which contract,
Bear her this jewel, pledge of my affection.
_I Henry VI_, Act v, sc. 2, l. 46, 47.
"Histories", p. 115, col. A, lines 8, 9.

It seems she hangs upon the cheek of night,
Like a rich jewel in an Ethiop's ear;
Beauty too rich for use, for earth too dear.
_Romeo and Juliet_, Act i, sc. 5, l. 47-49.
"Tragedies", p. 57, col. B, lines 59-61.

But chiefly to take thence from her dead finger
A precious ring, a ring that I must use
In dear employment.
_Romeo and Juliet_, Act v, sc. 3, l. 30-32.
"Tragedies", p. 75, col. A, lines 34-36.

A striking proof that Shakespeare had no fear of tautology when he wished to strengthen the impression of a word by constant reiteration is given in the _Merchant of Venice_ (Act v, sc. 2), whence we have already quoted a few lines. The passage concerns the disposal by Bassanio of a ring he had received from Portia, and he answers her thus in the First Folio text:[34]

_Bassanio_. Sweet _Portia_,
If you did know to whom I gave the Ring,
If you did know for whom I gave the Ring,
And would conceive for what I gave the Ring,
And how unwillingly I left the Ring,
When naught would be accepted but the Ring,
You would abate the strength of your displeasure.

_Portia._
If you had knowne the virtue of the Ring,
Or halfe her worthinesse that gave the Ring,
Or your owne honour to contains the Ring,
You would not then have parted with the Ring.

[Footnote 34: First Folio, "Comedies", p. 183, col. B, lines 36-46.]

It was probably more than a coincidence that Shakespeare's first printed book, "Venus and Adonis", was published, in 1593, by a fellow-townsman, Richard Field, who had come up to London from Stratford when a mere boy. Undoubtedly, when Shakespeare met him in the bustle of city life, the common memories of their quieter native town served at once as an introduction and as a link between them. Field also published Shakespeare's "Lucrece" in the year 1594. He had been a freeman of the Stationers' Company from February 6, 1587, and died either in the year the First Folio was issued, or in the succeeding year, 1624.