· Reveals the healing and magical virtues of familiar gemstones, such as amethysts, emeralds and diamonds, as well as the lore surrounding exotic stones such as astrios, a stone celebrated by ancient magicians · Examines bezoars (stones formed in animals' bodies) and “magnets” that attract materials other than metal · Based on ancient Arabic, Greek, Jewish and European sources, ranging from the observations of Pliny the Elder to extremely rare texts such as the Picatrix and Damigeron's Virtue of Stones Our ancestors believed stones were home to sacred beings of power, entities that if properly understood and cultivated could provide people protection from ill fortune, envy and witchcraft; grant invisibility and other magical powers; improve memory and heal the sick from a wide variety of diseases. These benefits could be obtained by wearing the stone on a ring, bracelet or pendant; through massage treatments with the stone or by reducing the gem into a powder and drinking it mixed with water or wine. Drawing from a wealth of ancient Arabic, Greek, Jewish and European sources - from the observations of Pliny the Elder to extremely rare texts such as the Picatrix and Damigeron's Virtue of Stones - Claude Lecouteux provides a synthesis of all known lore for more than 1,000 stones. He includes such common examples as the emerald, which ,when engraved with the figure of a harpy holding a lamprey in its claws, will banish panic and nightmares and beryl, which ,when appropriately carved, can summon water spirits or win its owner high renown, as well as more exotic stones such as astrios, a stone celebrated by ancient magicians and whose centre glows like a star. Lecouteux, also, examines bezoars - stones formed in animals' bodies - as well as “magnets” that attract materials other than iron, such as gold, flesh, cotton or scorpions. This comprehensive dictionary of sacred and magical gem lore, drawn from the rarest sources of Antiquity and the Middle Ages, represents a one-of-a-kind resource for gem enthusiasts and magical practitioners alike.