Folio 99v - Decimum crisopassus; The tenth, chrysoprase. Undecimum Iacinctus; The eleventh, hyacinth
The tenth, chrysoprase
The tenth foundation is chrysoprase. This stone, according to Isidorus, comes from India, and is purple in colour with separate, small gold marks; for this reason it gets its name crisopassus, 'scattered everywhere with gold'. It signifies desire of the the heavenly land, which burns the more brightly, the more it is affected by tribulation, because, as Gregory says: 'What a bellows does to coal, tribulation does to love.'
Chrisoprase is placed in the tenth position, because holy men, in their desire for heaven, hasten to reach the tenth order of angels by observing the ten commandments. The tenth order is the one which will be renewed from men. In this context, man is called, in Luke, 15, the tenth piece of silver which the woman searched for and found (see 15:8-10).
Verse
India, its home, sends us the stone called chrysoprase. It shines with the sap of the leek and is of mixed colour, tinted with purple and marked with gold.
The eleventh, hyacinth
The eleventh foundation is hyacinth. This stone changes in accordance with the weather: on clear days, it is transparent; when the sky is overcast, it is opaque. For this reason it signifies the judgement of holy men, who use it, as the Lord did, to adapt to all conditions of life, in order to win the hearts of all men; as the apostle says, 1 Corinthians, 9: 'I am made all things to all men, that I might by all means save all' (see 9:22); Romans, 12: ' Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep' (12:15). This virtue enables holy teachers to know what, to whom, when and how to preach.
This stone is placed in the eleventh position, because through it, especially, all manner of sin is avoided.
Verse
The learned say that there are three kinds of hyacinth. The best is the kind whose colour is not so dense as to be obscure or so light as to be transparent but has a purple, myrtle-like bloom drawn from both parts of the spectrum.
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Commentary
Text
Chrisoprase and hyacinth.
Comment
Initials type 4.
Folio Attributes
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Transcription
Decimum crisopassus \ Decimum crisopassus.\ Hic lapis secundum Isydorum, Indicus est, et coloris pur\purei, guttulis distinctis aureis, unde et nomen recipit\ crisopassus, quasi passim habens aurum, et significat desiderium\ celestis patrie, quod quanto plus tribulacionibus excu\titur, tanto amplius accenditur, quia ut dicit Gregorius: Quod\ flatus carboni, hic facit tribulacio caritati et unde de\cimo loco ponitur quia sancti per desiderium, ad decimum or\dinem angelorum per observanciam decalogi venire\ festinant, decimus ordo dicitur, qui ex hominibus restau\rabitur, unde et homo dicitur Luce, xv: Decima dragma quam mu\lier querens invenit. \ Versus \ Et crissopassum lapi\dem domus India mittit. Hic priori [porri] suctum [succum] refe\rens mixtusque colore, Aureolis guctis [guttis] retinet quasi pur\pura tincta. \ Undecimum Iacinctus \ Undecimum iacinctus. His lapis cum aere mutatur\ in sereno prospicuus [perspicuus] est in nubilo obscurus est, unde\ significat discrecionem sanctorum, per quam secundum dominum omnibus se con\formant, ut omnes lucrifaciant, sicut dicit apostolus, i Corinthios, ix: Omnibus omnia factus sum ut omnes faceret [facarem] salvos; Romanos, xii\ gaudete [gaudere] cum gaudentibus flere cum flentibus; per hanc\ etiam virtutem sciunt sancti doctores quid, quibus, quando, et qualiter\ predicandum. Hic undecimo loco ponitur, quia per hanc\ maxime transgressio omnis vitatur. \ Versus \ Iacincti species\ docti tres esse loquuntur. Optimus huic tenor est quem\ non aut densior equo, Obscurat suctus [succus] aut rarus perspi\cium dat, Set flos purpureus murtum componit utroque\Translation
The tenth, chrysoprase The tenth foundation is chrysoprase. This stone, according to Isidorus, comes from India, and is purple in colour with separate, small gold marks; for this reason it gets its name crisopassus, 'scattered everywhere with gold'. It signifies desire of the the heavenly land, which burns the more brightly, the more it is affected by tribulation, because, as Gregory says: 'What a bellows does to coal, tribulation does to love.' Chrisoprase is placed in the tenth position, because holy men, in their desire for heaven, hasten to reach the tenth order of angels by observing the ten commandments. The tenth order is the one which will be renewed from men. In this context, man is called, in Luke, 15, the tenth piece of silver which the woman searched for and found (see 15:8-10). Verse India, its home, sends us the stone called chrysoprase. It shines with the sap of the leek and is of mixed colour, tinted with purple and marked with gold. The eleventh, hyacinth The eleventh foundation is hyacinth. This stone changes in accordance with the weather: on clear days, it is transparent; when the sky is overcast, it is opaque. For this reason it signifies the judgement of holy men, who use it, as the Lord did, to adapt to all conditions of life, in order to win the hearts of all men; as the apostle says, 1 Corinthians, 9: 'I am made all things to all men, that I might by all means save all' (see 9:22); Romans, 12: ' Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep' (12:15). This virtue enables holy teachers to know what, to whom, when and how to preach. This stone is placed in the eleventh position, because through it, especially, all manner of sin is avoided. Verse The learned say that there are three kinds of hyacinth. The best is the kind whose colour is not so dense as to be obscure or so light as to be transparent but has a purple, myrtle-like bloom drawn from both parts of the spectrum.
