The Curious Lore of Precious Stones

audiobook

The Curious Lore of Precious Stones

by George Frederick Kunz

EN·~11 hours·16 chapters

Chapters

16 total
1

Transcriber’s Notes

0:29
2

The Curious Lore of Precious Stones

2:22
3

Preface

5:45
4

Illustrations

4:32
5

Superstitions and Their Sources

31:55
6

On the Use of Precious and Semi-Precious Stones as Talismans and Amulets

52:21
7

III On the Talismanic Use of Special Stones36 - Agate

1:38:07
8

On the Use of Engraved and Carved Gems as Talismans

43:25
9

On Ominous and Luminous Stones

54:28
10

On Crystal Balls and Crystal Gazing

1:27:32

Description

The book opens with a vivid meditation on why humanity has been drawn to the unchanging sparkle of gems—a brilliance that outlasts fleeting colors of flowers or sunsets. It sets the stage by reminding listeners that these stones have been treasured across ages not only for their beauty but for the promise of permanence in a world of constant change.

From there, the author guides us through a richly illustrated tour of folklore, superstition, and symbolism that have grown up around each mineral. Readers discover how ancient physicians, astrologers, and everyday folk assigned powers to diamonds, rubies, sapphires, and pearls—using them as birth‑stones, talismans, and tools of divination. Drawing on decades of research and a personal library of rare references, the narrative weaves scientific insight with the enchanting myths that still make a simple gem feel like a magical charm.

Details

Full title

The Curious Lore of Precious Stones Being a description of their sentiments and folk lore, superstitions, symbolism, mysticism, use in medicine, protection, prevention, religion, and divination. Crystal gazing, birth-stones, lucky stones and talismans, astral, zodiacal, and planetary

Language

en

Duration

~11 hours (662K characters)

Publisher of text edition

Project Gutenberg

Credits

Produced by Chris Curnow, Les Galloway and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive)

Release date

2018-09-26

Rights

Public domain in the USA.

About the author

George Frederick Kunz

George Frederick Kunz

1856–1932

A leading American gem expert at the turn of the 20th century, he helped shape how rare gemstones were studied, collected, and admired. His work connected science, jewelry, and natural history in a way that still feels surprisingly modern.

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