The History and Folklore Surrounding Carnelians

Carnelian

Talisman ist Karneol

Glaubigen bringt er Gluck und Wohl;

Steht er gar auf Onyx' Grunde,

Kuss' ihm mit geweihtem Munde!

Alles Ubel treibt er fort,

Schutzet dich und schutzt den Ort;

Wenn das eingegrabene Wort

Allah's Namen rein verkundet;

Dich zu Lieb' und Tat entzundet;

Und besonders werden Frauen

Sich am Talisman erbauen!

Goethe Westosterlicher Divan I, Segenspfander.)

Carnelian is a talisman,

It brings good luck to child and man;

If resting on an onyx ground,

A sacred kiss imprint when found.

It drives away all evil things;

To thee and thine protection brings.

The name of Allah, king of kings,

If graven on this stone, indeed,

Will move to love and doughty deed.

From such a gem a woman gains

Sweet hope and comfort in her pains.

The wearing of carnelians is recommended by the Lapidario of Alfonso X ("Lapidario del Rey D. Alfonso X," codice original, Madrid, 1881, fol. 77.) to those who have a weak voice or are timid in speech, for the warm-colored stone will give them the courage they lack, so that they will speak both boldly and well. This is in accord with the general belief in the stimulating and animating effects produced by red stones.

On a carnelian is engraved in Arabic characters a prayer to keep away evil and to deliver the wearer from all the tricks of the devil and from the envious. The inscription reads in translation:

"In the name of God the Just, the very Just!

I implore you, O God King of the World,

God of the World, deliver us from the devil

Who tries to do harm and evil to us through

Bad people, and from the evil of the envious."

Throughout all the East people are afraid of the envious. They believe that if you envy a person for his health or his wealth or any good thing he may have, he will lose it in a short time, and it is the devil who incites the envy of some people against others. So it is supposed that by wearing this stone, bearing this prayer against the envious, their envy will cease to do you harm.

The popularity of the carnelian as a talismanic stone among Mohammedan peoples is said to be due to the fact that the Prophet himself wore, on the little finger of his right hand, a silver ring set with a carnelian engraved for use as a seal. One of the most famous of the imams, Jafar, lent the weight of his authority to the belief in the virtue of the carnelian, for he declared that all the desires of any man who wore this stone would be gratified. Hence in Persia the name of one of the twelve imams, comprising Ali and his successors, is frequently engraved on this stone. (Hendley, "Indian Jewellery," London, 1909.)

This most interesting seal is described by the Rev. C. W. King, the writer on Antique Gems. It is carnelian, octagonal-shaped, and upon it is engraved the legend: "The slave Abraham relying upon the Merciful (God)." Napoleon III wore it on his watch-chain. He said about it: "The First Consul picked it up with his own hands during the campaign in Egypt and always carried it about him, as his nephew did later." The Prince Imperial received it with the following message: "As regards my son, I desire that he will keep, as a talisman, the Seal which I used to wear attached to my watch." He carried the seal upon a string fastened about his neck in obedience to the injunction of his father. At the time of his lamentable death it must have been carried off in South Africa by the Zulus, when they stripped his body, and it has never been recovered.