Opening the library…

Home Bible Corpus Discover You

Search the Bible

On the Apparel of Women

Tertullian

Book 1 · Chapter 7

About this work

Author: Tertullian

Chapter VII.—Rarity the Only Cause Which Makes Such Things Valuable.

It is only from their rarity and outlandishness that all these

‹ Book 1 · Chapter 6 Book 1 · Chapter 8 ›

things

possess

their

grace

;

in

short

,

within

their

own

native

limits

they

are

not

held

of

so

high

worth

.

Abundance

is

always

contumelious

toward

itself

.

There

are

some

barbarians

with

whom

,

because

gold

is

indigenous

and

plentiful

,

it

is

customary

to

keep

(

the

criminals

)

in

their

convict

establishments

chained

with

gold

,

and

to

lade

the

wicked

with

riches

—

the

more

guilty

,

the

more

wealthy

.

At

last

there

has

really

been

found

a

way

to

prevent

even

gold

from

being

loved

!

We

have

also

seen

at

Rome

the

nobility

of

gems

blushing

in

the

presence

of

our

matrons

at

the

contemptuous

usage

of

the

Parthians

and

Medes

,

and

the

rest

of

their

own

fellow

-

countrymen

,

only

that

(

their

gems

)

are

not

generally

worn

with

a

view

to

ostentation

.

Emeralds

lurk

in

their

belts

;

and

the

sword

(

that

hangs

)

below

their

bosom

alone

is

witness

to

the

cylindrical

stones

that

decorate

its

hilt

;

and

the

massive

single

pearls

on

their

boots

are

fain

to

get

lifted

out

of

the

mud

!

In

short

,

they

carry

nothing

so

richly

gemmed

as

that

which

ought

not

to

be

gemmed

if

it

is

(

either

)

not

conspicuous

,

or

else

is

conspicuous

only

that

it

may

be

shown

to

be

also

neglected

.

Notes

1
Smaragdi. Comp. Rev. iv. 3.