Account of Athanasii Kircheri China Illustrata

was of the Compass of a Mans hat about the brims. I then caused a Bucket-full of Water to be poured on the fire, by which it was presently quenched, as well as my companions laughter was stopped, who then began to think, the Water did not burn. I did not perceive the Flame to be discolour'd, like that of sulphureous Bodies, nor to have any manifest scent with it. The Fumes, when they broke out of the Earth, and prest against my hand, were not, to my best remembrance, at all hot. Account of Athanasii Kircheri CHINA ILLUSTRATA. The Author by publishing this Volume, discharges the Promise, he had made some years ago, that he would do so. He acknowledges himself much obliged to Martinius, and his Atlas Sinicus; as also to Michael Boim, a Polonian; Philippo Marino, a Jesuit of Genoa; and two other of the same Society, viz., Henry Roth of Augsburg, and John Gruber, an Austrian; whereof the latter went A.D. 1656, over Land from Rome, through Anatolia, Armenia, Persia, Ormus, Cambaja, and India, to Macao, the famous Port of China, and thence to Pekin, the Court of that Empire; whence two years after, he came back to Rome, accompanied for a part of the way, by the Jesuit Albert Dorville; traversing by Land in a manner the whole breadth of China, and a great part of the confining Tartary, and so further, through the Moguls Dominions, to Agra, where the said Dorville dying, the above-mentioned Henry Roth supplied his place in accomplishing this Voyage. The Book itself, a large Folio, is divided into 6 Parts. The three first, and the last, being besides the design of these Tracts, we shall but glance at, taking only notice; First, That they pretend to persuade the Reader, that Christianity was spread over all Asia by St. Thomas the Apostle, and his Successors; and hath been there continued, though not without great Eclipses, to these very times. And here the Chino-Chaldean Monument, said to have been erected several hundred years since in China, and found out A.D. 1625, is with great labour asserted and interpreted. Next, That the Rise of the Idolatry, in those remote parts, and their different Ceremonies in Worship, is confronted with those Ancient ones of Egypt. Lastly, that a large Account is given of the Chinese Letters, their Figure, Power, &c. But we hasten to the Fourth Book, as belonging to our Sphere. That undertakes to describe the Curiosities and Productions of Nature and Art, in China. Here, the Author having premised something of the advantageous Scituation of China, and its Political Government; Calculated also both the Number of its Inhabitants, (which according to him, amount to 200 Millions of Men, besides Women, Children, Officers, and Eunuchs;) and the Annual Revenue of the Emperour (which he makes to be 150 Millions of Gold-Crowns;) he relateth many considerable productions and works of Nature in that Country; As 1. Mountains very odd for shape, burning, and raising of Tempests. 2. Isles, to the number of 99, all turned into one, under the same extent of space they had, when they were divided by water. 3. Lakes, some changing Copper into Iron, and causing storms, when any thing is cast into them; and others, sprung up by Earth-quakes. 4. Rivers, whereof one is said to be of a Blew colour in Autumn, and for the rest of the year Limpid: Another, to be cold at the top, and very hot beneath. 5. Fiery Wells, serving to boil meat over: Perhaps of the same Nature with that here in England, we described above. 6. Plants, as some Roses, changing their Colour twice a day: Whence the Author takes occasion to speak of that Plant, which grows at Rome, in the Garden of one Signior Corvino, call'd Viola Nocturna, changing its colour sensibly, according to the degrees of the rising and declining of the Sun; destitute of all smell in the day-time, but having a very fragrant one in the night. A Farinaceous or Mealy Tree, serving to make Bread of it. Leaves of certain Trees, standing on the side of a Lake, which falling into the water, become like black Birds: which he ascribeth to the Seminal parts of some Eggs, broken on those Trees, fill'd with Birds nests. The, and its wholesomeness, as to the suppressing of Vapours, and preventing the Stone. A kind of Wicker-Tree, which, as if it were a Rope twisted by Nature, about an inch thick, creeps along upon the Earth, sometimes the length of 120 paces, much embarrassing the way: but serving for Cables to Ships, Seats, Hurdles, Beds, Matts; enduring no Vermin; and being cool and refreshing in hot Seasons. The Calamba-Wood; that it is esteem'd by some to be a kind of Lentiscum ticum, by others, a sort of Terebinth, but of a nobler rank, by virtue of that Climat: which makes the Author suggest, that care should be taken to have it brought into Europe, and carefully cultivated there. 7. Rhubarb; of which he observes, that, because the virtue of its Roots, if they be exposed to dry hastily, soon evaporate; therefore the skilfull, lay them upon a Table within doors, and turn them several times a day, to incorporate and fix the Juice the better, and then string them and expose them to the Wind, in a shade, altogether free from the Sunbeams. 8. Pine Trees; of which he faith some are so big, that eight Men can hardly Fathom them. 9. Canes, so big, that they can make as many Barrels of them, as they have internodes or Joyns. 10. Trees, sweating a Gum, call'd Cie, like the droppings of Turpentine; which Gum, as long as tis not dried, emits a very unwholome and dangerous steam. To passe by the Poloniae Tree, producing fruit without any blossoms, immediately out of its Trunk, as big as one man can well carry; and that kind of Fig-Tree, that bears Leaves as big as to wrap up a man in, &c. 7. Animals, Here he discourseth of the Musk Deer, and the several Compositions of Musk: the Sea-Horse, and Wild Men: Of some Birds, no where seen but in China (as he thinks) and among them a Wool-bearing Hen: Of Fishes, in Summer flying out of the Sea, seeking their food, like Birds, and in Autumn returning to the Sea: particularly of a Fish of a very exquisite taste, called Hoancio-yu, or the Croceous Fish: Further, of Sea-Cows, going often ashore, and fighting with the Land-Cows: Of Bats, of a vast bigness, eaten by the Chinese as a delicious meat: Of the Serpent, that breeds the Antidotal stone; whereof he relates many experiments, to verifie the relations of its vertue: Which may invite the Curator of the Royal Society, to make the like tryal, there being such a stone in their Repository, sent them from the East Indies. Again, of Silk Worms, spinning twice a year, and yielding a double Crop. 8. Fossils, where occurs the Relation, 1. Of an odd Specular stone, representing the figure of the Moon in all her Appearances, when exposed to Her. 2. Of an Earth called Quei, very Cosmetick, and abstersive of all blemishes of the face. 3. A Mineral cerusse, blended of Lead and Antimony. 4. Of Asbestus, that can be drawn and spun; the way of which he affirms to have described L. 12. Mundi sui subterranei. 5. The Matter that makes Porcelain, which he affirms to be nothing else but a transparent Sand, which which they soak in water, and then reduce to a Masse or Dough, and so bake it. Not a word of the way of giving it the colour, which, it seems, they keep as a great secret. They have Gold and Silver Mines, but dig them not, pretending the danger and trouble in the work, and contenting themselves with the Filings and Dust of Gold, which they gather out of the Mud and Sand of Rivers and Fountains. The Fifth Book contains an account of their Works of Architecture, and other ingenious Mechanick Arts. Where he speaks, 1. Of their stupendious Bridges, one of 360 Perches long, and 1 ½ Perch broad, without any Arch, standing upon 300 Pillars, with acute Angles on both opposite sides, all the stones being of an equal size and shape. Another, built from Mountain to Mountain by one only Arch, 400 cubits long, 500 cubits high (whence tis called Pens volans) from the surface of the saffran River, running under it. This is represented, for the satisfaction of the Curious, by Figure I. 2. Vast Towns, but whose Houses are generally but one Story high, and good reason therefore, the Towns should be very big. They are, for the most part, built of Timber. 3. Turrets very artificiall, whereof one is all of Porcellan. 4. The China Wall, 500 German Leagues long; 30 Cubits high, 12 (in some places 15) Cubits broad, so that 12 Horses can very conveniently go in front on it; built 215 years before Christ, by the Emperour Pius, a brave and most Warlike Prince, and dispatcht in the space of five years; commonly it is defended by a Million of men. A Pattern of this also was thought fit to exhibit here, by Figure II. 5. The Channel, that passeth from one extremity of China to the other, having some 24 sluices, to retain water, when tis necessary; a work of incredible industry and extraordinary advantage. 6. Vast Bells, one whereof, at Pekin, weighs 120000 pounds; whereas that of Erfurd in Germany, hitherto esteemed to be one of the biggest in the World, weighs but 25400 pounds. As for their ingenious Inventions, this Author mentions chiefly, 1. Their Vernice, of which he sets down some Receipts both for the Red and Black, together with the way of their Use and Application, as he received them both from an Augustinian Fryar; affirming, that it differs not at all from that of China. 2. Their way of Printing, invented long before that in Europe, giving a large description of the same. 3. Gunpowder, which he also faith, they had before the Europeans. 4. Bell-founding. These are the principal Subjects treated of in this Book. We passe by severall Stories, which seem much to require confirmation. E.g. That of Sugar-Canes, eaten by an Elephant, and taking root in his stomach; that of Boys eating Serpents with as much greediness, as others eat Eels, or any good meat, &c. Among the Cuts of this Volume, there is a Map of Asia, not un-instructive; delineating the way, the two Jesuits took in their Land-voyage from Pekin to Goa; as also that, which the Muscovian Ambassadors, not many years since, took in travelling from their Countrey, through the vast Tract of the Northern Tartary, to China, arriving on the North side of the China Wall at Pekin: Item, The Land-passage, heretofore made by B. Goes (described by Rigaultius) from Persia, by Labor in the Mogols Empire, through the Kingdoms of Kabul, Zancut, &c. to Cataja, or (which is all one to this Author, as it is to several others) the Province of Pekin in China. Item, The passage of Paulus Venetus over Land, out of Europe into the same China: and lastly, That pretended one of St. Thomas, out of Palestina, through Syria, Mesopotamia, Persia, the Mogols Empire, the Pen-insul between the Bays of Cambaya and Bengala, to Maliapur, on the Coast of Coromandel, where the Name of the Christians of St. Thomas is still in request. LONDON, Printed by T.R. for John Martyn, Printer to the Royall Society, and are to be sold at the Bell a little without Temple-Barr, 1667.