Minerals and Metals in Ancient India v2.c43.s3.t8.15

v2.c43.s3.t8.15

Onyx was widely mentioned in the Greek and Hebrew literature, the name coming from a Greek word denoting ‘a nail’. A Greek mythological story narrated that Cupid, with the sharp point of his arrow, cut the nails of the sleeping Venus, which fell into the Indus, and became metamorphosed into onyx. This story suggests that onyx was widely mined and processed in India, and then exported to Greece and other countries. In fact, the materials onyx and sardonyx were widely used for jewellery purposes, for signet rings and like agate and carnelian, for making cups, vases, sword, handles, etc.