A History of Hindu Chemistry from the Earliest Times to the Middle of the Sixteenth Century A.D. v2.c33.s3.1

v2.c33.s3.1

Although there is no direct recognition of antimony as a distinct metal, some sort of allusion to it as a variety of lead is not wanting. The reason why antimony was often confounded with lead is that at first sight stibnite may be mistaken for galena. The mineral sauvīrāñjana or nīlāñjana was thus indiscriminately applied both to the sulphides of antimony and of lead (cf. vol. I., pp. 93-95) That nīlāñjana contained a new metal was often suspected though its nature was not properly understood. Thus in Rasendra-chūḍāmani we have "nīlāñjana, mined with tīkshna (cast iron), and heated several times yields a superior kind of lead which is readily fusible and is of mild black colour."*