‖ lapis
(ˈlæpɪs)
The Latin word for ‘stone’.
1. Used with qualification in several med.L. names of minerals and gems: lapis Armenus, Armenian stone, a blue carbonate of copper; lapis calaminaris, calamine; lapis causticus, caustic potash; lapis divinus, a preparation consisting of copper sulphate, potassium nitrate, alum, and camphor; lapis granatus, garnet; lapis hæmatites, hæmatite; lapis hibernicus (see quot.); lapis infernalis, lunar caustic (cf. infernal A. 4 a); lapis judaicus = Jews' stone 1; lapis Lydius, basanite; lapis ollaris, potstone, or soapstone.
| 1641 French Distill. iii. (1651) 82 Take of *Lapis Armenus..as much as you please. 1796 Kirwan Elem. Min. (ed. 2) II. 153 Lapis Armenus is Chalk or Gypsum impregnated with the blue Calx of Copper. |
| 1696 Phillips (ed. 5), Cadmia, Brass Oar or Stone out of which Brass is tryed or molten, called by divers *Lapis Calaminaris. 1799 G. Smith Laboratory I. 108 Add to it a third part of powdered lapis calaminaris. 1822 J. Imison Sci. & Art II. 228 Brass is made by fusing together lapis calaminaris (which is an ore of zinc) and copper. |
| 1657 Physical Dict., *Lapis Granatus, the Granate stone. |
| 1741 Compl. Fam.-Piece i. i. 76 Take the fine Powder of *Lapis Hæmatites. |
| 1778 Woulfe in Phil. Trans. LXIX. 25 The Irish slate, *lapis Hybernicus of the druggists. |
| 1741 Compl. Fam.-Piece i. i. 40 Take of *Lapis Infernalis one Ounce. |
| [c 1400 Lanfranc's Cirurg. 278 ℞, cineris vitris..lapidis spongie, *lapidis iudaici..ana .ᵹ. j.] 1646 Sir T. Browne Pseud. Ep. ii. v. 92 Bezoar is Antidotall, Lapis Judaicus diureticall. |
| 1772–84 Cook Voy. (1790) V. 1722 Besides the *lapis lydius, we found a species of cream-coloured whetstone. |
| 1696 Phillips (ed. 5), *Lapis Nephriticus, a Stone of great Efficacy against the Stone in the Kidneys. 1753 Hanway Trav. (1762) I. vii. xcv. 437 A cup of lapis nephriticus. |
| 1796 Kirwan Elem. Min. (ed. 2) I. 155 Pot-stone, *Lapis Ollaris. 1865 Lubbock Preh. Times xiv. (1869) 482 A..lamp or shallow vessel of lapis ollaris. |
2. Short for:
a. med.L.
lapis philosophicus, philosophers' stone;
b. lapis lazuli.
| 1666–7 Locke Let. to Boyle 24 Feb. in B.'s Wks. 1772 VI. 537 He and I are now upon a new sort of chemistry, i.e. extracting money out of the scholars pockets; and if we can do that, you need not fear but in time we shall have the lapis. 1811 Pinkerton Petral. II. 89 At Ekaterinburg in Siberia..I inquired..concerning the nature of the mountains whence the Lapis is brought. 1861 All Year Round V. 14 Basalt, lapis, syenite. |