The ancients were fascinated with magnetite and its mysterious workings. The great Pliny wrote that the first instance of the discovery of magnetite, commonly known as lodestone, happened when a Cretan shepherd was walking on Mount Ida with his flock, and the nails of his shoes clung to a rock in the field. The shepherd’s name was Magnes. Pliny also recorded the tale of Ptolemy, who wished to make an iron statue of a woman for a temple dedicated to his wife and his sister. The trick was that he wanted to use the new art of magnetism to suspend the statue in the air without any visible means of support! Unfortunately for us, Ptolemy and his architect, the Alexandrian Dinocrates, died before its completion. Otherwise, there might have been an eighth wonder of the world. Lodestone, the polarized version of magnetite, was held to be a protection against spells and other magical mischief. The ancients also believed that a small piece of lodestone beneath the pillow would be a testimony to virtue. Alexander the Great gave his soldiers lodestone to defend against unseen evil spirits.
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