The topaz is a miniature reproduction of the rich gold which illumines the setting sun. – Charles Blanc, Art in Ornament and Dress, 1875, translated from French

These words dropped into my childish mind as if you should accidentally drop a ring into a deep well. I did not think of them much at the time, but there came a day in my life when the ring was fished up out of the well, good as new. – Harriet Beecher Stowe, Old Town Folks, 1869

The rarest things in the world, next to a spirit of discernment, are diamonds and pearls. – Jean de la Bruyere, translated from French