Sardius

Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament

(σάρδιον, a much better attested form in  Revelation 4:3 than the Textus Receptusσάρδιος = Vulg.[Note: Vulgate.]‘sardinus’)

The writer of the Apocalypse compares Him that sits upon the throne of heaven to a sardius ( Revelation 4:3, Authorized Version‘sardine stone’). The sixth foundation of the wall of the New Jerusalem is a sardius (21:20). This stone is doubtless the modern orange-red or golden ‘sard,’ which is a translucent quartz coloured with iron, nearly allied with the clearer and lighter-tinted carnelian. The Greeks commonly connected the word with Sardis, where the stone was said to have been first found; but it may be related to the Persian zerd, ‘yellow.’ Pliny says that the sardius of Babylonia was more highly prized than that of Sardis (Historia Naturalis (Pliny)xxxvii. 7). This stone was more frequently engraved than any other. It was used for Assyrian cylinder seals, Egyptian scarabs, and early Greek and Etruscan gems.

Literature.-C. W. King, The Natural History of Precious Stones and Gems, 1865, pp. 278-286.

James Strahan.

Smith's Bible Dictionary

Sardius. (Red). (Hebrew, odem ). The stone which occupied the first place in the first row of the high priest's breastplate.  Exodus 28:27. The Sard , which is probably the stone denoted by odem , is a superior variety of agate, sometimes called Camelian , and has long been a favorite stone for the engraver's art. Sardis differ in color: there is a bright-red variety, and, perhaps, the Hebrew, odem , from a root means "to be red," points to this kind.

Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary

אדם , so called from its redness,  Exodus 28:17;  Exodus 39:10;  Ezekiel 28:13; σαρδιος ,  Revelation 21:20; a precious stone of a blood-red colour. It took its Greek name from Sardis, where the best of them were found.

American Tract Society Bible Dictionary

Or SARDINE, a species of precious stone of a blood red, or sometimes of a flesh-color. It is more commonly known by the name of carnelian,  Exodus 28:17   Revelation 4:3 .

King James Dictionary

S'ARDIUS, n. L. sardius Gr. from Sardis, in Asia Minor, now Sart. A precious stone. One of this kind was set in Aaron's breastplate.  Exodus 28 .

Webster's Dictionary

(n.) A precious stone, probably a carnelian, one of which was set in Aaron's breastplate.

Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible

Sardius . See Jewels and Precious Stones.

Holman Bible Dictionary

odem sardion

Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature

(Heb. אֹרֵם, O 'Dem; Sept. and New Test., σάρδιον ), one of the precious stones in the breastplate of the high priest ( Exodus 28:17;  Exodus 39:10). So also Josephus (War , 5, 5, 7), who, however, in Ant. 3, 7, 6, makes it the sardonyx (σαρδόνυξ ). Still, as this latter named mineral is merely another variety of agate, to which also the sard or sardius belongs, there is no very great discrepancy in the statements of the Jewish historian. (See Sardonyx).

The Odem is mentioned by Ezekiel (28:13) as one of the ornaments of the king of Tyre. In  Revelation 4:3, John declares that he whom he saw sitting on the heavenly throne "was to look upon like a jasper and a Sardine stone." The sixth foundation of the wall of the heavenly Jerusalem was a Sardius ( Revelation 21:20). There can scarcely be a doubt that either the sard or the sardonyx is the stone denoted by odem. The authority of Josephus in all that relates to the high priest's breastplate is of the greatest value; for, as Braun (De Vest. Sac. Heb. p. 635) has remarked, Josephus was not only a Jew, but a priest, who might have seen the breastplate with the whole sacerdotal vestments a hundred times, since in his time the Temple was standing. The Vulgate agrees with his nomenclature. In Jerome's time the breastplate was still to be inspected in the Temple of Concord; hence it will readily be acknowledged that this agreement of the two is of great weight. The sard, which is a superior variety of agate, has long been a favorite stone for the engraver's art. "On this stone," says King (Ant. Gems, p. 5), "all the finest works of the most celebrated artists are to be found; and this not without good cause, such is its toughness, facility of working, beauty of color, and the high polish of which it is susceptible, and which Pliny states that it retains longer than any other gem." Sards differ in color. There is a bright red variety which, in Pliny's time, was the most esteemed; and perhaps the Hebrew odem, from a root which means "to be red," points to this kind. There is also a paler or honey-colored variety; but in sards there is always a shade of yellow mingling with the red (see King, Ant. Gems, p. 6). The sardius is the stone now called the carnelian, from its color (a carne), which resembles that of raw flesh. The Hebrew name is derived from a root (אָדִם ) which signifies Redness. The sardius or carnelian is of the flint family, and is a kind of chalcedony. The more vivid the red in this stone, the higher is the estimation in which it is held. It was anciently, as now, more frequently engraved on than any other stone. The ancients called it Sardius, because Sardis in Lydia was the place where they first became acquainted with it; but the sardius of Babylon was considered of greater value (Pliny, Hist. Nat. 37, 7). The Hebrews probably obtained the carnelian from Arabia. In Yemen there is found a very fine dark red carnelian, which is called El-Akik (Niebuhr, Beschreib . p. 142). The Arabs wear it on the finger, on the arm above the elbow, and in the belt before the abdomen. It is supposed to stop hemorrhage when laid on a fresh wound. See Theophr. De Lapid. c. 43; Cleaveland, Mineral. p. 250; Moore, Anc. Mineral. p. 153.

Kitto's Popular Cyclopedia of Biblial Literature

Sar´dius, one of the precious stones in the breastplate of the high-priest , and also mentioned in . The sardius is the stone now called the carnelian, from its color, which resembles that of raw flesh. The Hebrew name is derived from a root which signifies being red. The sardius or carnelian is of the flint family, and is a kind of chalcedony. The more vivid the red in this stone, the higher is the estimation in which it is held. It was anciently, as now, more frequently-engraved on than any other stone. The ancients called it sardius, because Sardis in Lydia was the place where they first became acquainted with it; but the sardius of Babylon was considered of greater value. The Hebrews probably obtained the carnelian from Arabia. In Yemen there is found a very fine dark-red carnelian, which is called el-Akik. The Arabs wear it on the finger, on the arm above the elbow, and in the belt before the abdomen. It is supposed to stop hemorrhage when laid on a fresh wound.