Nehemiah GREW, 1641-1712
Musaeum Regalis Societatis
1681 Musaeum Regalis Societatis, or a catalogue & description of the natural and artificial rarities belonging to the Royal Society and preserved at Gresham Colledge. London, W. Rawlins, pp. i-xii, 1-388.
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The skin of a young Rhinoceros, composed indifferently to the shape of the animal. In the description whereof Jacobus Bontius (Histor.Nat.Ind.Orient.) comes the nearest to the truth. Yet is he very short and defective. To whose therefore, as far as may be by this skin, I shall add a better.
'Tis a yard long, and almost a foot over; his head nine inches long, almost eight over at the top. His snout broadish, as in a calf. His eyes little, as those of a hog, about 3/4 of an inch long. They stand low, not much more than three inches above his nose end. His ears also like a hogs. His legs, as of the Hippopotamus, rateably short; about ten inches long. His tail, five and ½; flat, as that of the castor, but not so broad, near the buttocks an inch and ½, at the end ½ an inch.
The said skin is every where thick, and very hard; excepting only his ears which are softer, and extream thin. It hath about ten plicae or folds; two under the nether jaw, one on the breast, in the figure of the letter V, on the neck one on each side, one between the shoulders semicircular, on the back two transversly extended to the bottom of the sides, with two more strait ones, carry'd obliquely on the buttocks.
The lower part of the forehead and snout cover'd with a kind of hard crust. His ears naked and smooth. All the other parts rough with round scaly crusts; on the back, sides, and belly, lesser, near a ¼ of an inch over; on the nether chap and shoulders, bigger; on his buttocks and legs, the biggest, about ½ an inch over. His hair is black, short, and fine. So few, that there are not many more than scales or shells; growing for the most part, out of the centre of the shell; so that he is almost naked. His dock is also naked on both sides, but on the edges there grows a considerable quantity of longer and thicker hair. The animal being very young, had no horn, nor so much as any sign of it.
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The Rhinoceros, says Bontius (Histor.nat.) is near as big as an elephant, saving that he is not so tall. He will lick a man to death (Ibid.) by raking away the flesh to the bone with his rough and sharp tongue.
In Piso's figure, which he hath added to Bontius's Description, and which, he saith, was taken from the life, the eyes are placed very low, as they are also in this skin. But the cloven-feet, in the same picture, I find not here: peradventure, the skin not being well taken off the feet.
In the time of Domitian the Emperour, there was one so big, as to toss not only a bear, but a bull upon his horn. But what Martial (Mart.Epigr.22 & Epigr.9, lib.1) means, speaking of the Rhinoceros,
Namq; gravem gemino cornu sic extulis ursum, &c.
I do not well understand.
The figure given by Piso, as above, represents but one horn only. Neither does Bontius (who faith he hath seen great numbers of them both in houses and in the woods) describe or mention any more than one horn, and those who do speak of another, yet make it a very small one, and not over against the other, but on the forepart of his back, and so in a place where it is immoveable, and can no way be made use of for the tossing up of any thing, as the other on his nose.
The Rhinoceros breeds not in India (Linschot. p.88) but in Bengala and Patane, where they much frequent the river Ganges.
A piece of great Rhinoceros-Skin, tann'd. 'Tis wonderful hard, and thick, about ½ inch; exceeding that of any land animal, which I have seen.
The Horn of a Rhinoceros. It once belonged to the Duke of Holsteine. Although Bontius describes the animal the best of any before him, yet neither he, nor others describe the horn to any purpose. 'Tis in colour and smoothness like those of a bull. Almost a yard long. At the base, above half a foot over; and there surrounded with a garland of black and stubby bristles. Sharp-pointed. A little crooked backwards, like a cocks spur. Quite through solid. An instance
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contrary to that assertion of ARISTOTLE (De Partib.Animal. l.3.c.2) ...
Another Horn of a Rhinoceros, as big as that now describ'd. Given by Sir Robert Southwell, present Embessador to the Prince Elector of Brandenburge.
A third, almost as big as the former.
A fourth, a little one, about a foot long.
The Rhinceros fights the Elephant with his horn, and sometimes overcomes him. In Septalius's Musaeum there are several vessels mention'd to be made out of this horn, as well as divers others. The Rhinoceros horn, in India, as also his teeth, claws, flesh, skin, blood, yea dung and piss, are much esteemed, and us'd against poison, and many diseases; and sold at gerat rates (Linsch.p.88). Yet some for an hundred times as much as others of the same colour and bigness; for some difference which the Indians (only) discern betwixt them (Ibid.).
The Tail of a great Rhinoceros. Not well described by Bontius. The Dock is about ½ inch thick, and two inches broad, like an Apothecaries Spatule. Of what length the whole, is uncertain, this being only part of it, though it looks as if cut off near the buttock; 'tis about nine inches, black, and very rough. On the two edges, and there only, grow also very black and shining hairs, a foot long, stubborn, and of the thickness of a smaller shoomakers thread. Yet not round, as other hair, but rather flatish; like so many little pieces of whale-bone.
