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brown or tawny, a black, and a gold yellow. Its head is moderately large, and its mouth extremely wide, and has, in the rim of each jaw, a row of very fmall teeth, and in the middle of its palate, two teeth much larger than the reft, and moveable inwards. Sometimes there is only one of thefe. At the end of its fnout there are two fhort and hollow apophyfes, and over the eyes two more. The former of thefe feem to ferve the creature for hearing, and the latter for fmell j for the antients all agree, that this fifli can hear. The eyes are very fmall and placed in the middle of the head. It has two round holes at the gills for throwing out the water. The eills are four, and it neither has any fins at the gills, nor on the belly. Near the back part of the head begins a fin, which runs downs the ridge of the back, and furrounding the tail, returns up to the anus, and there terminates. This, as in the eel, is covered with the common fldn. It is caught on the fliores of Italy, and in other parts' of the Mediterranean. Its flefli is white, tender, and of a fine flavour, and was highly valued by the antient Romans. But there is Come danger in the eating them. Their bite alfo is very venomous, and of- ten occauons long pain, and many ill confequences to people whofufterit. IVillughhfs Hilt. Fife. p. 103. It is to be obferved, that the dictionaries ufually give us the word lamprey as the Englifh of Murana ; but the Murana and lamprey, called by the Latin authors, lampetra, are two very different fifhes. See the article Lampetra. Murana is originally Greek, and is derived from the verb, ftufw, to flow, or be flippery, and exprefles the manner in which its flipperynefs makes it roll about, and efcape the catcher, by flipping through his fingers.
Murjena isufed by Albertus for the common fmall lampern, the lampetra -paraa Jiuviatilis of authors. This is one of the petromyza of Artedi, and is diftinguilhed by the having only one row of very fmall teeth in the verge of the mouth, beiide the large lower ones.
MURELIA, in botany, a name by which Pliny, and fome other authors, have called the parietaria, or pellitory of the wall. Ger. Emac. Ind. 2.
MUREX, in natural hiftory, the nameof a genus of fhell- fifli, the characters of which are thefe. It is an univalve (hell, befet with fharp fpines and tubercles, with a rough clavicle exerted near the fummit in moft fpecies, but in fome deprefled. The mouth is always expanded, and fometimes has teeth, fome- timesnot; the lip is fometimes digitated, fometimes elated or folded, or jagged ; and the columella is fometimes rough, fometimes fmooth. See Tab. of Shells, N°, 13. Notwithftanding that this is the general character of the Mu- rex, and that all the fpecies have an oblong mouth, and the body covered with tubercles, there are, under this extenfive character, four fpecific variations of figure, which are very obfervable. The firft is feen in the alated Murex, which has no fpines. The fecond is in the fpider ftiell, which has very remarkable feries of lingers or hooks. The third is the helmet- fhell, which is a true triangular Murex. The laft is a fur- rowed Murex, which has no wings, nor protuberances, nor fpines; but has a flat head, and an oblong dentated mouth. Hift, Nat. Eclairc. p. 290. Aldrovand. Rondeiet. Rumphius. On the firfl examination of feveral of the fpecies of helmet- fhell, the outer coat of which is fmooth, it would be natural to refufc them any place among the Murex clafs ; but when we fee the oblong ihape of the mouth, and find that it is fur- nifhed with teeth, and afterwards obferve the rudiments of tu- bercles which are to be feen on the mouth fide, we mail per- ceive that they are all true Murices, though lefs prickly than the others.
The antients were furnifhed with their fined purple dye from a fifh of the Murex kind, and therefore exprefled the purple colour by the word Murex. We find in Virgil, Tyrio arde- bat murice /ana. Plumier tells us, that in America the Mu- rex is called pijfew, from its readily ejecting the liquor, winery gives the purple colour when it is taken from the rocks. And tabius Columna diftinguifhes the Murex from the pur- pura and bucdnum, but in a very injudicious manner. He iays the purpura aiTordb the fine purple colour : the Murex is covered wirh fpines and tubercles; and the buccinum is known by its fmooth and long wreath. But he mould have known that the affording the purple dye is common to the Murex and purpura, and even to fome of the buccinum kind ; and that there are Murexes with very few fpines or tubercles, and buccina which are not fmooth. The knowledge of the infufficiency of thefe charaders, would have engaged him in feeking others more effential ; and a perfon of his great abili- ties would then perhaps have prevented half the confuGon that has happened fince in the world, on occafion of errors of this kind propagated from his writings, and thofe of two or three others of his time. Virg. iEneid. L. 4. Fabius Columna, Aquat. & Terreftr. Obferv. p. 55,
The family of the Murex being very extenfive, it may be pro- per to dwide them into fome leparate feries from the general common marks of certain numbers of the fpecies. 1. Some have remarkably eminent tubercles and fpines. 2. Some are nearly fmooth, but have a rough clavicle, and a crooked beak. 3. bome have digitated lips. And 4. Some have alated and lacimated lips. The fpecies preferved in the cabinets of the buppi,. Vol. II,
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curious are thefe. Firft, of the rough or prickly Murieis we nave the following :
I. The Murex with a comprefled clavicle, and with obtufe black fpines. 2. The grey Murex, with an exerted clavicle and rows of black fpines. 3. The Murex with a comprefled clavicle, furrounded with bluifh fpines. 4. The yellowilh Murex, furrounded with four rows of obtufe fpines. 5. The whitifh Murex, with two rows of fpines. 6. The brown and blue Murex, with three rows of fpines. 7. The yellow- ifh Murex, every where regularly befet with fpines. 8. The whitifh Murex, with a purple dentated mouth, and with yel- low low tubercles or umbos. 9. The white hedgehog Mu- rex with black fpines, and with a dentated mouth. 10. The mufic Murex, with a rugofe columella. 11. The ruftic mufic Murex. 12. The lightening Murex, with a rugofe columella. 13. The variegated Murex with a rough exerted clavicle. 14. The undulated, confabulated and tuberous Murex, with an exerted clavicle. 15. The whitilh ftriated Murex, with a clavicle furnifhed with long fpines. 16. The yellow collated Murex, with furrows and tuberofities on all parts of the fhell. 17. The ftriated umbilicated verrucofe or warty Murex, with a reddifh columella. Hift. Nat. Eclairc. p. 290.
Of the fecond feries of the Murex, or thofe which have a fmooth body, a clavicle faimewhat rough, and a crooked beak, we have the following fpecies : I. The triangular Murex, or helmet-fhell ot Rondeletius, with a dentated mouth and folded up. 2. The red turban Murex, with feveral umboncs, and with both lips folded back and expanded. 3. The helmet- fhell of Bonani, or the agate helmet-fhell, with a lefs den- tated mouth. The laft appearance is that under which we ufually fee tiiis fhell, it having been commonly polifhed, and its outer coat taken oft', before it is admitted into a cabinet. 4. The yellow variegated helmet-fhell. 5. The grey ftriated helmet-fhell, without umbos. 6. The whitilh helmet-fhell, variegated with yellow undulated lines. 7. The agate helmet- fhell, with regular yellow fpots. 8. The blue ftriated helmet- fhell, with yellow undulated lines. 9. The wavy helmet- fhell.
Of the third kindj or thofe which have digitated lips, we have the following: 1. The common fpider-fhell or Murex. 2. The fpider-fhell called by the French the Murex lainb'u. 3. The hooked-clawed or male fpider-fhell. 4. The female fpider-fhell. 5. The millipede fpider-fhell. 6. The cor- mited fpider fhell of Rumphius. 7. The feven-fingered fpider- fhell. 8. The five-fingered fpider-fhell. 9. The four- fingered fpider-fhell. 10. The fpider-fhell, with fix elegant furrows. 11. The fcorpion-fhell, with a radiated mouth. 12. The ftrait-pointed red fpider-fhell. 13. The crow-billed fpider-fhell, or the blue, white and yellow fpider-fhell, with five appendages at the lip. This latter appearance is that un- der which we fee the fhell when it has been polifhed. Of the fourth feries of Murexes, or thofe which have alated and laciniated lips, we have the following fpecies : 1. The afles-ear Murex, with a crooked beak, and a lip red on the infide. 2. The triangular Murex with large ftria; and tuber- cles, called the hogs-eared Murex. 3. The Murex with a red mouth and black columella. 4. The Murex with a ftriated mouth, black on each fide. 5. The white and brown-mouthed Murex. This, when polifhed, is the fpecies called the turtle Murex in cabinets. 6. The ear Murex of Rumphius. 7. The Murex with a reddifh laciniated and very wide extended lip, and an actlleatcd clavicle. 8. The red Murex, with a laciniated lip and prickly clavicle. 9. The variegated and verrucofe Murex, with a thick laciniated lip. . 10. The variegated and verrucofe Murex, with a jagged very thin lip. 11. The yellow Murex, with a laciniated lip and gibbofe clavicle. 12. The lead-coloured, bellied Murex, with a folded lip. 13. The fmooth Murex, with a thick folded lip, and a dentated columella. 14. The yellow and tuberous Murex, with a folded lip, dentated on one part, and fpottcd on the other. 15. The yellow Murex with a regular rib, fpotted, and running tranfverfely from the beak to the middle of the back. 16. The grey collated Murex, with a wide lip on the fide of the columella. 1 7. The white collated and contabulated Murex. To thefe fpecies is to be added one of a very Angular kind, the mouth of which opens the con- trary way to all the others. Hift. Nat. Eclairc. p. 288.
Murex, among the antient Romans, a caltrap or iron inftru- ment with fharp points every way, ufed as a defence againir. the enemies horfe. Pitife. in voc.
Murex Mutiam, a name given by fome authors to the <xenus of fhells, known at this time under the name of porcelains and concha; venerea. See the article Porcellana.
MURINA, or Murines, n»p>»! oi>o!, in antiquity, adelicious fweet wine, medicated with fpices. It was a kind of hipno- cras, and the ufual drink of the ladies. Hofm. Lex. in voc. See the article Hippo cr As, Cycl.
MURRA, among the antients, a foflile fubftance found in Par- thia and Carmania, of a fine fmell, and beautiful variety of colours.
It was thought to be fome humour condenfed in the earth by the heat of the fun. Pitife. in voc. See the articles Murrine and Morrhina, Cycl. and Suppl.
2 MUBRA
