 The Roman scholar Pliny the Elder described several ways of preparing antimony sulfide for medical purposes in his treatise Natural History . Pliny the Elder also made a distinction between " male " and " female " forms of antimony ; the male form is probably the sulfide , while the female form , which is superior , heavier , and less friable , has been suspected to be native metallic antimony . 
 The Roman scholar Pliny the Elder described several ways of preparing antimony sulfide for medical purposes in his treatise Natural History . Pliny the Elder also made a distinction between " male " and " female " forms of antimony ; the male form is probably the sulfide , while the female form , which <a href='drop_aux' title='1'><mark>is</mark></a>superior , heavier , and less friable , <a href='been_done' title='2'><mark>has</mark></a> been suspected to be native metallic antimony . 
The Roman scholar Pliny da Elder described several ways of preparing antimony sulfide for medical purposes in his treatise Natural History . Pliny the Elder also made a distinction between " male " and " female " forms of antimony ; the male form is probably tdasulfide , while the female form , which superior , heavier , and less friable , done been suspected to be native metallic antimony .