,,english ,,embroidered ,,bookbindings ,illustration3 #ai--;,christopherson1 ,historia ,ecclesiastica4 ,lovanii1 #aefi4 ,,edited ,,by ,,alfred ,,pollard ,,english ,,embroidered ,,bookbindings ,,by ,,cyril ,,davenport1 ,f4 ,s4 ,a ,,author ,,of ',,the ,,english ,,regalia' ,,etc4 ,,london ,,kegan ,,paul1 ,,trench1 ,t,r,ue,b,n,e,r ,,and ,,company1 ,,limited #ahii ,the ,english ,bookman's ,library ,edinburgh3 ,t4 and ,a4 ,,constable1 ,printers to ,her ,majesty ,,contents ,,and ,,list ,,of ,,plates ,,page ,,general ,,introduction1 ix ,by ,alfred ,w4 ,pollard4 ,,english ,,embroidered ,,bindings ,by ,cyril ,davenport4 ,,chapter ,i4--,introductory1 #a ,,plates4 #a4 ,embroidered ,bag for ,psalms4 ,london1 #afcc1 #ag #b4 ,embroidered ,cover for ,new ,testament4 ,london1 #afdj1 #ah ,,chapter ,,ii4--,books ,bound in ,canvas1 #bh ,,plates4 #c4 ,the ,felbrigge ,psalter4 #acth-century ,,ms41 #bi #d4 ,the ,miroir or ,glasse of the ,synneful ,soul4 ,,ms4 by the ,princess ,elizabeth4 #aedd1 #cb #e4 ,prayers of ,queen ,katherine ,parr4 ,,ms4 by the ,princess ,elizabeth4 #aede1 #cc #f4 ,christian ,prayers4 ,london1 #aeha1 #cg #g4 ,psalms and ,common ,praier4 ,london1 #afjf1 #ch #h4 ,bible1 etc4 ,london1 #afab1 #ci #i4 ,sermons by ,samuel ,ward4 ,london1 #afbf-g1 #da #aj4 ,new ,testament1 etc4 ,london1 #afbe-ce1 #db #aa4 ,the ,daily ,exercise of a ,christian4 ,london1 #afbc1 #dd #ab4 ,bible4 ,london1 #afbf1 #de #ac4 ,bible1 etc4 ,london1 #afdb1 #dh #ad4 ,bible4 ,london1 #afdh1 #di ,,chapter ,,iii4--,books ,bound in ,velvet1 #eb ,,plates4 #ae4 ,tres ample description de toute la terre ,saincte1 etc4 ,,ms4 #aedj1 #eb #af4 ,biblia4 ,tiguri1 #aedc1 #ed #ag4 ,il ,petrarcha4 ,venetia1 #aedd1 #ee #ah4 ,queen ,mary's ,psalter4 #adth century ,,ms41 #eg #ai4 ,christopherson1 ,historia ,ecclesiastica4 ,lovanii1 #aefi1 ,frontispiece #bj4 ,christian ,prayers4 ,london1 #aegj1 #ei #ba4 ,parker1 ,de antiquitate ,ecclesiae ,britannicae4 ,london1 #aegb1 #fj #bb4 ,the ,epistles of ,st4 ,paul4 ,london1 #aegh1 #fc #bc4 ,christian ,prayers1 etc4 ,london1 #aehd1 #fe #bd4 ,orationis ,dominicae ,explicatio1 etc4 ,genevae1 #aehc1 #fg #be4 ,bible4 ,london1 #aehc1 #fh #bf4 ,the ,commonplaces of ,peter ,martyr4 ,london1 #aehc1 #fi #bg4 ,biblia4 ,antverpiae1 #aeij1 #gj #bh4 ,udall1 ,sermons4 ,london1 #aeif1 #ga #bi4 ,collection of ,sixteenth-,century ,tracts1 #gb #cj4 ,bacon1 ,opera4 ,londini1 #afbc1 #ge #ca4 ,bacon1 ,essays4 #afbe1 #gf #cb4 ,common ,prayer4 ,london1 #afch1 #gg #cc4 ,bible4 ,cambridge1 #afgd1 #gh ,,chapter ,,iv4--,books ,bound in ,satin1 #hj ,,plates4 #cd4 ,collection of ,sixteenth-,century ,tracts1 #hj #ce4 ,new ,testament in ,greek4 ,leyden1 #aegf1 #ha #cf4 ,bible4 ,london1 #afai1 #hd #cg4 ,emblemes ,chrestiens4 ,,ms4 #afbd1 #he #ch4 ,new ,testament4 ,london1 #afbe1 #hf #ci4 ,new ,testament and ,psalms4 ,london1 #afcj1 #hi #dj4 ,henshaw1 ,horae ,successivae4 ,london1 #afcb1 #ij #da4 ,psalms4 ,london1 #afcc1 #ia #db4 ,psalms4 ,london1 #afce1 #ib #dc4 ,psalms4 ,london1 #afcc1 #id #dd4 ,bible4 ,london1 #afch1 #if #de4 ,psalms4 ,london1 #afci1 #ih #df4 ,the ,way to ,true ,happiness4 ,london1 #afci1 #ii #dg4 ,new ,testament4 ,london1 #afdj1 #aja #dh4 ,psalms4 ,london1 #afda1 #ajc #di4 ,psalms4 ,london1 #afdc1 #aje #ej4 ,psalms4 ,london1 #afdc1 #ajf #ea4 ,psalms4 ,london1 #afdf1 #ajh #eb4 ,bible4 ,london1 #afdf1 #aji ,,general ,,introduction ,a new series of ',books about ,books1' exclusively ,english in its aims1 may seem to savour of the patriotism which1 in matters of art and historical research1 is1 with reason enough1 often scoffed at as a treacherous guide4 ,no doubt in these pleasant studies patriotism acts as a magnifying-glass1 making us unduly exaggerate details4 ,on the other hand1 it encourages us to try to discover them1 and just at present this encouragement seems to be needed4 ,there are so many gaps in our knowledge of the history of books in ,england that we can hardly claim that our own dwelling is set in order1 and yet many of our bookmen appear more inclined to re-decorate their neighbours' houses than to do work that still urgently needs to be done at home4 ,the reasons for this transference of energy are not far to seek4 ,it is quite easy to be struck with the inferiority of ,english books and their accessories1 such as bindings and illustrations1 to those produced on the ,continent4 ,to compare the books printed by ,caxton with the best work of his ,german or ,italian contemporaries1 to compare the books bound for ,henry1 ,prince of ,wales1 with those bound for the ,kings of ,france1 to try to find even a dozen ,english books printed before #afdj with woodcuts 7not imported from abroad7 of any real artistic merit--if any one is anxious to reinforce his national modesty1 here are three very efficacious methods of doing it6 ,on the other hand1 ,english book-collectors have always been cosmopolitan in their tastes1 and without leaving ,england it is possible to study to some effect1 in public or private libraries1 the finest books of almost any foreign country4 ,it is small wonder1 therefore1 that our bookmen1 when they have been minded to write on their hobbies1 have sought beauty and stateliness of work where they could most readily find them1 and that the labourers in the book-field of our own country are not numerous4 ,touchstone's remark1 'a poor thing1 but mine own1' might1 on the worst view of the case1 have suggested greater diligence at home2 but on a wider view ,english book-work is by no means a 'poor thing4' ,its excellence at certain periods is as striking as its inferiority at others1 and it is a literal fact that there is no art or craft connected with books in which ,england1 at one time or another1 has not held the primacy in ,europe4 ,it would certainly be unreasonable to complain that printing with movable types was not invented at a time better suited to our national convenience4 ,yet the fact that the invention was made just in the middle of the fifteenth century constituted a handicap by which the printing trade in this country was for generations overweighted4 ,at almost any earlier period1 more particularly from the beginning of the fourteenth century to the first quarter of the fifteenth1 ,england would have been as well equipped as any foreign country to take its part in the race4 ,from the production of ,queen ,mary's ,psalter at the earlier date to that of the ,sherborne ,missal at the later1 ,english manuscripts1 if we may judge from the scanty specimens which the evil days of ,henry ,,viii4 and ,edward ,,vi4 have left us1 may vie in beauty of writing and decoration with the finest examples of ,continental art4 ,if ,john ,siferwas1 instead of ,william ,caxton1 had introduced printing into ,england1 our ,english incunabula would have taken a far higher place4 ,but the sixty odd years which separate the two men were absolutely disastrous to the ,english book-trade4 ,after her exhausting and futile struggle with ,france1 ,england was torn asunder by the wars of the ,roses1 and by the time these were ended the school of illumination1 so full of promise1 and seemingly so firmly established1 had absolutely died out4 ,when printing was introduced ,england possessed no trained illuminators or skilful scribes such as in other countries were forced to make the best of the new art in order not to lose their living1 nor were there any native wood-engravers ready to illustrate the new books4 ,i have never myself seen or heard of a ',caxton' in which an illuminator has painted a preliminary border or initial letters2 even the rubrication1 where it exists1 is usually a disfigurement2 while as for pictures1 it has been unkindly said that inquiry whence they were obtained is superfluous1 since any boy with a knife could have cut them as well4 ,making its start under these unfavourable conditions1 the ,english book-trade was exposed at once to the full competition of the ,continental presses1 ,richard ,,iii4 expressly excluding it from the protection which was given to other industries4 ,practically all learned books of every sort1 the great majority of our service-books1 most grammars for use in ,english schools1 and even a few popular books of the kind to which ,caxton devoted himself1 were produced abroad for the ,english market and freely imported4 ,only those who mistake the shadow for the substance will regret this free trade1 to which we owe the development of scholarship in ,england during the sixteenth century4 ,none the less1 it was hard on a young industry1 and though ,pynson1 ,wynkyn de ,worde1 the ,faques1 ,berthelet1 ,wolfe1 ,john ,day1 and others produced fine books in ,england during the sixteenth century1 the start given to the ,continental presses was too great1 and before our printers had fully caught up their competitors1 they too were seized with the carelessness and almost incredible bad taste which marks the books of the first half of the seventeenth century in every country of ,europe4 ,towards the close of the eighteenth century1 as is well known1 the ,french thought sufficiently well of ,baskerville's types to purchase a fount after his death for the printing of an important edition of the works of ,voltaire4 ,but the merits of ,baskerville as a printer1 never very cordially admitted1 are now more hotly disputed than ever2 and if ,i am asked at what period ,english printing has attained that occasional primacy which ,i have claimed for our exponents of all the bookish arts1 ,i would boldly say that it possesses it at the present day4 ,on the one hand1 the ,kelmscott ,press books1 on their own lines1 are the finest and the most harmonious which have ever been produced2 on the other1 the book-work turned out in the ordinary way of business by the five or six leading printers of ,england and ,scotland seems to me1 both in technical qualities and in excellence of taste1 the finest in the world1 and with no rival worth mentioning1 except in the work of one or two of the best firms in the ,united ,states4 ,moreover1 as far as ,i can learn1 it is only in ,great ,britain and ,america that the form of books is now the subject of the ceaseless experiment and ingenuity which are the signs of a period of artistic activity4 ,as regards book-illustration the same claim may be put forward1 though with a little more hesitation4 ,we have been taught lately1 with insistence1 that 'the sixties' marked an epoch in ,english art1 solely from the black and white work in illustrated books4 ,at that period our book-pictures are said to have been the best in the world2 unfortunately our book-decoration1 whether better or worse than that of other countries1 was almost unmitigatedly bad4 ,in the last quarter of a century our decorative work has improved in the most striking manner2 our illustrations1 if judged merely for their pictorial qualities1 have not advanced4 ,in the eyes of artists the sketches for book-work now being produced in other countries are probably as good as our own4 ,but an illustration is not merely a picture1 it is a picture to be placed in a certain position in a printed book1 and in due relation to the size of the page and the character of the type4 ,english book-illustrators by no means always realise this distinction1 yet there is on the whole a greater feeling for these proprieties in ,english books than in those of other countries1 and this is an important point in estimating merits4 ,another important point is that the rule of the 'tint' or 'half-tone' block1 with its inevitable accompaniment of loaded paper1 ugly to the eye and heavy in the hand1 though it has seriously damaged ,english illustrated work1 has not yet gained the predominance it has in other countries4 ,our best illustrated books are printed from line-blocks1 and there are even signs of a possible revival of artistic wood-engraving4 ,in endeavouring to make good my assertion of what ,i have called the occasional primacy of ,english book-work1 ,i am not unaware of the danger of trying1 or seeming to try1 to play the strains of ',rule ,britannia' on my own poor penny whistle4 ,as regards manuscripts1 therefore1 it is a pleasure to be able to seek shelter behind the authority of ,sir ,edward ,maunde ,thompson1 whose words in this connection carry all the more weight1 because he has shown himself a severe critic of the claims which have been put forward on behalf of several fine manuscripts to be regarded as ,english4 ,in the closing paragraphs of his monograph on ,english ,illuminated ,manuscripts he thus sums up the pretensions of the ,english school3-- ',the freehand drawing of our artists under the ,anglo-,saxon kings was incomparably superior to the dead copies from ,byzantine models which were in favour abroad4 ,the artistic instinct was not destroyed1 but rather strengthened1 by the incoming of ,norman influence2 and of the twelfth and thirteenth centuries there is abundant material to show that ,english book-decoration was then at least equal to that of neighbouring countries4 ,for our art of the early fourteenth century we claim a still higher position1 and contend that no other nation could at that time produce such graceful drawing4 ,certainly inferior to this high standard of drawing was the work of the latter part of that century2 but still1 as we have seen1 in the miniatures of this time we have examples of a rising school of painting which bid fair to attain to a high standard of excellence1 and which only failed for political causes4'#a ,to this judicial pronouncement on the excellence of ,english manuscripts on their decorative side1 we may fairly add the fact that manuscripts of literary importance begin at an earlier date in ,england than in any other country1 and that the ,cotton ,,ms4 of ,beowulf and the miscellanies which go by the names of the ,exeter ,book and the ,vercelli ,book have no contemporary parallels in the rest of ,europe4 ,footnote #a3 ,english ,illuminated ,manuscripts4 ,by ,sir ,edward ,maunde ,thompson1 ,k4 ,c4 ,b4 7,kegan ,paul1 #ahie71 pp4 #ff1 #fg4 ,when we turn from books1 printed or in manuscript1 to their possessors1 it is only just to begin with a compliment to our neighbours across the ,channel4 ,no ,english bookman holds the unique position of ,jean ,grolier1 and 'les femmes bibliophiles' of ,england have been few and undistinguished compared with those of ,france4 ,grolier1 however1 and his fair imitators1 as a rule1 bought only the books of their own day1 giving them distinction by the handsome liveries which they made them don4 ,our ,english collectors have more often been of the omnivorous type1 and though ,lords ,lumley and ,arundel in the sixteenth century cannot1 even when their forces are joined1 stand up against ,de ,thou1 in ,sir ,robert ,cotton1 ,harley1 ,thomas ,rawlinson1 ,lord ,spencer1 ,heber1 ,grenville1 and ,sir ,thomas ,phillips 7and the list might be doubled without much relaxation of the standard71 we have a succession of ,english collectors to whom it would be difficult to produce foreign counterparts4 ,round these dii majores have clustered innumerable demigods of the book-market1 and certainly in no other country has collecting been as widely diffused1 and pursued with so much zest1 as in ,england during the present century4 ,it is to be regretted that so few ,english collectors have cared to leave their marks of ownership on the books they have taken so much pleasure in bringing together4 ,michael ,wodhull was a model in this respect1 for his book-stamp is one of the most pleasing of ,english origin1 and his autograph notes recording the prices he paid for his treasures1 and his assiduous collation of them1 make them doubly precious in the eyes of subsequent owners4 ,mr4 ,grenville also had his book-stamp1 though there is little joy to be won from it1 for it is unpleasing in itself1 and is too often found spoiling a fine old binding4 ,mr4 ,cracherode's stamp was as graceful as ,wodhull's2 but1 as a rule1 our ,english collectors1 though1 as ,mr4 ,fletcher is discovering1 many more of them than is generally known have possessed a stamp1 have not often troubled to use it1 and their collections have never obtained the reputation which they deserve1 mainly for lack of marks of ownership to keep them green in the memory of later possessors4 ,that this should be so in a country where book-plates have been so common may at first seem surprising4 ,but book-plates everywhere have been used rather by the small collectors than the great ones1 and the regrettable peculiarity of our ,english bookmen is1 not that they despised this rather fugitive sign of possession1 but that for the most part they despised book-stamps as well4 ,of book-plates themselves ,i have no claim to speak2 but for good taste and grace of design the best ,english ,jacobean and ,chippendale specimens seem to me the most pleasing of their kind1 and certainly in our own day the work of ,mr4 ,sherborn has no rival1 except in that of ,mr4 ,french1 who1 in technique1 would1 ,i imagine1 not refuse to call himself his disciple4 ,i have purposely left to the last the subject of ,bindings1 as this1 being more immediately cognate to ,mr4 ,davenport's book1 may fairly be treated at rather greater length4 ,if the ,french dictum 'la reliure est un art tout francais' is not without its historical justification1 it is at least possible to show that ,england has done much admirable work1 and that now and again1 as in the other bookish arts1 she has attained preeminence4 ,the first point which may fairly be made is that ,england is the only country besides ,france in which the art has been consistently practised4 ,in ,italy1 binding1 like printing1 flourished for a little over half a century with extraordinary vigour and grace1 and then fell suddenly and completely from its high estate4 ,from #adfe to the death of ,aldus the books printed in ,italy were the finest in the world2 from the beginning of the work of ,aldus to about #aefj ,italian bindings possess a freedom of graceful design which even the superior technical skill quickly gained by the ,french does not altogether outbalance4 ,but just as after about #aebj a finely printed ,italian book can hardly be met with1 so after #aefj1 save for a brief period during which certain fan-shaped designs attained prettiness1 there have been no good ,italian bindings4 ,in ,germany1 when in the fifteenth century1 before the introduction of gold tooling1 there was a thriving school of binders working in the mediaeval manner1 the ,renaissance brought with it an absolute decline4 ,holland1 again1 which in the fifteenth century had made a charming use of large panel stamps1 has since that period had only two binders of any reputation1 ,magnus and ,poncyn1 of ,amsterdam1 who worked for the ,elzeviers and ,louis ,,xiv4 ,of ,spanish bindings few fine specimens have been unearthed1 and these are all early4 ,only ,england can boast that1 like ,france1 she has possessed one school of binders after another1 working with varying success from the earliest times down to the present century1 in which bookbinding all over ,europe has suffered from the servility with which the old designs1 now for the first time fully appreciated1 have been copied and imitated4 ,in this length of pedigree it must be noted that ,england far surpasses even ,france herself4 ,the magnificent illuminated manuscripts1 the finest of their age1 which were produced at ,winchester during the tenth century1 were no doubt bound in the jewelled metal covers of which the rapacity of the sixteenth century has left hardly a single trace in this country4 ,but early in the twelfth century1 if not before1 the ,winchester bookmen turned their attention also to leather binding1 and the school of design which they started1 spreading to ,durham1 ,london1 and ,oxford1 did not die out in ,england until it was ousted by the large panel stamps introduced from ,france at the end of the fifteenth4 ,the predominant feature of these ,winchester bindings 7of which a fine example from the library of ,william ,morris recently sold for ,l#ahj71 and of their successors1 is the employment of small stamps1 from half an inch to an inch in size1 sometimes circular1 more often square or pear-shaped1 and containing figures1 grotesques1 or purely conventional designs4 ,a circle1 or two half-circles1 formed by the repetition of one stamp1 within one or more rectangles formed by others1 is perhaps the commonest scheme of decoration1 but it is the characteristic of these bindings1 as of the finest in gold tooling1 that by the repetition of a few small patterns an endless variety of designs could be built up4 ,the ,british ,museum possesses a few good examples of this stamp-work1 but the finest collections of them are in the ,cathedral libraries at ,durham and ,hereford4 ,any one1 however1 who is interested in this work can easily acquaint himself with it by consulting the unique collection of rubbings carefully taken by ,mr4 ,weale and deposited in the ,national ,art ,library at the ,south ,kensington ,museum4 ,in these rubbings1 as in no other way1 the history of ,english binding can be studied from the earliest ,winchester books to the charming ,oxford bindings executed by ,thomas ,hunt1 the ,english partner of the ,cologne printer1 ,rood1 about #adha4 ,during the first half of this period the ,english leather binders were the finest in ,europe2 during the second1 the ,germans pressed them hard1 and when the large panel stamps1 three or four inches square and more1 were introduced in ,holland and ,france1 the ,english adaptations of them were distinctly inferior to the originals4 ,the earliest ,english bindings with gold tooling were1 of course1 also imitative4 ,the use of gold reached this country but slowly1 as the first known ,english binding1 in which it occurs1 is on a book printed in #aeda1 by which time the art had been common in ,italy for a generation4 ,the ,english bindings found on books bound for ,henry ,,viii41 ,edward ,,vi41 and ,mary ,i41 all of which are roughly assigned to ,berthelet as the ,royal binder1 resemble the current ,italian designs of the day1 with sufficient differences to make it probable that they were produced by ,englishmen4 ,we know1 however1 that until the close of the century there were occasional complaints of the presence of foreign binders in ,london1 and it is probable that the ,grolieresque bindings executed for ,wotton were foreign rather than ,english4 ,where1 however1 we find work on ,english books distinctly unlike anything in ,france or ,italy1 it is reasonable to assign it to a native school1 and such a school seems to have grown up about #aegj1 in the workshop of ,john ,day1 the helper of ,archbishop ,parker in so many of his literary undertakings4 ,these bindings attributed to ,day1 especially those in which he worked with white leather on brown1 although they have none of the ,french delicacy of tooling1 perhaps for this reason attack the problem of decoration with a greater sense of the difference between the styles suitable for a large book and a small than is always found in ,france1 where the greatest binders1 such as ,nicholas ,eve and ,le ,gascon1 often covered large folios with endless repetitions of minute tools whose full beauty can only be appreciated on duodecimos or octavos4 ,the ,english designs with a large centre ornament and corner-pieces are rich and impressive1 and we may fairly give ,day and his fellows the palm for originality and effectiveness among ,elizabethan binders4 ,in the next reign the ,french use of the seme or powder1 a single small stamp1 of a fleur-de-lys1 a thistle1 a crown1 or the like1 impressed in rows all over the cover1 was increasingly imitated in ,england1 very unsuccessfully1 and1 save for a few traces of the style of ,day1 the leather bindings of the first third of the century deserve the worst epithets which can be given them4 ,until1 however1 ,french fashions came into vogue after the ,restoration1 ,english binders had never been content to regard leather as the sole material in which they could work4 ,embroidered bindings had come early into use in ,england1 and a ,psalter embroidered by ,anne ,felbrigge towards the close of the fourteenth century is preserved at the ,british ,museum1 and shown in one of ,mr4 ,davenport's illustrations4 ,in the sixteenth century embroidered work was very popular with the ,tudor princesses1 gold and silver thread and pearls being largely used1 often with very decorative effect4 ,the simplest of these covers are also the best--but great elaboration was often employed1 and on a presentation copy of ,archbishop ,parker's ,de ,antiquitate ,ecclesiae ,britannicae we find a clever but rather grotesque representation of a deer-paddock4 ,under the ,stuarts the lighter feather-stitch was preferred1 and there seems to have been a regular trade in embroidered ,bibles and ,prayer-books of small size1 sometimes with floral patterns1 sometimes with portraits of the ,king1 or ,scriptural scenes4 ,a dealer's freak which compelled the ,british ,museum to buy a pair of elaborate gloves of the period rather than lose a finely embroidered ,psalter1 with which they went1 was certainly a fortunate one1 enabling us to realise that in hands thus gloved these little bindings1 always pretty1 often really artistic1 must have looked exactly right1 while their vivid colours must have been admirably in harmony with the gay ,cavalier dresses4 ,besides furnishing a ground for embroidery1 velvet bindings were often decorated1 in ,england1 with goldsmith work4 ,one of the most beautiful little bookcovers in existence is on a book of prayers1 bound for ,queen ,elizabeth in red velvet1 with a centre and corner pieces delicately enamelled on gold4 ,under the ,stuarts1 again1 we frequently find similar ornaments in engraved silver1 and their charm is incontestable4 ,thus while for ,english bindings of this period in gilt leather we can only claim that ,berthelet's show some freedom in their adaptation of ,italian models1 and ,day's a more decided originality1 we are entitled to set side by side with this scanty record a host of charming bindings in more feminine materials1 which have no parallel in ,france1 and certainly deserve some recognition4 ,after the ,restoration1 however1 leather quickly ousted its competitors1 and a school of designers and gilders arose in ,england1 which1 while taking its first inspiration from ,le ,gascon1 soon developed an individual style4 ,in effectiveness1 though not in minute accuracy of execution1 this may rank with the best in ,europe4 ,we can trace the beginnings of this lighter and most graceful work as early as the thirties1 and it might be contended with a certain plausibility that it began at the ,universities4 ,certainly the two earliest examples known to me--the copy of her ,statutes presented to ,charles ,i4 by ,oxford in #afcd1 and the ,little ,gidding ,harmony of #afce1 the tools employed in which have been shown by ,mr4 ,davenport to have been used also by ,buck1 of ,cambridge--are two of the finest ,english bindings in existence1 and in both cases1 despite the multiplicity of the tiny tools employed1 there is a unity and largeness of design which1 as ,i have ventured to hint1 is not always found even in the best ,french work4 ,the chief ,english bindings after the ,restoration1 those associated with the name of ,samuel ,mearne1 the ,king's ,binder1 preserve this character1 though the attempt to break the formality of the rectangle by the bulges at the side and the little penthouses at foot and head 7whence its name1 the 'cottage' style7 was not wholly successful4 ,the use of the labour-saving device of the 'roll1' in preference to impressing each section of the pattern by hand1 is another blot4 ,nevertheless1 it is almost impossible to find an ,english or ,scotch binding of this period which is less than charming1 and the best of them are admirable4 ,at the beginning of the eighteenth century a new grace was added by the inlaying of a leather of a second colour4 ,these inlaid ,english bindings are few in number 7the ,british ,museum has not a single fine example71 but those who know the specimens exhibited at the ,burlington ,fine ,arts ,club1 two of which are figured in its ,catalogue1 will readily allow that their grace has never been surpassed4 ,the fine ,harleian bindings let us down gently from this eminence1 and then1 after a period of mere dulness1 with the rise of ,roger ,payne we have again an ,english school 7for ,payne's traditions were worthily followed by ,charles ,lewis7 which1 by common consent1 was the finest of its time4 ,payne's originality is1 perhaps1 not quite so absolute as has been maintained1 for some of his tools were cut in the pattern of ,mearne's1 and it would be possible to find suggestions for some of his schemes of arrangement in earlier ,english work4 ,if he borrowed1 however1 he borrowed from his ,english predecessors1 and he brought to his task an individuality and an artistic instinct which cannot be denied4 ,after ,payne and ,lewis1 ,english binding1 like ,french1 became purely imitative in its designs2 but while in our own decade the ,french artists have endeavoured to shake themselves free from old traditions by mere eccentricity1 in ,england we have several living binders1 such as ,mr4 ,cobden ,sanderson and ,mr4 ,douglas ,cockerell1 who work with notable originality and yet with the strictest observance of the canons of their art4 ,moreover in the application of decorative designs to cloth cases ,england has invented1 and ,england and ,america have brought to perfection1 an inexpensive and very pleasing form of book-cover1 which gives the bookman ample time to consider whether his purchase is worth the more permanent honours of gilded leather1 and also1 by the facts that it is avowedly temporary1 and that its decoration is cheaply and easily effected by large stamps1 renders forgivable vagaries of design1 which when translated1 as they have been of late years in ,france1 into the time-honoured and solemn leather1 seem merely incongruous and irreverent4 ,in binding1 then1 as in the other bookish arts1 the part which ,english workers have played has been no insignificant or unworthy one1 and the development of this art1 as of the others1 in our own country is worthy of study4 ,in this case much has already been done1 for the illustrations of ,english ,bookbindings at the ,british ,museum1 edited1 with introduction and descriptions by ,mr4 ,w4 ,y4 ,fletcher1 present the student with the best possible survey of the whole subject1 while the excellent treatises of ,miss ,prideaux and ,mr4 ,horne bring ,english bookbinding into relation with that of other countries4 ,here1 then1 there is no need of a new general history1 but rather of special monographs1 treating more in detail of the periods at which our ,english binders have done the best work4 ,the old stamped bindings of the days of manuscript1 the embroidered bindings of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries1 the leather bindings of ,mearne and his fellows under the later ,stuarts1 and the work of ,roger ,payne--all these seem to offer excellent subjects for unpretentious monographs1 and it is hoped that others of them besides the ,english ,embroidered ,bindings1 with which ,mr4 ,davenport has made a beginning1 may be treated in this series4 ,in other subjects the ground has not yet been cleared to the same extent1 and for the history of ,english ,book-,collectors and ,english ,printing1 not special monographs1 but good general surveys are the first need4 ,to say much on this subject might bring me perilously near to re-writing the prospectus of this series4 ,it is enough to have pointed out that the bookish arts in ,england are well worth more study than they have yet been given1 and that the pioneers who are endeavouring to enlarge knowledge1 each in his own section1 may fairly hope that their efforts will be received with indulgence and good-will4 ,,alfred ,w4 ,,pollard4 ,illustration ,,chapter ,i ,,embroidered ,,books ,the application of needlework to the embellishment of the bindings of books has hitherto almost escaped special notice4 ,in most of the works on the subject of ,english ,bookbinding1 considered from the decorative point of view in distinction from the technical1 a few examples of embroidered covers have indeed received some share of attention4 ,thus in both ,mr4 ,h4 ,b4 ,wheatley's and ,mr4 ,w4 ,y4 ,fletcher's works on the bindings in the ,british ,museum1 in ,mr4 ,salt ,brassington's ,historic ,bindings in the ,bodleian ,library and ,history of the ,art of ,bookbinding1 and in my own ,portfolio monograph on ',royal ,english ,bookbindings1' some of the finer specimens of embroidered books still existing are illustrated and described4 ,but up to the present no attempt has been made to deal with them as a separate subject4 ,in the course1 however1 of the many lectures on ,decorative ,bookbinding which it has been my pleasure and honour to deliver during the past few years1 ,i have invariably noticed that the pictures and descriptions of embroidered specimens have been the most keenly appreciated1 and this favourable sign has led me to examine and consider such examples as have come in my way more carefully than ,i might otherwise have done4 ,very little study sufficed to show that in ,england alone there was for a considerable period a regular and large production of embroidered books1 and further1 that the different styles of these embroideries are clearly defined1 equally from the chronological and artistic points of view4 ,a peculiarly ,english art which thus lends itself to orderly treatment may fairly be made the subject of a brief monograph4 ,with the exception of point-lace1 which is sometimes made in small pieces for such purposes as ladies' cuffs or collars1 decorative work produced by the aid of the needle is generally large4 ,certainly this is so in its finest forms1 which are probably to be found in the ecclesiastical vestments and in the altar frontals of the ,renaissance period1 or even earlier4 ,on the other hand1 such work as exists on books is always of small size1 and1 unlike the point-lace1 it almost invariably has more than one kind of 'stitchery' upon it--chain1 split1 tapestry1 satin1 or what not4 ,thus it can be claimed as a distinction for embroidered book-covers that as a class they are the smallest complete embroideries existing1 ranging upwards from about #f inches by #c-a_/b inches--the size of the smallest specimen known to me1 when opened out to its fullest extent1 sides and back in one4 ,this covers a copy of the ,psalms1 printed in ,london in #afce1 and is of white satin1 with a small tulip worked in coloured silk on each side4 ,an ',embroidered ,book1' it should be said1 means for my purpose a book which is covered1 sides and back1 by a piece of material ornamented with needlework1 following a design made for the purpose of adorning that particular book4 ,a cover consisting of merely a piece of woven stuff1 or even a piece of true embroidery cut from a larger piece1 is not1 from my point of view1 properly to be considered an 'embroidered book1' it being essential that the design as well as the workmanship should have been specially made for the book on which they are found2 and this1 in the large majority of instances1 is certainly the case4 ,with regard to the transference of bindings to books other than those for which they were originally made1 such a transference has often taken place in the case of mediaeval books bound in ornamental metal1 but even in these instances it must be recognised that such a change can seldom be made without serious detriment4 ,it is chiefly indeed from some incongruity of style or technical mistake in the re-putting together that we are led to guess that the covers have been thus tampered with4 ,now and then such a transference occurs in the case of leather-bound books1 and in such instances is usually easy for a trained binder to detect4 ,embroidered covers1 on the other hand1 have rarely been changed1 the motive for such a proceeding never having been strong1 and the risk attending it being obvious enough4 ,we may1 in fact1 feel tolerably sure that the large majority of embroidered covers still remain on the boards of the books they were originally made for4 ,all the embroidered books now extant dating from before the reign of ,queen ,elizabeth have gone through the very unfortunate operation of 're-backing1' in the course of which the old embroidered work is replaced by new leather4 ,the old head and tail bands1 technically very interesting1 have been replaced by modern imitations1 and considerable damage has been done in distorting the work left on the sides of the book4 ,it would seem obvious that a canvas1 velvet1 or satin embroidered binding1 if it really must be re-backed or repaired at all1 should be mended with a material as nearly as possible of the same make and colour as that of the original covering2 but this has rarely been done1 the large majority of such repairs being executed in leather4 ,but in the case of such old bindings we must be grateful for small mercies1 and feel thankful that even the sides are left in so many cases4 ,it is indeed surprising that we still possess as much as we do4 ,if all our great collectors had been of the same mind as ,henry ,prince of ,wales1 the ,right ,hon4 ,thomas ,grenville1 or even ,king ,george ,,iii41 we should have been far worse off1 as although several fine old bindings exist in their libraries1 many which would now be priceless have been destroyed1 only to be replaced by comparatively modern bindings1 sometimes the best of their kind1 but often in bad taste4 ,division of ,embroidered ,books according to the designs upon them4 ,the designs on embroidered books may be roughly divided into four classes--,heraldic1 ,figure1 ,floral1 and ,arabesque4 ,the ,heraldic designs always denote ownership1 and are most frequently found on ,royal books bound in velvet1 rarely occurring on silk or satin1 and never1 as far as ,i have been able to ascertain1 on canvas4 ,the ,figure designs may be subdivided into three smaller classes1 viz43-- ,i4 ,scriptural1 e4g4 representations of ,solomon and the ,queen of ,sheba1 ,jacob wrestling with the ,angel1 ,david1 etc4 ,,ii4 ,symbolical1 e4g4 figures of ,faith1 ,hope1 ,peace1 ,plenty1 etc4 ,,iii4 ,portraits1 e4g4 of ,charles ,i41 ,queen ,henrietta ,maria1 ,duke of ,buckingham1 etc4 ,the ,scriptural designs are most generally found on canvas-bound books2 the ,symbolical figures1 and ,portraits1 on satin1 rarely on velvet4 ,the ,floral and ,arabesque designs are most common on small and unimportant works bound in satin1 but they occur now and then on both canvas and velvet books4 ,the true arabesques have no animal or insect forms among them1 the prophet ,mohammed having forbidden his followers to imitate any living thing4 ,it may further be noted that heraldic designs on embroidered books are early1 having been made chiefly during the sixteenth century1 and that the figure1 floral1 and arabesque designs most usually belong to the seventeenth century4 ,there are1 of course1 exceptions to these divisions1 notably in the case of the earliest existing embroidered book1 which has figure designs on both sides1 but also maintains its heraldic position1 inasmuch as its edges are decorated with coats-of-arms4 ,naturally1 again1 it may be sometimes difficult to decide whether a design should be classed as heraldic or floral4 ,such a difficulty occurs as to the large ,bible at ,oxford bound in red velvet for ,queen ,elizabeth1 and bearing a design of ,tudor and ,york roses4 ,i consider it heraldic1 but it might1 with no less appropriateness1 be called floral4 ,if it had belonged to any one not a member of the ,royal family it would undoubtedly be properly counted as a floral specimen4 ,again1 in many of the portrait bindings flowers and arabesques are introduced1 but they are clearly subordinate1 and the chief decorative motive of such designs must be looked for1 and the work classed accordingly4 ,thus it is evident that the arrangement of the embroidered books by their designs cannot be too rigidly applied1 although it should not be lost sight of altogether4 ,division of ,embroidered ,books according to the material on which they are worked4 ,a more useful and accurate classification may however be found by help of the material on which the embroidered work is done1 and this division is obvious and easy4 ,with very few exceptions all embroidered books1 ancient and modern1 are worked on canvas1 velvet1 or satin1 and while canvas was used continuously from the fourteenth century until the middle of the seventeenth century1 velvet was most largely used during the ,tudor period1 and satin during that of the early ,stuarts4 ,broadly speaking1 the essential differences in the kind of work found upon these three materials follow the peculiarities of the materials themselves4 ,canvas1 in itself of no decorative value1 is always completely covered with needlework4 ,velvet1 beautiful even when alone1 but difficult to work upon1 usually has a large proportion of applique1 laid1 or couched work1 in coloured silk or satin1 upon it1 showing always large spaces unworked upon1 and such actual work as occurs directly on the velvet is always in thick guimp or gold cord4 ,satin1 equally beautiful in its way1 is also freely left unornamented in places2 the needlework directly upon it is often very fine and delicate in coloured floss silks1 generally closely protected by thick raised frames or edges of metallic threads or fine gold or silver cords4 ,illustration3 ,,fig4 #a4 ,silken thread closely wound round with strip of flat metal4 ,illustration3 ,,fig4 #b4 ,silken thread loosely wound round with strip of flat metal4 ,illustration3 ,,fig4 #c4 ,strips of flat metal cut into shapes and kept down by small stitches at regular intervals4 ,called ',lizzarding4' ,by 'metallic' threads1 when they are not simply fine wires1 ,i mean strands of silk closely 7,fig4 #a7 or loosely 7,fig4 #b7 wound round with narrow coils of thin metal1 mostly silver or silver gilt4 ,the use of such threads1 alone1 or twisted into cords1 is common on all styles of embroidered books1 and it is largely due to their use that pieces of work apparently of the greatest delicacy are really extremely durable--far more so than is generally supposed4 ,certainly if it had not been for the efficient protection of these little metal walls we should not possess1 as we actually do1 delicate-looking embroidered books1 hundreds of years old1 in almost as good condition1 except in the matter of colour1 as when they were originally made4 ,thin pieces of metal are sometimes used alone1 caught down at regular intervals by small cross stitches2 this is1 ,i believe1 called ',lizzarding' 7,fig4 #c74 ,metal is also found in the form of 'guimp1' in flattened spirals 7,fig4 #d71 and also in the ',purl1' or copper wire covered with silk 7,fig4 #e71 so common on the later satin books 7compare p4 #df74 ,illustration3 ,,fig4 #d4 ,edging made with a piece of spiral wire hammered flat1 appearing like a series of small rings4 ,illustration3 ,,fig4 #e4 ,loop made of a short length of ,purl threaded1 the ends drawn together4 ,spangles appear to have been introduced during the reign of ,elizabeth1 but they were never freely used on velvet1 finding their proper place ultimately on the satin books of a later time4 ,the spangles are generally kept in position either by a small section of purl 7,fig4 #f7 or a seed pearl 7,fig4 #g71 in both cases very efficaciously1 so that the use of guimp or pearl was not only ornamental but served the same protective purpose as the bosses on a shield1 or those so commonly found upon the sides of the stamped leather bindings of mediaeval books4 ,illustration3 ,,fig4 #f4 ,spangle kept in place by a stitch through a short piece of ,purl4 ,illustration3 ,,fig4 #g4 ,spangle kept in place by a stitch through a seed pearl4 ,illustration3 ,,fig4 #h4 ,binder's stamp for gold tooling1 cut in imitation of a spangle4 ,it may be mentioned that the seventeenth-century ,dutch binders1 ,magnus and ,poncyn1 both of ,amsterdam1 invented a new tool for gilding on leather bindings1 used1 of course1 in combination with others4 ,this was cut to imitate the small circular spangles of the embroidered books 7,fig4 #h71 and the ,english and ,french finishers of a later period used the same device with excellent effect for filling up obtrusive spaces on the sides and backs of their decorative bindings4 ,thus it may be taken as an axiom that1 for the proper working of an embroidered book1 except it be tapestry-stitch or tent-stitch1 on canvas1 which is flat and strong of itself1 there should invariably be a liberal use of metal threads1 these being not only very decorative in themselves1 but also providing a valuable protection to the more delicate needlework at a lower level1 and to the material of the ground itself4 ,the earliest examples of embroidered bindings still existing are not by any means such as would lead to the inference that they were exceptional productions--made when the idea of the application of needlework to the decoration of books was in its infancy4 ,on the contrary1 they are instances of very skilled workmanship1 so that it is probable that the art was practised at an earlier date than we now have recorded4 ,there are1 indeed1 frequent notes in ',wardrobe ,accounts' and elsewhere of books bound in velvet and satin at a date anterior to any now existing1 but there is no mention of embroidered work upon them4 ,the ,forwarding of ,embroidered ,books4 ,the processes used in the binding of embroidered books are the same as in the case of leather-bound books2 but there is one invariable peculiarity--the bands upon which the different sections of the paper are sewn are never in relief1 so that it was always possible to paste down a piece of material easily along the back without having to allow for the projecting bands so familiar on leather bindings 7,fig4 #i74 ,the backs1 moreover1 are only rounded very slightly1 if at all4 ,this flatness has been attained on the earlier books either by sewing on flat bands1 thin strips of leather or vellum 7,fig4 #aj71 or by flattening the usual hempen bands as much as they will bear by the hammer1 and afterwards filling up the intermediate spaces with padding of some suitable material1 linen or thin leather4 ,in several instances the difficulty of flattening the bands has been solved1 in sixteenth-and seventeenth-century embroidered books1 in a way which cannot be too strongly condemned from a constructive point of view1 although it has served its immediate purpose admirably4 ,a small trench has been cut with a sharp knife for each band1 deep enough to sink it to the general level of the inner edges of the sections 7,fig4 #aa74 ,illustration3 ,,fig4 #i4 ,back of book sewn on raised bands4 ,illustration3 ,,fig4 #aj4 ,band of flat vellum sometimes found on old books with flat backs4 ,illustration3 ,,fig4 #aa4 ,typical appearance of a book1 before it is sewn1 with small trenches cut in the back in which the bands are to be laid2 a bad method1 but often used to produce a flat back4 ,this cutting of the back to make room for the bands was afterwards more easily effected by means of a saw--as it is done now--and in the eighteenth century was especially used by the ,french binder ,derome le ,jeune1 who is usually made responsible for its invention4 ,the existence of the sunken bands on early embroidered books probably marks the beginning of this vicious system1 but here there is some excuse for it1 whereas in the case of ordinary leather-bound books there is none1 except from the commercial standpoint4 ,in the case of vellum books there may be some reason for using the 'sawn in' bands1 as it is certainly difficult to get vellum to fit comfortably over raised bands1 although numerous early instances exist in which it has been successfully done4 ,again in the case of 'hollow backs1' the bands are kept flat with some reason4 ,but for all valuable or finely bound books the system of 'sawing in' cannot be too strongly condemned4 ',sawing in' can be detected by looking at the threads in the centre of any section of a bound book from the inside4 ,it will show as a small hole with a piece of hemp or leather lying transversely across it1 under which the thread passes 7,fig4 #ab74 ,illustration3 ,,fig4 #ab4 ,typical appearance of the sewing of a book with 'sawn in' bands1 as seen from the inside of each section4 ,the bands just visible4 ,in the case of a properly sewn book1 the bands themselves cannot be seen at all from the inside of the sections1 unless1 indeed1 the book is damaged 7,fig4 #ac74 ,if the covering of the back is off1 or even loose1 the method of sewing that has been used can very easily be seen2 and if it appears that the bands are sunk in a small trench1 that is the form of sewing that is called 'sawn in1' or analogous to it4 ,illustration3 ,,fig4 #ac4 ,typical appearance of the sewing of a book on raised bands1 as seen from the inside of each section4 ,the bands invisible4 ,known as 'flexible4' ,although in the embroidered books the bands of the backs do not show on the surface1 it is common enough to find the lines they probably follow indicated in the work on the back1 which is divided into panels by as many transverse lines1 braid or cord1 as there are bands underneath them4 ,but in some cases the designer has used the back as one long panel1 and decorated it accordingly as one space4 ,the headbands in some of the earlier books were sewn at the same time as the other bands on the sewing-press and drawn in to the boards1 but in most early bindings the ravaging repairer has been at work and made it impossible to know for certain what was the state of the headbands before the book came into his hands4 ,most of the existing headbands are made by hand in the usual way1 with the ends simply cut off1 not indeed a very satisfactory finish4 ,it would be better if these ends were somehow drawn in to the leather of the back1 as for instance they still often are on thin vellum books4 ,the great majority of embroidered books1 both large and small1 have had ties of silk on their front edges--generally two1 but sometimes only one1 which wraps round4 ,these ties have generally worn away from the outer side of the boards1 but their ends can usually be traced 7if the book has not been repaired7 in the inner side1 covered only by a thin piece of paper2 and if this paper is loose1 as often happens1 and the ends show well1 it may often be advisable not to paste it down again at that particular place4 ,the backs of old embroidered books are by far the weakest parts about them4 ,if they exist at all in their old forms they are always much worn1 and the work upon them so much damaged that it is often difficult to make out even the general character of the design1 to say nothing of the details of the workmanship4 ,the edges of the leaves of books bound in ,england in embroidered bindings are always ornamentally treated1 sometimes simply gilded1 often further adorned with 'gauffred' work1 that is to say1 small patterns impressed on the gold1 and sometimes beautifully decorated with elaborate designs having colour in parts as well4 ,the earliest ,english ornamentation of this kind in colour is found on the ,felbrigge ,psalter and on some of the books embroidered for ,henry ,,viii41 one of which is richly painted on the fore edges with heraldic designs1 and another with a motto written in gold on a delicately coloured ground4 ,cases for ,embroidered ,books4 ,common though the small satin embroidered books must have been in ,england during the earlier part of the seventeenth century1 it is still certain that the finer specimens were highly prized1 and beautifully worked bags were often made for their protection4 ,these bags are always of canvas1 and most of them are decorated in the same way1 the backgrounds of silver thread with a design in tapestry-or tent-stitch1 and having ornamental strings and tassels4 ,to describe one of these is almost to describe all4 ,the best preserved specimen ,i know belongs to a little satin embroidered copy of the ,psalms1 printed in ,london in #afcc1 and measures #e inches long by #d inches in depth4 ,illustration3 #a--;,embroidered ,bag for ,psalms4 ,london1 #afcc4 ,the same design is repeated on each side4 ,a parrot on a small grass-plot is in the middle of the lower edge4 ,behind the bird grow two curving stems of thick gold braid1 each curve containing a beautifully-worked flower or fruit4 ,in the centre is a carnation1 and round it are arranged consecutively a bunch of grapes1 a pansy1 a honeysuckle1 and a double rose1 green leaves occurring at intervals4 ,from the lower edge depend three ornamental tassels of silver loops1 with small acorns in silver and coloured silks1 one from the centre and one from each corner4 ,the top edge has two draw-strings of gold and red braid1 each ending in an ornamental oval acorn of silver thread and coloured silks1 probably worked on canvas over a wooden core1 ending in a tassel similar to those on the lower edge4 ,a long loop of gold and silver braid serves as a handle1 or means of attachment to a belt1 and is fixed at each side near a strong double loop of silver thread1 used when pulling the bag open4 ,the lining is of pink silk4 ,this particular bag is perfect in colour as well as condition1 but usually the silver has turned black1 or nearly so4 ,besides these very ornamental bags1 others of quite simple workmanship are occasionally found1 worked in outline with coloured silks4 ,as well as the embroidered bags1 certain rectangular cloths variously ornamented1 some richly1 some plainly1 were made and used for the protection of embroidered books1 when being read4 ,these1 like the bags1 only seem to have been used during the seventeenth century4 ,a particularly fine example belongs to a ,new ,testament bound in embroidered satin in #afdj4 ,it is of fine linen1 measuring #af-a_/b by #i-a_/d inches1 and is beautifully embroidered in a floral design1 with thick stalks of gold braid arranged in curves and bearing conventional flowers and leaves1 all worked in needle-point lace with coloured silks in a wonderfully skilful manner4 ,in the centre is a double red rose with separate petals1 and among the other flowers are corn-flowers1 honeysuckles1 carnations1 strawberries1 and several leaves1 all worked in the same way1 and appliques at their edges4 ,some1 however1 of the larger leaves and petals are ornamentally fastened down to the linen by small coloured stitches arranged in lines or patterns over their surfaces1 as well as by the edge stitches4 ,there are several spangles scattered about in the spaces on the linen1 and the edge is bound with green silk and gold4 ,on the book itself to which this cover belongs there is a good deal of the same needle-point work1 probably executed by the same hand2 but the cover is a finer piece altogether than the book1--in fact it is the finest example of such work ,i have ever seen4 ,illustration3 #b--;,embroidered ,cover for ,new ,testament4 ,london1 #afdj4 ,abroad there have been made at various times embroidered bindings for books1 but in no country except ,england has there been any regular production of them4 ,i have come across a few cases in ,england of foreign work1 the most important of which ,i will shortly describe4 ,in the ,british ,museum is an interesting specimen bound in red satin1 and embroidered with the arms of ,felice ,peretti1 ,cardinal de ,montalt1 who was afterwards ,pope ,sixtus ,v42 the coat-of-arms has a little coloured silk upon it1 but the border and the cardinal's hat with tassels are all outlined in gold cord4 ,the work is of an elementary character4 ,the book itself is a beautiful illuminated vellum copy of ,fichet's ,rhetoric1 printed in ,paris in #adga1 and presented to the then ,pope1 ,sixtus ,,iv4 ,in the same collection are a few more instances of ,italian embroidered bindings1 always heraldic in their main designs1 the workmanship not being of any particular excellence or character4 ,perhaps altogether the most interesting ,italian work of this kind was done on books bound for ,cardinal ,york1 several of which still remain1 embroidered with his coat-of-arms1 one of them being now in the ,royal ,library at ,windsor4 ,although the actual workmanship on these books is foreign1 we may perhaps claim them as having been suggested or made by the order of the ,english ,prince himself1 inheriting the liking for embroidered books from his ,stuart ancestors4 ,french embroidered books are very rare1 and ,i do not know of any examples in ,england4 ,two interesting specimens1 at least1 are in the ,bibliotheque ,nationale1 and are described and figured in ,bouchot's work on the artistic bindings in that library4 ,the earlier is on a book of prayers of the fifteenth century1 bound in canvas1 and worked with 'tapisserie de soie au petit point1' or as ,i should call it1 tent-1 or tapestry-1 stitch4 ,it represents the ,crucifixion and a saint1 but ,m4 ,bouchot remarks of it1 ',la composition est grossiere et les figures des plus rudimentaires4' ,the other instance occurs on a sixteenth-century manuscript1 ',les ,gestes de ,blanche de ,castille4' ,it is bound in black velvet1 much worn1 and ornamented with applique embroideries in coloured silks1 in shading stitch1 probably done on fine linen4 ,the design on the upper cover shows the author of the book1 ,etienne le ,blanc1 in the left-hand corner1 kneeling at the feet of ,louise de ,savoie1 ,regent of ,france1 to whom the book is dedicated4 ,near her is a fountain into which an antlered stag is jumping1 pursued by three hounds4 ,the ,dutch1 in the numerous excellent styles of bindings they have so freely imitated from other nations1 have not failed to include the ,english embroidered books4 ,in the ,south ,kensington ,museum is a charming specimen of their work on satin1 finely worked in coloured silks with small masses of pearls in a rather too elaborate design of flowers and animals4 ,in the ,british ,museum1 besides other instances of ,dutch needlework1 there is a very handsome volume of the ,acta ,synodalis ,nationalis ,dordrechti habitae1 printed at ,leyden in #afbj1 and bound in crimson velvet4 ,it has the royal coat-of-arms of ,england within the ,garter1 with crest1 supporters1 and motto1 all worked in various kinds of gold thread2 in the corners are sprays of roses and thistles alternately1 and above and below the coat are the crowned initials ,j4 ,r41 all worked in gold thread4 ,hints for ,modern ,broiderers4 ,many book-covers have been embroidered during the last few years in ,england by ladies working on their own account1 or by some of the students at one or other of the many excellent centres now existing for the study and practice of the fascinating art of bookbinding4 ,although a large proportion of modern work of this kind has been only copied from older work1 ,i see no reason why original designs should not be freely and successfully invented4 ,but ,i think that the ancient work may be advantageously studied and carefully copied as far as choice of threads and manner of working them goes4 ,the workers of our old embroidered books were people of great skill and large experience1 and from a long and careful examination of much of their work1 ,i am impressed with the conviction that they worked on definite principles4 ,if ,i allude briefly to some of these ,i may perhaps give intending workwomen a hint or two as to some minor points which may assist their work to show to the best advantage when in situ1 and also insure1 as far as possible1 that it will not be unduly damaged during the operation of fixing to the back and boards of the book for which it is intended4 7#a7 ,before the operation of fixing on the book is begun1 it will always be found best to mount the embroidered work on a backing of strong fine linen4 ,the stage at which it is best to add the linen will vary according to the kind of work it is to strengthen4 ,in the case of canvas it will only be necessary to tack it on quite at the last2 with velvet a backing from the first may be used with advantage1 all the stitches being taken through both materials4 ,as to satin1 it will be best to do all the very fine work1 if any1 in coloured silks first1 and when the stronger work in cord or braid comes on1 the linen may be then added4 ,the value of the linen is twofold3 it strengthens the entire work and protects the finer material from the paste with which it is ultimately fastened on to the book4 7#b7 ,a book must be sewn1 the edges cut1 and the boards fixed1 before the sizes of the sides and back can be accurately measured4 ,these sizes must be given to the designer most carefully1 as a very small difference between the real size and the embroidered size will entirely spoil the finished effect1 however fine the details of the workmanship may be4 ,when the exact size is known the designer will fill the spaces at his disposal according to his taste and skill1 making his sketches on paper1 and1 when these are complete1 transferring the outlines to the material on which the work is to be done4 ,if the designer is also to be the worker it is artistically right1 and he1 or she1 will put in the proper stitches as the work progresses2 but if another person is to execute the needlework it will be best that very detailed description of all the threads and stitches that are to be used should be given1 as every designer of an embroidery design intends it to be carried out in a particular way1 and unless this way is followed1 the design does not have full justice done to it4 7#c7 ,in the working itself the greatest care must be taken1 especially as to two points3 the first and perhaps the more important1 because the more difficult to remedy1 is that the needlework on the under side of the material must be as small and flat as possible1 and all knots1 lumps1 or irregularities here1 if they cannot be avoided or safely cut off1 had best be brought to the upper side and worked over4 ,with satin1 especially1 attention to this point is most necessary1 as unless the plain spaces lie quite flat1 which they are very apt not to do1 the proper appearance of the finished work is spoiled1 and however good it may be in all other points1 can never be considered first-rate4 ,the second pitfall to avoid is any pulling or straining of the material during the operation of embroidering it4 ,success in avoiding this depends primarily upon the various threads being drawn at each stitch to the proper tension1 so that it may just have the proper pull to keep it in its place and no more--and although a stitch too loose is bad enough1 one too tight is infinitely worse4 7#d7 ,the preponderance of applique work1 and raised work in metal guimps on embroidered books1 especially on velvet1 is easily accounted for when the principles they illustrate are understood1 the truth being that in both these operations the maximum of surface effect is produced with the minimum of under work4 ,if the piece applique is not very large1 a series of small stitches along all the edges is generally enough to keep it firm2 such edge stitches are in most cases afterwards masked by a gold cord laid over them4 ,if1 however1 the applique piece is large it will be necessary to fix it as well with some supplementary stitches through the central portions4 ,these stitches will generally be so managed that they fit in with1 or under1 some of the ornamental work2 at the same time1 if necessary1 they may be symmetrically arranged so as to become themselves of a decorative character4 ,the ,embroidered ,books here illustrated4 ,for the purposes of illustration ,i have chosen the most typical specimens possible from such collections as ,i have had access to4 ,the chief collections in ,england are1 undoubtedly1 those at the ,british ,museum and at the ,bodleian ,library at ,oxford4 ,the collection at the ,british ,museum is especially rich1 the earlier and finer specimens almost invariably having formed part of the old ,royal ,library of ,england given by ,george ,,ii4 to the ,museum in #ageg4 ,the more recent specimens have been acquired either by purchase or donation1 but as there has been no special intention at any time to collect these bindings1 it is remarkable that such a number of them exist in our ,national ,library4 ,the ,bodleian is rich in a few fine specimens only1 and most of these are exhibited4 ,my illustrations are made from photographs from the books themselves in all instances2 to show them properly1 however1 all should be in colour1 and it should not be forgotten that an embroidered book represented only by a half-tint print1 however good1 inevitably loses its greatest charm4 ,however1 if the half-tint is unworthy1 the colour prints are distinctly flattering4 ,i think that almost any old book well reproduced in colour gains in appearance1 and in two of my colour plates ,i have actually restored some parts4 ,in the beautiful fourteenth century psalter1 supposed to have been worked by ,anne de ,felbrigge1 ,i have made the colours purposely much clearer than they are at present4 ,if it were possible to clean this volume1 the colours would show very nearly as they do on my plate2 but1 actually1 they are all much darker and more indistinct1 being in fact overlaid with the accumulated dirt of centuries4 ,the other instance where ,i have added more than at present exists on the original is the green velvet book which belonged to ,queen ,elizabeth1 and forms my frontispiece4 ,here ,i have put in the missing pearls1 each of which has left its little impression on the velvet1 so nothing is added for which there is not the fullest authority4 ,moreover1 some of the gold cord is gone on each of the three volumes of this work1 but ,i have put it in its proper place for the purpose of illustration4 ,the other plates are not in any way materially altered1 but it may be allowed that the colour plates show their originals at their best4 ,the books illustrated are selected out of a large number1 and ,i think it may fairly be considered that the most favourable typical specimens now left in ,england are shown4 ,it may well be that a few finer instances than ,i have been able to find may still be discovered hidden away in private collections1 but it is now so rarely that a really fine ancient embroidered book comes into the sale-room1 that we may safely conclude the best of them are already safely housed in one or other of our great national collections4 ,where not otherwise stated1 the specimens described are in the ,british ,museum4 ,in the following detailed descriptions ,i have used the words 'sides' and 'boards' to mean the same thing1 and the measurements refer to the size of the boards themselves1 not including the back4 ,these measurements must be taken as approximate only1 as from wear and other causes the actual sizes would only be truly given by the use of small fractions of inches4 ,,chapter ,,ii ,,books ,,bound ,,in ,,canvas ,english books bound in embroidered canvas range over a period of about two hundred and fifty years1 the earliest known specimen dating from the fourteenth century1 and instances of the work occurring with some frequency from this time until the middle of the seventeenth century4 ,the majority of these bindings are worked in tapestry-stitch1 or tent-stitch1 in designs illustrating ,scriptural subjects in differently coloured threads4 ,very often the outlines of these designs are marked by gold threads and cords1 of various kinds1 and parts of the work are also frequently enriched with further work upon them in metal threads4 ,spangles are very rarely found on canvas-bound books4 ,the backgrounds of several of the later specimens are worked in silver threads1 sometimes in chain-stitch and sometimes in tapestry-stitch2 others again have the groundwork of silver threads laid along the surface of the canvas and caught down at regular intervals by small stitches--this kind of work is called 'laid' or 'couched' work4 ,books bound with this metal ground have always strong work superimposed1 usually executed in metal strips1 cords1 and thread4 ,the silver is now generally oxidised and much darkened1 but when new these bindings must have been very brilliant4 ,illustration3 #c--,the ,felbrigge ,psalter4 #acth-century ,,ms4 ,the ,felbrigge ,psalter4 #acth-century ,,ms4 ,probably bound in the #adth century4 ,the earliest example of an embroidered book in existence is1 ,i believe1 the manuscript ,english ,psalter written in the thirteenth century1 which afterwards belonged to ,anne1 daughter of ,sir ,simon de ,felbrigge1 ,k4 ,g41 standard-bearer to ,richard ,,ii4 ,anne de ,felbrigge was a nun in the convent of ,minoresses at ,bruisyard in ,suffolk1 during the latter half of the fourteenth century1 and it is quite likely that she herself worked the cover--such work having probably been largely done in monasteries and convents during the middle ages4 ,on the upper side is a very charming design of the ,annunciation1 and1 on the under1 another of the ,crucifixion1 each measuring #g-c_/d by #e-c_/d inches4 ,in both cases the ground is worked with fine gold threads 'couched' in a zigzag pattern1 the rest of the work being very finely executed in split-stitch by the use of which apparently continuous lines can be made1 each successive stitch beginning a little within that immediately preceding it--the effect in some places being that of a very fine chain-stitch4 ,the lines of this work do not in any way follow the meshes of the linen or canvas1 as is mostly the case with book-work upon such material1 but they curve freely according to the lines and folds of the design4 ,it will be recognised ,i think by art workwomen skilled in this kind of small embroidery1 that the methods used for ornamenting the canvas binding of this book are the most artistic of any of the various means employed for a similar purpose1 and ,i know of no other instance which for appropriateness of workmanship1 or charm of design1 can compare with this1 the earliest of all4 ,the figure of the ,virgin ,mary1 on the upper side1 is dressed in a pale red robe1 with an upper garment or cloak of blue with a gold border4 ,on her head is a white head-dress1 and round it a yellow halo2 just above is a white dove flying downwards1 its head having a small red nimbus or cloud round it4 ,the ,virgin holds a red book in her hand4 ,the figure of the angel is winged1 and wears an under robe of blue with an upper garment of yellow2 round his head he has a green and yellow nimbus1 his wings are crimson and white4 ,between these two figures is a large yellow vase1 banded with blue and red2 out of it grows a tall lily1 with a crown of three red blossoms4 ,the drawing of both of the figures is good1 the attitudes and the management of the folds of the drapery being excellently rendered1 and the execution of the technical part is in no way inferior to the design4 ,on the lower side1 on a groundwork of gold similar to that on the upper cover1 is a design of the ,crucifixion4 ,our ,saviour wears a red garment round the loins1 and round his head is a red and yellow nimbus1 his feet being crossed in a manner often seen in illuminations in ancient manuscripts4 ,the cross is yellow with a green edge1 the foot widening out into a triple arch1 within which is a small angel kneeling in the attitude of prayer4 ,on the right of the cross is a figure of the ,virgin ,mary1 in robes of pale blue and yellow1 with a white head-dress and green and yellow nimbus4 ,on the left is another figure1 probably representing ,st4 ,john1 dressed in robes of red and blue1 and having a nimbus round his head of concentric rings of red and yellow4 ,this figure is unfortunately in very bad condition4 ,the edges of the leaves of the book are painted with heraldic bearings in diamond-shaped spaces1 that of the ,felbrigge family ',gules1 a lion rampant1 or' alternately with another 'azure1 a fleur-de-lys1 or4' ,the embroidered sides have been badly damaged by time and probably more so by repair4 ,the book has been rebound in leather1 the old embroidered back quite done away with1 and the worked sides pulled away from their original boards and ruinously flattened out on the new ones4 ,after the ,felbrigge ,psalter no other embroidered binding has been preserved till we come to one dating about #aecf1 which is in satin1 and will be described under that head4 ,the ,miroir or ,glasse of the ,synneful ,soul4 ,,ms4 by the ,princess ,elizabeth4 #aedd4 ,the ,princess ,elizabeth1 afterwards ,queen1 in her eleventh year1 copied out in her own handwriting the ,miroir or ,glasse of the ,synneful ,soul4 ,she says it is translated 'out of frenche ryme into english prose1 joyning the sentences together as well as the capacitie of my symple witte and small lerning coulde extende themselves4' ,it is also most prettily dedicated3 ',from ,assherige1 the last daye of the yeare of our ,lord ,god #aedd 444 ,to our most noble and vertuous ,quene ,katherin1 ,elizabeth her humble daughter wisheth perpetuall felicitie and everlasting joye4' ,the book is now one of the great treasures of the ,bodleian ,library2 it is bound in canvas1 measures about #g by #e inches1 and was embroidered in all probability by the hands of the ,princess herself4 ,the ,countess of ,wilton in her book on the art of needlework says that ',elizabeth was an accomplished needlewoman1' and that 'in her time embroidery was much thought of4' ,the ,rev4 ,w4 ,dunn ,macray in his ,annals of the ,bodleian ,library considers this binding to be one of ',elizabeth's bibliopegic achievements4' ,illustration3 #d--,the ,miroir or ,glasse of the ,synneful ,soul4 ,,ms4 by the ,princess ,elizabeth4 #aedd4 ,illustration3 #e--,prayers of ,queen ,katherine ,parr4 ,,ms4 by the ,princess ,elizabeth4 #aede4 ,the design is the same upon both sides4 ,the ground is all worked over in a large kind of tapestry-stitch in thick pale blue silk1 very evenly and well done1 so well that it has been considered more than once to be a piece of woven material4 ,on this is a cleverly designed interlacing scroll-work of gold and silver braid1 in the centre of which are the joined initials ,k4 ,p4 ,in each corner is a heartsease worked in thick coloured silks1 purple and yellow1 interwoven with fine gold threads1 and a small green leaflet between each of the petals4 ,the back is very much worn1 but it probably had small flowers embroidered upon it4 ,prayers of ,queen ,katherine ,parr4 ,,ms4 by the ,princess ,elizabeth4 #aede4 ,another manuscript beautifully written by the ,princess ,elizabeth about a year later is now at the ,british ,museum4 ,it is on vellum1 and contains prayers or meditations1 composed originally by ,queen ,katherine ,parr in ,english1 and translated by the ,princess into ,latin1 ,french1 and ,italian4 ,the title as given in the book reads1 ',precationes 444 ex piis scriptoribus per nobiliss4 et pientiss4 ,d4 ,catharinam ,anglie1 ,francie1 ,hibernieq4 reginam collecte1 et per ,d4 ,elizabetam ex anglico converse4' ,it is1 moreover1 dedicated to ,henry ,,viii41 the wording being1 ',illustrissimo ,henrico octavo1 ,anglie1 ,francie1 ,hibernieq4 regi1' etc41 and dated ,hertford1 #bjth ,december #aede4 ,it is bound in canvas1 and measures #e-c_/d by #d inches1 the groundwork being broadly worked in tapestry-stitch1 or some stitch analogous to it1 in red silk1 resembling in method the work on the ground of ,the ,miroir of the ,synneful ,soul already described4 ,on this1 in the centre of each side1 is a large monogram worked in blue silk1 interwoven with silver thread1 containing the letters ,k1 probably standing for ,katherine1 ,a1 ,f1 ,h1 and ,r1 possibly meaning ',anglie1 ,francie1 ,hibernieque1 ,reginae1' but like most monograms this one can doubtless be otherwise interpreted4 ,above and below the monogram are smaller ,h's1 worked in red silk1 interwoven with gold thread4 ,in each corner is a heartsease of yellow and purple silk1 interwoven with gold thread1 and having small green leaves between each of the petals4 ,the work which was once on the back is now so worn that it cannot be traced sufficiently to tell what it originally was4 ,the designs of these two volumes1 credited to the ,princess ,elizabeth1 resemble each other to some extent2 they both have a monogram in the centre1 they both have heartsease in the corners and groundwork of a like character4 ,they are1 as far as workmanship goes1 still more alike1 similar thick silk is used for the ground1 and threads and braids of a thick nature1 with metal interwoven1 are used on both for the ornamental work4 ,speaking of this ,british ,museum book1 the ,countess of ,wilton says1 'there is little doubt that ,elizabeth's own needle wrought the ornaments thereon4' ,books embroidered by the ,princess ,elizabeth4 ,it cannot be said that there is any actual authority for saying that the two covers just described are really the work of ,elizabeth's own hand1 although she is known to have been fond of embroidery1 it being recorded that she made and embroidered a shirt for her brother ,edward when she was six4 ,there is little doubt1 however1 that the same designer and the same workwoman worked both these covers1 and the technique1 as well as the design1 are peculiar for the time in which they were done4 ,canvas bindings were rare--most of the embroidered work on books of that period were splendid works on velvet--so that if these two manuscripts had been 'given out' to be bound in embroidered covers we should have expected to find them in rich velvet1 like ,brion's ,holy ,land1 or ,christopherson's ,historia ,ecclesiastica1 instead of a very elementary braid work4 ,without attaching too much importance to the various statements concerning their royal origin1 ,i am inclined to think that there is no impossibility1 or even improbability1 in the supposition that the ,princess designed and worked them herself1 thereby adding to her exquisite manuscript the further charm of her clever needle4 ,the idea of both writing and embroidering such valued presents as these two books must have been is likely to have strongly appealed to an affectionate and humble daughter1 and there is an artistic completeness in the idea which1 ,i think1 tells strongly in its favour4 ,probably enough no proof of their having been worked by ,elizabeth will now ever be forthcoming1 but it is equally unlikely that any positive disproof will be found4 ,the two ',elizabeth' books stand alone--there are no others resembling them2 but the next kind of embroidered work ,i shall describe is one which includes a large number of books1 generally small in size1 and usually copies of the ,bible or the ,psalms4 ,the canvas in these cases is embroidered all over in small tapestry-stitch1 the design being shown by means of the different colours of the silks used4 ,the work being all flat it is very strong1 and often books bound in this way are in a marvellous state of preservation4 ,the most interesting designs are those which represent ,scriptural scenes4 ,some of these are very curious and almost grotesque1 but there is much excuse for this4 ,to work a face any way in embroidery is troublesome enough1 but to work it on a small scale in tent-stitch is especially difficult1 the result being somewhat similar in effect to that of a glass or marble mosaic1 each little stitch being nearly square and of an uniform colour4 ,the designers of these embroideries do not appear to have had a very fertile imagination1 as again and again the same subject is represented4 ,perhaps the most favourite of all is ,jacob wrestling with the angel2 of figure subjects ',faith and ,hope' are the most frequently met with1 but ',peace and ,plenty' are also common enough4 ,illustration3 #f--;,christian ,prayers4 ,london1 #aeha4 ,christian ,prayers4 ,london1 #aeha4 ,a ,book of ,christian ,prayers with illustrated borders1 printed in ,london in #aeha1 is bound in coarse canvas worked in tapestry-stitch in colours1 and measures #g by #e inches4 ,the same design is on each side--a kind of flower-basket in two stories1 out of the lower part of which1 rectangular in shape1 grow two branches1 one with lilies and another with white flowers1 and out of the upper1 oval in shape1 rise two sprays of roses1 one white the other red4 ,in the lower corners are a large lily1 a blue flower1 and a large double-rose spray4 ,all the design is outlined with silver cord or thread1 and the veinings of the leaves are indicated in the same way4 ,there are remains of two green velvet ties on the front edges of each of the boards4 ,the back is not divided into panels1 but has a design upon it of the letters ,e and ,s repeated five times4 ,the edges are gilt and gauffred4 ,psalms and ,common ,praier4 ,london1 #afjf-g4 ,during the seventeenth century little 'double' books were rather favourite forms for ,common ,prayer and ,psalms especially4 ,these curious bindings open opposite ways and have two backs1 two ornamental boards1 and one unornamented board enclosed between the two books1 which are always of the same size4 ,there are several instances where embroidered books have been bound in this way1 the earliest ,i know being a copy of the ,psalms and ,common ,prayer1 printed in #afjf-g4 ,this is bound in canvas1 and measures #c-a_/d by #b inches1 each side having the same design embroidered on each of the ornamented sides and backs4 ,the flowers and leaves are worked in long straight stitches in coloured silks1 outlined with silver twist4 ,a large pansy plant occupies the place of honour1 growing out of a small green mound1 from which also spring two short plants with five-petalled yellow flowers4 ,the main stems and ribs of the leaves are made with strong silver twist4 ,round about the central spray are several coloured buds4 ,on the backs are four panels1 each containing a small four-petalled flower4 ,the ground is worked all over with silver thread irregularly stitched1 and the edges are bound with a broad silver thread4 ,there was originally one ribbon to twist round both books and keep them together1 but it is now quite gone4 ,the edges are gilt1 gauffred1 and slightly coloured4 ,illustration3 #g--,psalms and ,common ,praier4 ,london1 #afjf4 ,illustration3 #h--;,bible1 etc4 ,london1 #afab4 ,bible1 etc4 ,london1 #afab4 ,a copy of the ,bible1 with the ,psalms1 printed in ,london in #afab1 and measuring #f-c_/d by #d-a_/d inches1 is bound in fine canvas1 and bears upon it designs embroidered in coloured silks in tapestry-stitch4 ,on the upper side is ,king ,solomon seated in an elaborate throne on a dais1 all outlined with gold cord4 ,he wears a golden crown and a dress which more nearly approaches the style worn at the date of the production of the book than that which was probably worn by ,solomon himself4 ,before the ,king kneels a figure1 no doubt intended for the ,queen of ,sheba1 in a red and orange robe of a curious fashion4 ,she holds out two white and red roses to the ,king1 who bends to take them4 ,the ground is patterned in green and blue diamonds4 ,the distant landscape shows a castle with turrets1 trees1 a tower1 a house1 and a sun with rays4 ,the groundwork on both sides and the back is worked in silver thread4 ,the lower side has in the centre ,jacob wrestling with the angel4 ,jacob has a beard and a blue cloak2 his staff lies on the ground4 ,the angel wears a red flowing robe1 and his wings are many-coloured1 and enriched with various threads and spirals of gold4 ,the landscape is elaborate4 ,in the foreground is a river with a bridge of planks1 a gabled cottage1 hospitably smoking from its chimneys1 a red lily1 and a tree4 ,in the middle distance is a castle with tower and flag1 and on the horizon are a windmill1 a castle with two towers1 and some trees1 above all a red cloud4 ,the back is divided into six panels1 on each of which is a different design in coloured silks4 ,these designs are small1 and although they are in perfectly good condition1 the subjects represented are doubtful4 ,the upper and lower panels seem to represent only castles with towers4 ,then apparently come ,jonah and the whale1 the creation1 the temple1 and the deluge with the ark1 but it is quite possible that other interpretations might be made4 ,there are remains of two red silk ties on the front edges of each board1 and the edges of the leaves are gilded simply4 ,illustration3 #i--,sermons by ,samuel ,ward4 ,london1 #afbf-g4 ,sermons by ,samuel ,ward4 ,london1 #afbf-g4 ,mr4 ,yates ,thompson has kindly allowed me to describe and illustrate an embroidered book belonging to him1 bound in canvas1 and measuring #e-c_/d by #d-a_/d inches4 ,it is a collection of sermons preached by ',samuel ,ward1 ,bachelour of ,divinity1' and printed in ,london1 #afbf-g1 the binding being probably of about the latter date4 ,on the upper cover is a lady in a blue dress1 seated1 and holding a hawk on her left wrist1 and a branch with apples in her right4 ,round her are scattered flower sprays1 honeysuckle1 foxglove1 a stalk with two large pears1 a cluster of grapes1 a twig with a butterfly upon it1 and a wild-rose spray4 ,the lady1 the petals of the flowers1 and the leaves are all worked in tapestry-stitch2 the bird and the lady's hair in long straight stitches2 the stalks1 fruits1 and grasses are worked in variously coloured silk threads1 thickly and strongly bound round with very fine silver wire4 ,the lady has a coif1 cuff1 and belt of short pieces of silver and gold guimp arranged like a plait4 ,the under side shows a seated lady in a green dress1 playing a lute left-handed4 ,this most unusual position is probably not really intentional1 but the drawing has accidentally been reversed4 ,she is surrounded1 like her companion with the hawk1 by flower sprays1 a thistle1 cornflower1 strawberries1 a rose1 lily1 bluebell1 and small bunch of grapes1 making a kind of arbour1 with a wreath of red cloud at the top4 ,the lady1 the petals of the flowers1 and the leaves are worked in fine tapestry-stitch2 the stalks and fruits in coloured silks1 mixed with silver wire4 ,the lady has a coif and a cuff of silver guimp arranged in the same way as that on the other side4 ,the back is divided into four panels by silver guimp1 each containing a flower worked in tapestry-stitch1 a blue flower1 a wild rose1 a pansy1 and a thistle4 ,the ground of the whole is loosely overcast with silver thread1 the constructive lines of the book being marked by rows of silver guimp arranged in small arches4 ,the edges are bound by a strong silver braid4 ,the head and tail bands are worked in silver thread--an unusual method--and the edges are gilt and gauffred4 ,there are two ties on each board of striped silk1 much frayed and worn1 but the embroidered work itself is in excellent condition1 and very strong4 ,new ,testament1 etc4 ,london1 #afbe-ce4 ,illustration3 #aj--,new ,testament1 etc4 ,london1 #afbe-ce4 ,a small copy of the ,new ,testament1 printed in ,london in #afbe1 bound together with the ,psalms1 #afce1 is covered with canvas1 all worked in tapestry-stitch1 and measures #d-a_/d by #c inches4 ,on the upper cover is a full-length figure of ,hope1 with dark hair1 dressed in a red dress with large falling collar1 having a blue flower at the point4 ,in her left hand she holds an anchor4 ,in the distant background is a cottage and a gibbet on a hill1 the sun with rays just appearing under a cloud4 ,on the hilly foreground is a red lily1 and further afield a caterpillar and a strawberry plant4 ,on the lower cover is a full-length figure of ,faith1 with fair hair1 dressed in a blue dress with large falling collar1 having a red flower at the point4 ,in her left hand she holds an open book with the word ',,faith' written across it4 ,on the hilly foreground is a large red tulip and a plant with red blooms1 further afield are a pear-tree and two caterpillars4 ,on the back are four panels1 containing respectively a bird1 a blue flower1 a squirrel1 and a red flower4 ,on the front edge of the upper cover can be seen the remains of one tie of green silk1 and the edges are protected all round by a piece of green silk braid4 ,the edges of the leaves are plainly gilt4 ,this cover is one of the rare instances of a book bound in embroidered work not made for it1 the embroidery being clearly made for a book of about half the present thickness4 ,it is possible that it was intended for either the ,new ,testament or the ,psalms separately1 and1 as an after-thought1 was made to do double duty4 ,but as it now is1 the worked back is just a strip down the middle of the back itself1 the designs of the sides encroaching considerably inwards4 ,the ,daily ,exercise of a ,christian4 ,london1 #afbc4 ,the ,daily ,exercise of a ,christian1 printed in ,london in #afbc1 and measuring #d-c_/d by #b-c_/d inches1 is ornamented with a single flower spray1 with buds and leaves4 ,the flower is a double rose with curving stem1 one large half-opened bud and one smaller1 and a few leaves1 all worked in tent-stitch4 ,the spray rises from a small bed of grass1 out of which grows a small blue flower4 ,in the upper right-hand corner is a small blue cloud4 ,the same design is on both sides4 ,the back is divided into four panels1 the divisions being marked and bounded by a thick silver braid1 which is also used as an edging all round the book2 the designs1 beginning at the top1 are a fly and a flower alternately1 differently coloured4 ,the background is all worked in with silver thread in chain-stitch4 ,with this book is one of the now rare ornamental markers1 which1 no doubt1 often went with embroidered books4 ,it is fastened to an ornamental oblong cushion1 probably made of light wood1 and is worked in silver thread and coloured silks in the same manner as the rest of the embroidered work1 and finished off at the ends with small red tassels4 ,illustration3 #aa--,the ,daily ,exercise of a ,christian4 ,london1 #afbc4 ,illustration3 #ab--;,bible4 ,london1 #afbf4 ,bible4 ,london1 #afbf-bh4 ,a copy of the ,bible1 printed in ,london in #afbf1 is bound in canvas1 and measures #f by #c-a_/b inches4 ,the embroidery is in coloured silks1 silver cords and threads1 and silver guimp4 ,on the upper cover is a small full-length figure of ,st4 ,peter1 with short beard1 holding a key in his left hand4 ,he is dressed in a blue under-garment1 with red and orange robe over it1 all the edges being marked by a silver twist1 some of which has come off4 ,the ground is green and in hillocks4 ,all this work is done in coloured silks and silver threads in shading stitch4 ,on the under side is a figure of ,st4 ,paul1 with long beard1 holding a silver sword in his right hand4 ,he wears a blue under-garment1 with red and orange upper robe1 all edged with silver twist4 ,the feet of both figures are bare4 ,the rest of the design is the same on both sides4 ,the skies are worked in large stitches of blue and yellow silk and silver threads1 graduating from dark to light2 above these are canopies of silver thread1 couched1 and vandyked at the edge4 ,enclosing the figures are arches with columns1 in high relief in silver cords and threads4 ,the inner edge of the arch is curiously marked by a line of brown silk worked over a strip of vellum in the manner used for hand-worked head-bands1 and the outer edge has 'crockets' of silver guimp4 ,the columns rest upon 'rams-horn' curves1 heavily worked in relief with silver threads1 the insides of the curves worked in brown silk over vellum like the inner edge of the arch4 ,metal ,threads used on ,embroidered ,books4 ,guimp and gold threads are largely used1 as has already been noticed1 in embroidered books from early times1 but on the next specimen of a canvas-bound book ,i have chosen for description1 dated #afdb1 a kind of metal thread occurs which is very curious4 ,it is used at an earlier date on satin books1 and it is also found more commonly upon them2 but as ,i have put the canvas books first for the purpose of description1 and the 'thread' occurs in one of them1 this is the best place to put its description4 ,this thread ,i call ',purl1' and a thread with this name is mentioned in several places as having been used in ,england in the seventeenth century2 but there is no description of it1 so that this thread may not be the 'purl' mentioned by the seventeenth-century writers1 but if it is not1 ,i do not know what purl is1 neither do ,i know any other special name for the thread4 ,in order that there may be no doubt as to what ,i mean by purl1 ,i will shortly describe the thread as ,i know it4 ,first there is a very fine copper wire2 this is closely bound round with coloured silk1 also very fine1 and in this state it looks simply like a coloured thread4 ,then this coloured thread is itself closely coiled round something like a fine knitting-needle--in fact ,i have made it on one--and then pushed off in the form of a fine coiled tube4 ,the thread is always cut into short lengths for use1 and on books these short lengths are generally threaded and drawn together at their ends1 making1 so to speak1 little arches--so that although on the under side of the material there is only a tiny thread1 on the upper side there is a strong arch1 practically of copper4 ,on boxes and other ornamental productions of this same period1 pieces of purl are not infrequently found laid flat like little bricks2 and houses1 castles1 etc41 are often represented by means of it2 but on books the general use is either for flowers1 grounds1 or 7in very small pieces7 to keep on spangles4 ,obviously any coloured silk can be used in making this thread1 so that it may be said that for coloured silk work1 where strength is required1 flowers worked in purl are the best4 ,the colours used when roses are represented are usually graduated1--yellow or white in the centre1 then gradually darkening outward1 yellow1 pale pink1 and red1 or pale yellow1 pale blue1 and dark blue4 ,purl flowers are usually accessories to some regular design1 but1 in one instance at least1 to be described later on1 it supplies the entire decoration of a small satin book4 ,bible1 etc4 ,london1 #afdb4 ,the design on a ,bible with ,psalms1 printed in ,london in #afdb1 bound in fine canvas1 and measuring #f by #c-a_/b inches1 is the same on both sides4 ,the ground is all laid1 or couched1 with silver threads1 caught down at intervals by small white stitches4 ,in the centre is a circular silver boss1 and out of this grow four lilies worked with silver thread in button-hole stitch2 each of these lilies has a shape similar to its own underneath it1 outlined with fine gold cord1 and filled in with red silk2 representing altogether white flowers with a red lining4 ,these four red and white lilies make together the form of a ,maltese cross1 and between each of the arms is a purl rose with yellow centre and graduated blue petals4 ,a double oval1 with the upper and lower curves larger than the side ones1 marked with a thick gold cord1 encloses the central cross1 and the remaining spaces are filled with ovals and lines of gold guimp1 with here and there a little patch of red or yellow purl1 the extremities of the upper and lower ovals being filled with threads of green silk loosely bound with a silver spiral1 worked to represent a green plot4 ,illustration3 #ac--;,bible1 etc4 ,london1 #afdb4 ,the upper and lower curves of the oval are thickened by an arch of gold thread laid lengthwise1 and kept in place by little radiating lines of red silk4 ,in each corner is a purl rose1 with blue centre1 the petals graduating in colour from pale yellow to dark red1 with leaf forms and stalks of gold cord and guimp4 ,at the top and bottom of the oval is a many-coloured purl rose1 and the spaces still left vacant are dotted with little pieces of red1 blue1 and yellow purl and spangles4 ,on the front edges are the remains of two red silk ties4 ,illustration3 #ad--;,bible4 ,london1 #afdh4 ,the back is divided into four panels by a thick gold twist4 ,the upper and lower panels have each a blue purl rose worked in them1 with a white and red lily in the same silver thread as those on the sides1 with gold leaves and stalks2 the two inner panels contain each three purl roses1 with gold leaves and stems4 ,the upper of these panels has a large rose of blue1 yellow1 and red1 and two smaller ones yellow with blue centres2 the lower panel has a large rose of red1 pink1 and yellow1 and two smaller ones of red1 with yellow centres4 ,dotted about the groundwork of the panels are several spangles and short lengths of coloured purl4 ,the edges of the leaves are plainly gilt4 ,bible4 ,london1 #afdh4 ,a ,bible1 printed in ,london in #afdh1 formerly the property of ,george ,,iii41 is bound in canvas1 and has embroidered upon the boards emblematic representations of ,faith and ,hope4 ,it measures #f-c_/d by #d-c_/d inches4 ,on the upper side is a full-length figure of ,faith4 ,she has fair hair1 and is dressed in an orange and red dress cut low1 and showing in the front a pale blue under garment4 ,she has a large white collar and cuffs1 both in point-lace1 and bears in her right hand an open book with the word ',,faith' written upon it1 while her left hand rests upon a pointed shield1 pale purple with a yellow centre4 ,she is standing upon a rounded hillock1 on which are a strawberry plant with two fruits1 two caterpillars1 a red tulip1 and another flower4 ,in the right-hand upper corner is a turreted and gabled house1 the windows of which are marked with little glittering pieces of talc4 ,below the house is a caterpillar and a large blue butterfly4 ,in the left-hand upper corner is the sun1 in gold1 just appearing under a blue cloud4 ,underneath this1 in succession1 come a tree with a butterfly upon it1 a bird1 most likely meant for a wren1 and another caterpillar4 ,the remains of two red tie-ribbons are near the front edges4 ,the background is worked in silver thread1 and the edges of the boards are bound with silver braid having a thread or two of red silk on the innermost side4 ,on the under cover ,hope appears in a curiously worked upper garment of blue and white1 short in the sleeves1 in needlepoint1 with a belt4 ,under this is a dress of red and orange1 showing a blue under skirt in front4 ,a scarf of the same colour as the dress is gracefully folded over the shoulders and hangs over the left arm2 a rather deep collar and cuffs are both worked in needlepoint4 ,the right hand rests upon an anchor with a 'fouled' rope4 ,hope stands upon a rounded hillock1 on which are a snail and spray of possible foxglove1 and out of which grow a red carnation and another flower4 ,in the upper right-hand corner is a gabled cottage with a tree1 and under it a moth1 flower1 and caterpillar4 ,towards the upper left-hand corner is a bank of cloud with red and yellow rays issuing therefrom1 and under it a pear-tree with flower and fruit1 and a many-coloured butterfly4 ,all the background is worked in silver thread4 ,the five panels of the back1 indicated with silver cord1 are each filled with a different design4 ,beginning at the top1 these are3 a rose1 a parrot with a red fruit1 a double rose1 a lion1 and a lily4 ,the edges are plainly gilt4 ,,chapter ,,iii ,,books ,,bound ,,in ,,velvet ,it seems probable that velvet was a favourite covering for royal books in ,england from an early period4 ,such volumes as remain 'covered in vellat' that belonged to ,henry ,,vii4 are1 however1 not embroidered1 the ornamentation upon them being worked metal1 or enamels upon metal4 ,it is not until the time of ,henry ,,viii4 that we have any instances remaining of books bound in embroidered velvet4 ,velvet is very troublesome to work upon1 the pile preventing any delicate embroidery being done directly upon it1 hence the prevalence of gold cords and applique work on canvas or linen1 on which of course the embroidery may be executed as delicately as may be desired4 ,tres ample description de toute la terre ,saincte1 etc4 ,by ,martin de ,brion4 ,,ms4 of the sixteenth century1 probably bound about #aedj4 ,illustration3 #ae--,tres ample description de toute la terre ,saincte1 etc4 ,,ms4 #aedj4 ,the earliest extant ,english binding in embroidered velvet covers this manuscript1 which belonged to ,henry ,,viii41 and is dedicated to him4 ,the manuscript is on vellum1 and is beautifully illuminated4 ,it is bound in rich purple velvet1 and each side1 measuring #i by #f inches1 is ornamented with the same design4 ,in the centre is a large royal coat-of-arms1 surrounded by the garter1 and ensigned with a royal crown4 ,the coat-of-arms and the garter are first worked in thick silks of the proper colours1 red and blue1 laid or couched1 with small stitches of silk of the same colour1 arranged so as to make a diamond pattern1 on fine linen or canvas4 ,on the coat are the arms of ,france and ,england quarterly2 the bearings1 respectively three fleur-de-lys and three lions1 are solidly worked in gold cord1 and the whole is applique on to the velvet with strong stitches4 ,on the blue garter the legend ',honi soit qui mal y pense' is outlined in gold cord1 between each word being a small red rose1 the buckle1 end1 and edge of the garter being marked also in gold cord1 and the whole applique like the coat4 ,the very decorative royal crown is solidly worked in gold cords of varying thickness directly on to the velvet4 ,the rim or circlet has five square jewels of red and blue silk along it1 between each of these being two seed pearls4 ,from the rim rise four crosses-patee and four fleurs-de-lys1 at the base of each of which is a pearl1 and also one in each inner corner of the crosses-patee4 ,four arches also rise from the rim1 the two outer ones each having three small scrolls with a pearl in the middle2 at the top is a mound and cross-patee1 with a pearl in each of its inner corners4 ,there is a letter ,h on each side of the coat-of-arms1 and these letters were originally doubtless worked with seed pearls1 but the outlines of them alone are now left4 ,in each corner is a red ,lancastrian rose worked on a piece of satin1 applique1 the centres and petals marked in gold cord1 and the whole enclosed in an outer double border of gold cord4 ,on the front edges of each side are the remains of two red silk ties4 ,this is certainly a very handsome piece of work1 and is wonderfully preserved4 ,it is the earliest example of a really fine embroidered book on velvet in existence1 and it has perhaps been more noticed and illustrated than any other book of its kind4 ,the crown has an interesting peculiarity about it1 which does not appear1 as far as ,i have observed1 on any other representation of it1 namely1 that the four arches take their rise directly from the rim4 ,they generally rise from the summits of the crosses-patee1 but ,i should fancy that the rise from the circlet itself is more correct4 ,illustration3 #af--;,biblia4 ,tiguri1 #aedc4 ,biblia4 ,tiguri1 #aedc4 ,this ,bible also belonged to ,henry ,,viii4 ,it is bound in velvet1 originally some shade of red or crimson1 but now much faded4 ,it measures #ae by #i-a_/d inches4 ,it is ornamented with arabesques and initials all outlined with fine gold cord4 ,in the centre are the initials ,h4 ,r41 bound together by an interlacing knot1 within a circle4 ,arabesques above and below the circle make up an inner panel1 itself enclosed by a broad border of arabesques1 with a double1 or ,tudor1 rose in each corner4 ,the edges of the leaves of the book are elaborately painted with heraldic designs4 ,it has been re-backed with leather1 but still retains the original boards4 ,illustration3 #ag--;,il ,petrarcha4 ,venetia1 #aedd4 ,il ,petrarcha4 ,venetia1 #aedd4 ,another fine example of the decorative use of ,heraldry occurs on a copy of ,petrarch printed at ,venice in #aedd1 and probably bound about #aedh1 after the death of ,henry ,,viii4 ,it belonged to ,queen ,katherine ,parr1 and bears her arms with several quarterings--worked applique on rich blue purple velvet1 and measures #g by #f inches4 ,the first coat is the 'coat of augmentation' granted to the ,queen by ,henry ,,viii4--',argent1 on a pile gules1 between six roses of the same1 three others of the field'--and the next coat is that of ',parr4' ,the various quarterings on this coat are worked differently from those on the last book described4 ,here the red and blue are well shown by pieces of coloured satin--except in the first1 fifth1 and seventh coats1 where there is some couched work in diamond pattern1 just like that on ,martin ,brion's book4 ,the entire coat1 which is of an ornamental shape1 is applique in one large piece1 and edged by a gold cord4 ,the crown surmounting it is heavily worked in gold guimp--the cap being represented in crimson silk thread and all applique4 ,there are two supporters--that on the right1 an animal breathing flame1 and gorged with a coronet from which hangs a long chain1 all worked in coloured silks on linen and applique1 belongs to the ,fitzhugh family1 the coat of which is shown on the third quarter2 that on the left1 a wyvern argent1 also gorged with a coronet1 from which depends a long gold chain1 is that of the ,parr family4 ,the wyvern is a piece of blue silk1 finished in gold and silver cords1 in applique4 ,the gold cord enclosing the armorial design is amplified at each corner into an arabesque scroll4 ,the book has been most unfortunately rebound1 and the work is badly strained in consequence--the back being entirely new2 nevertheless it is in a wonderful state of preservation4 ,it is said to have been worked by ,queen ,katherine ,parr herself4 ,the design is too large for the book1 and the crown is too large for the coat-of-arms4 ,it is probable that the binding of the book was done after the death of ,henry ,,viii41 otherwise the supporters would have been the lion and the greyhound2 also the coat-of-arms would have been different2 also1 as the ,seymour coat does not appear1 it is likely that the binding was done before ,queen ,katherine ,parr's marriage with ,lord ,seymour of ,sudley1 in #aedg4 ,the design is the same on both sides4 ,illustration3 #ah--,queen ,mary's ,psalter4 #adth-century ,,ms4 ,queen ,mary's ,psalter4 #adth-century ,,ms4 ,bound about #aeec4 ,the beautiful ,english manuscript of the fourteenth century known as ',queen ,mary's ,psalter' was presented to her in #aeec4 ,it is bound in crimson velvet1 measuring #aa by #f-c_/d inches1 and applique on each side is a large conventional pomegranate-flower worked on fine linen in coloured silks and gold thread4 ,this flower is much worn1 but enough is left to show that it was originally finely worked4 ,queen ,mary used the pomegranate as a badge in memory of her mother1 ,katharine of ,aragon4 ,the volume has been re-backed in plain crimson velvet1 and still retains the original gilt corners with bosses1 and two clasps1 on the plates of which are engraved the ,tudor emblems1--portcullis1 dragon1 lion1 and fleur-de-lys4 ,christopherson1 ,historia ,ecclesiastica4 ,lovanii1 #aefi4 ,many fine bindings in embroidered velvet of the time of ,queen ,elizabeth still remain1 several of them having been her own property4 ,one of the most decorative of these last is unfortunately in a very bad state1 owing possibly to the fact that there were originally very many separate pearls upon it1 and that these have from time to time been wilfully picked off4 ,the book is in three volumes1 and is a copy of the ,historia ,ecclesiastica1 written by ,christopherson1 ,bishop of ,chichester1 and printed at ,louvain in #aefi4 ,each of these volumes is bound in the same way1 so the description of one of them will serve for all1 except that no one volume is perfect1 so the description must be taken as representing only what each originally was4 ,it is covered in deep green velvet1 and measures #f by #c-a_/b inches1 the design being the same on each side4 ,in the centre the royal coat-of-arms is applique in blue and red satin1 on an ornamental cartouche of pink satin1 with scrolls of gold threads and coloured silks1 richly dotted with small pearls4 ,the bearings on the coats-of-arms are solidly worked in fine gold threads4 ,from each corner of the sides springs a rose spray1 with ,tudor roses of red silk mixed with pearls1 and ,yorkist roses all worked in pearls clustering tight together1 the leaves and stems being made in gold cord and guimp4 ,a decoratively arranged ribbon outlined with gold cord and filled in with a line of small pearls set near each other1 encloses the design1 and numerous single pearls are set in the spaces between the roses and their leaves and stems4 ,illustration3 #bj--;,christian ,prayers4 ,london1 #aegj4 ,the back is divided into five panels bearing alternately ,yorkist roses of pearls and ,tudor roses of red silk and pearls1 all worked in the same way as the roses on the sides4 ,the illustration ,i give of this binding 7,frontispiece7 is necessarily a restoration4 ,but there is nothing added which was not originally on the book4 ,each pearl that has disappeared has left a little impress on the velvet1 and so has each piece of gold cord which has been pulled off4 ,the back is still existing2 but bad though both sides and back now are1 it is much better they should be in their present condition than that they should have been mended or replaced in parts by newer material4 ,christian ,prayers4 ,london1 #aegj4 ,a simpler binding1 but still one of great richness1 covers a copy of ,christian ,prayers1 printed in ,london in #aegj4 ,this is covered in crimson velvet1 measuring #f by #c-a_/b inches1 and is worked largely with metal threads1 mixed with coloured silks4 ,in the centre is the crest of the family of ,vaughan--a man's head with a snake round the neck4 ,the crest rests on a fillet1 and is enclosed in a twisted circle of gold with four coloured bosses4 ,from the upper and lower extremities of this circle spring two flower forms in gold and silver guimp1 with sprays issuing from them bearing strawberries1 grape bunches1 and leaves1 in the upper half1 and roses and leaves in the lower4 ,the grapes are represented by rather large spangles1 and the leaves1 worked in gold1 have a few strands of green silk in them2 large spangles1 kept down by a short piece of guimp1 are used to fill in spaces here and there4 ,this is the first instance of the use of spangles on a velvet book4 ,the back is tastefully ornamented with gold cord arranged diamond-wise1 and having in each diamond a flower worked in gold4 ,parker1 ,de antiquitate ,ecclesiae ,britannicae4 ,london1 #aegb4 ,this is one of the embroidered books that belonged to ,queen ,elizabeth1 and has been frequently illustrated and described4 ,it is remarkable in other respects than for its binding1 as it is one of a number of probably not more than twenty copies of a work by ,matthew ,parker1 ,archbishop of ,canterbury1 ,de antiquitate ,ecclesiae ,britannicae1 printed for him by ,john ,day in ,london1 #aegb4 ,it was the first instance of a privately printed book being issued in ,england4 ,illustration3 #ba--,parker1 ,de antiquitate ,ecclesiae ,britannicae4 ,london1 #aegb4 ,archbishop ,parker had a private press1 and his books were printed with types cast at his own cost1 ,john ,day being sometimes employed as his workman4 ,no two copies of this particular work are alike1 and it is supposed that the ,archbishop continually altered the sheets as they came from the press and had the changes effected at once4 ,the book has two title-pages1 each of which1 as well as a leaf containing the arms of the ,bishops in vellum1 the ornamental borders1 and coats-of-arms throughout the book1 are emblazoned in gold and colours4 ,the biographies of sixty-nine ,archbishops are contained in the book1 but not ,parker's own4 ,this omission was supplied afterwards by a little satirical tract published in #aegd1 entitled ',histriola1 a little storye of the actes and life of ,matthew1 now archbishop of ,canterbury4' ,but the ,archbishop not only had his printing done under his own roof1 but also had in his house ',paynters 444 wryters1 and ,boke-binders1' so that it may fairly enough be considered that he bound the splendid copy of his great work which was intended for the ,queen's acceptance1 in a specially handsome manner1 under his own direct supervision1 and in accordance not only with his own taste but also with that of his royal mistress4 ,the volume is a large one1 measuring #aj by #g inches1 and is covered in dark green velvet4 ,on both sides the design is a rebus on the name of ,parker1 representing in fact a ,park within a high paling4 ,the palings are represented as if lying flat1 and are worked in gold cord with flat strips of silver1 on yellow satin applique4 ,there are gates and other small openings in the continuity of the line of palings4 ,on the upper cover within the paling is a large rose-bush1 bearing a large ,tudor rose and two white roses in full bloom1 with buds and leaves1 some tendrils extending over the palings4 ,the stalks are of silver twist edged with gold cord1 the red flowers are worked with red silk and gold cord1 the white ones made up with small strips of flat silver and gold cord4 ,detached flowers and tufts of grass grow about the rose-tree2 among these are two purple and yellow pansies1 ,elizabeth's favourite flowers1 and in each corner is a deer1 one 'courant1' one 'passant1' one feeding1 and one 'lodged4' ,the design fills the side of the book very fully1 and the workmanship is everywhere excellent4 ,this upper cover is much faded1 as it has been for many years exposed to the light in one of the ,binding show-cases in the ,king's ,library at the ,british ,museum4 ,illustration3 #bb--,the ,epistles of ,st4 ,paul4 ,london1 #aegh4 7,from a drawing74 ,the under side is much fresher1 but the design not so elaborate4 ,there is a similar paling to that on the other side1 the ',park' being dotted about with several plants1 ferns1 and tufts of grass4 ,near each corner is a deer1 one feeding1 one 'couchant1' one 'tripping1' and one 'courant1' and one 'lodged' in the centre4 ,there are also two snakes worked in silver thread with small colour patches in silk4 ,the back is badly worn1 but the original design can be easily traced upon it4 ,there were five panels1 in each of which is a small rose-tree1 bearing one large flower1 with leaves and buds1 and tufts of grass4 ,the first1 third1 and fifth of these are white ,yorkist roses2 the second and third are ,tudor roses of white and red4 ,the ,epistles of ,st4 ,paul4 ,london1 #aegh4 ,if this book of ,archbishop ,parker's is one of the most elaborately ornamented embroidered books existing1 and perhaps one of the greatest treasures of its kind in the ,british ,museum1 the next velvet book to describe is one of the simplest1 yet it also is one of the greatest treasures of its kind at the ,bodleian ,library4 ,it is a small copy of the ,epistles of ,st4 ,paul1 printed by ,barker in ,london1 #aegh1 and measuring #d-a_/b by #c-a_/b inches1 and it belonged to ,queen ,elizabeth4 ,inside she has written a note in which she says3 ',i walke manie times into the pleasant fieldes of the ,holy ,scriptures1 where ,i plucke up the goodlie greene herbes of sentences by pruning1 eate them by reading1 chawe them by musing1 and laie them up at length in the hie seat of memorie by gathering them together1 so that having tasted thy swetenes ,i may the less perceive the bitterness of this miserable life4' ,the ,rev4 ,w4 ,d4 ,macray1 in the ,annals of the ,bodleian ,library1 says1 ',this belonged to ,queen ,elizabeth1 and is bound in a covering worked by herself'2 and the ,countess of ,wilton1 in the ,art of ,embroidery1 says1 ',the covering is done in needlework by the ,queen herself4' ,it is also described by ,dibdin in ,bibliomania4 ,he says1 ',the covering is done in needlework by the ,queen herself4' ,the black velvet binding is much worn1 and has been badly repaired4 ,the work upon it is all done in silver cord or guimp1 and the designing1 as well as the work1 is such as may well have been done by the ,queen4 ,on both covers borders with legends in ,latin1 enclosed in lines of gold cord1 run parallel to the edges4 ,beginning at the right-hand corners of each side1 these legends read1 ',beatus qui divitias scripturae legens verba vertit in opera--,celum ,patria ,scopus vitae ,,xpus--,christus via--,christo vive4' ,in the centre of the upper side is a ribbon outlined in gold cord1 with the words1 ',eleva sursum ibi ubi1' a heart being enclosed within the ribbon1 and a long stem with a flower at the top passing through it4 ,in the centre of the lower side a similar ribbon with the motto1 ',vicit omnia pertinax virtus1' encloses a daisy1 a badge previously used by ,henry ,,viii4 and ,edward ,,vi41 probably in memory of their ancestress1 ,margaret ,beaufort4 ,both these inner scrolls have the initial letter ,e interwoven with them4 ,illustration3 #bc--;,christian ,prayers1 etc4 ,london1 #aehd4 ,there is no doubt that the usual royal embroidered bindings of the time of ,elizabeth were elaborately designed and richly worked1 in decided contrast to this small book2 and this difference of style makes it more probable that the ,queen worked it herself4 ,there is no resemblance between this book and the two canvas-bound books already described which are attributed to her1 except the use of cord alone in the embroidery2 but the difference of material might perhaps be considered sufficient to account for this4 ,no real evidence seems to be forthcoming as to the authorship of the embroidered work1 but there is no doubt that the book was a favourite one of ,queen ,elizabeth's1 and if the needlework had been done for her by any of the ladies of her ,court1 it would be likely that she would have added a note to that effect to the words she has written inside4 ,christian ,prayers1 etc4 ,london1 #aehd4 ,a copy of ,christian ,prayers1 with the ,psalms1 printed in ,london in #aeha and #aehd1 is curiously bound in soft paper boards strengthened on the inner side with pieces of morocco and covered with pale tawny velvet4 ,it measures #g-a_/b by #e-a_/b inches4 ,the edges of the leaves are gilt and gauffred4 ,the arrangement of the design is unusual4 ,it starts from the centre of the back in the form of a broad ornamental border1 extending towards the front edges along the lines of the boards4 ,this border is handsomely ornamented by a wavy line of silver cords1 filled out with conventional flowers and arabesques worked in gold and silver cords and threads1 with a little bit of coloured silk here and there4 ,a symmetrical design of flower forms and arabesques starts1 on each board1 from the centre of the inner edge of the border1 and is worked in a similar way4 ,some of the leaves1 however1 have veinings marked by strips of flat silver1 and others made by a flattened silver spiral1 having the appearance of a succession of small rings4 ,there are the remains of two pale orange silk ties on the front edges of each board1 and the edges are gilt and gauffred with a little colour4 ,the petals of the flowers are worked in guimp1 whether gold or silver is difficult to say4 ,indeed in many instances of the older books it is difficult to be sure whether a metal cord or thread was originally gilded or not1 as all these 'gold' threads are1 or were1 silver gilt1 so that when worn the silver only remains4 ,if the cord or thread has been protected in any corners1 however1 or if it can be lifted a little1 the faint trace of gold can often be seen on what would otherwise have been surely put down as originally silver4 ,illustration3 #bd--,orationis ,dominicae ,explicatio1 etc4 ,genevae1 #aehc4 ,orationis ,dominicae ,explicatio1 etc4 ,genevae1 #aehc4 ,there is in the ,british ,museum a copy of ,orationis ,dominicae ,explicatio1 per ,lambertum ,danaeum1 printed at ,geneva in #aehc1 which belonged to ,queen ,elizabeth4 ,it is bound in black velvet1 measures #f-c_/d by #d-a_/d inches1 and is ornamented most tastefully1 each side having an arabesque border in gold cord and silver guimp1 enclosing a panel with a design of white and red roses1 with stems and leaves worked in gold cord and silver guimp with a trifle of coloured silk on the red roses and on the small leaves showing between the petals4 ,on the front edge are the remains of red and gold ties4 ,the design of this charming little book is excellent1 and the colour of it when new must have been very effective4 ,the design is the same on both sides4 ,the back is in bad condition1 and is panelled with arabesques in gold and silver cord4 ,bible4 ,london1 #aehc4 ,the most decorative1 and in many ways the finest1 of all the remaining embroidered books of the time of ,elizabeth is now at the ,bodleian ,library at ,oxford4 ,it is one of the ',douce' ,bibles1 printed in ,london in #aehc1 and probably bound about the same time4 ,it was the property of the ,queen herself1 and is bound in crimson velvet1 measuring #ag by #ab inches4 ,the design is the same on both sides1 and consists of a very cleverly arranged scroll of six rose stems1 bearing flowers1 buds1 and leaves springing from a large central rose1 with four auxiliary scrolls crossing the corners and intertwining at their ends4 ,the large rose in the centre as well as those near the corners are ,tudor roses1 the red shown in red silk and the white in silver guimp1 both outlined with gold cord4 ,small green leaves are shown between each of the outer petals4 ,these flowers are heavily and solidly worked in high relief4 ,the smaller flowers are all of silver1 the buds1 some red1 some white4 ,the stems are of thick silver twist enclosed between finer gold cords1 and the leaves show a little green silk among the gold cord with which they are outlined and veined4 ,immediately above and below the centre rose are two little ,t's worked in small pearls4 ,illustration3 #be--;,bible4 ,london1 #aehc4 ,the narrow border round the edges is very pretty2 it is a wavy line of gold cord and green silk1 the hollows within the curves being filled with alternate ',pods' with pearls1 and green leaves4 ,the back is divided into four panels by wavy lines of gold cord and pearls1 and the upper and lower panels have small rose-plants with white roses1 buds1 and leaves2 the inner panels have each a large ,tudor rose of red and white1 with leaves and buds4 ,the drawing and designing of this splendid book are admirable1 and the workmanship is in every way excellent4 ,many of the pearls are gone1 and some of the higher portions of the large roses are abraded1 the back1 as usual1 being in a rather bad state2 but in spite of all this1 and the inevitable fading1 the work remains in a sufficiently preserved condition to show that at this period the art of book-embroidery reached its highest decorative point4 ,it is rather curious to note that ,henry ,,viii4 used the red ,lancastrian rose by preference1 but that on ,elizabeth's books the white rose always appears1 and ,i know of very few instances where the red rose appears on her books4 ,of course both sovereigns used the combined1 double1 or ,tudor rose as well4 ,illustration3 #bf--,the ,commonplaces of ,peter ,martyr4 ,london1 #aehc4 ,the ,commonplaces of ,peter ,martyr4 ,london1 #aehc4 ,an embroidered book designed in a manner which is characteristic of a gold tooled book is found but rarely4 ,an instance of this however is found on a copy of ,the ,commonplaces of ,peter ,martyr1 translated by ,anthonie ,marten1 and printed in ,london in #aehc4 ,it is covered in blue purple velvet measuring #ac-a_/b by #i inches1 and the design upon it is a broad outer border doubly outlined with a curious and effective braid1 apparently consisting of a close series of small silver rings1 but really being only a silver spiral flattened out4 ,this border is dotted at regular intervals with star-shaped clusters of small pieces of silver guimp symmetrically arranged4 ,the centre of the inner panel is a diamond-shaped ornament made with similar 'ring' braid and small pieces of silver guimp1 and the corner-pieces are quarter circles worked in the same way4 ,this design of centre-piece and corner-pieces is distinctly borrowed from leather work1 and ,i have never seen another example of the kind executed in needlework4 ,the colouring of this book is very good1 the purple and silver harmonising in a very pleasing manner4 ,illustration3 #bg--;,biblia4 ,antverpiae1 #aeij4 ,biblia4 ,antverpiae1 #aeij4 ,a beautiful binding of green velvet covers a ,bible printed at ,antwerp in #aeij1 measuring #g by #d inches4 ,the design is the same on both sides1 and the book was apparently bound for ',t4 ,g41' whose initials are worked into the design2 a conventional arrangement of curving stems and flower forms worked in gold cord1 guimp1 and small pearls thickly encrusted2 the same on both boards4 ,the centre is a large conventional flower1 in form resembling a carnation1 with serrated petals1 having a garnet below it1 and flanked by the letters ,t4 ,g41 all thickly worked with reed pearls4 ,in each corner is a smaller flower--conventionalised forms probably of honeysuckle and rose--joined together by curving stems of gold cord1 filled out with leaves and arabesques1 all together forming a very decorative panel4 ,the outer border is richly worked with leaves and arabesques in guimp and pearls1 the outer line of gold cord being ornamented with small triple points marked with pearls4 ,the back is divided into three spaces by curving lines of gold cord1 and in each of these spaces is worked one of the same conventionalised flower forms as occur on the boards1 i4e4 a honeysuckle1 cornflower1 and rose1 with leaves and smaller curves of gold cord4 ,illustration3 #bh--,udall1 ,sermons4 ,london1 #aeif4 7,from a drawing74 ,the ground of the entire work is freely ornamented with gilt spangles held down by small pieces of guimp1 and with single pearls2 the larger of these are enclosed within circles of guimp1 the smaller are simply sewn on one by one4 ,there are remains of gilt clasps on the front edges of each of the boards1 and the edges of the leaves are gilt and gauffred1 with a little pale colour4 ,udall1 ,sermons4 ,london1 #aeif4 ,a few specimens of embroidered books were exhibited at the ,burlington ,fine ,arts ,club in #ahia4 ,among them was a charming velvet binding that belonged to ,queen ,elizabeth1 lent by ,s4 ,sandars1 ,esq41 and now in the ,university ,library1 ,cambridge4 ,it is a copy of ,udall's ,sermons1 printed in ,london in #aeif1 and is covered in crimson velvet1 measuring about #f by #d inches4 ,the design is the same on each side1 the royal coat-of-arms applique1 with the initials ,e4 ,r41 and a double rose in each corner with stalks and leaves4 ,the coat-of-arms is made up with pieces of blue and red satin1 the bearings heavily worked with gold thread1 and the ground also thickly studded with small straight pieces of guimp1 doubtless put there to insure the greater flatness of the satin4 ,the crown with which the coat-of-arms is ensigned is all worked in guimp1 and is without the usual cap4 ,the ornaments on the rim are only trefoils1 and there are five arches4 ,the initials flanking the coat are worked in guimp1 as are the corner roses and leaves4 ,the guimp used is apparently silver1 and the cord used for the outlines and stems is gold4 ,the back has a gold line down the middle and along the joints1 with a wavy line of gold cord each side of it4 ,illustration3 #bi--;,collection of ,sixteenth-,century ,tracts4 ,collection of ,sixteenth-,century ,tracts4 ,bound about #afaj4 ,to ,henry1 ,prince of ,wales1 we owe a great debt of gratitude1 as he was the first person of much consequence in our royal family to take any real interest in the ,old ,royal ,library4 ,indeed it may be considered that the existence to-day of the splendid ',old ,royal' ,library of the kings of ,england1 which was presented to the nation in #agei by ,george ,,ii41 is largely due to the attention drawn to its interest and value by ,prince ,henry1 who moreover added considerably to it himself4 ,this ,prince used as his favourite and personal badge the beautiful design of three white ostrich feathers within a golden coronet1 and with the motto ',,ich ,,dien' on a blue ribbon4 ,with regard to the origin of this badge there is unfortunately a good deal of obscurity4 ,the usual explanation is that it was the helmet-crest of the blind king of ,bohemia1 who was killed at ,crecy in #acdf1 and that in remembrance of this it was adopted by the ,black ,prince as his badge4 ,but1 as a matter of fact1 the ostrich feather was used as a family badge by all the sons of ,edward ,,iii4 and their descendants4 ,it appears to have been the cognisance of the province of ,ostrevant1 a district lying between ,artois and ,hainault1 and the appanage of the eldest sons of the house of ,hainault4 ,in this way it may have been adopted by the family of ,edward ,,iii4 by right of his wife1 ,philippa of ,hainault4 ,an early notice of the ostrich feather as a royal badge occurs in a note in one of the ,harleian ,,mss4 to the effect that ',henrye1 son to the erle of ,derby1 fyrst duke of ,lancaster1 gave the red rose crowned1 whose ancestors gave the fox tayle in his proper cooler1 and the ostrych fether1 the pen ermine1' the ,henry here mentioned being the father of ,blanche1 wife of ,john of ,gaunt4 ,on the tomb of ,prince ,arthur1 son of ,henry ,,vii41 at ,worcester1 the feather is shown both singly and in plume1 and it occurs in the triple plume form within a coronet and a scroll with the words ',,ich ,,dien' upon it1 on bindings made by ,thomas ,berthelet for ,prince ,edward1 son of ,henry ,,viii41 who never was ,prince of ,wales4 ,it really seems as if the first ',prince of ,wales' actually to use the ostrich feather plumes as a personal badge of that dignity was ,prince ,henry1 and it occurs largely on such books belonging to his library as he had rebound1 and also on books that were specially bound for presentation to him4 ,this is the case in one of the most decorative bindings he possessed1 enclosing a collection of tracts originally the property of ,henry ,,viii41 but which somehow or other became the property of ,magdalen ,college1 ,cambridge1 the governing body of which had it bound in embroidered velvet and presented to ,prince ,henry4 ,illustration3 #cj--;,bacon1 ,opera4 ,londini1 #afbc4 ,the cover is of crimson velvet1 the edges of which extend freely beyond the edges of the book1 bound all round with a fringe of gold cord4 ,it measures about #h by #f inches4 ,the design is the same on each side4 ,in the centre is a large triple plume of ostrich feathers1 thickly and beautifully worked in small pearls1 within a golden coronet1 and having below them the motto ',,ich ,,dien' in gold upon a blue silk ribbon4 ,the badge is enclosed in a rectangular panel of gold cords1 in each corner of which is an ornamental spray of gold cords1 guimp1 and a flower in pearls4 ,a broad border with a richly designed arabesque of gold guimp or cord1 with pearl flowers1 encloses the central panel4 ,the design is filled in freely with small pearls enclosed in guimp circles and small pearls alone4 ,the back has an ornamental design in gold cord and guimp4 ,this cover is a beautiful specimen of later decorative work on velvet1 and the general effect is extremely rich1 the design and workmanship being equally well chosen as regards the materials to which they are applied1 and with which they are worked4 ,bacon1 ,opera4 ,londini1 #afbc4 ,a copy of the works of ,francis ,bacon1 ,viscount ,st4 ,albans1 printed in ,london in #afbc1 is bound in rich purple velvet1 and measures #ac-a_/d by #h-c_/d inches4 ,the design is a central panel with arabesque centre and corners1 surrounded by a deep border of close curves and arabesques1 all worked in gold cord and guimp4 ,there are several gold spangles used1 kept down by a small piece of gold guimp4 ,the front edges of each board have only the marks left where two ties originally were1 and the edges of the book are simply gilt4 ,illustration3 #ca--;,bacon1 ,essays4 #afbe4 ,bacon1 ,essays4 #afbe4 ,a copy of another work by the same author1 the ,essays printed in #afbe1 was given by him to the ,duke of ,buckingham1 and is now at the ,bodleian ,library at ,oxford4 ,it is bound in dark green velvet1 measuring about #g by #e inches1 the same design being embroidered on each side4 ,in the centre is a small panel portrait of the ,duke of ,buckingham1 with short beard1 and wearing the ribbon of the ,garter4 ,the portrait is mostly worked with straight perpendicular stitches1 except the hair and collar1 in which the stitches are differently arranged4 ,the background merges from nearly white just round the head to pink at the outer edge2 the coat is brownish4 ,the framework of the portrait is solidly worked in gold braids and silver guimp in relief1 the design being of an architectural character4 ,two columns1 with floral capitals and pediments1 spring from a scroll-work base and support what may perhaps be intended for a gothic arch with crockets4 ,immediately above the crown of the arch is a ducal coronet1 and a handsome border of elaborate arabesques reaching far inwards is worked all round the edges4 ,the outlines of these arabesques1 the stalks and curves1 are all worked in gold cords1 the petals and leaves in silver guimp in relief4 ,the back is divided into eight panels by gold and silver cords1 and in each of these panels is a four-petalled flower with small circles4 ,there are several gilt spangles kept down by a small piece of guimp4 ,illustration3 #cb--;,common ,prayer4 ,london1 #afch4 ,common ,prayer4 ,london1 #afch4 ,among the few older royal books in the library at ,windsor ,castle is an embroidered one that belonged to ,prince ,charles1 afterwards ,charles ,,ii4 ,it is a copy of the ,book of ,common ,prayer1 printed in ,london in #afch1 and is bound in blue velvet with embroidered work in gold cord and silver guimp1 similar in character to that on the copy of ,bacon's ,essays just described4 ,it measures #h by #f inches4 ,the design is heraldic4 ,in the centre is the triple plume of the ,prince of ,wales1 with coronet and label1 no motto being apparent on the latter4 ,the plume is encircled by the ,garter applique1 on pale blue silk1 the motto1 worked in silver cord1 being nearly worn off4 ,resting on the top of the ,garter is a large princely coronet1 flanking which are the letters ',c4 ,p4' ,in the lower corners are a thistle and a rose4 ,a broad border with arabesques encloses the central panel4 ,this book was exhibited by ,her ,majesty at the ,burlington ,fine ,arts ,club in #ahia4 ,it is in very bad condition1 which is curious1 as it is not so very old1 and as it is still among the royal possessions it might well have been imagined that it would have been better preserved than other and older books of a like kind which we know have been considerably moved about4 ,the colour is however very charming still1 and books have rarely been bound in blue velvet1 black1 green1 or crimson being most usual4 ,after #afdi1 or thereabouts1 there was a full stop for a time to any art production in the matter of bookbinding4 ,indeed1 for the embroidered books as a class that is the end1 but nevertheless a few examples are found at a later date1 but no regular production and no original designs4 ,illustration3 #cc--;,bible4 ,cambridge1 #afgd4 ,bible4 ,cambridge1 #afgd4 ,a large ,bible printed at ,cambridge in #afgd1 in two volumes1 was bound in crimson velvet for ,james ,,ii41 presumably about #afhe4 ,the work upon it1 each volume being the same1 is of a showy character1 good and strong1 but utterly wanting in any of the artistic qualities either of design or execution which characterised so many of the earlier examples4 ,in the centre are the initials ',j4 ,r4' surmounted by a royal crown1 heavily worked in gold braid1 guimp1 and some coloured silks4 ,enclosing the initials and crown are scrolls in thick gold twist2 these again are surrounded by a curving ribbon of gold1 intertwined with roses and leafy sprays4 ,in each corner is a silver-faced cherub with beads for eyes and gold wings1 and at the top a small blue cloud with sun rays1 tears dropping from it4 ,there are two broad silk ties to the front of each board1 heavily fringed with gold4 ,the back is divided into nine panels1 each containing an arabesque ornament worked in gold cord and thread1 the first and last panels being larger than the others and containing a more elaborate design4 ,the edges of the leaves are simply gilt1 and the boards measure #ah by #ab inches each1 the largest size of any embroidered book known to me4 ,,chapter ,,iv ,,books ,,bound ,,in ,,satin ,collection of ,sixteenth-,century ,tracts4 ,bound probably about #aecf4 ,illustration3 #cd--;,collection of ,sixteenth-,century ,tracts4 ,perhaps the earliest existing ,english book bound in satin is a collection of sixteenth-century tracts that belonged to ,henry ,,viii41 and is now part of the ,old ,royal ,library in the ,british ,museum4 ,it is covered in red satin1 measures #ab by #h inches1 and is embroidered in an arabesque design1 outlined with gold cord4 ,on the edges the words ',rex in aeternum vive ,neez' are written in gold4 ,the word ',neez' or ',nez1' as it is sometimes spelt1 may mean ,nebuchadnezzar1 as the other words were addressed to him4 ,on books bound in leather by ,thomas ,berthelet1 royal binder to ,henry ,,viii4 and his immediate successors1 the motto often occurs1 and as he is known to have bound books in 'crymosyn satin1' this is most likely his work4 ,the pattern is worked irregularly all round the boards1 and a sort of arabesque bridge crosses the centres4 ,the back is new1 and of leather1 but the boards themselves are the original ones1 and the embroidery is in a very fair condition4 ,illustration3 #ce--,new ,testament in ,greek4 ,leyden1 #aegj4 ,new ,testament in ,greek4 ,leyden1 #aegf4 ,if early bindings in satin are rare1 still rarer is the use of silk4 ,one example worked on white ribbed silk still remains that belonged to ,queen ,elizabeth4 ,it measures #d-c_/d by #b-c_/d inches1 and in its time was no doubt a very decorative and interesting piece of work1 but it is now in a very dilapidated state1 largely due to improper repairing4 ,the book has actually been rebound in leather1 and the old embroidered sides stuck on4 ,so it must be remembered that my illustration of it is considerably restored4 ,the design1 alike on both sides1 is all outlined with gold cords and twists of different kinds and thicknesses1 and the colour is added in water-colours on the silk4 ,in the centre is the royal coat-of-arms within an oval garter ensigned with a royal crown1 in the adornment of which a few seed pearls are used1 as they are also on the ends of the garter4 ,enclosing the coat-of-arms is an ornamental border of straight lines and curves1 worked with a thick gold twist1 intertwined with graceful sprays of double and single roses1 outlined in gold and coloured red1 with buds and leaves4 ,a few symmetrical arabesques1 similarly outlined and coloured1 fill in some of the remaining spaces4 ,the work on this book1 a ,new ,testament in ,greek1 printed at ,leyden in #aegf1 is like no other2 but the general idea of the design1 rose-sprays cleverly intertwined1 is one that may be considered characteristic of the ,elizabethan embroidered books1 as it frequently occurs on them4 ,the use of water-colour with embroidery is very rare1 and it is never found on any but silk or satin bindings1 generally as an adjunct in support of coloured-silk work over it1 but in this single instance it is used alone4 ,seventeenth-,century ,embroidered ,books4 ,the books described hitherto have been specimens of rare early instances1 but in the seventeenth century there is a very large field to choose from4 ,small books1 mostly religious works1 were bound in satin from the beginning of the century until the time of the ,commonwealth in considerable numbers2 so much so1 in fact1 that their value depends not so much upon their designs or workmanship as upon their condition4 ,it is generally considered that embroidered books are extremely delicate1 but this is not so2 they will stand far more wear than would be imagined from their frail appearance4 ,the embroidered work actually protects the satin1 and such signs of wear as are visible are often found rather in the satin itself1 where unprotected1 than in the work upon it4 ,in many cases a peculiar appearance1 which is often mistaken for wear1 is seen in the case of representations of insects1 caterpillars1 or butterflies particularly4 ,these creatures1 or parts of them1 appear to consist only of slight stitches of plain thread1 suggesting either that the work has never been finished1 or else that the finished portions have worn away4 ,the real fact is1 however1 that these places have been originally worked with small bright pieces of peacock's feather1 which have either tumbled out or been eaten away by minute insects1 a fate to which it is well known peacocks' feathers are particularly liable4 ,the late ,lady ,charlotte ,schreiber1 who was a great collector of pieces of old embroidery1 among a host of other curious things possessed the only perfect instance of work of this kind of the seventeenth century ,i have ever been fortunate enough to find4 ,it was a very realistic caterpillar1 closely and completely worked with very small pieces of peacocks' feathers1 sewn on with small stitches1 quite confirming the opinion ,i had already formed as to the original filling in of the usual 'bald' spaces representing such objects4 ,bible4 ,london1 #afai4 ,a copy of a ,bible1 printed in ,london in #afai1 is bound in white satin1 and measures #f by #c-a_/b inches4 ,on each side is an emblematic figure enclosed in an oval2 the figures are different1 but their surroundings are alike4 ,on the upper side a lady holding a palm branch in her right hand is worked in shading-stitch4 ,she is full length1 and wears an orange skirt with purple robe over it confined by a blue belt1 and over her shoulders a pink jacket--all these garments are outlined by a gold cord4 ,her fair hair is covered by an ornamental cap of red and gold1 and her feet are bare4 ,the ground is worked with coloured silks and threads of fine wire closely twisted round with coloured silks1 and the sky1 painted in gradations of pink in water-colours1 is worked sparsely with long stitches of blue silk4 ,illustration3 #cf--;,bible4 ,london1 #afai4 ,the lower side shows a female figure worked in a similar way2 in this case she bears in her right hand some kind of wand or spray1 which has nearly worn off1 and in her left a bunch of corn or grapes1 or something of that kind which has also badly worn away4 ,if the first figure may be considered to represent ,peace1 this one may perhaps be ,plenty4 ,she wears a deep purplish skirt1 with full over-garment and body of the same colour1 with an under-jacket of white and gold4 ,on her dark hair she has a blue flower with red leaves4 ,her feet are bare4 ,the ground and sky are both worked in the same way as the other side4 ,both figures are enclosed in a flat oval border of gold thread1 broad at the top and narrowing towards the foot4 ,in the corners are symmetrical arabesques thickly worked in gold1 and within the larger spaces in each corner-piece are the 'remains' of feathered caterpillars1 now skeleton forms of threads only4 ,the back of the book is particularly good1 and most beautifully worked4 ,it is divided into five panels1 within each of which is a conventional flower1 a cornflower alternating with a carnation1 and the colours of all of these are marvellously fresh and effective4 ,among embroidered panelled backs it is probably the finest specimen existing4 ,illustration3 #cg--;,emblemes ,chrestiens4 ,,ms #afbd4 ,emblemes ,chrestiens1 par ,georgette de ,montenay4 ,,ms4 a ,lislebourg4 ,edinburgh #afbd4 ,charles ,i41 when he was ,prince of ,wales1 often used the book-stamps that had been cut for his brother ,henry1 and he also particularly liked the triple plume of ostrich feathers4 ,it occurs1 as has been shown1 on one of ,prince ,henry's velvet-bound books1 and it forms the central design on the satin binding of an exquisite manuscript written by ,esther ,inglis1 a celebrated calligraphist1 who lived in the seventeenth century4 ,it is a copy of the ,emblemes ,chrestiens1 by ,georgette de ,montenay1 dedicated to ,prince ,charles1 covered in red satin embroidered with gold and silver threads1 cords1 and guimp1 with a few pearls1 measuring #aa-a_/d by #g-c_/d inches4 ,in the centre is the triple ostrich plume within a coronet1 enclosed in an oval wreath of laurel tied with a tasselled knot4 ,a rectangular border closely filled with arabesques runs parallel to the edges of the boards1 and there is a fleuron at each of the inner corners4 ,in all cases the design is outlined in gold cord1 and the thick parts of the design are worked in silver guimp4 ,there are several spangles1 and on the rim of the coronet are three pearls4 ,new ,testament4 ,london1 #afbe4 ,one of the most curious embroidered satin bindings still left is now in the ,bodleian ,library1 and a slightly absurd tradition about it says that the figure of ,david1 which certainly is something like ,charles ,i41 is clothed in a piece of a waistcoat that belonged to that king4 ,illustration3 #ch--,new ,testament4 ,london1 #afbe4 ,it is a ,new ,testament1 printed in ,london in #afbe1 and covered in white satin1 with a different design embroidered on each side4 ,it measures #d-a_/b by #c-a_/b inches4 ,on the upper board is ,david with a harp4 ,he wears a long red cloak lined with ermine1 with a white collar1 an under-garment of pale brown1 and high boots with spur-straps and red tops4 ,on his head is a royal crown of gold with red cap1 and he is playing upon a golden harp4 ,the face of this figure resembles that of ,charles ,i4 ,the red cloak is worked in needlepoint lace1 and is in deep folds in high relief4 ,these folds are actually modelled in waxed paper1 the needlework being stretched over them1 and probably fixed on by a gentle heat4 ,the other parts of the dress are worked in the same way1 but without the waxed paper1 and the edges of the garments are in some places marked with what might be called a metal fringe1 made in a small recurring pattern4 ,david is standing upon a grass plot1 represented by small arches of green purl1 and before him is sitting a small dog with a blue collar4 ,above the dog is a small yellow and black pansy1 then a large blue 'lace' butterfly1 on a chenille patch1 and a brown flying bird4 ,behind ,david there is a tall conventional lily and a flying bird4 ,the sky is overcast with heavy clouds of red and blue1 but a golden sun with tinsel rays is showing under the larger of them4 ,on the lower board is a representation of ,abraham about to sacrifice ,isaac4 ,abraham is dressed in a red under-garment on waxed paper1 in heavy folds with a belt and edge of stamped-out metal1 a blue flowing cape and high boots1 all worked in needlepoint lace in coloured silks4 ,in his right hand he holds a sword1 and his tall black hat is on the ground beside him4 ,on the ground towards the left is ,isaac in an attitude of prayer1 his hands crossed1 with two sheaves of firewood4 ,he wears a red coat with a small blue cape4 ,the ground is green and brown chenille4 ,above ,isaac is a gourd1 and above this a silver ram caught in a bush1 on a patch of grass indicated by green purl4 ,the sky is occupied by a large cloud1 out of which leans an angel with wings1 the hands outstretched and restraining ,abraham's sword4 ,on the back are four panels1 containing respectively from the top a butterfly1 a rose1 a bird1 and a yellow tulip1 all worked in needlepoint and applique4 ,the pieces that are in high relief all over the book are edged with gold twist1 and have moreover their counterparts under them closely fastened down to the satin4 ,there are several gold spangles in the various spaces between the designs2 the whole is edged with a strong silver braid1 and there are two clasps with silver attachments4 ,considering the high relief in which much of this work is done1 the binding is in wonderful preservation1 but many of the colours are badly faded1 as it has been exposed to the action of light in one of the show-cases for many years4 ,although no doubt it is advisable to expose many treasures in this way1 it must be admitted that in the case of embroidered books it is frequently1 if not always1 a cause of rapid deterioration1 so much so that ,i should almost think in these days of good chromo-printing it would be worth the while of the ruling powers of our great museums to consider whether it would not be wiser to exhibit good colour prints to the light and keep the precious originals in safe obscurity1 to be brought out1 of course1 if required by students4 ,illustration3 #ci--,new ,testament and ,psalms4 ,london1 #afcj4 ,new ,testament and ,psalms4 ,london1 #afcj4 ,several small ,english books of the seventeenth century were bound 'double1' i4e4 two volumes side by side1 so as to open different ways 7compare p4 #ch74 ,each of the books1 which are always of the same size1 has a back and one board to itself1 the other board1 between them1 being common to both4 ,as already stated1 this form of book occurs rarely in canvas bindings1 and it is of commoner occurrence in satin4 ,a design which is frequently met with is well shown in the case of a double specimen containing the ,new ,testament and the ,psalms1 printed in ,london in #afcj1 and covered in white satin1 measuring #d-a_/d by #b inches1 the ornamentation being the same on both sides4 ,in the centre1 in an oval1 is a delicately worked iris of many colours in feather-stitch1 the petals edged with fine silver cord4 ,the oval is marked by a silver cord1 beyond which are ornamental arabesques outlined in cord and filled in solidly1 in high relief1 with silver thread4 ,the backs are divided into five panels1 containing alternately flowers in red1 blue1 and green silks1 and star shapes in silver thread in high relief4 ,silver spangles have been freely used1 but most of them have now gone2 the edges of the leaves are gilt and gauffred in a simple dotted pattern4 ,to the middle of the front edge of one of the boards is attached a long green ribbon of silk which wraps round both volumes4 ,henshaw1 ,horae ,successivae4 ,london1 #afcb4 ,illustration3 #dj--;,henshaw1 ,horae ,successivae4 ,london1 #afcb4 ,henshaw's ,horae ,successivae1 printed in ,london in #afcb1 is bound in white satin1 and measures #d-a_/b by #b inches4 ,it is very delicately and prettily worked in a floral design1 the same on both sides1 and is remarkable for its simplicity--a flower with stalk and leaves in the centre1 one in each corner1 and an insect in the spaces between them4 ,the centre flower is a carnation1 round it are pansy1 rose1 cornflower1 and strawberry1 while between them are a caterpillar1 snail1 butterfly1 and moth4 ,all of these are delicately worked in feather-stitch in the proper colours1 and edged all round with fine gold cord2 the stalks are of the same cord used double4 ,on the strawberries there is some fine knotted work4 ,the back is divided into four panels1 containing a cornflower1 rose1 pansy1 and strawberry1 worked exactly in the same way as their prototypes on the sides4 ,there were several gold spangles on sides and back1 but many of them have been broken off1 and on the front edges of each board are the remains of pale green ties of silk4 ,illustration3 #da--,psalms4 ,london1 #afcc4 ,psalms4 ,london1 #afcc4 ,a copy of the ,psalms1 printed in ,london in #afcc1 is bound in white satin1 embroidered in coloured silks worked in satin-stitch1 and measures #c by #b inches4 ,on the upper board is a gentleman dressed in the style of the period1 with trunk hose of red and yellow1 a short jacket of the same colouring1 and a long1 reddish cape4 ,he has a broad-brimmed hat with coloured feathers1 a large white collar1 and a sword in his right hand4 ,near him is a beetle1 and in the sky a blue cloud1 and he is standing upon a grass mound4 ,on the lower board is the figure of a lady in a deep pink dress1 with white collar and cap4 ,she holds a tall red lily in her right hand1 and in the upper left-hand corner is a small cloud under which the sun is just appearing1 and in the lower corner is a small flower4 ,the lady is standing upon a small green mound4 ,the outlines of both figures1 as well as the inner divisions between the various garments1 are marked with a gold or silver thread4 ,the back is divided into four panels1 in which are a fly1 a rose1 a larger fly1 and a blue flower4 ,the outlines and legs of both the insects were marked originally with small pieces of peacocks' feathers1 but the upper fly has lost most of these2 the lower one1 however1 more ornamental1 shows them clearly1 and has the thorax still in excellent preservation1 glittering with little points of green and gold4 ,there is one broad ribbon of striped silk attached to the lower board4 ,this little book1 which is in a wonderful state of preservation1 has been always kept in the beautiful embroidered bag which ,i have described already on p4 #af4 ,psalms4 ,london1 #afce4 ,one of the most finely embroidered bindings existing on satin occurs on a small copy of the ,psalms1 printed in ,london in #afce1 and measuring #c-a_/b by #c inches4 ,the design is one which has been repeated in other sizes with small differences4 ,there is a larger specimen at the ,bodleian1 but the ,british ,museum example is the finer altogether4 ,illustration3 #db--,psalms4 ,london1 #afce4 ,on each side there is an oval containing an elaborate design most delicately worked in feather-stitch1 the edges and outlines marked with very fine gold twist4 ,on the upper board there is a seated allegorical figure with cornucopia1 probably representing ,plenty4 ,behind her is an ornamental landscape with a piece of water1 the bright lines of which are feelingly rendered with small stitches of silver thread1 hills with trees1 and a castle in the distance4 ,the other side has a similarly worked figure of ,peace1 a seated figure holding a palm branch2 the landscape is of a similar character to that on the upper board1 but the river or lake has a bridge over it4 ,the work itself is of the same very delicate kind1 the edges and folds of the dress being marked with fine gold twist4 ,each of these ovals is marked by a solid framework with scrolls1 strongly made with silver threads1 and in high relief2 in each corner is a very finely worked flower or fruit1 pansy1 strawberry1 tulip1 and lily4 ,the back is divided into four panels1 a very decorative conventional flower being worked in each1 representing probably a red lily1 a tulip1 a blue and yellow iris1 and a daffodil4 ,the edges of the boards are bound with a broad silver braid1 the edges of the leaves are gilded and prettily gauffred1 and there are remains of four silver ties4 ,psalms4 ,london1 #afcc4 ,there is often much speculation as to who can have worked the ,english embroidered books1 and it is very rarely that any reliable information on this interesting point is available4 ,there is1 however1 a manuscript note in a copy of the ,psalms1 printed in #afcc and bound in embroidered white satin1 that the work upon it was done by ',elizabeth1 wife of ,matthew ,wren1 ,bishop of ,ely1' who was an uncle of the architect4 ,the volume still belongs to a member of the family1 ,dr4 ,w4 ,t4 ,law of ,portland ,place1 who has most kindly allowed me to give an illustration of this beautiful book4 ,it measures #d by #c inches4 ,the design is different in details on each board1 the central design1 however1 being in each case contained within a strongly worked gold border in high relief1 widening out at each extremity into a crownlike form1 and richly augmented at intervals with clusters of seed pearls4 ,on the upper board within the oval is a double rose with curving stem1 leaves1 and a bud2 the petals are worked in needlepoint1 with fine gold twist at the edges1 and a cluster of pearls in the centre4 ,in the upper corners are a butterfly1 with needlepoint wings1 and a bird1 with needlepoint wing and tail4 ,in the lower corners are a unicorn and an antlered stag1 both recumbent1 and in high relief4 ,illustration3 #dc--,psalms4 ,london1 #afcc4 ,on the lower board within the oval is a vine1 with curving stem and two large grape clusters1 tendrils1 and leaves1 growing from a small green mound4 ,the edges of the petals are bound with a fine gold twist1 as are also the edges and outlines of the leaves1 and most of these parts are worked in coloured silks1 mixed with fine metal threads1 in needlepoint lace-stitch4 ,a few hazel-nuts are scattered about outside the gold oval1 and in each corner is a further ornamentation3 a reddish butterfly with wings of needlepoint lace in relief and edged with a gold cord1 a green parrot with red wings and tail1 are in the two top corners1 and in the two lower are a rabbit and a dog1 each on a small green ground4 ,innumerable gold spangles are all over the sides and back1 each kept in place by a small pearl stitched through4 ,the back is divided into five panels1 by rows of pearls1 and a conventional flower is in each1 except the centre one which has an insect4 ,these are all worked in needlepoint and edged with gold twist1 the stems of some of them strongly made by a kind of braid of gold cords4 ,this little book is certainly one of the most ornamental specimens of any of the smaller satin-bound books of the seventeenth century1 and although here and there some of the pearls are gone1 altogether it is in very good condition1 and it is rarely that such a fine example can now be met with in private hands4 ,bible4 ,london1 #afch4 ,illustration3 #dd--;,bible4 ,london1 #afch4 ,several of the embroidered books on satin are worked chiefly in metal threads1 and the designs on such books are not as a rule good4 ,whether the knowledge that the work was to be executed in strong threads has hampered the designer or not cannot be said1 but certainly there is often a tinselly effect about these bindings that is not altogether pleasing4 ,in the case of a ,bible printed in ,london in #afch1 bound in white satin1 and measuring #f by #c inches1 one of the chief ornaments is a cherub's head1 the face in silver and the hair and wings in gold4 ,the working of this head and wings seems to me wrong4 ,the face is1 possibly enough1 as well done as the material would allow1 but the hair is made in small curls of gold thread1 and the feathers of the wings are rendered in a naturalistic way with pieces of flat gold braid4 ,this kind of realism is out of place in embroidery1 and it is unfortunately characteristic of the ,english embroidered work of about this period1 occurring generally on boxes1 mirror frames1 or the like1 but only rarely on book-covers4 ,the design is the same on both sides2 a narrow arch of thick gold cord reaches about three-quarters up the side1 and interwoven with it is a kind of cusped oval1 with leaves1 reaching up to the top of the book4 ,the lower half of the arch is enclosed in a rectangular band of silver threads1 broad and kept in place by transverse bars at regular intervals1 and beyond it another row1 made of patches of red and blue silk alternately4 ,in the lower part of the oval is a ground of green silk1 on which grow two double roses made of red purl4 ,in the space enclosed between the top of the arch and the lower point of the oval is a bird worked in high relief in gold with a touch of red silk on his wings4 ,over the bird is a blue cloud1 heavily worked in blue silk1 and beneath is a small grass plot4 ,the cherub's head already described is in the space between the top of the arch and the upper extremity of the oval2 it is flanked by two small red purl roses4 ,the two upper corners have undulating clouds in blue silk1 and a red and yellow purl rose between them4 ,there are several gold spangles all about1 and innumerable small pieces of coloured purl4 ,the back is divided into four panels1 in which are1 alternately1 a rose-tree on which are two red roses with yellow centres and green leaves1 growing from a grass plot1 and a blue rose with yellow centre and green leaves under a red cloud with silver rays4 ,there are several spangles and some small pieces of coloured purl scattered about in the spaces4 ,the book is in excellent condition1 owing1 no doubt1 to the fact that most of it is in metal1 but it is representative of the lowest level to which the art of the embroidered book in ,england has ever fallen4 ,psalms4 ,london1 #afci4 ,a charming little piece of delicate workmanship occurs in a copy of the ,psalms1 printed in ,london in #afci1 and bound in white satin4 ,it measures #c by #b inches4 ,the design on each side is the same1 but the work is slightly different4 ,a tall rose-tree1 with gold stem1 grows from a small chenille base1 the rose petals beautifully worked in the finest of stitches1 as well as the leaves1 all of which are outlined with fine gold thread4 ,from the lower branches of the rose-tree hang on one side a violet1 and on the other a pansy1 each worked in the same way as the rose1 and edged with fine gold thread4 ,the back is divided into four panels1 containing respectively a cornflower1 a pomegranate1 a fruit1 perhaps meant for an apple1 and a honeysuckle1 all conventionally treated and very delicately worked4 ,the edge is bound all round with a strong braid1 and there is one tie of broad1 cherry-silk ribbon4 ,with this book is its canvas bag1 embroidered in silver ground with coloured-silk flowers and tassels of silver1 the general design and workmanship of which nearly resembles that of the finer bag already described at page #af4 ,the silver has turned nearly black1 as is usually the case with these bags4 ,illustration3 #de--,psalms4 ,london1 #afci4 ,illustration3 #df--,the ,way to ,true ,happiness4 ,london1 #afci4 ,the ,way to ,true ,happiness4 ,london1 #afci4 ,a copy of ,the ,way to ,true ,happiness4 printed in ,london in #afci1 is bound in white satin1 and embroidered with figures of ,david and a ,queen4 ,it is a little larger than the majority of the satin-embroidered books1 measuring #g by #d-a_/b inches1 and is1 for its time1 a very fine specimen4 ,both figures stand under an archway with columns1 all worked heavily in silver cord1 guimp1 and thread4 ,the columns have ornamental capitals and a spiral running round their shafts1 and the upper edge of the arch is ornamented with crockets of a peculiar shape4 ,within this archway1 on the upper cover1 is a full-length figure of a ,queen1 finely worked in split-stitch with coloured silks4 ,she wears a red dress with long1 falling sleeves1 a purple body and gold collar4 ,on her head is a golden crown1 with six points4 ,she carries1 in her left hand1 a golden sceptre1 and has also a golden belt4 ,the outlines are everywhere marked either with a gold or silver twist4 ,on the ground1 which is in small hillocks1 grow a strawberry and two other small plants2 a snail is also shown4 ,scattered about the field are a 'skeleton' caterpillar--at one time probably filled in with peacocks' feathers1--a conventional lily1 a butterfly1 and the sun1 with rays1 just appearing from under a cloud4 ,in the two upper corners are flowers1 a pansy and another1 and smaller ones down each side4 ,on the lower board1 within the arch1 is a figure of ,david4 ,he wears a short tunic of orange and silver1 with vandyked edge1 and a short skirt of blue and silver1 with a long cloak of cream1 pink1 and silver1 clasped with a silver brooch2 on his head he wears a silver crown1 with a red cap and green and red feathers2 on his feet are brown1 high boots4 ,in his left hand is a silver harp of ornamental pattern1 and in his right a silver sceptre with a little gold about it4 ,the ground1 in hillocks1 has a few small flowers growing upon it1 and a large tulip is just in front of the ,king2 on the field are also a moth and a snail4 ,at the top is a blue cloud4 ,the upper corners have a red and yellow tulip and a pansy with bud in them1 and smaller flowers are worked down each side4 ,the back is very tastefully ornamented with an undulating scroll of gold cord1 widening out here and there into conventional leaves of gold guimp in relief4 ,on this scroll are sitting three birds1 and there are also a bunch of grapes1 a tulip1 daffodil1 and other flowers with leaves1 conventionally treated1 all worked in coloured silks4 ,there are the remains of two red and yellow silk ties on the front edges of each board1 and the edges of the leaves are gilded and gauffred4 ,with this book is a canvas bag1 simply ornamented with a design worked in red silk4 ,illustration3 #dg--,new ,testament4 ,london1 #afdj4 ,new ,testament4 ,london1 #afdj4 ,the curious little ,new ,testament of #afbe1 now at ,oxford1 which ,i have already described1 is perhaps the earliest example left on which needlepoint lace in coloured silks is much employed4 ,it occurs again largely on another small ,new ,testament1 printed in #afdj1 bound in white satin1 measuring #d-a_/b by #b-a_/d inches2 now in the ,british ,museum4 ,in this case the artist has not attempted the difficult task of producing a satisfactory figure in needlework1 but has very properly limited her skill to the reproduction of flower and animal forms4 ,on the upper cover is a spray of columbine1 the petals of which1 pink and blue1 are each worked separately in needlepoint lace stitch1 and afterwards tacked on to a central rib4 ,the stalks and leaves of this spray are also worked in needlepoint1 and on the top sits a bullfinch1 worked in many colours in the same way1 but fastened down close to the satin all round4 ,in the corners are a beetle1 a nondescript flower1 a bud1 and a butterfly with coloured wings in needlepoint1 with replicas of them closely appliques just underneath1 on the satin4 ,on the lower board is a spray of a five-petalled blue flower1 the petals of which were originally worked in needlepoint and fastened on a central rib1 but they have now all gone except two1 leaving the rib of thick pink braid4 ,the supporting replicas underneath are1 however1 perfect1 showing what the original upper petals were like4 ,this spray has two leaves1 exquisitely worked in needlepoint1 and fastened by a stitch at one end1 with the usual flat replicas underneath them1 and there is also a bud4 ,the stem is a piece of green braid4 ,above the spray is a parrot in needlepoint1 most of him fastened down round the edges1 but his wings and tail left free4 ,in the upper corner are two strawberries1 and in the lower a butterfly1 with coloured wings1 left free in needlepoint4 ,there are also two caterpillars on this side4 ,on the back are three large flowers heavily worked in silk and metal threads1 in needlepoint1 and appliques--a pansy1 lily1 and rose1 with stalks of green braid4 ,the boards are edged all round with a gold braid1 and there are two green silk ties on each for the front edges4 ,there are several gold spangles all about1 but many more have gone4 ,the work on both boards is very delicate1 but that on the back is curiously coarse4 ,such imitative work as the needlepoint1 which is perhaps seen at its best in the columbine1 and the leaves on this book1 is at all times a dangerous thing to use1 except when it is only used as applique1 as in the beautiful cover belonging to this book1 which ,i have described on page #ah1 and the work on which is very likely by the same skilled hand as that on the book4 ,i believe this use of the needlepoint1 or button-hole stitch1 is only found in ,english work2 it is exactly the same as is used on the old ,venetian and other so-called 'point' laces1 but executed in fine-coloured silk instead of linen thread1 and without open spaces4 ,illustration3 #dh--,psalms4 ,london1 #afda4 ,psalms4 ,london1 #afda4 ,nicholas ,ferrar's establishment at ,little ,gidding in ,huntingdonshire is often credited with having produced embroidered books1 but there is really no authority for the belief4 ,all the authentic bindings which came from ,little ,gidding have technical shortcomings from a bookbinding point of view1 none of which are found on any embroidered books4 ,in the ,history of the ,worthies of ,england1 by ,thomas ,fuller1 there is a short note about ,little ,gidding1 and he says about the ladies there that 'their own needles were emploied in learned and pious work to binde ,bibles4' ,this note and the mention of needles may have perhaps given the start to the belief that embroidered work was intended1 but in all probability it only refers to the sewing of the leaves of the books upon the bands of the back1 which is done with needle and thread4 ,moreover1 the ladies of ,little ,gidding did actually sew the backs of their books in a needlessly elaborate way1 putting in ten or twelve bands where three or four would have been ample4 ,i also think that if embroidery had been intended by the sentence above quoted1 it would have been more clearly mentioned4 ,to 'emploie needles to bind ,bibles' is hardly the description one would expect if the meaning was that when bound the ,bibles were covered in embroidered work2 but it may be safely interpreted as it is written1 the sewing being a most important part of a bookbinding1 and one likely to be much thought of by amateur binders1 as the nieces of ,nicholas ,ferrar were4 ,the attribution of embroidered bindings to ,little ,gidding may also have been strengthened by the fact that many of the bindings made there are in velvet1 the ornamentation on which1 though it is actually stamped in gold and silver1 does to some extent suggest embroidery4 ,indeed1 ,i have myself heard the remark1 on showing one of these books1 ',oh1 yes6 ,embroidery4' ,again1 a peculiarity of the ,little ,gidding books is1 generally1 their large size1 whereas the embroidered books1 especially the satin ones1 are usually very small4 ,illustration3 #di--,psalms4 ,london1 #afdc4 ,one of the embroidered books thus wrongly credited to ,little ,gidding is a ,psalter1 printed in ,london in #afda4 ,it is bound in white satin1 very tastefully embroidered1 the same design being on each side1 and measures #d by #b inches4 ,in the centre is a large orange tulip1 shading from yellow to red1 finely worked in silks in shading-stitch4 ,the stem is outlined in gold cord1 and has also symmetrical curves and leaves1 some of which are filled in with silver guimp4 ,the flower is enclosed in an ornamental scroll and leaf border1 all made with gold threads and twists1 and having leaf forms in relief at intervals in silver guimp4 ,the back has five panels1 ornamented alternately with guimp scrolls and small spheres of coloured silk4 ,there have been spangles and small pieces of guimp scattered about on the sides and back1 but most of them have gone4 ,there are no ties1 and the edges of the leaves are gilt1 and have a small gauffred pattern upon them4 ,the design of this book is extremely simple and effective2 the fine stitching on the tulip contrasts well with the strong metal border enclosing it4 ,it may be considered a favourable specimen of the commonest type of satin embroidered books of the seventeenth century4 ,it is not in very good condition4 ,psalms4 ,london1 #afdc4 ,a very quaint design embroidered on white satin covers a copy of the ,psalms1 printed in ,london in #afdc1 and measuring #d-a_/d by #c-a_/d inches4 ,on the upper side is a representation of ,jacob wrestling with the angel1 flanked by two trees with large leaves2 the angel has wings and long petticoats4 ,the lower board has a representation of ,jacob's dream4 ,the patriarch is asleep on the grass1 his head upon a white stone1 his staff and gourd by his side4 ,he has pale hair and beard4 ,behind him is a large tree1 and in front a conventional flower with leaves and bud1 and from the clouds reaches a ladder on which are three small winged angels1 two coming down1 and one between them going up4 ,through a break in the clouds is seen a bright space1 with rays of golden light proceeding from it4 ,the back is divided into five panels1 in each of which is a flower4 ,these resemble1 to some extent1 a red tulip1 a lily1 a red dahlia1 a yellow tulip1 and a red rose4 ,the work here is not protected by any strong or metal threads1 and it is consequently much worn4 ,there are no signs of any tie ribbon1 and the edges are plainly gilt4 ,psalms4 ,london1 #afdc4 ,illustration3 #ej--,psalms4 ,london1 #afdc4 ,another copy of the ,psalms1 printed in ,london in #afdc1 bound in satin1 and measuring #c-a_/d by #b-a_/d inches1 bears on each side1 within a circle1 a miniature portrait of ,charles ,i4 worked in feather-stitch4 ,the king wears long hair1 moustache1 and small pointed beard4 ,he is crowned1 and has a red cloak with miniver tippet1 from under which appears the blue ribbon of the ,garter worn round the neck1 as it originally was1 and having a small gold medallion attached to it4 ,the initials ,c4 ,r4 in gold guimp are at each side4 ,the circle is enclosed in a strong framework of silver cord and guimp in the form of four thin long pointed ovals of leaf form arranged as a diamond4 ,the four triangular spaces between the diamond and the oval are filled with small flowers or small pieces of guimp and spangles4 ,towards each corner grows a flower1 two pansies1 and two others with regular petals4 ,the remaining spaces are filled variously with green leaves1 small patches of purl and gold spangles1 and a strong gold cord encloses the whole4 ,the back is divided into three panels1 in each of which is an ornamental conventional flower1 the upper and lower ones alike1 and worked in shades of red with guimp leaves in relief1 and the centre one with six petals worked in yellow and edged with a fine gold cord4 ,there are no signs of ties ever having existed1 and the edges of the leaves are gilt and slightly gauffred4 ,it has been suggested that this little book may have belonged to ,king ,charles ,i42 but the fact of his portrait being upon it is no proof of this1 as portraits of this king are more numerous upon the bindings of ,english books than those of any other person4 ,psalms4 ,london1 #afdf4 ,the value of 'purl' was recognised some few years back1 when ,i had some made1 and explained its value and use to the ,royal ,school of ,art ,needlework at ,south ,kensington1 and ,i believe they used it considerably4 ,illustration3 #ea--,psalms4 ,london1 #afdf4 ,on books the use of purl is generally auxiliary1 but one small book bound in white satin1 and measuring #d by #b-a_/b inches1 a copy of the ,psalms1 printed in ,london in #afdf1 is entirely embroidered in this material1 helped with gold braid and cord4 ,the design is approximately the same on each side1 a large flower with leaves in the centre1 and a smaller flower in each corner4 ,on the upper cover the centre flower is yellow and red1 with two large green leaves1 and the corner flowers are1 possibly1 intended for a cornflower1 a jonquil1 a lily1 and a rose1 but the material is so unwieldy that the forms are difficult to trace1 and flowers worked in it are likely to assume forms that are unrecognisable1 when finished1 however well designed to start with4 ,all the flowers and leaves are made with the purl cut into short lengths1 drawn together at the ends by a thread run through1 thus forming a succession of small arches4 ,the stalks are made in gold cord4 ,the flowers on the other side are1 perhaps1 a carnation in the centre1 and round it a convolvulus1 lily1 daffodil1 and rose4 ,the back is divided into five panels1 in each of which is a 'purl' flower1 all worked in the same way1 representing successively a tulip1 cornflower1 carnation1 lily1 rose1 or something analogous to them2 round the designs are straight pieces of brown purl1 and the edges are bound with a broad gold braid4 ,there are no ties or signs of any1 and the edges are simply gilt4 ,the purl is undoubtedly very strong2 ,i possess a small patch-box worked on white satin in a similar way to this little book1 and although it has been roughly used for some two hundred and fifty years1 the colour of the purl is still good2 the upper surfaces of the small spirals1 however1 show the copper wire bare almost everywhere4 ,the book1 not having had anything like the hard wear1 is in very good condition1 but it is too small for the proper use of so much thick thread4 ,the larger leaves and petals are made in relief by being sewn on over a few pieces of purl laid underneath them at right angles4 ,illustration3 #eb--;,bible4 ,london1 #afdf4 ,bible4 ,london1 #afdf4 ,a ,bible printed in ,london in #afdf is bound in white satin1 and embroidered in coloured silks and gold braid and cord1 measuring #f by #c-a_/b inches4 ,the same design is on both sides4 ,in the centre within an oval of gold braid and cord is a spray of vine1 with two bunches of grapes1 three leaves and a tendril1 the fruit and leaves worked in silk1 and the stem in gold cord4 ,enclosing the oval is an arabesque design worked in gold cord and guimp1 and at each corner is an oval of thin gold strips and gold cord2 the gold strips are done in the manner known as 'lizzarding1' and are kept down by small stitches at intervals4 ,the back has four panels1 in each of which is an arabesque design in coloured silks and gold cord or braid4 ,although this book is comparatively late1 it is in a bad condition1 and shows much wear2 the design also is weak1 and the workmanship inferior4 ,illustration ,,index ,applique work1 remarks on1 #bd4 ,arthur1 ,prince of ,wales1 ostrich feather badge used by1 #gc4 ,bacon's ',essays' 7#afbe71 #gf2 ',works' 7#afbc71 #ge4 ,bags for embroidered books1 #af4 ,berthelet1 ,thomas1 bookbinder and printer1 #gd1 #hj4 ,bible1 #aedc ed41 #ed2 #aehc ed41 #fg2 #aeij ed41 #gj2 #afab ed41 #ci2 #afai ed41 #hd2 #afbf ed41 #de2 #afch ed41 #if2 #afdb ed41 #dh2 #afdf ed41 #aji2 #afdh ed41 #di2 #afgd ed41 #gh4 ,bibliotheque ,nationale1 embroidered books in the1 #bj4 ,bodleian ,library1 embroidered books in the1 #be4 ,brassington1 ,mr4 ,w4 ,salt1 #a4 ,brion1 ,martin de1 ',tres ample description de la ,terre ,sainte1' #eb4 ,british ,museum1 embroidered books in the1 #be1 #bg4 ,broiderers1 hints for1 #ba4 ,buckingham1 ,duke of1 portrait on ',bacon's ,essays1 #afbe1' #gf4 ,canvas bindings1 #f1 #g1 #bh-ea4 ,charles ,i41 portrait on ',psalms1 #afdc1' #ajf4 ,charles ,,ii41 badge on ',common ,prayer1 #afch1' #gg2 ',emblemes ,chrestiens1 #afbd1' #hf4 ',christian ,prayers1' #aegj ed41 #ei2 #aeha ed41 #cg2 #aehd ed41 #fe4 ,christopherson1 ,bishop of ,chichester1 ',historia ,ecclesiastica' 7#aefi71 #eg4 ,collection of ,sixteenth ,century ,tracts 7#aecf71 #hj2 7#afaj71 #gb4 ',common ,prayer1 #afch' 7other editions are with ',psalms'71 #gg4 ,covers for embroidered books1 #ah4 ',daily ,exercise of a ,christian1 #afbc1' #dd4 ,day1 ,john1 printer1 #fa4 ,derome le ,jeune1 ,french bookbinder1 #ab4 ,dibdin's ',bibliomania1' mention of ,queen ,elizabeth's embroidery in1 #fd4 ',double ,books1' #ch1 #hi4 ,dutch embroidered books1 #bj4 ,edges1 ornamentally treated1 #af4 ,elizabeth1 ,queen1 arms embroidered1 #eg1 #gb1 #ha2 books embroidered by1 #bf1 #cb1 #cc1 #ce1 #cf4 ,embroidered books1 definition of1 #c4 ',epistles of ,st4 ,paul1 #aegh1' #fc4 ',felbrigge ,psalter1' #bf1 #bi4 ,ferrar1 ,nicholas1 #ajc4 ,fitzhugh1 heraldic supporter1 #ef4 ,fletcher1 ,mr4 ,w4 ,y41 #a4 ,floral designs1 #e1 #f2 and on the following books3 ',miroir of the ,soul' 7#aedd71 #cb2 ',prayers of ,q4 ,kath4 ,parr' 7#aede71 #cc2 ,parker1 ',de ,antiq4 ,ecc4 ,britannicae' 7#aegb71 #fj2 ',prayers' 7#aeha71 #cg2 ',prayers' 7#aehd71 #ff2 ',orationis ,dominicae ,explicatio' 7#aehc71 #fg2 ',psalms1' etc4 7#afjf71 #ch2 ',bible' 7#afai71 #he2 ',daily ,exercise of a ,christian' 7#afbc71 #dd2 ',henshaw1 ',horae ,successivae' 7#afcb71 #ij2 ',psalms' 7#afcc71 #id2 ',bible' 7#afch71 #if2 ',psalms' 7#afci71 #ih2 ',psalms' 7#afda71 #ajd2 ',psalms' 7#afdf71 #ajh4 ,forwarding of embroidered books1 #aa4 ,french embroidered books1 #bj4 ,fuller1 ,thomas1 #ajc4 ,gauffred edges1 #af4 ,george ,,ii41 gift of the ,royal ,library to the ,british ,museum in #ageg1 #be4 ,george ,,iii41 his books largely rebound1 #e4 ,grenville1 ,right ,hon4 ,thomas1 his books largely rebound1 #e4 ,guimp1 description of1 #i4 ,headbands1 #ae4 ,henry ,,viii41 arms on embroidered book1 #eb4 ,henry ,benedict1 ,cardinal ,york1 #ai4 ,henry1 ,prince of ,wales1 his use of the ostrich feather badge1 #he2 badge upon ',tracts1 #afaj1' #gc1 #gg1 #hf4 ,henshaw's ',horae ,successivae1' #ij4 ,heraldic designs1 #e1 #f2 ,arms of ,henry ,,viii41 #eb2 ,katherine ,parr1 #ee2 ,elizabeth1 #eg1 #gb1 #ha2 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,ecclesiae ,britannicae1' #fj4 ,peacocks' feathers used in embroideries1 #hb4 ,pearls used in embroidered bindings3 ,brion 7#aedj71 #eb2 ,christopherson 7#aefi71 #eg2 ,parker 7#aegb71 #fj2 ',new ,testament' 7#aegf71 #ha2 ',bible' 7#aehc71 #fg2 ',bible' 7#aeij71 #gj2 ',tracts' 7#afaj71 #gb2 ,montenay 7#afbd71 #he2 ',psalms' 7#afcc71 #id2 ',common ,prayer' 7#afch71 #gg4 ',petrarcha1 #aedd1' #ee4 ,pomegranate badge on ,queen ,mary's ',psalter1' #eg4 ,poncyn1 of ,amsterdam1 bookbinder1 #aj4 ,portraits on embroidered books1 #e2 ,charles ,i41 #ajf2 ,duke of ,buckingham1 #gf4 ',psalms1' #afjf ed41 #ch2 #afcc ed41 #ia1 #id2 #afce ed41 #ib2 #afci ed41 #ih2 #afda ed41 #ajc2 #afdc ed41 #aje1 #ajf2 #afdf ed41 #ajh4 ,purl1 description of1 #i1 #aj1 #df2 book embroidered alone with1 #ajh4 ,satin bindings1 #g1 #h1 #hj-aaj4 ,schreiber1 the ,lady ,charlotte1 #hc4 ,scriptural designs and figures of saints used on embroidered books1 #e1 #f2 ,abraham and ,isaac1 #hf2 the ,annunciation1 #bi2 the 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',prayers' 7#aeha71 #cg2 ',bible' 7#afab71 #ci2 ,ward 7#afbf71 #da4 ,symbolical figures1 #e1 #f2 ,faith and ,hope 7#afbe1 #afdh71 #db1 #ej2 ,peace and ,plenty 7#afai1 #afce71 #hd1 #ic4 ,thompson1 ,mr4 ,h4 ,yates1 #da4 ,udall's ',sermons1' #ga4 ,vaughan crest1 on ',christian ,prayers1 #aegj1' #ei4 ,velvet bindings1 #f1 #g1 #eb-gi4 ,victoria1 ,queen1 embroidered book belonging to1 #gg4 ,wales1 ostrich plumes of the ,prince of1 #gc1 #gg1 #hf4 ,ward1 ,samuel1 ',sermons1 #afbf-g1' #da4 ,water-colours used on embroidered bindings1 #ha-hd4 ',way to ,true ,happiness' 7#afci71 #ii4 ,wheatley1 ,mr4 ,h4 ,b41 #a4 ,wilton1 ,countess of1 #cc1 #ce1 #fd4 ,wren1 ,elizabeth1 book embroidered by1 #id4 ,york1 ,cardinal1 #ai4 ,,printed ,,by ,t4 ,,and ,a4 ,,constable1 ,,printers ,,to ,,her ,,majesty1 ,,at ,,the ,,university ,,press1 ,,edinburgh3 ,,march ,,mdcccxcix ,the ,english ,bookman's ,library ,,edited ,,by ,,alfred ,,pollard ,,volume ,i ,,english ,,embroidered ,,bookbindings ,,by ,,cyril ,,davenport1 ,f4 ,s4 ,a4 ,,volume ,,ii ,a ,,brief ,,history ,,of ,,english ,,printing ,,by ,h4 ,r4 ,,plomer ,,volume ,,iii ,,english ,,book ,,collectors ,,by ,w4 ,y4 ,,fletcher ,,london ,,kegan ,,paul1 ,,trench1 ,t,r,ue,b,n,e,r ,,co41 ,,limited