Crucifixion and images of Our Lady and Saint
Anne. The inventory of King Charles the
Fifth of France mentions a pine-cone which
opened in the middle and displayed the
mystery of the Visitation of the Three Kings.
Among the treasures of Louis of Anjou
was a vessel — literally, a small ship (une
navette) — for holding incense ; on the cover,
or deck, of which were two emeralds, trefoil-
shaped, and inside the cover were small
animals and trees enamelled, and within the
vessel a spoon of white silver. These navettes
were also used for spices and other condiments.
Many of the opening images were
remarkable for ingenuity of construction ;
but the great characteristic of those which
were made of the precious metals was their
enormous value. Here is the description of
a splendid jewel of this kind which was
presented by that she-wolf, Isabeau de Bavière,
to her poor mad husband, Charles the Sixth
of France, as a new-year's gift, in fourteen
hundred and four. "An image of Our Lady
seated in a garden of trellis-work, holding the
infant Jesus. The former figure is of white
enamel and the latter of bright red. A clasp
on the breast of the Virgin is ornamented
with six pearls and a balass ruby, and about
her head is a crown with two rubies, a
sapphire, and sixteen pearls, the crown being
supported by two angels in white enamel.
The garden is decorated with five large balass
rubies, five sapphires, and thirty-two pearls,
and upon a lettern rests a book ornamented
with twelve pearls. Three images of gold—
to wit, Saint Catherine, Saint John the
Baptist, and Saint John the Evangelist, are placed
below the Virgin, and beneath these again is
a figure of the king himself, kneeling on a
cushion enriched with four pearls and
emblazoned with the arms of France. In front
of the king, on one side, is a small pedestal of
gold, on which lies his book of prayers,
behind him is a tiger (a type of his queen),
and on the other side stands an armed knight
in white and blue enamel, bearing the king's
golden helmet. In the lowest part of the
ornament is an esquire, in enamel, holding by
the bridle a white enamelled horse, with
saddle and housings of gold, and resting his
disengaged hand on a staff." The weight of
this jewel was nearly eighteen marks of gold,
and the framework in which it was set about
thirty marks of silver-gilt.

In the groups, generally speaking, the
Agnus Dei was not merely indicated by the
attitude of Saint John the Baptist — as in the
image mentioned above — but was presented
in substance, as an object of which great
account was made. It was a circular waxen
tablet, impressed with the sign of the Paschal
Lamb, and was made, in quantities, at Rome,
with the remains of the Paschal taper, which
was melted on Holy Saturday, at the same
time that the new one was blest by the Pope.
These tablets were then distributed throughout
Christendom, and, when worn on the
person, were supposed to impart marvellous
virtues; their efficacy, when placed in churches,
extended to those who came and prayed
before them. The jewellers, consequently,
employed all their skill in fixing them in
frames and cases, ornamented with pearls
and precious stones. The inventory of Mary
Stuart describes an Agnus Dei, set in rich
crystal and gold, with a small golden chain ;
and another, in silver, belonging to Charles
the Sixth of France, was richly enamelled
with figures and garnished with twenty-nine
pearls.

In the inventory of Louis of Anjou are
many pictures (tableaux), but these must not
be literally accepted as paintings. It rarely
happened that even the pictures which we
consider such, were without some adventitious
ornamentation ; but the greater number
of what were called pictures consisted
entirely of solid materials, into which gold,
silver, and precious stones entered very
largely. The following may be taken as a
specimen : "A picture of silver-gilt, sown
inside (semé par dedenz) with large and
small emeralds, large and small balass
rubies, large and small cameos (camahieux),
and of small pearls a great quantity. And
in the middle is a very large cameo, in which
appear Our Lady placing Our Lord in his
cradle, and the angels around ; and, beneath,
Our Lady bathing her Child ; and, behind her,
Saint Joseph, seated, and rests the said picture
on a border (souage), which is sown with
emeralds, rubies of Alexandria (rubis d'Alisandrie),
and small pearls. And between the
said border and the tabernacle, is a capital of
masonry with windows, within which are
images carved. And weighs in all fourteen
marks six ounces and a half."

Cameos are mentioned as being inserted in
this picture ; and amongst the ornaments of
the middle ages, the cameo, whether sculptured
on shell or agate, held a prominent
place. Confined to the manufacture of the
period, the subjects were really religious, and
represented what were intended — Holy
Families, Annunciations, Crucifixions, and so
forth ; but when antiques were enshrined,
Jupiter very often did duty for Saint John,
and Apollo for Saint Peter. The art which
created the cameos was fully appreciated,
but, the subject, if susceptible of application,
was made to fit the nearest legend of the
Church to which it bore resemblance. Thus,
in the inventory of the Duke of
Normandy is a cameo representing Hercules struggling
with a lion, — where the pagan demi-
god was identified with Samson ; a nymph
bathing, passed for Susannah ; Mercury with
his Petasus was simply described as "The
head of a man wearing a chaplet;" the
Father of the Gods, with the inscription
"Zeus," only appeared to be "A naked man
seated on a cloth, holding an eagle, and is
written a word before him, and is seated in a
rim of gold;" Cupid winged, was called "A