Page:Archaeological Journal, Volume 4.djvu/323

 ENGLISH MEDIEVAL EMBROIDERY. 299 of burnished brass. And they had the hands of a man under their wings on their four sides ; and they four had their faces and their wings. Their wings were joined one to another ; they turned not when they went ; they went every one straight forward. As for the likeness of their facx's, they four had the face of a man, and the face of a Hon, on the right side ; and they four had the face of an ox on the left side ; they four also had the face of an eagle. Thus were their faces : and their wings w-ere stretched up- ward ; two wings of every one were joined one to another, and two covered their bodies. And they went every one straight forward : whither the spirit was to go, they went ; and they turned not when they went." It is more than probable that embroidery was often produced by men ; at least a passage in a letter written by George Gyf- fard to Cromwell, wherein he is describing the suppression of a religious house at AVoolsthorpe, near Grantham, would favour the supposition, lie says, speaking of the estabhshment here, " the governour wherof is a vere good husbond for the howse and welbeloved of all thenhabitantes thereunto adjoynyng, a right honest man havyng viii religious persons beyng prestes of right good conversacion and lyvyng religiously, havyng such qualities of vertu as we have nott ffownd the like in no place ; for ther ys nott oon religious person thear butt that the can and doth use eyther imhrotherynci, wrytyng bookes with verey ftayre haund, makyng ther own garnementes, karvyng, payntyng, or graffyng." The mortuary of Anthony Beck, another bishop of Durham, (1310,) was ecpially magnificent with that of his predecessor just named. Besides leaving to the church plate and other articles of great value, he bequeathed to the cathedral amongst several vestments one of red samit, embroidered with many small images of saints standing in quaint circles, ornamented with sni.'dl pearls and silk, and an alb of the same work, with gold ])latys about the edge, siu-roimded Avith small pearls of divers colours. xVlso a vestment of red cloth of Tars, em- broidered with golden archangels, which belonged to an English baron who was going with the king against the Scots, and there lost in battle. Walter ISkirlaw, who was succes- sively bishop of Lichfield, Bath, and Dm-liam, a long time before he was informed of the custom which prevailed of ])re- senting mortuarit-s to the cathedral of Durham, gave the prior and convent liberty of choosing the best vestment which he possessed, and in furtherance of this permission they sent a monk to the manor of Auckland, who selected a vestment of