practice of sending garments as presents, as marks of respect and friendship, or as propitiatory or deprecatory offerings. And the illustrious ladies of the classical times had such a prophetical talent of preparation, that they were ever found possessed, when occasion required, of store of garments richly embroidered by their own fair fingers, or under their auspices. Of this there are numerous examples in Homer.

When Priam wishes to redeem the body of Hector, after preparing other propitiatory gifts,

he open'd wide the sculptur'd lids.

Of various chests, whence mantles twelve he took

Of texture beautiful; twelve single cloaks;

As many carpets, with as many robes;

To which he added vests an equal store.”

When Telemachus is about to leave Menelaus

"The beauteous queen revolv'd with careful eyes
Her various textures of unnumber'd dyes,
And chose the largest; with no vulgar art
Her own fair hands embroider'd every part ·
Beneath the rest it lay divinely bright,

Like radiant Hesper o'er the gems of night."

That much of this work was highly beautiful may be inferred from the description of the robe of Ulysses:

"In the rich woof a hound, Mosaic drawn,

Bore on full stretch, and seiz'd a dappled fawn;
Deep in the neck his fangs indent their hold;
They pant and struggle in the moving gold.”

And this robe, Penelope says,

"In happier hours her artful hand employ'd."

To invest a visitor with an embroidered robe was

D

considered the very highest mark of honour and regard.

When Telemachus is at the magnificent court of Menelaus

a bright damsel train attend the guests With liquid odours and embroider'd vests.”

"Give to the stranger guest a stranger's dues:
Bring gold, a pledge of love; a talent bring,
A vest, a robe."

in order roll'd

The robes, the vests are rang'd, and heaps of gold:
And adding a rich dress inwrought with art,

A gift expressive of her bounteous heart,

Thus spoke (the queen) to Ithacus."

When Cambyses wished to attain some point from an Ethiopian prince, he forwarded, amongst other presents, a rich vest. The Ethiopian, taking the garment, inquired what it was, and how it was made; but its glittering tracery did not decoy the unsophisticated prince. When Xerxes arrived at Acanthos, he interchanged the rites of hospitality with the people, and presented several with Median vests. Probably our readers will remember the circumstance of Alexander making the mother of Darius a present of some rich vestures, probably of woollen fabrics, and telling her that she might make her grandchildren learn the art of weaving them; at which the royal lady felt insulted and deeply hurt, as it was considered ignominious by the Persian women to work in wool. Hearing of her misapprehension, Alexander himself waited on her, and in the gentlest and most respectful terms told the illustrious captive that, far from meaning

any offence, the custom of his own country had misled him; and that the vestments he had offered were not only a present from his royal sisters, but wrought by their own hands.

Outré as appear some of the flaring patterns of the present day, the boldest of them must be quiet and unattractive compared with those we read of formerly, when not only human figures, but birds and animals, were wrought not merely on hangings and carpets but on wearing apparel. Ciampini gives various instances.*

What changes, says he, do not a long course of years produce! Who now, except in the theatre, or at a carnival or masquerade (spectaculis ac rebus ludiciis), would endure garments inscribed with verses and titles, and painted with various figures? Nevertheless, it is plain that such garments were constantly used in ancient times. To say nothing of Homer, who assigns to Ulysses a tunic variegated with figures of animals; to say nothing of the Massagetæ, whom Herodotus relates painted animals on their garments with the juice of herbs; we also read of these garments (though then considered very antiquated) being used under the Cæsars of Rome.

They say that Alcisthenes the Sybarite had a garment of such magnificence that when he exhibited it in the Temple of Juno at Lacinium, where all Italy was congregated, it attracted universal attention. It was purchased from the Carthaginians, by Dionysius the elder, for 120 talents. It was twenty-two feet in breadth, of a purple ground, * Ciampini, Vetera Monimenta, cap. xiii.

with animals wrought all over, except in the middle, where were Jupiter, Juno, Themis, Minerva, Apollo, Venus on one sleeve it had a figure of Alcisthenes, on the other of his city Sybaris.

That this description is not exaggerated may be inferred from the following passage from a homily on Dives and Lazarus by a Bishop of Amuasan in Pontus, given by Ciampini.

They have here no bounds to this foolish art, for no sooner was invented the useless art of weaying in figures in a kind of picture, such as animals of all sorts, than (rich persons) procure flowered garments, and also those variegated with an infinite number of images, both for themselves, their wives, and children. Whensoever

thus clothed they go abroad, they go, as it were, painted all over, and pointing out to one another with the finger the pictures on their garments.

"For there are lions and panthers, and bears and bulls, and dogs and woods, and rocks and huntsmen; and, in a word, everything that can be thought of, all drawn to the life: for it was necessary, forsooth, that not only the walls of their houses should be painted, but their coats (tunica) also, and likewise the cloak (pallium) which covers it.

The more pious of these gentry take their subjects from the Gospel history: e. g. Christ himself with his disciples, or one of the miracles, is depicted. In this manner you shall see the marriage of Cana and the waterpots; the paralytic carrying his bed on his shoulders; the blind man cured by clay; the woman with the issue of blood taking hold of the border (of Christ's garment); the harlot falling at

the feet of Jesus; Lazarus coming from the tomb: and they fancy there is great piety in all this, and that putting on such garments must be pleasing to God."

The palmated garment was figured with palmleaves, and was a triumphal or festive garment. It is referred to in an epistle of Gratian to Augustus: "I have sent thee a palmated garment, in which the name of our divine parent Constantine is interwoven."

In allusion to these lettered garments Ausonius celebrates Sabina (textrice simul ac poetria), whose name thus lives when those of more important personages are forgotten

They who both webs and verses weave,
The first to thee, O chaste Minerva, leave;
The latter to the Muses they devote:

To me, Sabina, it appears a sin

To separate two things so near akin,

So I have wrote thy verses on my coat.*

And again :

Whether the Tyrian robe your praise demand,

Or the neat verse upon the edge descried,
Know both proceed from the same skilful hand:
In both these arts Sabina takes a pride.†

It is imagined that the embroidered vestments

*"Licia qui texunt, et Carmina; Carmina Musis,
Licia contribuunt, casta, Minerva tibi.
Ast ego rem sociam non dissociabo, Sabina,
Versibus inscripsi, quæ mea texta meis."

+"Sive probas Tyrio textam sub tegmine vestem,
Seu placet inscripti commoditas tituli.

Ipsius hæc Dominæ concennat utrumque venustas:
Has geminas artes una Sabina colet."