figure of the bad god Loki (the embroidery of whose face is worn away) and his wicked offspring, the Midgard serpent, the wolf Fenrir, and Hela or Death, who may be identified in that female figure seated within the smaller lower coil made by the twining serpents. Amid some leaf-bearing branches to the right is perceived a man as if running away affrighted; to the left we behold Thor himself, mallet in hand, about to deal a heavy blow upon the scaly length of this Midgard serpent. About the same time this embroidery was worked the bishop's crozier began to end in the serpent's head. A good figure of this piece is given by Dr. Bock, in his "Geschichte der Liturgischen Gewänder des Mittelalters," 1 Band, 2 Lieferung, pt. vi.
8229.
Piece of Crimson Silk, with interlacing pattern woven in gold; the centre occupied with representations of flat-shaped fish, and, as we learn from Dr. Bock, like to an imperial robe at Vienna, made A.D. 1133. Oriental. 11 inches by 5 inches.
Though of a very tame design and rather striking for the sparing
way in which the dim gold is rolled about its thread, still it is not fair to
judge of what this stuff might have once been when new, fresh from
the loom and unfaded. If, in the first half of the 12th century, silks
so wrought with the representation of fishes were deemed worthy of
being put into use for state garments of a German Emperor; a short
hundred years later, they were for their symbolism thought even more
fitting to be employed for making the chasubles and copes worn at
divine service in the cathedral of London. From the inventory drawn
up, A.D. 1295, of the altar vestments belonging to old St Paul's, we learn
that among them there were:—"Capa magistri Johannis de S. Claro, de
quodam panno Tarsico, viridis coloris, cum plurimis piscibus et rosis de
aurifilo, contextis." Dugdale's "History of St. Paul's," new ed. p. 318.
"Item casula de panno Tarsico indici coloris cum pisculis et rosulis
aureis, &c." Ib. p. 323. In all likelihood, the fish here shown was meant
for what we oddly call "John Dory," a corruption of the Italian
"Gianitore," or gate-keeper, the name of this fish in some parts of
Italy, in reference to St. Peter, who is deemed to have found the tribute-money
in the mouth of this fish, hence denominated St. Peter's fish.
