208 PROCEEDINGS AT MEETINGS Of in ^Ir. Shaw's " Decorative Arts of the Middle Ages." — Two very sin- gular specimens of cuir-bouilli work, probably Italian, of the fifteenth centurv. They are cases for knives and other appliances for the table, intended to be appended to the girdle, or worn by a baldric, and probably served as the etui of the trenchcator, the official carver, or the sewer. The ornaments are impressed and curiously pounced. On one is a scutcheon, char"-ed with a lion rampant, and the motto, filJfltS . csto . ^n'o. — Two lozentje-shaped medaUions of alabaster, sculptured in low relief, and enriched with gilding ; they represent a warrior and a lady, and are framed so as to hinge together as a diptych. On the outside is an armorial atchievement, apparently of Flemish design — argent, a lion rampant, the crest a demi-gryphon. Sixteenth century. By Sir John Boileau, Bart. — An enamelled coffer or shrine, of Limoges work, thirteenth century, ornamented with figures of angels and apostles. Also a cabinet, probably of Italian workmanship, the covering of purple velvet, the interior furnished with numerous small drawers, ornamented with eno-raved metal, partly gilt, in imitation of the damascened and inlaid metal-work of the sixteenth century. By Mr. Forrest. — A sepulchral brass and inscribed plate, a small figure of a priest, formerly in the church of St. Nicholas, "Warwick : — |L?tc jaffl iob'tu5 millarti^n) i9nm* ijican' istt' Crrd'ic qui obtjt .vti)" tiis mtni' niaic:] anno ti'in {BiiVo €€€0 vvnij" <Cui' a tc pptctctnr Xifu^. 9mt. The church was anciently appropriated to the collegiate church of Warwick, but, in consequence of some neglect, the portions due to the priests, bj whom it should have been served, were withheld ; and, in 1401, Tydeman, Bishop of Worcester, ordained a vicarage there, the first vicar being Robert Willardsey. On his death, in 1424, he was succeeded by Simon Oldenhale, the first in Dugdale's list. The church having been rebuilt some years since, this memorial remained a long time loose in the vestry: and at length was "borrowed" by an artist in the neighbourhood, on whose death it may be presumed that it was sold, the circumstances con- nected with it being forgotten. In the list given in the "Manual of Sepulchral Brasses," Oxford, 1848. p. 15, this memorial is described as "formerly in the lady-chapel. St. Mary's, Warwick." By Mr. Thomas Hart, of Reigate. — A small oval miniature, the portrait of Robert Car, the favourite of James I., created Viscount Rochester in 1611, and Earl of Somerset in 1613.' He became prime minister of that sovereign on the death of the Earl of Salisbury in 1612, and lord -chamber- lain in 1614. His influence declined when Sir George Villiers supplanted him in the royal favour ; and he was tried and condemned in 1616, for the murder of Sir Thomas Overbury, by poison, whilst a prisoner in the Tower. He died in 1645. The Earl "is represented in a black close-fitting dress, with a very large rutf, his hair and heard of a light sandy colour, the back- ground bright blue. This interesting miniature appears to be one of the undescribed works of Isaac Oliver. By Mr. Robert Fitch, — A small ivory bottle, curiously sculptured, in the form of a small calibash. Date, about 1625. It may have been a kind of pouncet-box, or receptacle for perfume ; or, not improbably, tlie earliest form of the tabatiere, when the fashion of snuffing rappee first came into vogue. ' The most curious engraved portrait M. Vandergucht, and one by Houbraken, of the Earl of Somerset is that by Simon in Birch's Illus. Heads, vol. ii. p. 19 Passe. There is a portrait of him by
