owards
their bases, surmounted by busts of men or women, elaborate interlaced
strap work carved in low relief, trophies of fruit and flowers, take the
places of the more Gothic treatment formerly in vogue. The change in the
design of furniture naturally followed, for in cases where Flemish or
Italian carvers were not employed, the actual execution was often by the
hand of the house carpenter, who was influenced by what he saw around him.

The great chimney piece in Speke Hall, near Liverpool, portions of the
staircase of Hatfield, and of other English mansions before mentioned, are
good examples of the wood carving of this period, and the illustrations
from authenticated examples which are given, will assist the reader to
follow these remarks.

[Illustration: The Glastonbury Chair. (_In the Palace of the Bishop of
Bath, and Wells._)]

There is a mirror frame at Goodrich Court of early Elizabethan work,
carved in oak and partly gilt; the design is in the best style of
Renaissance and more like Italian or French work than English.
Architectural mouldings, wreaths of flowers, cupids, and an allegorical
figure of Faith are harmoniously combined in the design, the size of the
whole frame being 4 ft. 5 ins. by 3 ft. 6 ins. It bears the date 1559 and
initials R. M.; this was the year in which Roland Meyrick became Bishop of
Bangor, and it is still in the possession of the Meyrick family. A careful
drawing of this frame was made by Henry Shaw, F.S.A., and published in
"Specimens of Ancient Furniture drawn from existing Authorities," in 1836.
This valuable work of reference also contains finished drawings of other
noteworthy examples of the sixteenth century furniture and woodwork.
Amongst these is one of the Abbot's chair at Glastonbury, temp. Henry
VIII., the original of the chair familiar to us now in the chancel of most
churches; also a chair in the state-room of Hardwick Hall, Derbyshire,
covered with crimson velvet embroidered with silver tissue, and others,
very interesting to refer to because the illustrations are all drawn from
the articles themselves, and their descriptions are written by an
excellent antiquarian and collector, Sir Samuel Rush Meyrick.

The mirror frame, described above, was probably one of the first of its
size and kind in England. It was the custom, as has been already stated,
to paint the walls with subjects from history or Scripture, and there are
many precepts in existence from early times unti