ns: and there were several other illuminations of smaller size
in different parts of the book. This superb manuscript was in admirable
preservation, and as clean as if it had been new. It had evidently been
kept with great care, and appeared to have had some clasps or ornaments
of gold or silver which had been torn off. It was probably owing to the
original splendour of this binding that the volume itself had been so
carefully preserved. I imagine it was written in the ninth century.

Another book, of a much greater age, was a copy of the four Gospels,
with four finely-executed miniatures of the evangelists. It was about
nine or ten inches square, written in round semiuncial letters in double
columns, with not more than two or three words in a line. In some
respects it resembled the book of the Epistles in the Bodleian Library
at Oxford. This manuscript, in the original black leather binding, had
every appearance of the highest antiquity. It was beautifully written
and very clean, and was altogether such a volume as is not to be met
with every day.

A quarto manuscript of the four Gospels, of the eleventh or twelfth
century, with a great many (perhaps fifty) illuminations. Some of them
were unfortunately rather damaged.

Two manuscripts of the New Testament, with the Apocalypse.

A very fine manuscript of the Psalms, of the eleventh century, which is
indeed about the era of the greater portion of the vellum manuscripts on
Mount Athos.

There were also some ponderous and magnificent folios of the works of
the fathers of the Church--some of them, I should think, of the tenth
century; but it is difficult, in a few hours, to detect the
peculiarities which prove that manuscripts are of an earlier date than
the twelfth century. I am, however, convinced that very few of them were
written after that time.

The paper manuscripts were of all ages, from the thirteenth and
fifteenth centuries down to a hundred years ago; and some of them, on
charta bombycina, would have appeared very splendid books if they had
not been eclipsed by the still finer and more carefully-executed
manuscripts on vellum.

Neither my arguments nor my eloquence could prevail on the obdurate
monks to sell me any of these books, but my friend the secretary gave me
a book in his own handwriting to solace me on my journey. It contained a
history of the monastery from the days of its foundation to the present
time. It is written in Romaic, and is curious