scarcely a third part of the medals remained: of
the strange manner in which these precious remains of ancient art and
history were valued and disposed of, the following account may not be
read without interest.

In March, 1648, the parliament ordered commissioners to be appointed, to
inventory the goods and personal estate of the late king, queen, and
prince, and appraise them for the use of the public. And in April, 1648,
an act, adds Whitelocke, was committed for inventorying the late king's
goods, &c.[192]

This very inventory I have examined. It forms a magnificent folio, of
near a thousand pages, of an extraordinary dimension, bound in crimson
velvet, and richly gilt, written in a fair large hand, but with little
knowledge of the objects which the inventory writer describes. It is
entitled "An Inventory of the Goods, Jewels, Plate, &c. belonging to
King Charles the First, sold by order of the Council of State, from the
year 1619 to 1652." So that from the decapitation of the king, a year
was allowed to draw up the inventory; and the sale proceeded during
three years.

From this manuscript catalogue[193] to give long extracts were useless;
it has afforded, however, some remarkable observations. Every article
was appraised, nothing was sold under the affixed price, but a slight
competition sometimes seems to have raised the sum; and when the Council
of State could not get the sum appraised, the gold and silver were sent
to the Mint; and assuredly many fine works of art were valued by the
ounce. The names of the purchasers appear; they are usually English, but
probably many were the agents for foreign courts. The coins or medals
were thrown promiscuously into drawers; one drawer having twenty-four
medals, was valued at L2 10_s_.; another of twenty, at L1; another of
twenty-four, at L1; and one drawer, containing forty-six silver coins
with the box, was sold for L5. On the whole the medals seem not to have
been valued at much more than a shilling a-piece. The appraiser was
certainly no antiquary.

The king's curiosities in the Tower Jewel-house generally fetched above
the price fixed; the toys of art could please the unlettered minds that
had no conception of its works.

The Temple of Jerusalem, made of ebony and amber, fetched L25.

A fountain of silver, for perfumed waters, artificially made to play of
itself, sold for L30.

A chess-board, said to be Queen Elizabeth's, inlaid with gold, silver,
and pearls,