of the present day. Fifty wagons were required to convey the
wedding presents of one of the princesses of those times, consisting of gold, precious stones, and rich apparel ornamented
with gems. The trousseau of Isabella, wife of Richard II.,
surpassed in splendor anything before seen in England, comprising, with other rare curiosities, a robe and mantle of
velvet, embossed with birds composed of different kinds of
gems, resting upon branches of emeralds and pearls. It sometimes happened that the weight of her jewels was too burdensome for the fragile form of the bride, as was the case with
Jane, a princess of Navarre, who, at her marriage with the
Duke of Vendôme, had to be carried to the chapel in the arms
of the Constable de Montmorenci. This princess was the proprietor of immense wealth in jewels and precious stones. An
apartment in her palace was filled with various articles made of
them — cups of agate and rock-crystal studded with sparkling
gems, mirrors bordered with diamonds, gold dishes set with
rubies, pearls, and turquoises, salt-cellars, vases, and other articles, all garnished with costly ornaments.
Gems were used in embroidery, and hardly an article of
•dress upon which they could be displayed was deficient in
these decorations. Coverings for the feet afforded conspicuous objects for such an exhibition ; and this accounts for
so many examples of ornamented shoes among the relics of
the Middle Ages. Those of Charlemagne, in the Vienna
Museum, and of Cardinal Wolsey, which are said to have
"been worth thousands in gold and precious stones, afford
illustrations.
Fans are, perhaps, the most interesting articles of the
feminine toilet, for the part they have played in coquetry ; and
it is not surprising that they have been decorated by the most
brilliant and fascinating ornaments nature yields. The fan of
