But I will now begin my labours in good earnest.  An oblong, narrow, boudoir-sort of apartment, contains the more precious MSS., the block books, and works printed upon vellum.  This room is connected with another, at right angles, (if I remember well) which receives the more valuable works of the fifteenth century—­the number of which latter, alone, are said to amount to nearly twenty thousand.  In such a farrago, there must necessarily be an abundance of trash.  These, however, are how under a strict assortment, or classification; and I think that I saw not fewer than half a dozen assistants, under the direction of M. Bernhard, hard at work in the execution of this desirable task.

LATIN MS. OF THE GOSPELS; in small folio.  I have no hesitation in ascribing this MS. to the ninth century.  It is replete with evidences of this, or even of an earlier, period.  It is executed in capital letters of silver and gold, about a quarter of an inch in height, upon a purple ground.  Of course the MS. is upon vellum.  The beginning of the text is entirely obliterated; but on the recto of the XVth leaf we read “Explt Breuiarium.”

LATIN MS. of the GOSPELS; in large folio.  This is a more superb, but more recent, MS. than the preceding.  Yet I suspect it to be not much later than the very early part of the eleventh century.  It is executed in a large, lower-case, roman letter:  somewhat bordering upon the Gothic.  But the binding, at the very outset, is too singular and too resplendent to be overlooked.  The first side of it has the crucifixion, in a sort of parallelogram frame work—­in the centre:  surrounded by a double arabesque, or Greek border, of a most beautiful form.  The whole is in ivory, of a minute and surprisingly curious workmanship.  The draperies partake of the character of late Roman art.  Round this central ivory piece of carving, is a square, brass border, with the following inscription; which, from the character of the capital letters, (for it is wholly composed of such) is comparatively quite modern: 

  GRAMMATA QVI QVERIT COGNOSCERE VERE
  HOC MATHESIS PLENE QVADRATVM PLAVDAT HABERE
  EN QUI VERACES SOPHIE FULSERE SEQUACES
  ORNAT PERFECTAM REX HEINRICH STEMMATE SECTAM.

In the outer border are precious stones, and portraits, with inscriptions in Greek capital letters.  These portraits and inscriptions seem to me to be perfect, but barbarous, specimens of Byzantine art.  Around the whole are the titles of the Four Gospels in coeval capital letters.  The general effect of this first side of the book-cover, or binding, is perfect—­for antiquarian genuineness and costliness.  The other side of the binding contains representations of the cardinal virtues, in brass, with the lamb in the centre:  but they are comparatively modern.  The interior of this book does not quite accord with its exterior.  It is in pure condition, in every respect; but the art is rather feeble and barbarous.  The titles to the Gospels are executed upon a purple ground.  The larger subjects, throughout the illuminations, are executed with freedom, but the touch is heavy and the effect weak.  The gold back grounds are rather sound than resplendent.  Yet is this MS., upon the whole, a most costly and precious volume.