tions and
of heroic struggles of the Christian Church. It was the age of feudalism,
chivalry, and war; but, towards the close, a time of comparative
civilisation and progress, of darkness giving way to the light which
followed; the night of the Middle Ages preceding the dawn of the
Renaissance.

With the growing importance of Constantinople, the capital of the Eastern
Empire, families of well-to-do citizens flocked thither from other parts,
bringing with them all their most valuable possessions; and the houses of
the great became rich in ornamental furniture, the style of which was a
mixture of Eastern and Roman: that is, a corruption of the Early Classic
Greek developing into the style known as Byzantine. The influence of
Christianity upon the position of women materially affected the customs
and habits of the people. Ladies were allowed to be seen in chariots and
open carriages, the designs of which, therefore, improved and became more
varied; the old custom of reclining at meals ceased, and guests sat on
benches; and though we have, with certain exceptions, such as the chair of
St. Peter at Rome, and that of Maximian in the Cathedral at Ravenna, no
specimens of furniture of this time, we have in the old Byzantine ivory
bas-reliefs such representations of circular throne chairs and of
ecclesiastical furniture as suffice to show the class of woodwork then in
vogue.

The chair of St. Peter is one of the most interesting relics of the Middle
Ages. The woodcut will shew the design, which is, like other work of the
period, Byzantine, and the following description is taken from Mr.
Hungerford Pollen's introduction to the South Kensington catalogue:--"The
chair is constructed of wood, overlaid with carved ivory work and gold.
The back is bound together with iron. It is a square with solid front and
arms. The width in front is 39 inches; the height in front 30 inches,
shewing that a scabellum or footstool must have belonged to it.... In the
front are 18 groups or compositions from the Gospels, carved in ivory with
exquisite fineness, and worked with inlay of the purest gold. On the outer
sides are several little figures carved in ivory. It formed, according to
tradition, part of the furniture of the house of the Senator Pudens, an
early convert to the Christian faith. It is he who gave to the Church his
house in Rome, of which much that remains is covered by the Church of St.
Pudenziana. Pudens gave this chair to St. Peter,