rough the whole mass; (2) _Painted glass_, in which
colouring is laid upon the white or tinted glass, and fixed by the
action of fire. As the style of architecture changed, so the art of the
glass-painter changed with it. In the Early English period the colours
were very rich, and the designs consisted of medallions containing
subjects taken from Holy Scripture, or the lives of the saints, upon
grounds of ruby and blue. Mosaic patterns form the groundwork of the
medallions, and a border of scrolls and foliage incloses the whole
design. The outlines of the figures are formed by the lead. In the
Decorated period the medallions disappear, and in their place we find
single figures of large size under canopies. Instead of the mosaic
backgrounds diaper-work in whole colours is used. Lights and shades are
introduced in the dresses and canopies, and foliage is painted on the
panes. The artists of this period first introduced heraldic devices into
the windows. A border of white glass intervenes between the window and
the medallion.

When the Perpendicular style was in vogue the art of the glass-painter
degenerated, as did that of the architect. Stained glass was little
used, and the artists painted with enamel colours their designs upon the
glass. The figures were larger than before, and the canopies of great
size and with much architectural detail, landscapes and buildings
appearing in the background. During this period inscriptions began to be
used. In the sixteenth century the progress of the art was in the same
direction. Large figures, and groups of figures, fill the whole window,
and the existence of mullions is disregarded in the execution of the
design. Glass-painting flourished until the Civil War period, and then
died out.

English churches benefited much by the work of foreign artists. The
great Florentine Francesco di Lievi da Gambassi visited this country.
There is a letter dated 1434, written "to the master glass-painter
Gambassi, then in Scotland, and who made works in glass of various
kinds, and was held to be the best glass-painter in the world." How much
must we regret the destruction of the windows made by this excellent
artist in Holyrood chapel and elsewhere by fanatical mobs! The Fairford
windows are perhaps the finest and most interesting in England. The
story runs that they were made in Germany for a church in Rome, and that
the vessel conveying them was captured by an English ship; and as the
noble chu