fe and vigour. The effect is that
of a vast piece of lace,--the real cut work of the period. Absurd
little trees, as space fillers, are set in the green and white
marble. Every reader will remember how Ruskin was enthusiastic over
these little creatures, and no one can fail to feel their charm.

The pavements at the Florentine Baptistery and at San Miniato are
interesting examples of inlay in black and white marble. They are
early works, and are the natural forerunners of the marvellous
pavement at Siena, which is the most remarkable of its kind in the
world.

The pavement masters worked in varying methods. The first of these
was the joining together of large flat pieces of marble, cut in
the shapes of the general design, and then outlining on them an
actual black drawing by means of deeply cut channels, filled with
hard black cement. The channels were first cut superficially and
then emphasized and deepened by the use of a drill, in a series
of holes.

[Illustration: DETAIL OF PAVEMENT, BAPTISTERY, FLORENCE]

Later workers used black marbles for the backgrounds, red for the
ground, and white for the figures, sometimes adding touches of
yellow inlay for decorations, jewels, and so forth. Some of the
workers even used gray marble to represent shadows, but this was
very difficult, and those who attempted less chiaroscuro were more
successful from a decorator's point of view.

This work covered centuries. The earliest date of the ornamental
work in Siena is 1369. From 1413 to 1423 Domenico del Coro, a famous
worker in glass and in intarsia, was superintendent of the works. The
beauty and spirit of much of the earlier inlay have been impaired
by restoration, but the whole effect is unique, and on so vast a
scale that one hesitates to criticize it just as one hesitates
to criticize the windows at Gouda.

One compartment of the floor is in genuine mosaic, dating from
1373. The designer is unknown, but the feeling is very Sienese;
Romulus and Remus are seen in their customary relation to the
domesticated wolf, while the symbolical animals of various Italian
cities are arranged in a series of circles around this centrepiece.
One of the most striking designs is that of Absalom, hanging by
his hair. It is in sharp black and white, and the foliage of the
trees is remarkably decorative, rendered with interesting minutiae.
This is attributed to Pietro del Minella, and was begun in 1447.

A very interesting composition is t