[Illustration: [VICTORIA AND ALBERT MUSEUM, LONDON 31. POLYPTYCH. VIRGIN AND CHILD—SCENES FROM THE NATIVITY French, fourteenth century]
A fine triptych of the thirteenth century, in the Collection Martin le Roy at Paris, is especially interesting, as it is an early example of the composition of the scenes of _The Death of the Virgin_, as described by Jaques Voragine in the _Légende dorée_, and it shows how the types hardly altered all through the succeeding century. The angel coming to the Virgin to announce her death brings her a palm from Paradise as a sign; the group of men in uneasy attitudes are the apostles newly dropped from the clouds, having been collected from all parts to be present. The lowest scene of the central part is the most important; in it the Virgin is lying dead, surrounded by the apostles, whilst the little naked soul is on the arm of Christ, Who raises His hand to bless the dead body. The whole imagery is the same as on the Byzantine ivory in the Library at Munich. In another part the body is borne away for burial. On the second register the Virgin rises in glory carrying a palm and book and accompanied by the most charming group of music-making angels; above, she sits enthroned beside Christ and attended by the two candle-bearing angels.
The only known signed mediæval ivory is a box in the British Museum which bears the name of _Jehan Nicolle_. In the Inventory of Charles V. the name of one ivory carver has survived, but he was also goldsmith to the king. “_Item, deux grans beaulx tableaux d’yvire des troys Maries que fist Jehan le Braellier, en ung estuy de cuir._” These _estuys de cuir_ were made of very beautiful tooled leather, two fine examples are in the Salting Collection in the Victoria and Albert Museum. Reference is made to as many as three degrees of ivory carvers in the list of _mestiers and marchandise_ of the town of Paris in 1258.
[Illustration: [MAYER COLLECTION, LIVERPOOL MUSEUM 32. FIRST LEAF OF A DIPTYCH French, fourteenth century]
As the country grew more settled, riches and comfort increased, and once more the ivory carvers turned their attention to ornamenting the little objects of civil life, and we find exquisitely carved writing tablets, caskets and articles for the toilet, as combs, long hair wavers, and above all, the covers for the little metal mirrors that were worn hanging from the girdle. No self-respecting woman could dispense with these little luxuries, and in the lengthy _Miroir de Mariage_ of Eustache Deschamps, one verse deals with the requirements of a wife: