that they were covered on the back with lead, and that no image was
reflected when the lead was scraped off . . . . That this invention cannot
be much older we have reason to conclude, because glass mirrors were
extremely scarce in France even in the fourteenth century, while mirrors of
metal were in common use; and we are told that the mirror of Anne de
Bretagne, consort of Louis XII., was of the latter kind."
In the French MS. the word used is "Mireor," which
would apply to either kind. We may suppose that the copyists of the English
MSS., being aware of the new fashion, incorporatedthe words "sperarn de
vitro" in their text instead of "speculurn."
The consideration of the later development of the Tiger and the
Mirror in heraldry into the Lion and the Ball or the Lion and the Globe
scarcely falls within the province of this Paper, but it is interesting as
evidence of changes due to confusion. The Tiger and the Lion became mixed
up, and the mirror turned into a sphere, ball, or terrestrial globe.
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In conclusion, I have to express my acknowledgments to Mr. and
Mrs. Fountain for their kindness in allowing me to photograph the spandril
at Little Mote, Eynsford (Plate II. 2), and also to Mr. E. D. Till of
Eynsford for much valuable assistance given.
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