earlier doors, this Early Gothic style of hinge was not needed (fig. 5) so that we find no trace of it in that period, but the art of wrought iron was continued with the hammered and chiselled hinges and lock plates of the most varied and delicate workmanship, which enriched the beautiful Gothic chests of the 14th and 15th centuries. The simple wrought screen, which was so largely used in the 13th century was now elaborated, especially in Italy, and fine examples of quatre-foil grilles with massive wrought framing and a rich frieze of foliage, cupids and animals in pierced and hammered iron are to be seen at the cathedrals of Orvieto, Prato and Siena, dating from about 1337 to 1350, and at Santa Croce, Florence, 1371; but it was in Spain and France that the screen reached its culmination. The Spanish screens or “Réjas” in the cathedrals of Seville, Toledo and Granada have a fine range of turned and chiselled vertical bars some 30 to 50 feet high, with an elaborate frieze and cresting. Beautiful wrought and chiselled gates were erected in France about 1658, for the Louvre and the Royal Chateaux of Anet and Econeu. There are some fine wrought gates at Hampton Court by Jean Tijon, who published some drawings of them in 1693, and many good simple gates of the last century are still in position in many parts of the country. The wrought iron gate piers in St. George’s Chapel, Windsor, with their architectural treatment of open panelling, cresting, and massive buttresses, in filed, bolted and riveted, are splendid examples of Flemish workmanship, and are probably by Quintin Matsys (1450-1529). FURNITURE. The adaptability and universality of wood for domestic and public purposes, its susceptibility to carving and enrichment, its beautiful texture, grain and colour, have made it one of the most useful of materials in the constructive and decorative arts. The many chairs, tables and chests of ancient times, and the beautiful choir stalls, cabinets and screens of the middle ages are a tribute to the vitality, inventiveness and artistic perception of the old craftsman. [Illustration] The universality of the chair has tended to preserve the form through many centuries. The chair has undergone various modifications, from the ornate Egyptian one to the Assyrian example with the supports of fir-cones. In the Greek example, the beauty and simplicity of profile is remarkable, while the Chair of St. Peter, 1st century A.D., is purely architectonic with enrichments of gold and ivory. [Illustration] The Coronation Chair in Westminster Abbey, of the time of Edward I., is one of the earliest in England, offering a strong contrast to the chairs of the 18th century by Chippendale and Sheraton. [Illustration] A Venetian chair of the 16th century shows a skilful but inappropriate treatment.