The plough has played an important part in history, and collectors owe much to that useful implement. It has been the means of bringing to light many vessels which have been buried for centuries, for although land has been ploughed many seasons, a deeper ploughshare or more frequent ploughing on the same spot has brought nearer to the surface a copper vessel or an earthen jar, full of antiquarian interest. The field and the forest, and even the deserted mines, have brought to collectors of old metal many interesting relics. Until quite recently there was an old bronze caldron on view in the window of a dealer in antiques in Chester. It was the prototype of many similar vessels that have been made in later days in different parts of the country, the model on which the more modern pots or camp-kettles of the gipsies and the three-legged pots commonly suspended over the cottage hearth, until comparatively modern times, have been fashioned. It is worthy of note that the principle adopted by those early metal-workers is still observed in the more scientific construction of cooking vessels to-day. The form of the caldron was such that by applying heat under the centre the flames spread and leapt up the sides, curling as they travelled, following the lines fashioned by the coppersmiths, and heating the contents of the vessel equally. Such ancient caldrons, sometimes much worn and at others in fairly good condition, have been preserved by Mother Earth until discovered in modern times. Among Saxon and Norman Remains. The Saxons and Normans used metal, and the brawny arms of the smiths, and later the founders, fashioned the cooking-pots made in their day. Many metal curios, much battered by fallen masonry, have been found among the ruins of Norman castles and in some cases of the still earlier Saxon dwellings. The discoveries of curios of those periods are by no means frequent, and it would appear as if we must now be content with storing carefully those relics already discovered. Modern restorations and excavations have brought many valuable antiquities to light, and authorities have been very careful to preserve them in county or local museums. In Hidden Chambers. The splendour of mediæval days when feasting in the great hall of the baron or overlord has been revealed by many noted finds. The great kitchens of those mansions were full of copper and brass, and it is from such supplies that many of the best authenticated specimens have come. Some are historical; even bronze caldrons and more modest-looking saucepans have been made to the order of some mediæval chieftain or baron.