In the “gold leather room” stand several cupboards, some of which are of rare wood and richly carved. These cupboards contain a rich store of snow-white linen, damask tablecloths, napkins, bed-clothing, towels, shirts, bibs, neckerchiefs, frills, handkerchiefs, etc., “saved from grandmother’s time with economy, or inherited from great-aunt and kept as precious treasures,” all for her own use, or as wedding gifts to her children, Jacob, Adriaan, Charlotte, or Adriana. Like many another Dutch lady, every penny won at play, every present, and everything that could be saved from the household money, this thrifty housewife devoted to increase the treasure. A great part of the day she spent with her daughters in the front room (_voorhuis_), or with the maids in the kitchen, at the spinning-wheel, the sewing-cushions, the work-table, or the ironing-board. She considered it an honour to have a rich _Linnenkast_, and she was proud of being called a “house jewel careful of the third part” and deserving of the name, as she possessed “mountains of her own make and foreign produced stuff.” Her inventory shows that she possessed no less than twenty-four dozen chemises, forty dozen tablecloths and napkins, and coffers full of uncut linen. Some burghers’ wives had their linen made up by the seamstress. In another cupboard, called the “scalloped,” owing to the many St. James’ shells carved upon it, Joffer van Blyenborgh kept one of the most costly articles of her attire—the breast or forepiece. These breast-pieces, or stomachers, were worn on the corsage, to which they were fastened by means of pretty silk cords. They were made of silk, satin, or velvet, and often profusely decorated with pearls or jewels, and sometimes cost as much as £10,000. Vrouwe van Blyenborgh had coffers filled with petticoats of scarlet cloth and also of wool cloth, coarse grey, black and white linen under petticoats, jackets, hoop skirts, mantles and rain cloaks. Her cupboards and coffers also included: rich robes of sarcenet and serge of fire colour, rose colour and ground colour, covered with ribbons, bows, galloons; bodices embroidered and trimmed with lace and fringe; petticoats garnished with fringe of fire colour; grey cloth dresses lined with blue serge; and Japanese night robes of dead leaf colour, embellished with aurora hued flowers and lined with wadding. Neatly folded among these rich articles were white satin robes lined with amaranth taffeta, black velvet robes with cloth of silver, and petticoats embroidered with golden flowers and lined with _taffeta d’Avignon_. She also had some cloth of gold valued at £16 a yard. [Illustration: PLATE XLI.—_Breakfast, by G. Metsu, Dresden._ ]