Very few examples of early Byzantine work in MSS. have survived; but two fragmentary leaves (Brit. Mus., Add. MS. 5111) of tables of the Eusebian canons, which must have stood at the beginning of a copy of the Gospels, executed no doubt in the Eastern capital in the 6th century, are sufficient to exemplify the splendour of ornament which might be lavished on book decoration at that date. The surface of the vellum is entirely gilt, and the ornamental designs are in classical style and painted in bright colours. Two well-known MSS., the Genesis of the Imperial Library of Vienna, of the latter part of the 6th century, and the Gospels of Rossano in southern Italy, of the same period, both containing series of illustrative paintings of a semi-classical type, are very interesting specimens of Byzantine art; but they depend on their purple vellum and their silver-written texts to claim a place among highly ornamented MSS., for the paintings themselves are devoid of gold. On the other hand, the Greek MS. of Genesis, of the 5th or 6th century, which once formed part of the Cottonian collection in the British Museum, but which was almost totally destroyed by fire, was of a more artistic character: the drawing of its miniatures was of great merit and classical in style, and gold shading was largely employed in the details. The famous MS. of Dioscorides at Vienna, executed in the year 472, is another excellent example of the early Byzantine school, its series of paintings at the beginning of the volume well maintaining the classical sentiment.