The British Museum contains a magnificent MS. of Froissart, profusely illuminated with such miniature pictures. This MS. came into the Museum with the Harleian Collection, but how it found its way into that collection is unknown; we possess, however, only two of the volumes, the other two being in the Bibliothèque Royale of Paris. The work appears to be one of Flemish art, probably executed by some Flemish artist resident in Paris, as the public buildings in Paris are very correctly delineated, whilst those of other places are frequently altogether imaginary. It seems likely that the work was executed for Philip De Commines the historian, as it was evidently produced in his time, and as the arms of De Commines frequently occur in the ornamental borderings in the way it was usual to introduce those of the person for whom such a book was illuminated. The MS. is supposed to have been written between the years 1460 and 1480, very shortly after the time of Froissart; so that, though it is true that artists of that time painted all costumes from those of their own day, yet, as the fashions did not change so rapidly then as now, we may fairly imagine that we see the heroes and worthies of Froissart paraded before us in the very dresses which they wore; their glittering and complicated plate armour, their embroidered surcoats, emblazoned banners, and all the gorgeous paraphernalia of chivalry. In these pictures we see them at their tournaments, exhibiting their well-trained horsemanship, their strength and skill in arms,--in their wars we see them in the more earnest exercise of their reckless valour; we see their vast engines of warfare which preceded cannon; and the first rude cannon of wood hooped with iron--we see also their frail ships, in which, without fear, the daring spirits of those times trusted themselves recklessly to the treacherous ocean. We see the burghers in their towns, and the lords in their castles; we see them in the intimacy of their domestic life and habits; we see the very patterns of the hangings of their rooms, and every minute incident of their household arrangements, their banquets and their festivals, represented by an artist of no mean skill; and when we consider that these illuminations were executed before Raphael was born, we cannot (with all their faults of perspective) but be astonished at their beauty and life-like accuracy, and frequently at the fine arrangement of drapery, and beautiful distribution of colour.