It is possible that these examples were convent-made. The cutting out of religious subjects and the extreme elaboration of their ornamental borders flourished, to a small extent, for some years after the printing press had destroyed the occupation of the monks in copying and illuminating manuscripts. A reproduction of one of these is now before us. It represents St. Benedict seated in the habit of a monk; a cross, skull, and other symbols are on the rocks at his side; the saint has a halo. A large tree is in the background, and birds and a squirrel are amongst the branches; two steps lead down to a sylvan scene, where the saint is seen walking away in the distance. Conventionalised roses, cornucopia, and floriated forms compose the wide border; this is all cut on the same piece of vellum, but there is no colour used. Another convent-made cut picture, which was exhibited at the Brünn Exhibition, shows a picture of the Baptism of Christ in the Jordan; it is signed “F. Agathaugdus, _Bonnensis Capuchin_.” In this picture, which is of paper, not vellum, the arms of a bishop appear, together with the inscription, “Johanni Ernesto, S.R.I., Principi Metropolitanæ Eccl., Salisbury.” An achievement of arms seems to have been a favourite subject for such pieces. A remarkable specimen in cut paper, mounted on looking-glass, is in the collection of Lady Dorothy Nevill. It displays the arms, supporters, and motto of Robert Walpole, Earl of Orford, the ancestor of Lady Dorothy. These examples are very difficult to find; it is probable that many have been destroyed. [Illustration: SILHOUETTE PORTRAITS OF MEMBERS OF THE ANSLEY FAMILY Painted in black and orange-red on convex glass. Dated 1793. Signed by W. Spornberg In the possession of Lady Sackville, Knole] Another example, in the possession of the author, shows a heraldic escutcheon, with wolf and hound supporter, etc. This lies between two sheets of glass. The minuteness of the cutting of this fine paper is extraordinary. A very fine specimen has a miniature of Charles I. In the centre an elaborate mount is cut out of thin paper; the whole is in a fine tortoiseshell frame of the period. This type of work is rare. Little mention is made of freehand paper or vellum cutting in the early written treatises, probably because, needing only talent for catching a likeness and skill in wielding the scissors, there was little to be said about it; so that the early writers on the black profile work turned their attention to the less gifted workers who needed their help with extraneous and complicated processes.