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  JUST PUBLISHED.

  LAURENT DE LARA'S

  SHAKSPERIAN PROVERBS, FROM HIS PLAYS.

  Quarto Imperial, price 1s. 6d. Plain; 3s. Partly.

       1. ALL THE WORLD'S A STAGE.
       2. RICH GIFTS WAX POOR.
       3. SUSPICION ALWAYS HAUNTS.
       4. FAST BIND, FAST FIND.
       5. SWEET ARE THE USES OF ADVERSITY.
       6. THERE IS NO VICE SO SIMPLE.
       7. VIRTUE ITSELF TURNS VICE.
       8. COME WHAT, COME MAY, TIME.
       9. O IT IS EXCELLENT TO HAVE A GIANT'S STRENGTH.
      10. THERE'S A DIVINITY THAT SHAPES OUR ENDS.
      11. ONE TOUCH OF NATURE MAKES THE WHOLE WORLD KIN.
      12. LIFE'S BUT A WALKING SHADOW.


  3. SHAKSPERE "IN MEMORIAM," with Vignette Portrait.
        2_s._ and 3_s._ 6_d._

  4. THE CHRISTIAN MARTYR. "Be thou faithful," &c. With Photograph,
        2_s._ plain; 3_s._ 6_d._ partly.


  CROSSES.

     1. NO CROSS, NO CROWN, &C. Imperial 4to, 14½ by 10½,
        1_s._ 6_d._ plain; 3_s._ partly.

     2. TAKE UP THY CROSS AND FOLLOW ME. 18 by 7½,
        1_s._ 6_d._ plain; 3_s._ partly.




  ILLUMINATED WORKS

  PUBLISHED BY MESSRS. LONGMAN, GREEN & CO.


  The Parables of Our Lord.

     A Selection of the most striking Parables from the four
     Gospels, richly illuminated on every Page by HENRY NOEL
     HUMPHREYS. In rich binding, in high relief, imitative of carved
     ebony, 21_s._

  The Miracles of Our Lord.

     Being a Selection from the Miracles of our Saviour, richly
     illuminated with appropriate borders of original design
     on every page, and 6 illuminated miniatures by HENRY NOEL
     HUMPHREYS. In a carved binding of appropriate design, 21_s._

  Maxims and Precepts of the Saviour.

     A Selection of the most striking Aphorisms and Moral Precepts
     of the Saviour, richly ornamented with decorative borders of
     appropriate design by HENRY NOEL HUMPHREYS, founded on the
     passage, "Behold the lilies of the field," &c. In an ornamental
     cover of novel character, after the Style of the famous "Opus
     Anglicum" of the 9th and 10th centuries. 21_s._

  Sermon on the Mount.

     Gospel of St. Matthew, illuminated by F. LEPELLE DE
     BOIS-GALLAIS. Printed on plates of Silver with Landscape,
     illustrative Vignettes, and illuminated borders. Square 18mo,
     bound, 21_s._

  The Book of Ruth,

     from the Holy Scriptures. Enriched with  borders. The
     illuminations arranged and executed under the direction of H.
     NOEL HUMPHREYS. In embossed leather cover, square fcap. 8vo.,
     21_s._

  The Good Shunammite.

     From the Scriptures--2 Kings, chap. IV. vv. 8 to 37. Square
     fcap. 8vo. With Six original designs, and an ornamental border
     to each page, printed in Colours and Gold. In carved binding,
     21_s._

  Sentiments and Similes of Shakspeare.

     Illuminated by H. N. HUMPHREYS. New Edition, square 8vo, in
     massive carved binding, 21_s._


  LONDON: LONGMAN, GREEN, LONGMAN, ROBERTS & GREEN.




  THE
  Albert Lithographic Printing Office,
  _Established to promote Female Employment_,

  168, GREAT PORTLAND STREET, OXFORD STREET,
  LONDON, W.


    E. FULLER & CO.,
    ARE PREPARED TO EXECUTE
    Every description of Chromo-Lithography,

    ALSO

    COPPER-PLATE & LETTER-PRESS PRINTING,
    WITH PROMPTNESS AND DESPATCH,

    At Twenty per Cent. lower than any other House.


    1000 CIRCULARS ON GOOD PAPER FOR 21s.


    Lithographic Fac-simile Circulars, and all kinds
    of Commercial Printing

    EXECUTED FOR THE TRADE ON LIBERAL TERMS.


    _The artistic Branch of Lithography wholly carried out by Females._




  ELEMENTARY INSTRUCTION

  IN

  The Art of Illuminating and Missal
  Painting on Vellum,

  A GUIDE TO MODERN ILLUMINATORS.

  _With Illustrations in Outline as Copies for the Student._

  BY D. LAURENT DE LARA,
  (_Illuminating Artist to the Queen.)_

  Seventh Edition,

  WITH CONSIDERABLE ENLARGEMENTS AND ADDITIONS.

    "Ingenuas didicisse fideliter artes
    Emollit mores, nec sinit esse feros."

  LONDON:
  LONGMAN, GREEN, LONGMAN, ROBERTS, AND GREEN,
  PATERNOSTER ROW.
  AND ALL BOOKSELLERS.

  _Price Three Shillings._

  _The Author reserves the right of translation to himself._




  LONDON:
  PRINTED BY J. WERTHEIMER AND CO.,
  CIRCUS PLACE, FINSBURY CIRCUS.




DEDICATED BY KIND PERMISSION TO THE LADY HARRIET ASHLY.


  MADAM,

Irrespective of the honor your Ladyship confers on me, by allowing
the privilege of associating your name with this edition, a nobler
motive which actuated your generous sanction, viz., "the high
interest you feel in the revival of an obsolete but noble art," and
of which you are at once its zealous Patroness, and its more than
accomplished votary, are claims on my gratitude, which words scarcely
can express, even in the hackneyed terms the humble sometimes venture
to address to rank!--Appreciating, therefore, deeply the distinction
you thus confer on one of your fellow-labourers in art,

  Allow me,
  MADAM,
  To remain with profound respect,
  Your Ladyship's devoted
  and obliged servant,
  D. LAURENT DE LARA.


3, Torrington Square, October, 1863.




CONTENTS.


                                                        PAGE.

  PREFACE                                                   7

  PREFACE TO THE SIXTH EDITION                              9

  INTRODUCTION                                             11

  On Illumination                                          17

  General Rules                                            25

  On Colours:--Ultramarine Blue--Vermilion--Emerald
    Green--Cobalt Blue--Purple--Orange Chrome--Chrome
    Yellow--Carmine, plain and burnt--Hooker's
    Green--Burnt Sienna--Lamp Black--Middle
    Tints--Enamel White--Platina and Silver--Green
    or Yellow Gold--The Agate                              30

  On the Arrangement of Colours                            47

  On Composition                                           52

  On Preparing the Vellum                                  59

  On Tracing and Transferring                              61

  On Raised Gold Ornamentations                            64

  Conclusion                                               67

  On Outlines                                              78

  List of Colours                                          82

  Plates                                                   83

  Appendix                                                 83




PREFACE TO THE SEVENTH EDITION.


Two years sufficed to exhaust the sixth edition (the first shilling
one) of my "Elementary Instruction on Illuminating," in opposition,
too, of a rival author; who was, however, more fortunate--for he was
enabled to _illuminate_ the world, with seven consecutive editions
in as many months, and left the world for two years after in as much
darkness as ever.--Far from envying him this inordinate success,
I rest secure on my laurels, humble though they be.--Ten years
were needed to bring forth my seventh edition, and here it is--as
unpretending as ever--but fully understood, and understandable--no
new theories erudite in print and bad in practice--no old ones,
filched from musty manuscripts, alike impracticable as complicated,
and displayed with learning and research, to bolster up repute and
attach importance to very questionable utility; wholly unimportant to
those who seek information. I address the _few_ and the few only,
who will take practical hints, from a practical man, clothed in the
plainest English. I do not trade on other men's brains, but endeavour
to live by my own. Those who encourage the empiric in art must buy
experience, and be contented with their shillings worth.(?) I have
added only some additional matter on colours and composition, as
applied to illumination, which I hope the public may find useful--in
other respects the seventh edition is like its predecessors--a
claimant to public favour.

    D. L.




PREFACE TO THE SIXTH EDITION.


The steady revival of the "Art of Illuminating" during the last
few years, and the rapid progress it has made amongst the educated
classes, even since the fifth edition of this work was published
in 1859 (all the copies of which are now sold), has induced me to
re-publish it, under the present less expensive form, in order to
keep pace with the many publications which, under the names of
"Manuals," "Primers," "Treatises," "Guides," and "Instruction Books,"
have lately been forced on the public notice, each pretending to
give the desired information to the followers of this beautiful art,
with more or less display of talent; but all tending towards the
cultivation of a highly interesting pursuit, and proving that the
nineteenth century may in future history be distinguished as having
produced a "style" of its own, and identifying it with the happy
and peaceful reign of "Victoria," under whose mild rule, arts and
civilization are so eminently flourishing. The perusal, however, of
these various publications has confirmed me in the conviction, that,
for the purposes of instruction, the plan originally carried out by
me was best fitted to achieve the object in view, my aim being to
_instruct in_, and not to _lecture on_ the art. I have, therefore,
studiously divested the present publication of technicalities, or of
any attempt to display learned research, in the origin or progress
of the art, which, to the uninitiated, would not be instructive,
and could only prove "caviare to the general." My long professional
experience as a practical artist, has induced me to clothe, in the
plainest language, the information I wished to convey; and, in common
English, endeavour to speak to the understanding of my readers. If,
therefore, the present volume prove continuously useful, as it has
hitherto been, my readers will absolve me from blame or egotism, in
thus adhering to my original plan; my care having been not to fall
into the error of my contemporary imitators. All I have ventured to
add, is such information as my continued practical experience has
enabled me to collect, and I cheerfully communicate it to my readers.


  3, Torrington Square, October, 1860.




INTRODUCTION.


The beautiful "Art of Illuminating," which sprang up with the early
dawn of Christianity, and attained its highest perfection in the
fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, owes its total extinction to
that powerful instrument of modern civilisation, the Printing Press.
Whether it be the phlegmatic Dutch Coster, or the German Necromancer,
Guttenberg, who was the first inventor of "moveable type," I know
not; but it is quite certain that the "printing process" struck a
fatal and decisive blow to "illuminated painting," the relics of
which at present are carefully hoarded up in our Museums and Public
Libraries, and are at once the living and imperishable oracles of
the bygone ages of romance and chivalry, and form the glorious
monuments of the known and unknown artists who created them! It is
equally true, as well as curious, that to another mode of printing
(chromo-lithography) the present century is indebted for the partial
revival of this beautiful art, since the many publications from the
lithographic press have engendered a corresponding taste with the
public for its cultivation, which is daily increasing. That taste
is now so manifest, and so general amongst the higher and middle
classes, that it can no longer be considered as a mere "fashionable"
pursuit, subject to the capricious ebb and flow of the tide of
fashion, and again to be doomed to pass into oblivion. I believe a
healthier motive is apparent in its cultivators; and the desire of
re-instating it to the rank it once held amongst its sister arts
is not unmixed with the holier emotions which a genuine religious
feeling, arising from the daily contemplation of the divine truths
of Holy Writ (as exhibited in the study of our finest missals), is
capable of producing. In this respect, it presents itself to the
devout mind of the novice as a labour of love, for the glorious
poetry of the Bible offers such a singularly fertile source, to which
the imagination and pencil may look for artistic inspiration.

The seductiveness of the art, too, on which the meanest capacity can
employ itself, is another incentive, which will cause many to venture
on so pleasing an occupation. The interesting question then arises:
What probable results are likely to follow from this general revival
of an obsolete art? My answer is, "That modern civilisation will
adapt it to our modern wants, and will gradually lay the foundation
of forming a _new school_, identical with the nineteenth century."
To attain this end, _conscientious_ artists only can pave the road;
_they_ have it in their power to direct and guide the masses, and the
public is sure to go with them.

The ILLUMINATING ART UNION OF LONDON, in its annual expositions,
invites artists to exhibit their productions, by which others less
gifted may be incited to follow their example. True Genius, however
exalted, does not feel itself above instructing others, as long as
through the medium of its productions the very best interests of the
art are likely to be promoted. Gradually, these productions will
develop new ideas, new resources, and features of originality, in
addition to the improvements which modern civilisation and modern
appliances necessarily suggest. Already three prizes have been
awarded for original designs of the "Beatitudes"; and, as a first
essay of a young Society, they are eminently creditable. The highest
in the land, and, perhaps, the humblest also, are its members and
supporters; and however the effort to increase its strength and its
popularity might have been thwarted, by the lukewarmness of those
professedly the most interested in the art, we owe it a debt of
profound gratitude, for the real good it has already achieved, and
cheerfully join our wishes for its welfare and success in what it
still hopes to accomplish.

A tendency to undermine the best interests of the art is, however,
insidiously at work to misguide the public taste. The hired pen
of the unprincipled and unskilful scribbler has been used by mere
traders, to advertise _their own materials_, and bring into notice
_worthless designs for illuminating_; the former without the
slightest regard to their adaptability for the purposes of "missal
painting," and the latter without the least pretence to artistic
merit. Unscrupulous authors have been found to dictate "rules"
for instruction, when, practically, they require _instruction_
themselves, judging from the ignorance they display in their own
pages. These very books, miscalled "Guides" and Outlines, facetiously
named "Useful Models," have received, in their turn, fulsome praise
in the pages of those, whose talents (to their shame be it written)
as illuminators are unquestionable, and whose commendations, though
valuable (?) in a _trading sense_, are sadly detrimental to the
interests of those who seek for information and instruction.

It is, however, to be hoped that a discriminating public, whose
taste in _Missal Painting and Illuminating_ has become considerably
enlightened and developed of late years, by the daily contemplation
of, and familiarity with, the works of our greatest masters,
(owing to the great liberality displayed by the trustees of the
British Museum, in throwing open, without reserve, for daily
inspection, the glowing vellums contained in its various collections,
together with the publication of such immortal works as the "Hours of
Anna Brittanny" published in Paris, etc., etc.) will be enabled to
discern the _useful_ from the worthless, and separate the _gold_ from
the _dross_.




ON ILLUMINATION.


The necessity for an "Elementary Instruction Book," to acquire the
art of illuminating on vellum, for the use of those who are desirous
of practising this beautiful and graceful accomplishment, has long
since become imperative; particularly since, to my own knowledge,
several handbooks have made their appearance, professedly with the
object of affording instruction to the many amateur artists, who
eagerly seek for such information in the first one that is presented
to them by the bookseller; and it often happens, that such books, by
their high sounding titles, deceive both the vendor and purchaser.
The subsequent disappointment to the latter may be easily imagined,
when, instead of the "instruction" anxiously looked for, he finds
an elaborate treatise "_cut short_" on the plea "_of the necessary
limits of the little work_," etc;