UNIVALVES, 133 
coloured on the surface. But such were extremely 
rare, as we learn from the observations of the Vener- 
able Bede, who notices the one at Rippon, as a kind 
of prodigy, before unheard of. The Gregorian Bible, 
presented by a monkish missionary, and his com- 
panions, to the first Christian church erected at 
Canterbury, was also of a similar description. It 
was written in red letters, with several splendid 
purple and rose-coloured leaves inserted in the 
beginning of each book. 
Thus are we indebted to the Moluscous inhabitant 
of the Murex, and Buccinum, for the imperishable 
dye which distinguished the vestments of the Roman 
Emperors, and for the brilliant decorations of our 
earliest manuscripts. 
