82 COLUMBIAN HISTORICAL EXPOSITION AT MADRID. 



vious example, is a Cufic inscription stating that it was made in Cordova by the 

 order of Al-Hakam II, the Caliph of Spain, more celebrated for his studious habits 

 than for warlike achievements, who died in A. D. 976. The inscription states that 

 Al-Hakam ordered it for his son and gives the name of the maker (Riaiio, p. 12). 

 But for this inscription the style of the ornament would probably have led to the 

 casket being assigned to a later date. 



These two caskets are without any mixture of western motives in their decora 

 tion, and are of special interest in the history of art industries from the precision of 

 their date and country of manufacture. 



Among the altar caskets one of the most beautiful is a cylindrical ivory box from 

 the Cathedral of Saragossa. It is of Oriental work, the sides pierced with delicate 

 tracery, and with bands of Arabic inscriptions in relief round the edge. These 

 boxes, though by no means common, are well known, and two in the British Museum 

 have always been thought to be of Persian origin, and it is possible that the 

 example now in question may be also of Persian work. It has, however, an enrich 

 ment of bands of delicate filigree work, passing over and around it, which are cer 

 tainly Moorish and of the late fifteenth century. This is decided by their similarity 

 in style and work to the mounts of the sword of Boabdil belonging to the Marques 

 de Viane. In both specimens there are Arabic inscriptions outlined in thin wire 

 running over the surface, a peculiar method that seems to have been employed only 

 by the Moors, and about this period. At the Cathedral of Saragossa this is used to 

 contain a cylindrical pyx, which is also exhibited. The pyx is quite plain, of silver 

 gilt, but upon the flat cover is engraved and enameled a coat of arms surrounded 

 by an inscription. 



A painted ivory casket, of the style usually called in England Sicilian, is shown 

 by the Royal Academy of History. This bears upon it, many times repeated, the 

 arms of Aragon- Sicily, and is said to have belonged to the King Don Martin of 

 Aragon, who died A. D. 1410. The ornamental scrolls between the shields are of 

 unusual beauty and freedom, and a band of carved Cufic letters of an ornate char 

 acter gives it an Oriental aspect, which is but faintly seen in the other designs. 

 Though the painting is not in the best state of preservation, this box is a charming 

 specimen of the semi-moorish art of Sicily. 



The mudejar style, that is, the combination of Moorish or Saracenic and Christian 

 art, is perhaps even better shown in a pair of wooden doors Avith gilt bronze fittings 

 from the Cathedral of Seville. The paneling of these might be from a Cairene 

 mosque, so purely Saracenic are their designs, while their borders are composed of 

 Biblical texts in well-carved black letter, and the bronze fittings are in accord Avith 

 the ornament. The purity of the two styles is the remarkable feature of these 

 doors, each keeping unmixed its own peculiar characteristics and yet remaining in 

 perfect harmony. The A 7 ery early and interesting &quot;Arquilla de los Reyes,&quot; the 

 reliquary of King Alfonso III (el Magno) and his Queen Xirnena, should properly 

 have been mentioned earlier, but that its style and Avork are quite foreign to the 

 Moorish taste. Alfonso the Great reigned as King of the Asturias and Leon from 

 866 to 910 A. D., and the shrine is therefore interesting as an authentic monument 

 of a period of which few remains exist, though it can scarcely be said to have high 

 claims as a Avork of art. It is of the usual oblong form with pyramidal lid, and 

 nearly covered with silver plates embossed and otherwise ornamented. Upon the 

 lid is the inscription &quot; Aldefonsvs Rex -f- Scemena Regina,&quot; Avith a figure of the 

 Agnus Dei between the two names. Upon the sloping sides are embossed the sym 

 bols of the Evangelists, Lucas and Johaii being upon the front slope (the eagle very 

 like a doA r e), and the angel of St. Matthew on the left, with the word &quot; Angelvs&quot; in 

 place of the name of the Evangelist. On the slope at the back is a cartouche or 

 frame of the last century, with the names of the Saints Diodorus and Deodatus* 

 whose relics Avere doubtless contained in the shrine. The front is in two stages, 

 each consisting of six round-headed arches formed of cloisons, some of which still 



