Note 24 — Of Angels and Archangels.

I saw in the palace of the Bishop of Norwich an elegant little bas-relief in alabaster, exhibiting the nine choirs, each represented by a single angel. The first (the Seraphim) hold the sacramental cup; the Cherubim, a book; the Thrones, a throne; the Principalities, a bunch of lilies; the Archangels are armed. The other attributes are not clearly made out.

The figures have been ornamented with painting and gilding, now partially worn off, and the style is of the early part of the fifteenth century. It appeared to me to have formed one of the compartments of an altar-piece.