Page:Archaeological Journal, Volume 5.djvu/455

ARCHAEOLOGICAL INTELLIGENCE. 333 should be kneaded into the form of a ball, or as near the shape of the object to be copied, as may be convenient, and the surface should look smooth and glazed. I then press it firmly upon the face of the seal, lay a piece of brass or tin over it, place it under a screw press, and press it gradually. It does not require any great pressure, and for seals, say from one to three inches in diameter, I rather prefer a weight of a stone or iron to the press. As soon as the Percha is cool, it may be taken from the seal without difficulty, and I then have a perfect matrix. " When this matrix is perfectly cool, you may make as many seals from it as you please, using Percha in the manner just described, instead of sealing-wax, there being this peculiar property in the Percha, that when once cold the same substance warm will not adhere to it. I have in this way copied some hundreds of seals, with little or no damage ; of course occasionally small portions of wax will come off, but this is the result of a former fracture, and not of the present operation, and would happen equally if clay or plaster were used. I think the largest seals I have successfully copied, are the exchequer seals of Henry VIII. and Eliza- beth, as at present I find a difficulty in keeping the Percha sufficiently hot to copy large seals, without its being too much so when first applied. But medallions, or any objects not affected by heat, may be copied of almost any size. I should say that I have not at present ventured to copy any seals of that peculiar white and crumbling composition of which we find the earlier series formed. " I do not know that I have any thing further to add. I would merely remark that in all crafts it is necessary to form an apprenticeship, this rule is equally applicable to the workers in Gutta percha, and it is advis- able for the novice to begin upon objects of little value. Coins and medals afford excellent practice, they cannot be injured by the process, and in copying them many little details in the manipulation, the exact heat, the simplest way of kneading the Percha, and sundry other little matters may be learnt which it is impossible to detail, and which experi- ence only can teach. " 1 will only say that having been a collector of seals for some years, and having tried all the usual substances, sulphur, plaster, "wax, clay, and the electrotype, I hdve quite come to the conclusion that Gutta percha is superior to all, in every respect." We have received from Mr. Edward Smirke the following "Doubts on the supj^osed removal of the Porch of St. Stephen's, Bristol," in reference to a passage in the admirable Treatise, by Professor Willis, on Archi- tectural terms, published by the Cambridge Antiquarian Society. " The author of the ' Architectural Nomenclature of the middle ages,' in his very valuable and learned work, has noticed a section of the mould- ings of the north porch in the above church, which is extant in the ^IS. of William of Worcester. The MS. contains an enumeration of all the mould- ings, described as the operacio artifiosa pnrticds horealis, &-c. The porch, corresponding with the plan is now on the south side, and there is no porch VOL. V. XX