Seventeenth Century (Flemish)
rooms fitted up in the old style with original furniture.
The kitchen represented in Plate XXXII is equipped
with all the pots and pans dear to the heart of the Dutch
housewife. The hearth, ovens and shelves are furnished
with all the, implements and utensils necessary for good
housekeeping : cauldrons; spits, churns, plate-warmers,
kettles, bellows, waffle-irons, ,etc., are all there. A
Frisian clock hangs on the tiled wall, and the cupboards
contain everything necessary for cooking and cleaning.
The library of the Pitsembourg was well stored with
religious works. The chapel, a beautiful edifice built in
1228 and dedicated to St. Elizabeth of Hungary, con-
tained some fine carvings, two crucifixes, one of silver
and one of copper, organs, carved statues, silver chande-
liers,' and exceptionally rich vestments, altar-cloths and
Flemish lace.
It will be noticed that all the principal rooms in this
establishment were hung with leather, or " leather
tapestry " in accordance with the taste of the age.
The leather hangings of the seventeenth century are
even more brilliant than those of the past ; and on the
bright background of scarlet, blue, sea-green, gold or
silver, a wealth of ornamentation appears—animals,
birds, flowers, fruits, mascarons and other favourite
devices of the time. Leather hangings are always
present in wealthy homes of Holland. An excellent
example is shown in the picture of The Young Scholar
and his Sister by Coques (Cocx), now in the Cassel Gallery.
The room, which is richly furnished, is hung with blue
and gold leather. This picture was painted in the
seventeenth century/

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