stituted, which,it, might, at the^ious sensation.

furtherance ofintroduced themetimes called,

will hereafterny churches oflickry, in which:clesiastics, whofter another." 30his subject, he)iritual masque-31 M. Barante,idverting to then Philip le Bonthese were notu people beingto the following

in the church-ng particularlyaded all ranksy, the principal. de VilleneuveIford celebrated; centre of theer has recorded

his own words:cession qu'on vitdanse Macabreemquel presidoitnn sceptre dans; resplendissantissant, melangealors, et qui ne; moins que desschappes a tousLdre tous leurs

Carpentier, Suppld. ii. 364.

The Dance of Death. 13

parens, tous leurs amis, dans ces sepulcres qu'on depouil-loit alors de leurs ossemens." 33 A third French writer hasalso treated the Dance of Death as a spectacle exhibited inlike manner to the people of Paris. 34 M. Peignot, to whomthe reader is obliged for these historical notices in hisingenious researches on the present subject, very plausiblyconceives that their authors have entirely mistaken thesense of an old chronicle or journal under Charles VI. andVII. which he quotes in the following words :—" Item. L'an1424 fut faite la Danse Maratre (pour Macabre) aux Inno-cens, et fut comencee environ le moys d'Aoust et acheveeau karesme suivant. En l'an 1429 le cordelier Richardpreschant aux Innocens estoit monte sur ung hault eschaf-faut qui estoit pres de toise et demie de hault, le dos tournevers les charniers encontre la charounerie, a l'endroit de ladanse Macabre." He observes, that the Dance of Deathat the Innocents, having been commenced in August andfinished at the ensuing Lent, could not possibly be repre-sented by living persons, but was only a painting, the largedimensions of which required six months to complete it;and that a single Death must, in the other case, have dancedwith every individual belonging to the scene. 35 He mighthave added, that such a proceeding would have been totallyat variance with the florid, but most inaccurate, descriptionby M. Bargemont. The reader will, therefore, most probablyfeel inclined to adopt the opinion of M. Peignot, that theDance of Death was not performed by living personsbetween 1424 and 1429.

But although M. Peignot may have triumphantly demon^strated that this subject was not exhibited by living personsat the above place and period, it by no means follows thatit was not so represented at some other time, and on someother spot. Accordingly, in the archives of the cathedralof Besancon, there is preserved an article respecting adelivery made to one of the officers of Saint John theEvangelist of four measures of wine, to be given to thosepersons who performed the Dance of Death after mass

33 Hist, de Rene d'Anjou, torn. i. p. 54.

34 Dulaure, Hist. Physique, &c. de Paris, 1821, torn. ii. p. 552.

35 Recherches sur les Danses des Morts, Pijon et Pa>-'$, 1826, 8vQ.<X xxxiv. et seq.