brought quite a bevy of workmen into Ireland about 440: some were
smiths, Mac Cecht, Laebhan, and Fontchan, who were turned at once
upon making of bells, while some other skilled artificers, Fairill
and Tassach, made patens and chalices. St. Bridget, too, had a
famous goldsmith in her train, one Bishop Coula.

The pectoral cross of St. Cuthbert of Lindisfarne is now to be seen
in Durham. It was buried with the saint, and was discovered with
his body. The four arms are of equal length, and not very heavy in
proportion. It is of gold, made in the seventh century, and is set
with garnets, a very large one in the centre, one somewhat smaller
at the ends of the arms, where the lines widen considerably, and
with smaller ones continuously between.

Among the many jewels which decorated the shrine of Thomas à Becket
at Canterbury was a stone "with an angell of gold poynting thereunto,"
which was a gift from the King of France, who had had it "made
into a ring and wore it on his thumb." Other stones described as
being on this shrine were sumptuous, the whole being damascened
with gold wire, and "in the midst of the gold, rings; or cameos
of sculptured agates, carnelians, and onyx stones." A visitor to
Canterbury in 1500 writes: "Everything is left far behind by a
ruby not larger than a man's thumb nail, which is set to the right
of the altar. The church is rather dark, and when we went to see
it the sun was nearly gone down, and the weather was cloudy, yet
we saw the ruby as well as if it had been in my hand. They say
it was a gift of the King of France."

Possessions of one kind were often converted into another, according
to changing fashions. Philippa of Lancaster had a gold collar made