During the tenth century a large number of illuminated manuscripts were executed in the southern parts of England, the miniatures in which are very unlike and, as decoration, very inferior to the manuscripts of the Anglo-Carolingian style, as represented by the magnificent _Benedictional_ of Aethelwold. This class of illumination consists of drawings, often with a large number of small figures, executed with a pen in red, blue and brown outline. The drawing of these figures is very mannered, the heads are small, the attitudes awkward, and the draperies are represented in numerous small, fluttering folds, drawn with an apparently shaky line, as if the artist had lacked firmness of hand. This, however, is a mere mannerism, as wherever he wished for a steady line, as, for example, in the drawing of the faces, the artist has drawn with the utmost decision and firmness of touch. The costumes of these curious outline drawings, the architectural accessories and other details, all show clearly the influence of the very debased forms of classical Roman art, which still survived among the manuscript illuminations of Italy[90]. This degraded form of classical art was far from being a good model for the Anglo-Saxon illuminator to imitate, and the blue and red outline miniatures are very inferior to the sumptuous Anglo-Carolingian manuscripts which were being produced at Winchester by contemporary illuminators.
_MSS. of the XIIth century._ _Roll of St Guthlac._ _Beauty of line._
In the eleventh century Anglo-Saxon miniatures in coloured outline improved greatly in beauty of form and in gracefulness of pose; till at the beginning of the twelfth century extremely fine miniatures of this class were produced. A very beautiful example of this is a long vellum roll illuminated with eighteen circular miniatures, mostly drawn with a pen in dark brown ink. These outline miniatures represent scenes from the life of Saint Guthlac, the Hermit of Crowland. The series begins with a drawing of the youthful Guthlac receiving the tonsure from Hedda, Bishop of Winchester (676 to 705), in the presence of the Abbess Ebba and two nuns. The whole composition is very skilfully arranged to fill the circular medallion, and there is great dignity and even delicate beauty in the separate figures. The precision of touch shown in the drawing is most admirable, recalling the perfect purity of line seen in the finest vase-paintings of the Greeks, in which, as in these miniatures, the greatest amount of effect is produced with the fewest possible touches. A few flat washes are introduced into the backgrounds, but all the principal part of the miniatures is executed with this pure outline.