Edward Norgate, aristocratic friend of Charles I and the Earl of Arundel, made his mark in seventeenth-century England as musician, herald, and courtier. He also wrote Miniatura, a widely circulated study of miniature painting in his era that serves today as both a guide to materials and techniques and a record of the artistic knowledge and taste of Charles' court. This new edition of Norgate's treatise, the first since 1919, introduces and fully annotates the text from technical and art historical perspectives, firmly establishing the prime importance of Norgate's work. The book provides a detailed account of Norgate's life and many interests, his readership, and his technique. The editors-a noted scholar of seventeenth-century art and an authority on the techniques and materials of miniature painting-closely examine Norgate's text and compare it with other contemporary treatises, placing his techniques in the context of the period. The treatise itself, first written in 1627-28 and then substantially revised in 1648, sets forth in great detail the methods of English miniaturists, from the composition and preparation of pigments and brushes to lighting in the studio. Norgate acknowledges indebtedness to Hilliard, comments on other artists' styles and techniques, and reveals through his own views the English aristocracy's interest in and assimilation of European artistic culture. Published for the Paul Mellon Center for Studies in British Art

'To proceed & beginne wth ye Coullers, Whitt ffor its Virgin puritie is the most Excellent To proceed and begin with the colours: white for its virgin purity is the most excellent, viz. ceruse and white lead; both are subject to inconveniences, and are thus prevented: the ceruse, after you have wrought it, will tarnish, and many times look of a reddish or yellowish shine; the white lead, if too much ground, wiull glister or shine, and if you grind it too coarse will be unfit to work, and so unserviceable. There is but one way to remedy, which is to lay them in the sun two or three days before you grind them, which will exhale and draw away those salt and greasy mixtures that starve and poison the colours. ' Treatise on the Arte of Limning is one of the most important documents in the history of English art. Published in paperback for the first time, this edition provides a transcript of the original manuscript copy facing a modernised version, extensively annotated. The substantial introduction explores the history of the Treatise, the life of its author, its historical and artistic context, and the technique of limning.The Treatise combines elegance, information, personal forthrightness and spirited observation.