or Escorial, a monastery and royal palace in Spain, 25 miles N.W. of Madrid, in a country of which the surface is covered with rocks, and where there is little shelter from the winds, which makes this elevated place very cold in the winter months. It was dedicated to St Lawrence by Philip II. on occasion of his having gained the battle of St Quentin, in 1557, on the day sacred to that saint. It is whimsically built in the form of the gridiron on which that saint is said to have been broiled alive. The work was begun by Juan Bautista de Toledo in 1563, and completed by his pupil Juan de Herrera in 1584.

The cross-bars of the gridiron are represented by ranges of buildings separated by intervening courts, and which were formerly inhabited by monks and ecclesiastics; but after the sequestration of the convents these buildings were allowed to fall into a dilapidated state, and though some- thing has been done towards repairing them, they are still unattended.

The main portion of the building is 740 Spanish feet long, and 580 in breadth. The projection which forms the royal palace is 460 feet in length. The height of the edifice is about sixty feet, and at each angle is a square tower 200 feet high. It is one of the largest, and perhaps one of the most tasteless, buildings in Europe, though grand from its size.

The church, in the centre of this enormous mass of stone, is very large, rich, and of a species of architecture calculated to inspire the mind with awe on entering it. The high altar is most profusely adorned with marbles, agates, and jaspers, and the gold and silver furniture are of the most costly kind. The cupola which covers this church is the most correct object in the whole of the vast pile. The Pantheon, a repository beneath this church, is the place of interment for the royal family, whose remains are deposited in tombs of marble placed in niches, one above another. The richest part of this edifice, however, was that which contained the valuable pictures to be seen in almost every part of it, and which altogether formed the best collection of the productions of the first masters that any place in Europe displayed. We speak of what it was; for the French, when in possession of the Escorial, removed many of its best treasures, which included the finest productions of Rubens, Titian, Spagnoletto, Raffaello, Baroccio, Velasquez, Murillo, and others. The most valuable treasures of the Escorial, however, are the immense collection of ancient manuscripts preserved in the library, especially those of the Arabian writers. An account of these will be found under the head Libraries.

There are some good statues, busts, and medallions in the Escorial. The statue of St Lawrence, the patron, is excellent, and said to be an antique; but some of the best of the Spanish artists have averred that the head was from an ancient statue of Bacchus, and the body of more modern workmanship, but nearly approaching in execution to the original portion. These kinds of treasures were, however, less valued by the monks than the autographs and relics of several of the saints, which are preserved here, and exhibited with great veneration.

As this place has been chiefly occupied by the royal family for the sake of the sports of the field, it has been generally inhabited during the autumn and winter months, when, from its exposed situation, it is a most uncomfortable residence. A town has been built near the monastery; but it has never flourished, and has only about 1300 inhabitants.

**ESUTCHEON**, or **SCUTCHEON** (Fr. escusson; Lat. scutum), the shield on which a coat of arms is emblazoned. Most nations, even from the remotest antiquity, have distinguished their shields by certain devices painted on them; and to be able to display these was a mark of distinction permitted only to such as had performed some honourable action. See Heraldry.