Fire screen ca. 1736-40 Probably carved by Ferdinand Hundt Fire screens have been used since the Middle Ages to shield those standing or seated near a fireplace from the excessive heat of the open flames and from flying sparks. Toward the end of the seventeenth century, screens of rectangular shape with a large central panel of colorful fabric or other boldly contrasting material were developed to conceal the dark opening beneath the mantel that otherwise would interrupt the ornamental dado and paneled decoration of the room.1 The materials used for the frame of these screens ranged from wrought iron or copper to carved wood or even silver, and the panel was often decorated with scenes from the forge of Vulcan, the Roman god of fire.2 Especially vulnerable to changing fashions and fire damage, exuberantly carved screens such as the present example have only rarely survived. The purpose of the Museum's screen is suggested by its decoration. At the top, two snake-dragons that seem to