Enter RICHARD aloft, between two Bishops
MAYOR: See where his grace stands, ‘tween two clergymen.
BUCKINGHAM: Two props of virtue for a Christian prince,
To stay him from the fall of vanity.
And see, a book of prayer in his hand,
True ornaments to know a holy man —
Famous Plantagenet, most gracious prince,
Lend favourable ear to our requests,
And pardon us the interruption
Of thy devotion and right Christian zeal.
(from King Richard III)
- here the book of prayer is an emblem of being religiously inclined, hence this portrays whoever holding it as a model of religiousness - however the dramatic irony is that Richard is holding the book of prayer...