Tea at Trianon: A Tiny Gold Book

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Friday, December 10, 2021

A Tiny Gold Book

From Artnet:

The book, possibly a bible or a book of hours, is engraved with Saints Leonard and Margaret, patron saints of childbirth, which has led experts to the conclusion that it may have been a gift to someone during pregnancy. Only nobles were allowed to carry gold during the 15th century, so the owner of this .2 ounce, 22- or 24-karat gold trinket is thought to be a relative of Richard III as it was found close to land he owned between 1483 and 1485. This has led to speculation that it could have belonged to his wife Anne Neville.
Experts are thrilled at the news of the discovery due to its value and uniqueness. Some are saying that the book might have the same maker as the Middleham Jewel, a sapphire and gold pendant, also with engravings linked to childbirth, that was also found by a metal detectorist. The jewel is also thought to have belonged to royalty or nobility and was discovered near Middleham Castle, the childhood home of Richard III near York. (Read more.)