The Lady and the Unicorn. Tracy Chevalier

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      ‘A battle?’

      ‘Yes. The Battle of Nancy.’

      I kept my face thoughtful. I even smiled a little. But in truth I knew little of battles, and nothing of this one at Nancy, of who had been there, who had been killed and who had won. I’d seen paintings of battles but never done one myself. Horses, I thought. I would need to paint at least twenty horses to cover these walls, tangled with men’s arms and legs and armour. I wondered then what had made Jean Le Viste – or Léon, more likely – choose me for this work. My reputation at the Court is as a miniaturist, painter of tiny portraits of ladies that they give men to carry. Praised for their delicacy, the miniatures are much in demand. I paint shields and ladies’ carriage doors for drink money, but my true skill is in making a face the size of my thumb, using a few boar bristles and colour mixed with egg white. It needs a steady hand, and that I have, even after a long night of drinking at Le Coq d’Or. But the thought of painting twenty huge horses – I began to sweat, though the room was chilly.

      ‘You are sure that you want the Battle of Nancy, Monseigneur,’ I said. It was not quite a question.

      Jean Le Viste frowned. ‘Why would I not be sure?’

      ‘No reason, Monseigneur,’ I answered quickly. ‘But they will be important works and you must be sure you have chosen what you want.’ I cursed myself for my clumsy words.

      Jean Le Viste snorted. ‘I always know what I want. I wonder at you, though – you don’t seem so keen on this work. Perhaps I should find another artist who is happier to do it.’

      I bowed low again. ‘Oh no, Monseigneur, of course I am most honoured and grateful to be asked to design such a glorious work. I am sure I am not worthy of your kindness in thinking of me. You may have no fear that I’ll put my heart and blood into these tapestries.’

      Jean Le Viste nodded, as if such grovelling were his due. ‘I’ll leave you here with Léon to discuss details and to measure the walls,’ he said as he turned to go. ‘I will expect to see preliminary drawings just before Easter – by Maundy Thursday, with paintings by the Ascension.’

      When we were alone Léon Le Vieux chuckled. ‘What a fool you are.’

      With Léon it’s best to come straight to the point and ignore his gibes. ‘My fee is ten livres tournois – four now, three when I finish the drawings, and three when the paintings are done.’

      ‘Four livres parisis,’ he responded quickly. ‘Half when you finish the drawings, the rest when you deliver the paintings and they’re to Monseigneur’s satisfaction.’

      ‘Absolutely not. I can’t work with no pay at the start. And my terms are in livres tournois.’ It was just like Léon to try to confuse me by using Paris livres.

      Léon shrugged, his eyes merry. ‘We are in Paris, n’est-ce pas? Shouldn’t we use livres parisis? That is what I prefer.’

      ‘Eight livres tournois, with three now, then three and two.’

      ‘Seven. I will give you two tomorrow, then two and three at the end.’

      I changed the subject – it is always best to let the merchant wait a little. ‘Where will the tapestries be made?’

      ‘North. Probably Brussels. They do the best work there.’

      North? I shuddered. I once had business in Tournai and hated the flat light and suspicious people so much I vowed never to go north of Paris again. At least I wouldn’t have to do more than paint designs, and that I could do in Paris. Once they were done I would have no more to do with the making of the tapestries.

      ‘So, what do you know about the battle at Nancy?’ Léon asked.

      I shrugged. ‘What does it matter? All battles are the same, non?’

      ‘That’s like saying that all women are the same.’

      I smiled. ‘I repeat – all battles are the same.’

      Léon shook his head. ‘I pity your wife one day. Now tell me, what will you have in your tapestries?’

      ‘Horses, men in armour, standards, pikes, swords, shields, blood.’

      ‘What will Louis XI be wearing?’

      ‘Armour, of course. Perhaps a special plume in his helmet. I don’t know, in truth, but I know people who can tell me that sort of thing. Someone will carry the royal standard, I expect.’

      ‘I hope your friends are cleverer than you and will tell you that Louis XI was not at the Battle of Nancy.’

      ‘Oh.’ This was Léon Le Vieux’s way – to make a fool of all around him, excepting his patron. You did not make a fool of Jean Le Viste.

      ‘Bon.’ Léon took out some papers from his pocket and laid them on the table. ‘I’ve already discussed the contents of the tapestries with Monseigneur and done some measuring. You’ll need to do them more precisely, of course. Here.’ He pointed to six rectangles he had roughly sketched. ‘There’s space for two long ones here and here, and four smaller. Here is the sequence of the battle.’ He explained the battle carefully, suggesting scenes for each of the tapestries – the grouping of the two camps, the initial strike, two scenes of battle chaos, then the death of Charles the Bold and the triumphant procession of the victors. Though I listened and made sketches of my own on the paper, part of me stood apart and wondered at what I was agreeing to do. There would be no women in these tapestries, nothing miniature and delicate, nothing that would be easy for me to paint. I would earn my fee with sweat and long hours.

      ‘Once you’ve made the paintings,’ Léon reminded me, ‘your work is done. I’ll take them north to the weaver, and his cartoonist will enlarge them to use for the weaving.’

      I should have been pleased that I wouldn’t have to paint the horses large. Instead, however, I became protective of my work. ‘How do I know that this cartoonist is a proper artist? I don’t want him making a mess of my designs.’

      ‘He won’t change what Jean Le Viste has decided on – only changes that will help the design and making of the tapestries. You haven’t done many tapestries, have you, Nicolas? Only a coat of arms, I believe.’

      ‘Which I scaled up myself – I had no need of a cartoonist. Surely I’m capable of doing so on this commission.’

      ‘These tapestries are a very different matter from a coat of arms. They will need a proper cartoonist. Tiens, there’s one thing I forgot to mention. You’ll need to be sure there are Le Viste coats of arms throughout the tapestries. Monseigneur will insist on that.’

      ‘Did Monseigneur actually fight there?’

      Léon laughed. ‘Undoubtedly Jean Le Viste was on the other side of France during the Battle of Nancy, working for the King. That doesn’t matter – just put his coat of arms on flags and shields that others carry. You may want to see some pictures of that battle and others. Go to Gérard the printer on the rue Vieille du Temple – he has a book he can show you of engravings of the Battle of Nancy. I’ll tell him to expect you. Now, I’ll leave you to your measurements. If you have problems, come and see me. And bring the drawings СКАЧАТЬ