Completion of

King Rene's
"Book of Love"

Folio 55 was the last of the illuminated folio paintings.

There remains seventy two Folio Pages of the total 127 pages
in Rene's original manuscript in which he unravels the
fate of Cueur's heart. The following is the surprising completion of Rene's narrative. These folio pages of paintings, script, and calligraphy are approximately twenty six inches wide. The intricate calligraphy at the bottom of this page is typical of that which Rene uses throughout his works.

As the story continues,
~~~~ The next morning the companions reembark for the rest of the voyage until, late that evening, they reach the Island of Love, There in moonlight, they behold Love's marvelous castle: nearby is the Hospital d'Amours. The visitors are welcomed kindly by Compassion ( Pitie ), the hospital's prioress, who shows them around the spacious building. It's sickrooms are occupied by all the famed lovers of history ( as well as their own day ), such as Paris, Theseus, Hercules, Caesar, Augustus, Nero, Tristan, Lancelot, Charles of Orleans, Gaston Foix, Charles VII of France, and a certain Rene' of Anjou, a close acquaintance of Cueur's. In a garden behind the hospital is Love's cemetary, holding the graves of the great poets of love, Ovid, Petrarch, Boccaccio, and many more.

The next day the guests are received at the Chateau of Pleasure
( Chateau de Plaisance ) by the young God of Love, Amour, and his mother, Venus. All the beauties of the castle, which resembles Rene's Castle Saumur, are described in great detail, including ten tapestries in the great hall, eight tapestries in the Venus's bedchamber, and the deer park with it's exotic beasts and creatues of fable. Cueur receives permission from the God of Love to release Sweet Grace from her confinement in the fortress of resistance ( Manoir de Rebellion ). Cueur and his companions manage to enter the fortress without resorting to violence. The last-ditch resistance of Denial is overcome by generosity, who tosses him two purses filled with gold. Sweet Grace, meanwhile, has been apprised of Cueur's impending arrival by compassion and Welcome, and gracefully accepts his homage. But it is only after Shame and Fear have been driven away that Cueur manages to coax the first kiss from his lady's lips.

Accompanied by desire, Modest Plea, and Compassion, he then sets out with Sweet Grace for the Chateau of Pleasure. But on the way they are ambushed by all the enemies of Love. Desire is killed, Cueur gravely wounded, Sweet Grace recaptured. Compassion then takes Cueur into her charge. She comforts him as best she can, but she has to warn him that he must think no more of Sweet Grace, doomed to remain forever in the power of Denial. Cueur allows Compassion to take him to the Hospital d'Amous, where he expects to end his days in prayer and silent remembrance.

This bittersweet love story is spun out most artfully and circumstantially by the author. The prose passages of the narrative are continually interspersed with long passages in verse, the thoughts and words of the characters, and inscriptions along the way, displaying the author's admirable learning in history and mythology, as well as his skill in the invention of allegorical figures. Dames Fantasy and Imagination, credited with the splendors of Love's castle, are Rene's best assistants. He not only had eyes receptive to the marvels of nature, but the gift of describing them most evocatively. His work celebrates the bright greens of the meadows and hills, the darker hues of the forests, the twittering of the birds in the trees, and above all, the light in all its infinte variations: the rising sun at dawn; the shimmering daylight over the landscape and the sea; the sinking of the evening sun; dusk; and the blackest night under the glittering stars.

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C. Preston Guice
cpguice@juno.com