It's not just people and places that make up a story.
Certain objects also have huge importance.
In A Lady's Honour, the hero, Joachim de Montailhac, is an energetic young man, in charge of running his father's estate. Always busy with an outdoor life, his choice of ornaments is
simple. However, he treasures this jade stickpin, given to him by his oldest brother,
Henri. At one point in the story, this item takes on a huge importance.
His father, the Marquis de Fontanes, is heavily involved in
local affairs as well as the political life of the
south-west of France. Much of his time is spent writing letters, too secret even to be
entrusted to his secretary. Of course, he has a desk writing set, with ink, pens, wafers and
a sand shaker [to dry the ink].
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Joachim fiddles absentmindedly with these little pots, revealing his inner turmoil to his father.
The
Marquise de Fontanes is an elegant Turkish lady, always
immaculately dressed. Her favourite accessory is her fan - well, over the years
she has collected a large number of them, so there is always one to match her
dress. When Nell wants to
bring a gift for the marquise, the only problem is what type of fan to choose. She
selects a simple but charming one, made of mother of pearl and lace.
Of course, the ladies in the story possess some jewels. The marquise has a fine collection and by the end of the story Nell inherits some valuable items. Enough for a separate post, especially as the wicked lady of the tale also has a fabulous collection of gems.
