The Roman de la Rose of François I

Sorrow and Old Age, f. 9v


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The image describes the figure of "Tristesse" (Sorrow), caught in a strong gust of wind that causes her long wavy hair and the edges of her black dress to flutter. Her body bends in an "S" shape, and her head turns in the opposite direction to the right, showing a distressed and yellowish look due to the sorrow she has experienced.

Finally, the personification of "Vieillessse" (Old Age) is described, leaning on two crutches with a hunched back. Her face is wrinkled, and her red dress and white apron contrast with the dark figure of Tristesse.

The illustrator visually captures the emotions and characteristics described in the text, creating an allegorical image with significant details that reflect the nature of each figure.

 

NEXT was Old Age pictured there,
Now shrunken by a foot, I swear,
From the height she used to be;
So old and withered now was she
She could scarce feed herself at all,
Her beauty wasted and, in its fall,
A thing of ugliness she'd become,
Worn and lined, scarred and numb.
Her hair was now as white, I'd say,
As if it had been decked with may.
No great loss were it if she'd died,
Nor a great wrong, for age had dried

 

Her flesh, left her but skin and bone;
Now was her face that of the crone,
Wrinkled o'er and withered where
It had once shown smooth and fair.
Her ears were mossy; to her cost,
All her teeth were long time lost,
Such that not one tooth remained.
Of such great age she complained,
That without her stick she'd never
Totter twenty feet together.
Time that runs, by night and day,
Without a pause, without a stay;
Who quits us all so secretly,

 

 


Sorrow and Old Age, f. 9v

Back

Sorrow and Old Age, f. 9v

The image describes the figure of "Tristesse" (Sorrow), caught in a strong gust of wind that causes her long wavy hair and the edges of her black dress to flutter. Her body bends in an "S" shape, and her head turns in the opposite direction to the right, showing a distressed and yellowish look due to the sorrow she has experienced.

Finally, the personification of "Vieillessse" (Old Age) is described, leaning on two crutches with a hunched back. Her face is wrinkled, and her red dress and white apron contrast with the dark figure of Tristesse.

The illustrator visually captures the emotions and characteristics described in the text, creating an allegorical image with significant details that reflect the nature of each figure.

 

NEXT was Old Age pictured there,
Now shrunken by a foot, I swear,
From the height she used to be;
So old and withered now was she
She could scarce feed herself at all,
Her beauty wasted and, in its fall,
A thing of ugliness she'd become,
Worn and lined, scarred and numb.
Her hair was now as white, I'd say,
As if it had been decked with may.
No great loss were it if she'd died,
Nor a great wrong, for age had dried

 

Her flesh, left her but skin and bone;
Now was her face that of the crone,
Wrinkled o'er and withered where
It had once shown smooth and fair.
Her ears were mossy; to her cost,
All her teeth were long time lost,
Such that not one tooth remained.
Of such great age she complained,
That without her stick she'd never
Totter twenty feet together.
Time that runs, by night and day,
Without a pause, without a stay;
Who quits us all so secretly,

 

 


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