within the new wall and no longer part
of the defences of Paris, was handed over to Raymond of the Temple,
Charles' "beloved mason," to transform into a sumptuous palace with
apartments for himself and his queen, the princes of the blood and the
officers of the royal household. The rooms were decorated with
sculpture by Jean de St. Romain, _tailleur d'ymages_ and other carvers
in stone, and with paintings, by Jean d'Orleans. Each suite was
furnished with a private chapel, those of the king and queen being
carved with much "art and patience." A gallery was built for the
minstrels and players of instruments. A great garden was planted
towards the Rue St. Honore on the north and the old wall of Philip
Augustus on the east, in which were an "Hotel des Lions," or
collection of wild beasts, and a tennis court, where the king and
princes played. The palace accounts still exist, with details of
payments for "wine for the stone-cutters which the king our lord gave
them when he came to view the works." Jean Callow and Geoffrey le
Febre were paid for planting squares of strawberries, hyssop, sage,
lavender, balsam, violets, and for making paths, weeding and carrying
away stones and filth; others were paid for planting bulbs of lilies,
double red roses and other good herbs. Twenty francs were paid to
Gobin d'Ays, "who guards our nightingales of our chastel of the
Louvre." The first royal library was founded by Charles, and Peter the
Cage-maker was employed to protect the library windows of stained
glass from birds--it overlooked the falconry--and other beasts, by
trellises of wire. In order that scholars might work there at all
hours, thirty small chandeliers were provided and a silver lamp was
suspended from the vaulting. Solemn masters at _grants gages_ were
employed to translate the most notable books[87] from Latin into
French; scribes and bookbinders of the university were exempted from
the watch. An interesting payment of six francs in gold, made to
Jacqueline, widow of a mason "because she is poor and helpless and her
husband met his death in working for the king at the Louvre,"
demonstrates that royal custom had anticipated modern legislation.
[Footnote 87: This priceless collection of books, which at length
filled three rooms, was appropriated for a nominal sum by the Duke of
Bedford during the English occupation in Paris and sent to England. A
few, barely fifty, have survived, of which the greater number have
been acqu
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