Resumo de The Lady And The Unicorn

Tracy Chevalier weaves a story behind a set of tapestries that hang in the Musee National du Moyen-Age in Paris.

In Paris, the artist, Nicolas des Innocents is commissioned by the nobleman Jean Le Viste to design a set of tapestries to be hung in Le Viste's dining room. In Le Viste's house, he meets a maid whom he has seduced and made pregnant. Nicolas des Innocents seduces his women by telling them the story of the Unicorn. He meets Claude, Le Viste's eldest daughter, and seduces her. He also meets Genevieve de Nanterre, Le Viste's wife, who was the one who chose Nicolas to design the tapestries, because he can capture the spiritual nature of ladies. Genevieve tells Nicolas to design the tapestries depicting the seduction of the Unicorn by a Lady.

After Nicolas has drawn the designs, he shows them to Le Viste. The first shows a lady putting on jewels. This lady is drawn in the image of Genevieve. The second is a lady feeding a parakeet. This tapestry represents Taste, and the lady is Claude. Next comes a lady playing an organ, depicting Sound, and a lady making a crown of flowers, depicting Smell. In the next tapestry, the seduction of the Unicorn is complete and it is lying in the lady's lap, looking in a mirror, depicting Sight. The last tapestry shows the lady leading the Unicorn away by the horn, depicting Touch. Le Viste is satisfied, and Nicolas sets off to Brussels to hand the designs over to the weaver Georges de la Chapelle.

In Brussels, Nicolas seduces Georges' blind daughter, Alienor. Nicolas helps the cartoonist Philippe to paint the cartoons and Georges and his son start to weave the tapestries.

Nicolas meanwhile returns to Paris, and attempts a secret meeting with Claude. Genevieve hears of it and sends Claude off to a convent, and sends Nicolas back to Brussels with the message that Georges has to complete the tapestries much sooner.

Unable to conquer Claude in Paris, Nicolas conquers Alienor in Brussels and makes her pregnant. Georges is unable to finish the tapestries on time without extra help and his wife Christine helps with the weaving against the rules. When Alienor's pregnancy is known, Philippe, the cartoonist, offers to marry her. Nicolas changes the cartoons, making the blind Alienor the lady in Sight and Christine the lady in Touch.

Finally the tapestries are finished on time and the Le Viste's hold a celebration. Claude's engagement is announced to a nobleman. Genevieve marries Claude's lady-in-waiting to Nicolas.

The novel is a great historical portrayal of the lives of the artistic and noble communities in that time. It tells a captivating story behind the tapestries that makes us want to see the tapestries for ourselbes.

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