The Bancroft version of Christine de Pizan’s Les Epistres sur le Roman de la Rose has almost no decoration and contains no illumination. There are no fancy borders, paintings, nor is there coloring with bright colors (also known as illumination). However, some of the rubricated headings contain clearly demarcated initials. Initials are “an enlarged and decorated letter introducing an important section of the text” (Brown, 1994, 73). For example, the third quire begins with the “C” in the word Comme enlarged, as a way to indicate the beginning of this new epistle.
The relative austerity of Les Epistres sur le Roman de la Rose comes in stark contrast to the manuscript of Roman de la Rose, which Pizan’s work is critiquing. Most versions of this thirteen-century manuscript contain intricate borders and illuminations. There are many reasons why Les Epistres sur le Roman de la Rose might lack decorations, such as: it was a less important text and illumination is not only costly, but also time consuming (and Christine de Pizan’s circumstances encouraged the prompt, rather than prolonged release of her works). Yet the relative austerity of this manuscript also showed that Christine de Pizan could tackle her opponent without decorations, paintings, and illumination. Her text and her words were enough to rival to misogynistic view espoused in Roman de la Rose.
The relative austerity of Les Epistres sur le Roman de la Rose comes in stark contrast to the manuscript of Roman de la Rose, which Pizan’s work is critiquing. Most versions of this thirteen-century manuscript contain intricate borders and illuminations. There are many reasons why Les Epistres sur le Roman de la Rose might lack decorations, such as: it was a less important text and illumination is not only costly, but also time consuming (and Christine de Pizan’s circumstances encouraged the prompt, rather than prolonged release of her works). Yet the relative austerity of this manuscript also showed that Christine de Pizan could tackle her opponent without decorations, paintings, and illumination. Her text and her words were enough to rival to misogynistic view espoused in Roman de la Rose.
This intricately decorated page from Christine de Pizan's most popular work Book of the City of Ladies. It contrast with the austere pages of Les Epistres Sur Roman de la Rose
