. A treatise offering descriptions or allegorical interpretations of precious and semiprecious stones. Medieval French lapidaries fall into two categories: those, deriving ultimately from pagan tradition, which describe the appearance, formation, and properties of stones, and those of the Christian tradition, which include allegorical interpretation. Both traditions are represented by texts in prose and verse. A third type, describing the powers of stones engraved with figures, usually astrological, is much less common.
French lapidaries of the first type are based on a Latin text traditionally attributed to Marbode, who became bishop of Rennes in 1096; some posit as their source a treatise compiled by a King Evax of Arabia. Lapidaries in this tradition list up to sixty stones. The oldest surviving version dates from the early 12th century, making it one of the earliest examples of French translation from the Latin. The entry for each stone includes not only a physical description but also an account of its special properties. Of the sapphire, for example, we are told that it is blue, that it is very precious, and that the best specimens come from Africa; it protects those who carry it from bodily harm or imprisonment, it can cure various ailments, and it is much used by necromancers. The magical and curative properties of stones are an important aspect of lapidary tradition, which teaches that God placed special powers in words, herbs, and stones.
The Marbode tradition is also represented, though less directly, in a prose lapidary of the mid-14th century, falsely attributed to Jean de Mandeville. This text is the only medieval French lapidary to be printed in the 15th and 16th centuries. Lapidary material additionally appears in encyclopedias, such as Jean Corbechon’s Livre des propriétés des choses (1372), a translation of the De proprietatibus rerum of Barthélémy l’Anglais.
The allegorical lapidaries represent a different tradition. Though sometimes drawing on the Marbode tradition, they also rely on biblical exegesis and patristic writings. Lapidaries of this type are limited to stones mentioned in the Bible or in the writings of the church fathers. A common pattern is to focus on the twelve stones figuring in the breastplate of Aaron (Exodus 28:17–20). The stones and precious materials appearing in the walls of the Heavenly Jerusalem (Revelation 21:18–21) are another important source. The earliest French allegorical lapidary is a verse text of the early 13th century. A prose version dating from the 14th century is dedicated to an unspecified King Philip, probably Philip VI.
The allegorical lapidaries describe the appearance and properties of stones but add to that an explanation of each stone’s religious significance. Topaz, for example, is said to be yellow, to come from Arabia and the Orient, and to change its appearance according to the phases of the moon; it cures various ailments and protects the chastity of those who carry it. In addition, we learn that it signifies the ninth order of angels and the celestial kingdom; kings should gaze upon it in order to remind themselves that spiritual glory far outweighs the honor and glory of this world.
Lapidary lore also appears in literary texts. The most celebrated stones in medieval French literature are the crystals in Guillaume de Lorris’s Roman de la Rose; the same text also describes the powers of precious stones worn by Richesse, the personification of wealth. In Nicole de Margival’s Dit de la panthère d’amours, the presentation of a gold ring set with an emerald occasions a description of the properties of gold, emerald, and diamond, which become allegories for aspects of the love relationship. Thus, while no “lapidary of love” exists as counterpart to Richard de Fournival’s bestiary of love, lapidary material does appear in the love poetry of the French Middle Ages.
