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Gilded Tortoise

This object was owned by Montesquiou and represents the burden of the weight of decadence. It appears not only in Montesquiou's collection, but was also featured in the Huysmans' novel based upon him.

A Rebours

This novel by Joris-Karl Huysmans centers on an eccentric, reclusive, ailing aesthete. This character was presumably based on Montesquiou.

The Red Coat

This object featured heavily throughout the narrative refers to a painting by John Singer Sargent.

Madame X

This painting by John Singer Sargent is visited in the narrative in discussing scandal around the painting. Its subject fled Paris while the scandal died down.

The Picture of Dorian Gray

This novel by Oscar Wilde is referenced frequently in the book. It was also brought up in a number of Wilde's trials.

London

This setting in the novel is juxtaposed against the homes of the three central figures as the author...

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