''At the Sign of the Reine Pédauque'' () is a

historical novel Historical fiction is a literary genre in which a fictional plot takes place in the setting of particular real historical events. Although the term is commonly used as a synonym for historical fiction literature, it can also be applied to oth ...

Anatole France (; born ; 16 April 1844 – 12 October 1924) was a French poet, journalist, and novelist with several best-sellers. Ironic and skeptical, he was considered in his day the ideal French man of letters.Comte de Gabalis ''Comte de Gabalis'' is a 17th-century French text by Abbé Nicolas-Pierre-Henri de Montfaucon de Villars (1635–1673). The titular "Comte de Gabalis" ("Count of Cabala") is an esotericist who explains the mysteries of the world to the author. I ...

''.

Summary

Jacques Ménétrier is the son of Léonard Ménétrier, leader of a brotherhood of roast meat sellers. Somewhat educated by Brother Ange, a dissolute Capuchin, Jacques replaces the dog Miraut in his job of turning the spit on which the chickens roast. He is soon taken under the protection of Mr. Jérôme Coignard, an abbot, who rebaptizes him "the learned Jacobus Tournebroche" and teaches him

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

and

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

. The two of them are hired by Mr. d'Astarac, an

alchemist Alchemy (from the Arabic word , ) is an ancient branch of natural philosophy, a philosophical and protoscientific tradition that was historically practised in China, India, the Muslim world, and Europe. In its Western form, alchemy is first ...

researching

salamanders Salamanders are a group of amphibians typically characterized by their lizard-like appearance, with slender bodies, blunt snouts, short limbs projecting at right angles to the body, and the presence of a tail in both larvae and adults. All t ...

and

sylph A sylph (also called sylphid) is an air spirit stemming from the 16th-century works of Paracelsus, who describes sylphs as (invisible) beings of the air, his elementals of air. A significant number of subsequent literary and occult works have be ...

s in the works of ancient authors. The rants of d'Astarac, the debauchery of Mr. d'Anquetil, and the vengeance of the uncle of the beautiful Jahel result in the happiness destined for the master and student, Jérôme and Jacques.

Adaptations

Composer Charles-Gaston Levadé adapted the novel into a four-act lyric comic opera in 1934. Tenor Jean Marny of the

Opéra-Comique The Opéra-Comique () is a Paris opera company which was founded around 1714 by some of the popular Théâtre de la foire, theatres of the Parisian fairs. In 1762 the company was merged with – and for a time took the name of – its chief riva ...

recorded an aria from the work, "Rêverie de Jacques", on

Pathé Pathé SAS (; styled as PATHÉ!) is a French major film production and distribution company, owning a number of cinema chains through its subsidiary Pathé Cinémas and television networks across Europe. It is the name of a network of Fren ...

sapphire disc 3175. ''Traktér u královny Pedauky'' (1967) is a Czechoslovak television film directed by Zdeněk Kaloč, starring Josef Karlík, Leopold Franc, Libuše Geprtová and

Václav Postránecký Václav Postránecký (8 September 1943 – 7 May 2019) was a Czech actor, director, theater teacher and dubber. Selected filmography Film * '' At the Sign of the Reine Pédauque'' (1967) * '' I Enjoy the World with You'' (1982) * '' Černí b ...

. Running time 84 min.

References

External links

* * 1893 French novels Novels by Anatole France French historical novels Novels about alchemy French novels adapted into operas {{1890s-novel-stub