On the second flyleaf of manuscript O [Bibliothèque Nationale de France, fr. 12583], there is a miniature illustrating branch XVII of the Roman de Renart: ‘The death and procession of Renart’. At the threshold of this manuscript, opening the Renardian text, the miniature is surprising: offset, it refers to a branch other than ‘The judgment of Renart’ which immediately follows it; deceptive at the same time as ironic, it announces to the reader the end of the fox who nevertheless returns once again from death: finally emblematic, metonymic and metaphorical of the Renardian text, the illumination is read and interpreted as a reading pact and affirms the immortality of the hero. The text of the Roman de Renart has become an image, a condensed representation decorated with gold leaf, but this image is itself a subtle and profound discourse on the text. - [Abstract]

Language: French

DOI: 10.1075/rein.15.03bar