Take this cabinet, for example, as a statement of wealth, it's the 18th-century equivalent of a Ferrari in your drive. And these decorations are made from pietra dura. In Italian, that means "hard stone". It's one of George's favourites. And it's exactly that. Brightly-coloured stones carefully crafted into three-dimensional fruit so ripe and juicy, you can almost taste them. And the story behind it is even more fascinating. It once belonged to a famous French opera singer, Marie-Josephine Laguerre. She must have been a great beauty, because she had an unending stream of wealthy lovers, and she would ask for, and get, the most fabulous presents. She died at the age of 28. She had indulged in every excess. She was no doubt exhausted.


比如，这个柜子，作为财富的象征，就好比是18世纪的法拉利。这些装饰是用pietra dura制作的，意大利语的意思是“硬石”。这是乔治最喜欢的装饰之一，就是这个。色彩鲜明的石头，被小心翼翼地镶嵌成立体的水果，成熟多汁的样子，几乎可以品尝，这背后的故事也和引人入胜。这个柜子曾经属于法国一位著名的戏剧歌唱家，玛丽-约瑟芬·拉盖尔。她一定是一位落落大方的美人，因为她得到了一位富翁缠绵的爱。她可以要求得到最好的礼物，去世时年仅28岁。她生前放纵的生活已经耗尽了她的精力。