Gold, Golder, Versailles

Madame de Pompadour excelled at an art which the majority of human beings thoroughly despise because it is unprofitable and ephemeral:
 the art of living.

Few human beings since the world began can have owned so many beautiful things.

Versailles presented a cheerful spectacle of several thousand people living for pleasure and very much enjoying themselves.

..a life without worries and without remorse, of a perfectly serene laziness of the spirit, of perpetual youth, of happy days out of doors and happy evenings chatting and gambling in the great wonderful palace..

If ever a house radiated cheerfulness, that house is Versailles.

The four main pastimes were love, gambling, hunting and the official entertainments.

Love was played like a game, or like a comedy.

..enormous fortunes were won and lost.. They could not help loving anything that made them laugh.

Who leaves the table loses the game.

Quotes from "Madame de Pompadour " by Nancy Mitford