Mr. Dubris's home was very different from the judge's residence Arthur had seen before.
Whether in London or Paris, the residences of judges typically shone with an old-world luxury, so much so that the residences themselves could qualify as antiques.
Everywhere were crystal chandeliers carved into leaf shapes, Damascus fabrics, silk produced in southern China, Ottoman and Persian-style carpets, gilded furniture, and everything attended by servants dressed in old-style livery.
Although the tableware they used might not shine as the furniture did, and indeed most people's tableware appeared somewhat unsightly, to those in the know, this was also a sign of status. Only the long-established family silverware could exude such a dark luster.
