Simeon the Bookmaker
(1150-1209)
In the 13th century, Chartres was one of the most important and influential university cities of the north. It was a centre of stationery and bookmaking in France and home to Simeon the Jew.
Simeon is a master bookmaker. He has lived in Chartres since 1188, having left Jerusalem as the armies of Saladin approached. He is therefore in Chartres when the great fire destroys much of the city and the cathedral in 1194. He witnesses the rebuilding of the Cathedral and the design of the Labyrinth in the centre of the nave.
Simeon is also a member of the Noublesso de los Seres.
When a mysterious knight, Philippe de Saint-Mauré, is murdered in Chartres in 1194, Simeon finds himself under threat and flees south to Béziers, one of the largest cities within the dominions of Raymond-Roger Trencavel.
Simeon's friend, Bertrand Pelletier, is intendant - steward - in Trencavel's household and Trencavel relies strongly on Jews to run Béziers, his second seat of power. When Pope Innocent III preaches a Crusade against the heretics of the south and preparations for war gather pace, life becomes more perilous.
At the beginning of Labyrinth, Simeon is nearly 60 years old – a very old man indeed by medieval standards – and waiting only for a chance to fulfil his vows to protect the Labyrinth parchments with his life.
