The old English versions of the Gesta Romanorum: edited for the first time from manuscripts in the British Museum and University Library, Cambridge, with an introduction and notes / By Sir Frederic Madden. Printed for the Roxburghe Club.
- Date:
- 1838
Licence: Public Domain Mark
Credit: The old English versions of the Gesta Romanorum: edited for the first time from manuscripts in the British Museum and University Library, Cambridge, with an introduction and notes / By Sir Frederic Madden. Printed for the Roxburghe Club. Source: Wellcome Collection.
32/544 (page 24)
![telle; and hongyd it vp on a perche in hire chainbir, and at euery tyme that she lokid on the serke, she wepte fulle sore. The lordis of the lond, seying howe the empire was wonne, to hire they come, and wolde have i-hadde hire to wife. Thenne whenne she had enteryd the chambir, and sawe the blody serke, she seide with a lamentabille voys, “ Allas ! that I shold take ony husbond, after the lord that daide for me, and wan myne heritage!” And so she answerid to alle that come to hire for that erende, and fayre endid hire lyfe, &c. Moralite. Deere frendis, this Emperour is the Fadir of Hevyn. The only dou3ter, that is so faire and so fresh, is the soule of man, that is made to his owne likenesse, to whom God hathe 3evin and bequethon his empire, that is to sey. Paradise. But thenne comithe an erle, scil. the Deville, and excityth hire to synne, as whenne he saide, Q.ua- cumque hora inde comederitis, eritis sicat Dii, this is to sey. In what houre that 3e etyne of this frute, 3e shulle be as Goddis. And so, for brekinge of the commaundement of God, we were alle y-put out of the heritage of Paradise into the kyngdome of the wordle, and that in gret wrecchidnesse, as scripture shewithe. In sudore vultus tui &c. But thenne comithe a wele faire kny3te and a strong, scil. that is to sey, our Lord Jhesu Crist, the whiche hadde compassione of mankynde; and he drowe matrimony with vs, that is to say, whan that he tooke our kynde, and haylde batail a3enst the Deville, and gate our heritage. And therfore, seris, late vs do as dude the dame- selle, late us [honge the] serke, scil. afresh mynde, vp one the perche of our herte, scil. to sey howe that our Lord Jhesu Criste shadde his bloode for vs ; and thenne if ony, scil. the Deville, or the fleshe, or eny other stery vs to synne, lat vs renne swiftely to the tho3t of the passione of Crist, and sey, that we wolle haue none other but him](https://iiif.wellcomecollection.org/image/b22007118_0032.jp2/full/800%2C/0/default.jpg)
