Mandeville's travels : the Cotton version / from the edition by Paul Hamelius.

Chapter XI

JERUSALEM AND THE SEPULCHRE

OF THE PILGRIMAGES IN IERUSALEM & OF THE HOLY PLACES ÞERABOWTE.

AFTER for to speke of Ierusalem the holy cytee ȝee schuƚƚ vndirstonde þat it stont full faire betwene hilles & [folio 34a] þere ben no ryueres ne welles but water cometh be condyte from Ebron. And ȝee schuƚƚ vnderstonde þat Ierusalem of olde tyme vnto the tyme of Melchisedecℏ was cleped Iebus,descriptionOpen page And after it was clept Salem vnto the tyme of kyng Dauid þat putte theise .ij. names togidere & cleped it Iebusalem And after þat kyng Salomon cleped it Ierosolomye And after þat men cleped it Ierusalem & so it is cleped ȝit. And aboute Ierusalem is the kyngdom of Surrye And þere besyde is the lond of Palestyne And besyde it is Ascolone And besyde þat is the lond of Maritame. But Ierusalem is in the lond of Iudee, And it is clept Iude for þat Iudas Machabeus was kyng of þat contree And it marcheth Estward to the kyngdom of Arabye, on the south syde to the lond of Egipt & on the west syde to the grete see, On the north syde toward the kyngdom of Surrye & to the see of Cypre. In Ierusalem was wont to be a Patriark & Erchebysschoppes & Bisschoppes abouten in the contree. Abowten IerusalemdescriptionOpen page ben þeise cytees: Ebron at .vij. myle, Ierico at .vj. myle, Bersabee at .viij myle, Ascalon at .xvij. myle, Iaff at .xvj. myle, Ramatha at .iij. myle And Betℏƚeem at .ij. myle. And a .ij. myle from Betℏƚeem toward the south is the chirche of seynt karitotdescriptionOpen page þat was Abbot þere For

whom þei maden meche doel amonges the monkes whan he scholde dye & ȝit þei ben in moornyngedescriptionOpen page [folio 34b] in the wise þat þei maden here lamentacioun for him the firste tyme & it is fuƚƚ gret pytee to beholde. This contree & lond of Ierusalem hath ben in many dyuerse naciounes hondes And often þerfore hath the contree suffred meche tribulacioun for the synne of the poeple þat duellen þere. For þat contree hath ben in the hondes of aƚƚ nacyouns þat is to seyne of Iewes, of Chananees, Assiryenes, Perses, Medoynes, Macedoynes, of Grekes, Romaynes, of Cristenemen, of Sarrazines, Barbaryenes, Turkes, Tartaryenes & of manye otℏere dyuerse nacyouns. For god wole not þat it be longe in the hondes of traytoures ne of synneres be þei cristene or othere And now haue the hetℏene men holden þat lond in here hondes .xl. ȝeredescriptionOpen page & more, But þei schuƚƚ not holde it longe ȝif god wole. And ȝee schuƚƚ vndirstonde þat whan men comen to Ierusalem here first pilgrymage is to the chirche of the holy SepulcredescriptionOpen page where oure lord was buryed þat is withoute the cytee on the north syde But it is now enclosed in with the toun waƚƚ. And þere is a fuƚƚ fair chirche aƚƚ Rownd & open aboue & couered with leed And on the west syde is a fair tour & an high for belles strongly made And in the myddes of the chirche is a tabernacle as it were a lytyƚƚ hows made with a low lityƚƚ dore And þat tabernacle is made in manere of half a compas rigℏt curiousely & richely made of gold & azure & oþere riche coloures fuƚƚ nobelyche made And [folio 35a] in the rigℏt syde of þat tabernacle is the sepulcre of oure lord And the tabernacle is .viij. fote long & .v. fote wyde & .xj. fote in hegℏte. And it is not longe sitℏe the sepulcre was aƚƚ open þat men myghten kisse it & touche it. But for pilgrymes þat comen thider peyned hem to breke the stondescriptionOpen page in peces or in poudre þerfore the Soudan hatℏ do make a waƚƚ aboute the sepulcre þat noman may towche it. But in the left syde of the waƚƚ of the tabernacƚe is wel the heigℏte of a man is a gret ston to the quantytee of a mannes hed þat was of the holy sepulcre & þat ston

kissen the pilgrymes þat comen þider. In þat tabernacle ben no wyndowes but it is aƚƚ made ligℏt with lampes þat hangen before the sepulcre And þere is a lampe þat hongeth before the Sepulcre þat brenneth ligℏt & on the gode Fryday it goth out be himself and on þe Pasch day it lightez agayne by it selfdescriptionOpen pagedescriptionOpen page at þat hour þat oure lord roos fro detℏ to lyue. Also with in the chirche at the rigℏt syde besyde the queer of the chirche is the mount of Caluarye where oure lord was don on the cros And it is a roche of white colour and a lytiƚƚ medled with red And the cros was set in a morteysdescriptionOpen page in the same roche & on þat roche dropped the woundesdescriptionOpen page of oure lord whan he was pyned on the cross & þat is cleped Galgatℏa, And men gon vp to þat Golgatℏa be degrees. And in the place of þat morteys was Adames hed founden after Noes flode in tokene þat the synnes of Adam scholde ben [folio 35b] bought in þat same place And vpon þat roche made Abraham sacrifise to oure lord. And þere is an awtere And before þat awtier lyȝn Godefray de Boleyne & Bawdewyn̛ & oþere cristene kynges of Ierusalem. And þere nygℏ where oure lord was crucyfied is this writen in Greew: “OTHEOS BASILION YSMON PROSIONAS ERGASA SOTHIAS EMESOTIS GYS”.descriptionOpen page Þat is to seyne in latyn: “HIC DEUS NOSTER REX ANTE SECULA OPERATUS EST SALUTEM IN MEDIO TERRE”. Þat is to seye: this god oure kyng before the worldes hatℏ wrought hele in myddes of the ertℏe. And also on þat roche where the cros was sett is writen within the roche þeise wordes: “CYOS MYST YS BASIS TOUPISTEOS THEY THESMOFY”,descriptionOpen page þat is to seyne in latyn: “QUOD VIDES EST FUNDAMENTUM TOCIUS FIDEI MUNDI HUIUS”, þat is to seye: þat þou seest is ground of aƚƚ the worlddescriptionOpen page & of this feytℏ. And ȝee schuƚƚ vndirstonde þat whan oure lord was don vpon the cros he was .xxxiij. ȝer & .iij. monethes of elde And the prophecye of Dauid seyth þus: “QUADRAGINTA ANNIS PROXIMUS FUI GENERACIONI HUIC”, þat is to seye: Fourty ȝeer was I neigℏbore to this kynrede,

And þus scholde it seme þat the prophecyes ne were not trewe, But þei ben bothe trewe,descriptionOpen page For in old tyme men maden o ȝeer of .x. monethes, of the whicℏe Marcℏ was the firste & Decembre was the laste, But GayusdescriptionOpen page þat was Emperour of Rome putte þeise .ij. monethes þere to: Janyuer & Feuerer & ordeyned the ȝeer of .xij. monethes, [folio 36a] þat is to seye .ccclxv. dayes withoute lepe ȝeer after the propre cours of the sonne. And þerfore after cowntynge of .x. monetℏes of the ȝeer he dyede in the .xl. ȝeer, as the prophete seyde & after the ȝeer of .xij. monetℏes he was of age .xxxiij. ȝeer & .iij. monethes. Also within the mount of Caluarie on the right side is an awtere where the piler lyȝth þat oure lord Ihesu was bounden to whan he was scourged And þere besyde .iiij. fote ben .iiij. pileres of ston þat aƚƚweys droppen waterdescriptionOpen page & summen seyn þat þei wepen for oure lordes deth. And nygℏ þat awtier is a place vnder ertℏe .xlij. degrees of depnesse where the holy croys was foundendescriptionOpen page be the wytt of seynte Elyne vnder a roche where the Iewes had hidde it And þat was the verray croys assayed For þei founden .iij. crosses, on of oure lord & .ij. of the .ij. thefes And seynte Elyne preued hem on a ded body þat aros from deth to lyue whan þat it was leyd on it þat oure lord dyed on. And þereby in the waƚƚ is the place where the .iiij. nayles of oure lord weren hidd, For he had .ij. in his hondes & .ij. in his feet And of on of þeise the Emperour of Costantynople made a brydiƚƚdescriptionOpen page to his hors to bere him in bataylle & þorgh vertue þereof he ouercam his enemyes And wan aƚƚ the lond of Asye the lesse þat is to seye Turkye, Ermonye the lasse & the more And from Surrye to Ierusalem, From Arabye to Persie, from Mesopotayme to the kyngdom of Halappee, From Egypt the higℏe & the lowe & aƚƚ the oþere kyngdomes vnto [folio 36b] the depe of Ethiope & in to ynde the lesse þat þanne was cristene. And þere was in þat tyme many gode holy men & holy heremytes of whom the book of fadres lyfes speketℏ & þei ben now in paynemes & sarazines hondes, But whan god aƚƚ myghty

wole rigℏt als the londes weren lost þorgℏ synne of cristene men,descriptionOpen page so schuƚƚ þei ben wonnen aȝen be cristen men þorgℏ help of god. And in myddes of þat chirche is a compas in the whiche Ioseph of Aramathie leyde the body of oure lord whan he had taken him down of the croys & þere he wassched the woundes of oure lord And þat compas seye men is the myddes of the world.descriptionOpen page And in the chirche of the sepulchre on the north syde is the place where oure lord was put in prisoun, For he was in prisoun in many places. And þer is a partye of the cheyne þat he was bounden with And þere he appered first to Marie Magdaleyne whan he was rysen & sche wende þat he had ben a gardener. In the chirche of seynt Sepulcre was wont to ben Chanouns of the ordre of seynt Augustyn & hadden a Priour but the Patriark was here souereyn. And withoute the dores of the chirche on the right syde as men gon vpward .xviij. greces seyde oure lord to his moder: “MULIER ECCE FILIUS TUUS”, þat is to seye: Womman lo thi sone, And after þat he seyde to Joℏn his disciple: “ECCE MATER TUA”, þat is to seyne: lo behold thi moder And þeise wordes he seyde on the cros. And on þeise greces wente oure lord [folio 37a] whan he bare the cros on his schulder And vnder this grees is a chapeƚƚ & in þat chapeƚƚ syngen prestes yndyenesdescriptionOpen page þat is to seye prestes of ynde nogℏt after oure lawe but after here & aƚƚ wey þei maken here sacrement of the awtier of breed seyenge PATER NOSTER & oþere preyeres þerewith, With the whiche preyeres þei seye the wordes þat the sacrement is made of For þei ne knowe not the Addiciouns þat many popesdescriptionOpen page han made, but þei synge with gode deuocioun. And þere nere is the place where þat oure lord rested him whan he was wery for berynge of the cros. And ȝee schuƚƚ vnderstonde þat before the chirche of the Sepulcre is the cytee more feble þan in ony othere partie for the grete playn þat is betwene the chirche & the citee. And toward the Est syde withoute the walles of the cytee is the vale of

Iosaphath þat touchetℏ to the walles as þougℏ it were a large dycℏ, And abouen þat vale of Iosaphath, out of the cytee, is the chirche of Seynt Steuene where he was stoned to deth And þere beside is the gildene ȝate þat may not ben opened, be the whiche ȝate oure lord entrede on PALMESONDAY vpon an asse & the ȝate opened aȝenst him whan he wolde go vnto the temple And ȝit apperen the steppes of the asses feet in .iij. places of the degrees þat ben of fuƚƚ harde ston. And before the chirche of seynt Sepulcre toward the south a .cc. paas is the gret hospitaƚƚ of seynt Ioℏn of the whiche the Hospitaleres hadd [folio 37b] here foundacioun And withinne the palays of the sekemen of þat hospitaƚƚ ben .vj^xx. & .iiij. pileres of ston And in the walles of the hows withoute the nombre aboueseyd þere ben .liiij^ti. pileres þat beren vp the hows And fro þat hospitaƚƚ to go toward the Est is a fuƚƚ fayr chirche þat is clept nostre Dame la graund And þan is þere anotℏer chirche right nygℏ þat is clept nostre Dame de latyne. And þere weren Marie Cleophee & Marie Magdaleyne & teren here heer whan oure lord was peyned in the cros.descriptionOpen page