Polychronicon Ranulphi Higden maonachi Cestrensis; together with the English translations of John Trevisa and of an unknown writer of the fifteenth century.

Capitulum quartumdecimum.

MOYSES foure skore ȝere olde, wiþ his broþer Aaron foure skore ȝere olde and þre, spak to Pharao kyng of Egipt, for he schulde delyuere God Allemyȝty his peple and lete [So α. β., Cx.; hete, MS.] hem goo to [goo to] om. Cx., who has other slight variations.] doo sacrifice to God. But Pharao was harde and faste in his malice, [malys, α.] and wolde nouȝt lete goo þe peple. And Egipte

was i-smyte wiþ ten grete wreches. [wreeches and pynysshmentes, Cx.] Augustinus, libro 18^o. Þat tyme þat God took wreche in Egipte, som of þe Egip|cians dradde leste Egipte schulde be lost for euere more, and fleyȝe [fley, α.; sentence varied in Cx.] into oþer londes. And so oon Cecrops seillede in to Grees, and bulde þe citee Athen, þat heet afterward Athene. [Athenes, Cx.] Loke more of Athen in þe firste book, capitulo Grecia, scilicet Alladia. [So MS. for Helladia, the bar|barous form in the Latin text.] Noþeles Corinthus þe firste heet Epira, and was i-bulde fyue ȝere to fore Athen. [Sentence varied in Cx.] Petrus, libro 2^o. Þere were meny wreches in Egipt wiþ oute þe ten grete wreches. Þerfore some dayes in þe kalender beeþ i-cleped dayes of Egipt, [for þilke dayes fil wreches in Egipt.] [Added from α. β. and Cx.] Of þe whiche dayes we setteþ in þe kalender but in eueriche monthe tweyne in mynde of þe wreches þat God took of Egipt. [in Egipt, Cx., and so below.] Neuerþeles þere were meny moo wreches i-take of Egipt. Hit is nouȝt to trowynge, [to be demed ne trowed, Cx.] þey þe Egipcians were konnynge in knowleche of sterres and planetes, þat þei founde þat þese dayes beeþ peri|lous and forbode in þe bygynnynge of werkes and of weyes and in blood letynge. Þanne whanne Moyses was foure skore ȝere olde, he ladde the folk of [Israel out of] [Added from α. and Cx.] Egipt þe same day of þe ȝere þat Iacob and his children entrede in to Egipt. Whan Israel wente out of Egipte þe mone was fiftene dayes olde, and was foure hondred ȝere and þritty after þat Abraham wente out of Charran, [Carram, MSS.] þat was in Mesopotamia, [Mesopotanea, MSS. and Cx.] in þe lond of

byheste. Whanne Israel wente out of Egipt, aboute sixe [an sixe, α. β.] hon|dred [þowsand] [Added from Cx.] men bare [hy (i.e. they) bar, γ., which is better.] wiþ hem Ioseph his bones and his enleuene breþeren bones, that beeþ i-cleped patriarkes, and buried hem in Sychem, so seiþ Ierom. Israel toke wiþ hem mele and floure i-spronge wiþ oyle, and vsed þat þritty dayes. A pyler of a cloude wente to fore Israel, and ladde hem by day; and a pyler of fuyre by nyȝte. Whanne Israel wente out of Egipt, þe Reede See openede and lete hem passe, and drenche [drenched, α., Cx.] alle þe Egipcians þat took þe same weye in þe openynge of þis [the, α., Cx.] see forto pursewe. Iosephus. Þe openynge of þis see schal not ben vntrowed, for me redeth þat þe see Pamphylicum openede to fore kyng Alexander Macedo and also to fore his oost whan he pursewed Darius. Petrus, libro 2^o. Þe water of þis see is nouȝt rede of kynde, but is i-dyȝed [dyed, α.] of reed clyues and erthe þat lieþ þere aboute. Þerfore also þere beeþ i-founde reed precious stoones, and þere is i-founde scharpe fermyloun. [vermyloun, α.] Þis see is i-deled atweyne; þat oon is cleped þe see Persicus and [þat oþer] [Added from Cx.; but absent from MS., α. β. γ.] þe see Arabicus. Isidorus, libro 2^o. [Johannes, libro tercio, Cx. The true reference is to Joseph. Ant. Jud. iii. l.] Þritty dayes after þat Israel wente out of Egipt, hem faillede corn; [they faylled corne, Cx.] and oure Lorde ȝaf hem corlewes and [and] om. α.] manna and water of

þe stone in Oreb. Ȝit þat place is i-watered wiþ reyn, as God ȝaf water þat tyme by Moyses hond. [Þre monthes] [Added from α. β. γ. and Cx.] after þat [þat tyme, MS. (only).] Israel went out of Egipt, Moyses wente vp in to the hille, and fasted fourty dayes and fourty nyȝtes, and fenge þe lawe; and seuene monþes he made þe tabernacle [by ensample þat was i-schewed hym on þe hille; and so þe tabernacle] [Added from α. and Cx.] was arered þe firste day of Auerel in þe secounde ȝere of here out goynge of Egipt. From þis tyme to þe buldynge of the temple in Ierusalem is acounted foure hondred ȝere and foure skore. Also þis tyme, as some men telleþ, Io that womman wente from þe Argiues in to Egipt, and þere sche was i-cleped Isis, [So α.; Isus, MS.] and was i-wedded to Telegon, [Thelegon, MS.] and hadde a childe þat heet Epaphus. Petrus, libro 4^o, [capitulo 16^o.] [Added from α. and Cx.] After þe sec|ounde ȝere of þe out goynge of Egipte twelue spyes were i-sente to the londe of byheste, and come aȝen; and for grucchynge of þe peple and despeyre and wanhope þe chil|dren of Israel were forbode to goo forþere. Þerefore þey tornede aȝen in to wildernesse, and were þere i-punisched fourty ȝere; and noon of hem entrede into þe lond of byheste outake Caleph and Iosue.

Þis sixe ȝere after þe out goynge of Egipt Eriston bulde þe temple of Appolyn Delphicus. Also þat ȝere Cranaus þe secounde of Athenes bygan to reigne, and reigned nyne ȝere. His douȝter heet A[t]this; of hir Attica [Atthica, MSS.] þat lond haþ þat name. Looke to fore in þe firste book, capitulo Grecia, scilicet El[l]adia. Þat tyme þe Hebrewes feng lettres, and Grecia vynes. Also Lacedemon Semelis sone bulde Lacedemonia þat citee, and þe ferþe Ericthonius of Atthene reignede fifty ȝere olde, and þe [in þe MS. (not α.): Cx. has some omissions here.] nynþe St[h]enelus of the Argyues and Erict[h]o|nius [So α.; Erictorius, MS.] of Sciciones. Arcas [Archas, MSS.] kyng of þe Argyues, ȝaf his name to þat lond Arcadia, [Archadia, MSS.] and cleped it so after his owne name; but þat lond Arcadia heet raþer Scicionia. Egipt heet rather Aerea, and hadde þat name Egipt of oon Egiptus þat reigned þerynne. Danaus þe tenþe of Argyues reigned fifty ȝere. Orosius, libro primo. Danaus and Egiptus [Here and below MSS. and Cx. have Egistus.] were tweye breþeren; and Danaus by his fifty douȝters slowȝ Egiptes fifty sones in oon nyȝht, outake oon þat schulde reigne after hym. Danaus doere of meny euel dedes wente vp to þe Argyues, and by gile putte out St[h]enelus, þat hadde ofte i-saued hym whiles he was nedy

and outlawe, and reigned hym self. Me troweþ þat in þat tempest went out þat man þat heet Liber pater and heet Dio|nysus [Dyonisius, MSS.] [Bacchus] [Added from α. and Cx. (Bac|hus).] also; he made vp Argiues, and ȝaf þe Grees vse of vynes. Augustinus de Civitate Dei. Me seiþ þat þe grete Mercurius was in þat tyme; þis Mercurius was Maia Atlas [Athlas α.; Athalas, MS.] is douȝter sone. Þis Mercurius was connynge in meny craftes, and þere he was i-made among hem as it were a god. But þe grete Hercules [Text as in α. and Cx.; MS. has words repeated from below.] was somdel lattre þan he. ℞. Þis grete Hercules hadde a surname Dasaneus, so seiþ Marianus, libro primo, capitulo fyue hondred fourty and fyue. Also þis is þat Hercules þat slowh Busiris [Busirus, MSS. and Cx.] þe tyraunt, so seiþ Ouyde. Iosephus. Þis Hercules weddede Ethea Affer [So β. γ., Cx.; after, MS., α.] his douȝter. Affer was Madian his sone. Þerfore Hercules wente wiþ Affer to wynne Libya, and þat lond was þanne i-cleped Affrica by Affer þe conquerour his name. Þe fourty ȝere after þe out goynge of Egipt Aaron an hondred ȝere olde and þre and twenty deyde in Oreb. Also þe same ȝere Moyses whan he hadde i-lyued fourty ȝere in Madian, and fourty ȝere saue þritty dayes in desert, sex score ȝere old almost, he deide in þe hil Mont Abarim, aȝenst Ierico þat town, and was i-buried of oure Lord in þe valey of Moab.