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

Capitulum quintum.

CAYM, Adams firste sone, gat Enoch, he gat Irad, he gat Mauaiel, he gat Matusale, he gat Lamech. Þis Lamech

took tweie wifes, Ada and Sella, and gat tweie sones, on Ada Iabel, þat was fader of hem þat wonede in tentes and in pauylouns. And Tubal þat was fadre of organistres and of harpores. And Lamech gat on Sella Tubalcan, þat was a smyth worchynge wiþ hamer; and his suster Noema, sche was first fyndere of weuynge craft. Iosephus. Caym gadered richesse violentliche by strengþe, and made men be lecchoures and þeues, and tornede symple lyuynge [of] men to fyndynge of mesures and of wyȝtes; he ordeyned merkes [and] boundes of fildes and of londes, and bulde a citee and walled hit, for he dredde ful sore hem þat he hadde i-greued. Isidorus, libro 15^o, capitulo 2^o. Men were first naked and vn|armed, nouȝt siker aȝenst bestes, noþer aȝenst men, and hadde no place to fonge hem, and to kepe hem fro colde and for hete; þan by besynesse of kynde witte þey beþouȝt hem of buldynge, þerfore þey bulde hem smale cootes and cabans, and waf ham and heled hem wiþ smale twigges and wiþ reed, þat hire lyf myȝte be þe more saaf. Petrus, capitulo 27^o. Lamech, þe seuenþe from Adam and most schrewe, was þe firste þat brouȝte yn bygamye, and so spousebreche aȝenst þe lawe of God and of kynde, and aȝenst Goddis owne dome. Iosephus. Iabel ordeynede first flokkes of bestes, and mer|kis to knowe oon from anoþer, and departide kydes from

lambren, and ȝonge from olde. Petrus. Tubalcain fonde first smythes craft and grauynge, and whan Tubalcain wrouȝte in his smeþes craft, Tubal hadde grete likynge to hire þe hameres sowne, and he fonde proporciouns and acorde of melodye by wyȝte in þe hameres, and so þey vsed hym moche in þe acorde of melodye, but he was nouȝt fyndere of þe instrumentis of musik, ffor þey were i-founde longe after|ward. ℞. Here wise men telleþ þat þey Tubal vsede first musyk for to releue hym self while he was an herde, and kepte bestes, ffor all þat he was nouȝt þe firste þat fonde þe resoun of acorde in musyk by wiȝtes, but Pittagoras fonde þat; þerof loke wiþ ynne, in þe þridde book, of Pittagoras. Petrus, 27^o. Lamech, an archer but somdel blynde, hadde a ȝongelynge þat ladde hym while he honted for pley and likynge, oþer for loue of bestes skynnes, ffor men ete no flesche to fore Noes flood. And hit happe þat he slow Caym, þat loted among þe busshes, and wende þat it were a wylde beste; and for his ledere warned hym noȝt, he slow hym also. And þerfore siþþe þat Caym his synne was i-punsched seuen|fold,

þat is in þe seuenþe generacioun; for Lamech was þe seuenþe from Adam in þat lyne; Lamech his synne was i-punsched seuene and seuenty folde; ffor seuen and seuenty children þat come of hym were dede in Noes floode. Oþere for so many generaciouns were bytwene Lamech and Crist, þat payed a payne for vs alle. Iosephus. No man schal trowe þat it is false, þat is i-rad of so longe lyuynge of men þat were somtyme, for þey lyuede faire lyf, and hadde couenable and clene mete and drynke, and also for blisful vertues þat þey vsede, and made hem besy aboute astrologie and gemetrie, þat þey myȝte neuere lerne but ȝif þey lyuede sixe hondred ȝere at þe leste; for in so longe tyme is þe grete ȝere of [þe] sterres fulfilled. Petrus. Seth his children were good men anon to þe seuenþe generacioun; bot afterward men mys vsede men, and women [mysusede women]. Genesis. Godes sones took men douȝtres, þat is to menynge, Seth his sones took Caym his douȝtres, and gete geantis. Petrus 29. And hit myȝhte be þat Incubus, suche fendes as lieþ by wommen in liknesse of men, made geantes be i-gete, in þe whiche geantes gretnesse of herte answereþ and acordeþ to þe hugenesse of body. But after Noes flood

were oþere geantes i-bore in Ebron, and afterward were oþere in Than, a citee of Egipte, and þilke geantes were i-cleped Tithanes; of hem com Enachym, his children woned in Ebron; of hem come Golias. Iosephus. Þat tyme men wiste, as Adam hadde i-seide, þat þey schulde be destroyed by fuyr, oþer by water, þerfore bookes þat þey hadde i-made by grete trauaille and studie þey closede hem in twcie greet pileres i-made of marbyl and of brend tyle. In a piler of marbyl for water, and in a pyler of tyle for fuyre; ffor hit schulde be i-saued in þat manere to helpe [of] mankynde. Me seiþ þat þe piler of stoon scaped þe flood and is ȝit in Siria. Genesis. Þanne whan Noe was fyue hondred ȝere olde he gat Sem, Cham, and Iapheth; þat is to menynge, whan he was so olde, he hadde þese þre sones i-gete, and he made þe schippe an hondred ȝere afterward of tymber, i-planed wel smethe, and was i-glewed with ynne. Þe schippe was þre hondred cubite long, and fifty cubite brood, and þritty cubite high from þe cule to þe hacches vnder þe cabans and housynge. Noe made a wyndow in his schippe, and a dore on

þe side dounward, and housynge and cabans wiþ dyuers flo|rynge: þe wyndow was a cubyt highe. Trevisa. Here me may wondre how þe wyndowe was i-made byneþe in þe side of the schippe for comynge [yn] of water. Doctor de Lyra meueþ þis doute, and [sayth] þat þere we haueþ fenestra, þat is a fenestre and a wyndow, þe lettre of hebrew hatte lucerna, þat is a lanterne; and som men seiþ þat þat lanterne was a car|buncle oþer som oþer precious stoon, þat schoon and ȝaf liȝt clere i-now þere it was i-sette. Bot som oþer seiþ þat þat wyndowe was an hool cristal stoon, and feng yn liȝt and hilde out water. Meny oþer wyndowes were in þe schippe, and so it nedede, for [þe] schippe was ful grete and huge, and had yn ful many bestes. Petrus, 30. Þis schip was i-made somdel to þe liknesse of manis body, in þe whiche þe lengþe from þe sole of þe foot in to þe top of þe heued is suche sixe as þe brede, þat is from þe myddel of þe side ribbes in þe oþer side. Also þe lengþe is suche ten as þe depnesse þat streccheþ from þe ribbe to þe wombe. Trevisa. Yf þe man is ful schape as he schulde be, noþer to greet noþer to smal. Hugo de Arca. Þis schippe myȝte nouȝt fonge so meny bestes and oþer þinges and so grete, but þe cubites were cubites of gemetrie. For þe comoun cubite þat me vseþ conteyneþ but a foot and an half, þat is sixe spannes. A spanne streccheþ from þe ende of þe þombe to þe ende of þe myddel fynger, whan þe honde is i-strauȝt. But a cubite of gemetrie conteyneþ sixe comoun cubites, þat wil be nyne foot long. Genesis. Þanne whan the

schippe was i-made, Noe, in þe ȝere of his lyf sex hondred, en|trede and ȝede in to [þat] schippe þe firste day of þe seconde monþe, þat is May. And in eiȝte dayes he brouȝte in to þe schippe al þat he was i-hote yn for to brynge, or oure Lorde sent reyne vppon erþe. And so þe flood was i-made, and occupied þe erþe wel nyh al a ȝere. Þe water of þe flood passede fiftene cubites aboue þe hiȝest hilles. For the workes of mankynde defouled þe ayer so hiȝe, as me troweþ, by worschippynge of fuyre þat smokede and spranclede vp so hiȝe. Þis ȝere endeþ the firste age of þe world from Adam to Noe his flood vnder ten generaciouns þat we speke of raþer. And Iosephus, libro primo, capitulo quarto, And also the Hebrewes seiþ þat þis firste age of þe world conteyneþ two þowsand ȝere seuen hondred and sixe and fifty; but þe seuenty torneres and Isidre also, libro quinto, seiþ two þowsand ȝere seuen hondred and two and fourty. But Ierom seiþ not fulliche two þowsand. And Methodius seiþ two þowsand, for here he leueþ þe odde ȝeres þat beeþ ouer þe þowsandes. For þey calcleþ and acounteþ þe ages of þe world by þowsendes, and leet þat oþer deel abyde.

Notes

• So α.; Manuel, MS.
• was first fyndere of] fonde first, Cx.
• Added from α.
• Added from α.
• drad, Cx.
• for, α.
• cabans amd keuerd hem with smale, Cx.
• doom, α.
• lambryn, α.; lambes, Cx.
• smythcraft, α.
• So α. β. γ.; Tubal gan worke, MS.; Cx. has omissions here.
• smyth, α.
• soun, α.
• in] of, Cx.
• for his plesir, Cx.
• one, Cx.
• happede, α.
• loyterd, Cx.
• Adam Lameth, α.
• payed rawnsome, Cx., who omits for vs alle.
• Added from α.
• So Cx. and α.
• Incuby, α. γ.; Incubi, β., Cx., a preferable reading; but possibly Incubus may be meant for an (English) plural.
• liggeþ, α.
• or ellys, Cx.
• in] by, Cx.
• Added from α. and Cx.
• ȝere he, MS. (not α.)
• to seyne, Cx.
• smoth, Cx.
• within and without, Cx.
• kele, α. and Cx.
• men, Cx.
• Added from α. and Cx.
• Added from Cx.
• haþ, α. β. γ. and Cx., which seems right.
• al hool of, α. and Cx.
• by whiche light entred, Cx.
• Added from α. and Cx.
• heed, Cx.
• Also in, MS. (not α. or Cx.)
• rigge, Cx.
• be of, Cx.
• ne, α.
• Arm, MS.
• geometry, Cx.
• Added from α. and Cx.
• of Maii, Cx.
• al that he was warned to brynge in, Cx.
• ar, α.; er, Cx.
• here vppon, α., Cx.
• sprynkeld, Cx.
• ended, Cx.
• hondred ȝere, MS. (not α. or Cx.)
• So α. and Cx.; þowsand, MS.
• he, β. γ. and Cx., which is right, but the strange use of the pronouns has been noticed before both in MS. and α.
• (Diagrams of the ark as in Higden's text.)