Alphabet of tales : an English 15th century translation of the Alphabetum narrationum of Etienne de Besançon, from Additional MS. 25,719 of the British Museum / by Etienne de Besançon

About this Item

Title
Alphabet of tales : an English 15th century translation of the Alphabetum narrationum of Etienne de Besançon, from Additional MS. 25,719 of the British Museum / by Etienne de Besançon
Author
Etienne de, Besançon, d. 1294
Editor
Banks, Mary Macleod
Publication
London: Kegan Paul, Trench, Trübner, & Co., Ltd.
1904, 1905
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Link to this Item
http://name.umdl.umich.edu/AlphTales
Cite this Item
"Alphabet of tales : an English 15th century translation of the Alphabetum narrationum of Etienne de Besançon, from Additional MS. 25,719 of the British Museum / by Etienne de Besançon." In the digital collection Corpus of Middle English Prose and Verse. https://name.umdl.umich.edu/AlphTales. University of Michigan Library Digital Collections. Accessed June 20, 2025.

Pages

DCXLIII.
Prelatus non debet superbire.

Helinandus tellis how som tyme in þe kyngdom̛ of Iurie þer was a hurd-man̛ þat hight Gygens, þat on̛ a tyme after a grete rayn̛ he went down̛ in-to a law crak̘ in þe erde, and þer he fande a man̛ dead, syttand vppon̛ a hors of bras. And vppon̛ his fynger he fande a ryng, be þe whilk he made hym̛ selfe invisible, & lay be þe whene; & als sone as sho knew þis sho garte sla þe kyng [MS. kyngdom̛, -dom̛ erased.] , & he vsurpid̛ þe kyngdom̛. And Valerius tellis þat when̛ he had getten̛ þe kyngdom̛ be þis chawnce, he wexid̛ so prowde þat he axkid̛ cownceƚƚ of Apollo his god̛, if þer war any in þis werld̛ þat was happyer þan̛ he was. And Apollo ansswerd̛ hym̛ agayn̛ & sayd̛; "þou sulde be bettur provid̛ with sekurtie of a sheperde tofaƚƚ þan̛ for to hafe a grete haƚƚ & lathis, & giff þi selfe to grete charge and̛ besynes; for it is bettur vnto a man̛ [hafe] bod att hym̛ nedis vnto his lyfe, and so for to hald̛ hym̛ plesid̛, þan̛ for to gett hym̛ samen grete tresurs & evur lyff in drede and covatyce."

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