Chaucer's Works, Volume 3 — The House of Fame; The Legend of Good Women; The Treatise on the Astrolabe; The Sources of the Canterbury TalesChaucer, Geoffrey
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Chaucer's Works, Volume 3 — The House of Fame; The Legend of Good Women; The Treatise on the Astrolabe; The Sources of the Canterbury Tales
Chaucer, Geoffrey
English poetry -- Middle English, 1100-1500
18. Upon this forseide plate ben compassed certein cercles
that highten Almicanteras, of which som of hem semen perfit
cercles, and somme semen inperfit. The centre that standith
a-middes the narwest cercle is cleped the Senith; and the
netherest cercle, or the firste cercle, is clepid the Orisonte, that 5
is to seyn, the cercle that devydeth the two emisperies, that is,
the partie of the hevene a-bove the erthe and the partie be-nethe.
Thise Almicanteras ben compowned by two and two, al-be-it so
that on divers Astrolabies some Almicanteras ben devyded by oon,
and some by two, and somme by three, after the quantite of the 10
Astrolabie. This forseide senith is imagened to ben the verrey
point over the crowne of thyn heved; and also this senith is the
verrey pool of the orisonte in every regioun. And for the
more declaracioun, lo here thy figure.
19. From this senith, as it semeth, ther come a maner crokede
strykes lyke to the clawes of a loppe, or elles like to the werk of a
womanes calle, in kerving overthwart the Almikanteras. And
thise same strykes or divisiouns ben cleped Azimuthz. And they
devyden the orisonte of thyn Astrolabie in four and twenty 5
devisiouns. And thise Azimutz serven to knowe the costes of the
firmament, and to othre conclusiouns, as for to knowe the cenith
of the sonne and of every sterre. And for more declaracioun, lo
here thy figure.
20. Next thise azimutz, under the Cercle of Cancer, ben ther
twelve devisiouns embelif, moche like to the shap of the azimutes,
that shewen the spaces of the houres of planetes; and for more
declaracioun, lo here thy figure.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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