Opening the text

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

General

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

Name: 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
Author: Chaucer, Geoffrey

Chaucer, Geoffrey

English poetry -- Middle English, 1100-1500

Knowe by thyn almenak the degree of the ecliptik of any signe
  in which that the planete is rekned for to be, and that is cleped
  the degree of his longitude; and knowe also the degree of his
  latitude fro the ecliptik, north or south. And by thise samples
  folwinge in special, maystow wirke for sothe in every signe of the      5
  zodiak. The degree of the longitude, par aventure, of Venus or
  of another planete, was 6 of Capricorne, and the latitude of him
  was northward 2 degrees fro the ecliptik lyne. I tok a subtil
  compas, and cleped that oon poynt of my compas A, and that
  other poynt F. Than tok I the point of A, and set it in the            10
  ecliptik lyne evene in my zodiak, in the degree of the longitude
  of Venus, that is to seyn, in the 6 degree of Capricorne; and
  thanne sette I the point of F upward in the same signe, bycause
  that the latitude was north, up-on the latitude of Venus, that is to
  seyn, in the 6 degree fro the heved of Capricorne; and thus have       15
  I 2 degrees by-twixe my two prikkes. Than leide I doun softely
  my compas, and sette the degree of the longitude up-on the
  orisonte; tho tok I and wexede my label in maner of a peyre
  tables to resceyve distinctly the prikkes of my compas. Tho tok
  I this forseide label, and leide it fix over the degree of my          20
  longitude; tho tok I up my compas, and sette the point of A in
  the wex on my label, as evene as I coude gesse over the ecliptik
  lyne, in the ende of the longitude; and sette the point of F
  endlang in my label up-on the space of the latitude, inwarde and
  over the zodiak, that is to seyn, north-ward fro the ecliptik. Than    25
  leide I doun my compas, and lokede wel in the wey upon the
  prikke of A and of F; tho turned I my riet til that the prikke of
  F sat up-on the orisonte; than saw I wel that the body of Venus,
  in hir latitude of 2 degrees septentrionalis, assended, in the ende
  of the 6 degree, in the heved of Capricorne. And _nota_, that in the   30
  same maner maistow wirke with any latitude septentrional in alle
  signes; but sothly the latitude meridional of a planete in Capricorne
  may not be take, by-cause of the litel space by-twixe the ecliptik
  and the bordure of the Astrolabie; but sothly, in alle other signes
  it may.                                                                35

Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.

Opening the text

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

General

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

Knowe by thyn almenak the degree of the ecliptik of any signe
  in which that the planete is rekned for to be, and that is cleped
  the degree of his longitude; and knowe also the degree of his
  latitude fro the ecliptik, north or south. And by thise samples
  folwinge in special, maystow wirke for sothe in every signe of the      5
  zodiak. The degree of the longitude, par aventure, of Venus or
  of another planete, was 6 of Capricorne, and the latitude of him
  was northward 2 degrees fro the ecliptik lyne. I tok a subtil
  compas, and cleped that oon poynt of my compas A, and that
  other poynt F. Than tok I the point of A, and set it in the            10
  ecliptik lyne evene in my zodiak, in the degree of the longitude
  of Venus, that is to seyn, in the 6 degree of Capricorne; and
  thanne sette I the point of F upward in the same signe, bycause
  that the latitude was north, up-on the latitude of Venus, that is to
  seyn, in the 6 degree fro the heved of Capricorne; and thus have       15
  I 2 degrees by-twixe my two prikkes. Than leide I doun softely
  my compas, and sette the degree of the longitude up-on the
  orisonte; tho tok I and wexede my label in maner of a peyre
  tables to resceyve distinctly the prikkes of my compas. Tho tok
  I this forseide label, and leide it fix over the degree of my          20
  longitude; tho tok I up my compas, and sette the point of A in
  the wex on my label, as evene as I coude gesse over the ecliptik
  lyne, in the ende of the longitude; and sette the point of F
  endlang in my label up-on the space of the latitude, inwarde and
  over the zodiak, that is to seyn, north-ward fro the ecliptik. Than    25
  leide I doun my compas, and lokede wel in the wey upon the
  prikke of A and of F; tho turned I my riet til that the prikke of
  F sat up-on the orisonte; than saw I wel that the body of Venus,
  in hir latitude of 2 degrees septentrionalis, assended, in the ende
  of the 6 degree, in the heved of Capricorne. And _nota_, that in the   30
  same maner maistow wirke with any latitude septentrional in alle
  signes; but sothly the latitude meridional of a planete in Capricorne
  may not be take, by-cause of the litel space by-twixe the ecliptik
  and the bordure of the Astrolabie; but sothly, in alle other signes
  it may.                                                                35

Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.

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's Works, Volume 3 — The House of Fame; The Legend of Good Women; The Treatise on the Astrolabe; The Sources of the Canterbury Tales

No reviews yet