4. At p. 152, is an account of some Italian prose versions of the story of Troy. Such are: La Istorietta Trojana, with extracts from it at p. 371; a romance by Binduccio dello Scelto, with extracts relating to 'Troilo e Briseida' at p. 404; a version of Guido by Mazzeo Bellebuoni, with extracts relating to 'Paride ed Elena' at p. 443; an anonymous version, with extracts relating to 'Giasone e Medea' at p. 458; a version in the Venetian dialect, with extracts relating to 'Ettore ed Ercole' at p. 481; another anonymous version, with extracts at p. 493; and La 'Fiorita' of Armannino, Giudice da Bologna, with extracts at p. 532.
5. At p. 265, is an account of Italian poetical versions, viz. Enfances Hector, Poema d'Achille, Il Trojano di Domenico da Montechiello, Il Trojano a stampa (i.e. a printed edition of Il Trojano), and L'Intelligenza. At p. 336, Boccaccio's Filostrato is discussed; followed by a brief notice of an anonymous poem, also in ottava rima, called Il cantare di Insidoria. It appears that Boccaccio followed some recension of the French text of Benoît, but much of the work is his own invention. In particular, he created the character of Pandaro, who resembles a Neapolitan courtier of his own period.
The most interesting of the extracts given by Gorra are those from Binduccio dello Scelto; at p. 411, we have the incident of Diomede possessing himself of Briseida's glove, followed by the interview between Briseida and her father Calcas. At p. 413, Diomede overthrows Troilus, takes his horse from him and sends it to Briseida, who receives it graciously; and at p. 417, Briseida gives Diomede her sleeve as a love-token, after which a 'jousting' takes place between Diomede and Troilus, in which the former is badly wounded.
For further remarks, we are referred, in particular, to H. Dunger's Dictys-Septimius: über die ursprüngliche Abfassung und die Quellen der Ephemeris belli Troiani; Dresden, 1878 (Programm des Vitzthumschen Gymnasiums); to another essay by the same author on Die Sage vom trojanischen Kriege, Leipzig, 1869; to Koerting's Dictys und Dares, &c., Halle, 1874; to A. Joly's Benoît de Sainte-More et le Roman de Troie, Paris, 1871; and to an article by C. Wagener on Dares Phrygius, in Philologus, vol. xxxviii. The student may also consult E. Meybrinck, Die Auffassung der Antike bei Jacques Millet, Guido de Columna, und Benoît de Ste-More, printed in Ausgaben und Abhandlungen aus dem Gebiete für Romanischen Philologie, Marburg, 1886; where the author concludes that Millet was the originator of the story in France. Also W. Greif, Die mittelalterlichen Bearbeitungen der Trojanersage; Marburg, 1886.
§ 20. A few words may be said as to the names of the characters. Troilus is only once mentioned in Homer, where he is said to be one of the sons of Priam, who were slain in battle, Iliad, xxiv. 257; so that his story is of medieval invention, except as to the circumstance of his slayer being Achilles, as stated by Vergil, Æn. i. 474, 475; cf. Horace, Carm. ii. 9. 16. Pandarus occurs as the name of two distinct personages; (1) a Lycian archer, who wounded Menelaus; see Homer, Il. iv. 88, Vergil, Æn. 5. 496; and (2) a companion of Æneas, slain by Turnus; see Vergil, Æn. ix. 672, xi. 396. Diomede is a well-known hero in the Iliad, but his love-story is of late invention. The heroine of Benoît's poem is Briseida, of whom Dares (c. 13) has merely the following brief account: 'Briseidam formosam, alta statura, candidam, capillo flauo et molli, superciliis junctis[[59]], oculis venustis, corpore aequali, blandam, affabilem, uerecundam, animo simplici, piam'; but he records nothing more about her. The name is simply copied from Homer's Βρισηΐδα, Il. i. 184, the accusative being taken (as often) as a new nominative case; this Briseis was the captive assigned to Achilles. But Boccaccio substitutes for this the form Griseida, taken from the accusative of Homer's Chryseis, mentioned just two lines above, Il. i. 182. For this Italian form Chaucer substituted Criseyde, a trisyllabic form, with the ey pronounced as the ey in prey. He probably was led to this correction by observing the form Chryseida in his favourite author, Ovid; see Remed. Amoris, 469. Calchas, in Homer, Il. i. 69, is a Grecian priest; but in the later story he becomes a Trojan soothsayer, who, foreseeing the destruction of Troy, secedes to the Greek side, and is looked upon as a traitor. Cf. Vergil, Æn. ii. 176; Ovid, Art. Amat. ii. 737.
§ 21. In Anglia, xiv. 241, there is a useful comparison, by Dr. E. Köppel, of the parallel passages in Troilus and the French Roman de la Rose, ed. Méon, Paris, 1814, which I shall denote by 'R.' These are mostly pointed out in the Notes. Köppel's list is as follows:—
Troilus. I. 635 (cf. III. 328).—Rom. Rose, 8041. 637.—R. 21819. 747.—R. 7595. 810.—R. 21145. 969—R. 12964.
II. 167.—R. 5684. 193.—R. 8757. 716.—R. 5765. 754.—R. 6676. 784 (cf. III. 1035).—R. 12844. 1564.—R. 18498.
III. 294.—R. 7085. 328; see I. 635. 1035; see II. 784. 1634.—R. 8301.
IV. 7.—R. 8076. 519.—R. 6406. 1398.—R. 6941.