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

by Geoffrey Chaucer

Twelve kinds by mining Troglydytes are found.'

[1368-76]. Cf. Boethius, in Chaucer's translation; bk. i. pr. 1, ll. 8-13 (vol. ii. p. 2).

[1376]. Sterres sevene, the seven planets.

[1380]. Tolde, counted; observe this sense.

[1383]. Bestes foure, four beasts; Rev. iv. 6. Cf. Dante, Purg. xxix. 92.

[1386]. Thynne remarks that oundy, i.e. wavy, is a term in heraldry; cf. E. ab-ound, red-ound, surr-ound (for sur-ound); all from Lat. unda. Cf. Chaucer's use of ounded in Troilus, iv. 736, and Le Roman de la Rose, 21399, 21400:—

'Et voit ses biaus crins blondoians

Comme undes ensemble ondoians.'

[1390]. 'And tongues, as (there are) hairs on animals.' 'Her feet are furnished with partridge-wings to denote swiftness, as the partridge is remarkable for running with great swiftness with outstretched wings. This description is taken almost literally from the description of Fame in the Æneid [iv. 176-183], except the allusion to the Apocalypse and the partridge-wings'; note in Bell's Chaucer. But it is to be feared that Chaucer simply blundered, and mistook Vergil's pernicibus as having the sense of perdicibus; cf. 'pedibus celerem et pernicibus alis'; Aen. iv. 180.

[1400]. Caliopee, Calliope the muse; her eight sisters are the other Muses. With ll. 1395-1405 cf. Dante, Par. xxiii. 97-111.