'Mary Magdalene had her surname of magdalo a castell | and was born of right noble lynage and parents | which were descended of the lynage of kynges | And her fader was named Sinus and her moder eucharye | She wyth her broder lazare and her suster martha possessed the castle of magdalo: whiche is two myles fro nazareth and bethanye the castel which is nygh to Iherusalem and also a gret parte of Iherusalem whiche al thise thynges they departed amonge them in suche wyse that marye had the castelle magdalo whereof she had her name magdalene | And lazare had the parte of the cytee of Iherusalem: and martha had to her parte bethanye' Legenda Aurea. See Ed. (1493), f. 184, ver. 80.
l. 4. more than the Church did know, i.e. the Resurrection. John xx. 9 and 11-18.
Page 318. La Corona.
The MSS. of these poems fall into three well-defined groups: (1) That on which the 1633 text is based is represented by D, H49; Lec does not contain these poems. (2) A version different in several details is presented by the group B, S, S96, W, of which W is the most important and correct. O'F has apparently belonged originally to this group but been corrected from the first. (3) A18, N, TC agrees now with one, now with another of the two first groups. When all the three groups unite against the printed text the case for an emendation is a strong one.
Page 319. Annunciation.
l. 10. who is thy Sonne and Brother.
'Maria ergo faciens voluntatem Dei, corporaliter Christi tantummodo mater est, spiritualiter autem et soror et mater.' August. De Sanct. Virg. i. 5. Migne 40. 399.
Nativitie.
l. 8. The effect of Herods jealous generall doome: The singular 'effect' has the support of most of the MSS. against the plural of the editions and of D, H49, and there can be no doubt that it is right. All the effects of Herod's doom were not prevented, but the one aimed at, the death of Christ, was.