Near a Park
Text prepared by Juris Lidaka and prepared in HTML by Jim Dean
MS Harley 2255, ff. 150v-151v line-head initials mostly cap. in MS, the rest regularized
MS underlining retained; abbrev's expanded w/ underlining
MS punctuation retained where visible in LC microfilm
Undir a park / ful prudently pyght
A perillous path men passyd by
There herd I / a melody of myght
Scandaunt on skalys / above the sky
5 Agellys exaltant / bothe lowde and hih
Tenours trebelys / many a meene ther was:
They sett ther song / ful sapiently
Benedicta sit sancta Trinitas
The clowdys they cleeff / the sky to clere
10 The day fro dirknesse / made devisio
Byrdis they buskyd fro breere to breere
Thus fyned the firmament / at his avisio
The day sterre ellect froom alle illicio
To mynistre and meene / his chace he chas
15 Than cotryd the queer / with this conclusyo
With benedicta sit sancta Trinitas
A melodious myrthe / it was to me
Fful pure and precious / be poyntes passat
So shynyng vpward / the excelcite
With obediat beemys bryghtly abdat
20 Augellys archagellys / froom vicis advertat
Moore gloryous than euere was gleem or glas
Thronys dominacionis / thus Crist collaudat
With benedicta sit sancta Trinitas
Euere kneelyd and clepyd on my creature
25 To haue knowlage of the glorye that glood
So was I enspyred / froom the speculat splendure
That my spirit was ravysshed / my boody a bood
Than sawh I my makere in his manhood
Aboute the principatus that nevir shal pas
30 The potestates presentis ther beatitudis abrood
With benedicta sit sancta Trinitas
The choys of the cherubynnys they were cherable
To synge with seraphynnes in here suavite
Vertuously devidyng ther voysis venerable
35 The jerarchyes joyed with gret jocundite
Than knelyd a queen / of fair femyninyte
Seyng ful seyntly inter filias
Ffor coronacio of myn sanguinite
Benedicta sit sancta Trinitas
40 Now come on my colvir than seid oon kyng
And flour of flours moost fortunat
My tent my troone my tresour towchyng
My merrour my moodir inmaculat
My shynyng selecture not superat
45 But above alle women that evir was
Than seid this turtyl / thus translat
Benedicta sit sancta Trinitas
Thus was she sett celestially
And joyned in joyes / with Cryst Ihesu underlined Ihu + ab.]
50 In a paall powdryd / with clene perry
With saphir shynyng / bryght and blew
Therto full of pacience / and of vertu
Fful pure in peerle / hire clothyng was
All ordrys of agellys / singing new
55 Benedicta sit sancta Trinitas
Hire face moost splenda / than the sonne
Hire colour as cleer / as cristal bryght
Thus ordynatly / hire lyre is ovir ronne
That tyl hevene and erthe she may geve lyght
60 Thus magnifyed / is our moodir of myght
By preposicio that nevir shall pas
And of the godhede / to haue a sight
With benedicta sit sancta Trinitas
Hire oryent heer lay ovir the nekke
65 To coforte vs in our capacite
Hire oryent heer lay ovir the nekke
To coforte vs in our capacite
Alle ordrys of agellys / bowyd at a bekke
And fyl to this flour / of fair felicite
70 Crownyd she is in hire benignyte
A sceptre in hand / seyntly she has
Disposyng our deth / daily be dignyte
Benedicta sit sancta Trinitas
Incomplete--leaf missing here; next text begins
"Our helpe our soccour our mediatour moost cheef"?