The Knight's Tale
Folio 21v
24 of 48 folios
1085
¶ And eek the grete strengthe of Ercules
Thenchauntementz of Medea and Circes
Ne of Turnus / wt the hardy fiers corage
The riche Cresus / kaytyf / in seruage
Thus may ye seen / þt wysdom ne richesse
1090
Beautee ne sleigħte / strengthe hardynesse
Ne may with Venus / holde champartie
For as hir list the world than may she gye
Lo alle thise folkes so caught were in hir las
Til they for wo / ful ofte seyde allas
1095
Suffiseth heere / ensamples oon or two
And though / I koude rekene a thousand mo
The Statue of Venus / glorious for to se
Was naked / fletynge in the large See
And fro the nauele doun / al couered was
1100
W wawes grene / and brigħte as any glas
A Citole / in hir rigħt hand / hadde she
And on hir heed ful semely for to se
A Rose gerland fressħ / and wel smellynge
Aboue hir heed / hir dowues flikerynge
1105
Biforn hir / stood hir sone Cupido
Vp on his shuldres / wynges hadde he two
And blynd he was / as it was often seene
A bowe he bar / and Arwes brigħte and kene
¶ Why sholde I nogħt / as wel eek telle yow al
1110
The portreiture / that was vp on the wal
W Inne the temple / of myghty Mars the rede
Al peynted was the wal / in lengthe and brede
Lyk to the estres / of the grisly place
That higħte the grete temple of Mars in Trace
1115
In thilke colde / frosty Regioū
Ther as Mars / hath his souereyn mansioū
¶ First on the wal / was peynted a forest
In which ther dwelleth / neither man ne best
With knotty knarry / bareyne trees olde
1120
Of stubbes sharpe / and hidouse to biholde
In which ther ran / a rumbel and a swougħ
As though a storm / sholde bresten euery bougħ
And dounward from an hille / vnder a bente
Ther stood the temple of Mars Armypotente
1125
Wrogħt al of burned steel / of which the entree
Was long and streit and gastly for to see
And ther out cam a rage / and swich a veze .i. impetë
That it made / al the gate for to rese
The Northren lygħt in at the dores shoon
1130
For wyndowe / on the wal ne was ther noon
Thurgh which men myghten / any ligħt discerne
The dore was al / of Adamant eterne