and that cuppe the sone schalle kepe to drynken of, alle his lif tyme, in remembrance of his fadir. from that lond, in returnynge be 10 jorneyes thorghe out the lond of the grete chane, is another gode yle, and a gret kyngdom, where the kyng is fulle riche and myghty. and amonges the riche men of his contree, is a passynge riche man, that is no prince, ne duke ne erl; but he hathe mo that holden of him londes and other lordschipes: for he is more riche. for he hathe every zeer of annuelle rente 300000 hors charged with corn of dyverse greynes and of ryzs: and so he ledethe a fulle noble lif, and a delycate, aftre the custom of the contree. for he hathe every day, 50 fair damyseles, alle maydenes, that serven him everemore at his mete, and for to lye be hem o nyght, and for to do with hem that is to his pleasance. and whan he is at the table, they bryngen him hys mete at every tyme, 5 and 5 to gedre. and in bryngynge hire servyse, thei syngen a song. and aftre that, thei kutten his mete, and putten it in his mouthe; for he touchethe no thing ne handlethe nought, but holdethe evere more his hondes before him, upon the table. for he hathe so long nayles, that he may take no thing, ne handle no thing. for the noblesse of that contree is to have longe nayles, and to make hem growen alle weys to ben as longe as men may. and there ben manye in that contree, that han hire nayles so longe, that thei envyronne alle the hond: and that is a gret noblesse. and the noblesse of the wommen, is for to haven smale feet and litille: and therfore anon as thei ben born, they leet bynde hire feet so streyte, that thei may not growen half as nature wolde; and alle weys theise damyseles, that i spak of beforn, syngen alle the tyme that this riche man etethe: and whan that he etethe no more of his firste cours, than other 5 and 5 of faire damyseles bryngen him his seconde cours, alle weys syngynge, as thei dide beforn. and so thei don contynuelly every day, to the ende of his mete. and in this manere he ledethe his lif. and so dide thei before him, that weren his auncestres; and so schulle thei that comen aftre him, with outen doynge of ony dedes of armes: but lyven evere more thus in ese, as a swyn, that is fedde in sty, for to ben made fatte. he hathe a fulle fair palays and fulle riche, where that he dwellethe inne: of the whiche, the walles ben in circuyt 2 myle: and he hathe with inne many faire gardynes, and many faire halles and chambres, and the pawment of his halles and chambres ben of gold and sylver. and in the myd place of on of his gardynes, is a lytylle mountayne, wher there is a litylle medewe: and in that medewe, is a litylle toothille with toures and pynacles, alle of gold: and in that litylle toothille wole he sytten often tyme, for to taken the ayr and to desporten hym: for that place is made for no thing elles, but only for his desport. fro that contree men comen be the lond of the grete chane also, that i have spoken of before. and ze schulle undirstonde, that of alle theise contrees, and of alle theise yles, and of alle the dyverse folk, that i have spoken of before, and of dyverse lawes, and of dyverse beleeves that thei han; zit is there non of hem alle, but that thei han sum resoun with in hem and undirstondynge, but zif it be the fewere: and that han certeyn articles of oure feithe and summe gode poyntes of oure beleeve: and that thei beleeven in god, that formede alle thinges and made the world; and clepen him god of nature, aftre that the prophete seythe, _et metuent cum omnes fines terre_: and also in another place, _omnes gentes servient ei_; that is to seyn, _alle folke schalle serven him_. but zit thei cone not speken perfytly; (for there is no man to techen hem) but only that thei cone devyse be hire naturelle wytt. for thei han no knouleche of the sone, ne of the holy gost: but thei cone alle speken of the bible: and namely of genesis, of the prophetes lawes, and of the bokes of moyses. and thei seyn wel, that the creatures, that thei worschipen, ne ben no goddes: but thei worschipen hem, for the vertue that is in hem, that may not be, but only be the grace of god. and of simulacres and of ydoles, thei seyn, that there ben no folk, but that thei han simulacres: and that thei seyn, for we cristene men han ymages, as of oure lady, and of othere seyntes, that wee worschipen; nohte the ymages of tree or of ston, but the seyntes, in whoos name thei ben made aftre. for righte as the bokes of the scripture of hem techen the clerkes, how and in what manere thei schulle beleeven, righte so the ymages and the peyntynges techen the lewed folk to worschipen the seyntes, and to have hem in hire mynde, in whoos name that the ymages ben made aftre. thei seyn also, that the aungeles of god speken to hem in tho ydoles, and that thei don manye grete myracles. and thei seyn sothe, that there is an aungele with in hem: for there ben 2 maner of aungeles, a gode and an evelle; as the grekes seyn, cacho and calo; this cacho is the wykked aungelle, and calo is the gode aungelle: but the tother is not the gode aungelle, but the wykked aungelle, that is with inne the ydoles, for to disceyven hem, and for to meyntenen hem in hire errour. capvt. 50. de compositione huius tractatus in nobili ciuitate leodiensi. in reuertendo igitur venitur ab hac insula per prouincias magnas imperij tartarorum, in quibus semper noua, semper mira, imo nonnunquam incredibilia viator potest videre, percipere, et audire. et noueritis, vt praedixi, me pauca eorum vidisse, quæ in terris sunt mirabilium, sed nec hic scripsisse centessimam partem eorum quæ vidi, quod nec omnia memoriæ commendare potui, et de commendatis multa subticui, proptèr modestiam, quam decet omnibus actibus addi. idcirco vt et alijs, qui vel antè me in partibus illis steterunt, vel ituri sunt, maneat locus narrandi siue scribendi, modum huius pono tractatus, potius decurtans quàm complens, quoniam aliàs loquendi non esset finis, nec aures implerentur auditu. [sidenote: concludit opus suum.] itàque anno à natiuitate domini nostri iesu christi 1355. in patriando, cum ad nobilem legiæ, seu leodij ciuitatem peruenissem, et præ grandeuitate ac artericis guttis illic decumberem in vico qui dicitur, bassessanemi, consului causa conualescendi aliquos medicos ciuitatis: et accidit, dei nutu, vnum intrare physicum super alios ætate simul et canicie venerandum, ac in sua arte euidenter expertum, qui ibidem dicebatur communiter, magister ioannes ad barbam. is, dum paritèr colloqueremur, interseruit aliquid dictis, per quod tandem nostra inuicem renouabatur antiqua notitia, quam quondam habueramus in cayr aegypti apud melech mandibron soldanum, prout suprà tetigi in 7. capitulo libri. qui cum in me experientiam artis suæ excellenter monstrasset, adhortabatur ac praecabatur instanter, vt de hijs quæ videram tempore peregrinationis, et itinerationis meæ per mundum, aliquid digererem in scriptis ad legendum, et audiendum pro vtilitate. sicque tandem illius monitu et adiutorio, compositus est iste tractatus, de quo certè nil scribere proposueram, donec saltem ad partes proprias in anglia peruenissem. [sidenote: edwardus tertius.] et credo praemissa circa me, per prouidentiam et gratiam dei contigisse, quoniam à tempore quo recessi, duo reges nostri angliæ, et franciæ, non cessauerunt inuicem exercere destructiones, depraedationes, insidias, et interfectiones, inter quas, nisi à domino custoditus, non transissem sine morte, vel mortis periculo, et sine criminum grandi cumulo. et ecce nunc egressionis meæ anno 33. constitutus in leodij ciuitate, quæ à mari angliæ distat solum per duas diætas, audio dictas dominorum inimicitias, per gartiam dei consopitas: quapropter et spero, ac propono de reliquo secundum maturiorem ætatem me posse in proprijs, intendere corporis quieti, animaeque saluti. hie itaque finis sit scripti, in nomine patris, et filij, et spiritus sancti, amen. explicit itinerarium à terra angliæ, in partes hierosolimitanas, et in vlteriores transmarinas, editum primò in lingua gallicana, à domino ioanne mandeuille milite, suo authore, anno incarnationis domini 1355. in ciuitate leodiensi: et paulò post in eadem ciuitate, translatum in dictam formam latinam. the english version. there ben manye other dyverse contrees and manye other marveyles bezonde, that i have not seen: wherfore of hem i can not speke propurly, to telle zou the manere of hem. and also in the contrees where i have ben, ben many dyversitees of manye wondir fulle thinges, mo thanne i make mencioun of. for it were to longe thing to devyse zou the manere