Lybeaus Desconus

Edited by Eve Salisbury Edited by James Weldon

Book cover: Lybeaus Desconus

Extent: 224 pages

Publisher: Medieval Institute Publications

Subjects: Literary Studies, Medieval Studies

Series: TEAMS Middle English Texts Series

Language: English

Paperback (Published)

(January 2014)

ISBN: 9781580441957

7.01 x 10 inches

Price: $14.95

In stock

PDF (Published)

(January 2014)

ISBN: 9781580444590

Price: $12.00

Lybeaus Desconus (the Fair Unknown) is the mid-fourteenth-century Middle English version of the classic narrative of the handsome and mysterious young outsider who comes to the court of King Arthur to prove himself worthy of joining Arthur’s knights. The young knight is tested in a variety of ways, and in the course of this testing he learns both chivalric codes of conduct and the truth of his parentage. Six extant manuscripts of the poem attest to its popularity, placing it in company with Guy of Warwick, Bevis of Hampton, and Sir Isumbras among the most popular of Middle English Romances. The current edition offers readers a chance to compare two manuscript versions of the poem, one preserved in Lambeth MS 306 and the other in the Biblioteca Nazionale in Naples.

Acknowledgements
Introduction
Lybeaus Desconus (Lambeth Palace, MS 306)
Libious Disconious (Biblioteca Nazionale, MS XIII.B.29)
Explanatory Notes
Textual Notes (Lambeth)
Textual Notes (Naples)
List of Names, Place Names, and Variant Spellings
Bibliography
Glossary

  • Edited by Eve Salisbury
  • Edited by James Weldon