Book 10

Summary

Orpheus (I)

[miniature, fol. 246v: aristeus pursues eurydice while a “serpent” bites her heel]

{A}bove, you heard the tale of how the girl Iphis became a boy and took a wife. To his wedding came Hymen, the god of marriage, with great pomp and joy. From there, Hymen traveled at great speed through the air, gowned in yellow, to Ciconia, where he was summoned to an unusual wedding. Orpheus had summoned him there. He was supposed to take as his new wife the noble, young, and lovely maiden Eurydice. Without bringing any good fortune, and with no sign of rejoicing, Hymen came to the wedding, but remained sadly withdrawn and made signs and indications that grief and misfortune would come to the bridal pair. But the outcome was even worse than the signs had shown. [1–22]

The new bride, reveling in the springtime, went barefoot in the fields full of scented grass. A handsome and merry shepherd – that is, the esteemed Aristeus – saw the beauty, and entreated her love, but she refused him to grant him her love and favor. For she did not deign to abandon herself to doing anything he asked, for all the entreaties he made. Instead she ran away, and he followed her. As the beauty was fleeing, a snake bit her on the heel, whereby the beauty was put to death. [23–37]

It was a great sorrow and a great blow to Orpheus, when by sudden mischance he had lost his bride. Much he lamented, much he grieved. When he had mourned her amply in this world, he resolved to go down to the realms of hell and find out whether he could have his bride again and move the infernal beings to give her to him. He took his harp and his bow and, harping, sang a song that went like this: [38–49]

[miniature, fol. 246v: orpheus stands before the hellmouth packed with souls, playing his harp to pluto (portrayed as the devil) within]

“{Y}ou, O god of the shadowy dungeon, where every human creature comes and descends either late or soon, such that nothing takes them from you: if I may be so bold as to say so, I have not come to visit this empire, nor to see you in person, nor to submit to your tortures, for I have no interest in any of that.