Canon and Merchant
Canon and Merchant
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| Le mort
Sire chanoine prebendez:
Plus ne aures distribucion:
Ne gros: ne vous il acttendez:
Prenez cy consolacion.
Pour toute retribucion
Mourir vous convient sans demeure
Ia ny aurez dilation.
La mort vient quon ne garde leure
Le chanoine
Cecy guere ne me conforte:
Prebende fus en mainte eglise.
Or est la mort plus que moy forte
Que tot en mainne: cest sa guise.
Blanc surpelis et amusse grise
Me fault laissier: et a mort rendre.
Que vault gloire sy tost bas mise.
A bien morir doit chascun tendre.
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A canon is a priest who's attached to a cathedral.
A prebend is a stipend allotted from the revenues of a cathedral or a collegiate church to a canon or a member of the chapter (Webster).
In John Lydgate's translation Death greats the canon:
»And ȝe Sire Chanoun / with many grete prebende«.
Holbein: The canon
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The canon is sad that he must leave his grey fur almuce (a[u]musse) behind.
An almuce (also called amess or amice)
was a fur hood-like shoulder cape worn as a choir vestment in the Middle Ages.
It's a recurring theme in the dance of death that the canon wears a fur amess.
In Holbein's dance of death (picture to the right)
the canon wears a fur-coat lined with animals' tails,
and the same is true for Holbein's initial L
and in Basel's dance of death.
In Paris' danse macabre, Death mentions the
»amusse grise« (grey almuce) of
the canon;
in London's dance of death
it's translated as »Amys of gris«,
and in Copenhagen's dance of death,
Death makes a comment on the canon's
»grey fur cloak« — presumably a cloak that's furred
with grey fur.
| Le mort
Marchant: regardez par deca.
Pleuseurs pays avez cerchie
A pie: et a cheval de pieca:
Vous nen seres plus empeschie.
Vecy vostre dernier marchie.
Il convient que par cy passez.
De tout soing seres despeschie.
Tel couvoite qui a assez.
Le marchant
Iay este amont et aval:
Pour marchander ou ie povoye.
Par long temps a pie: a cheval:
Mais maintenant pers toute ioye
De tout mon povoir acqueroye:
Or ay ie assez. mort me contraint.
Bon fait aller moyenne voye.
Qui trop embrasse peu estraint.
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Various Artists
Dances of death
Danse macabre
Men
Canon and merchant
