Lancelot of the Laik from Cambridge University Library MS

Scottish Text Society, Edinburgh, 1912. First Edition. Hardcover (Quarter Leather). Near Fine Condition. quarter leather with gilt border line to green cloth covers; printed for the Society by W. Blackwood and Sons & illustrated by three fold-out facsimiles of the original manuscript & a 36-page introduction. The romance known as 'Lancelot of the Laik' survives in only one manuscript, Cambridge University Kk.1.5, and even there it is incomplete (only three Books and a Prologue remain), ending abruptly in the middle of the 3487th line. The ms. dates from very late in the fifteenth century & the writing of the poem has generally been placed not much earlier. Derived from the French prose Lancelot (c. 1215–30) the poem was written in a Scottish dialect, although that appearing in the Cambridge manuscript is far from uniform. Book 2 features an extensive “Advice to Princes” section in which King Arthur is given instruction on good kingship, which may be a response to the problems of the reign of James III of Scotland, & certainly seems to belong to a tradition of political advice which enjoyed continuous currency in Scotland between about 1450 and about 1580. Contents & Errata lists to the front; Glossary to the rear. Size: 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. 36 + 113 pages. Text is in Scots. binding, covers and spine fully intact but pages appear to have been re-glued into binding at some time. no Dust Jacket as published.. Top edge gilt in good condition. Gilt titles spine. tiny spot of wear to rear cover. Quantity Available: 1. Shipped Weight: Under 500 grams. Category: Poetry; Medieval Poetry; Medieval Romance; Scottish Literature; Scotland; Medieval 10th to 15thc; Scots Language; Literature & Literary. Inventory No: 3918. .