ABSTRACT
A, C, mery talys (STC 23664) is reprinted from the unique copy held at Niedersachsische Staats und Universitatsbibliothek, Göttingen (shelfmark 4FAB IX, 150 RARA). The text block of the original measures 186 × 125 mm. This facsimile has been reproduced at approximately 87 per cent of the original size in order to improve legibility. Although the print of this volume is generally clear, because of its early date it has some grammatical peculiarities that make it somewhat difficult to read. There are pervasive superscriptions; the most common of these – like ye (the), yt (that), wt (with), and so on – are generally not glossed except in instances where they are hard to make out; glossed expansions are put in italics. Tildes and tittles – which usually indicate a missing ‘m’ or ‘n’ but can indicate other abbreviations, such as carter-are also common; these are also not typically glossed except where unclear. The Latin abbreviation of a ‘p’ with a line through the tail for ‘pre,’ ‘per,’ and similar syllables is also common in the text, so that pceyuyd = perceyuyd (perceived), pue = proue, apell = aparell, and so on. These are glossed fairly extensively at the beginning of the text and less so later on. In addition to the Old English thorn (as in ye), the letter eth is often used, printed as a ‘d’, so that fader = father, quod = quoth, togeder = together, and so on. Sometimes the eth is printed with a tittle above it indicating an abbreviation of some sort; the most common of these is quod, but there is also fader and thyder (thither). Finally, I have also corrected some misprinting and glossed some of the least familiar spellings of common and uncommon words. A, C, mery talys is unusual in having both folio marks and signature marks. At the top of what should be ‘folio ii’ recto, but is strangely labelled ‘folio xxvi’, there is a lacuna in the text: the sentence at the bottom of ‘folio i’ verso (A3v) should conclude ‘broke his neck’ or something similar.
