The Danish Version of Mandeville’s Travels in Sixteenth-Century Epitome

“The Middle Ages was a time of travellers. . . . Much was written about the marvels of the east and the wonders that travellers witnessed in far-off countries, and of such travel literature, Mandeville’s Travels was amongst the most popular. This fourteenth-century prose work has awakened much critical attention in recent years, but all too often versions not in a major language are overlooked. S. A. J. Bradley now gives us a greatly needed critical edition and English translation of sixteenth-century Danish work that is an epitome or summary of part of the original Mandevilles’ Travels. He has made available to scholars unfamiliar with early Danish this hitherto unedited and unpublished Danish version now found in the Royal Library, Copenhagen (GKS 3559). . . . Not only does this edition contribute to the international corpus of Mandeville studies, but it also casts light on both the transmission of texts and current cultural and theological debate in sixteenth-century Denmark. . . . and the problems of how quintessential Catholic texts, full of miracles and talk of relics, fared in the journey into Protestantism. Finally, for scholars interested in medieval Danish prose, this edition and the other Mandeville texts provide useful source material for linguistic study. . . . The editor is to bee commended for his meticulous scholarship, fine editing techniques, clarity of presentation, precise translations, and helpful explanatory notes and indices.” – from the Foreword by Graham D. Caie, University of Glasgow

Table of Contents:
Foreword by Graham D. Caie; Introduction
Status of the Epitome
The manuscript
Affiliation between extant mss of Mandevilles Rejse
The tradition of the Fanish vernacular Mandeville
The Epitomist’s motivations
Editorial conventions
Select Bibliography
Text and translation of Copenhagen MS GKS 3559
Notes on the Text
Index of Names; General Index

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