Royal MS 20 B XII

POEM entitled 'Le premier liure de la Cosmographie en rethoricque Francoyse, contenant la description des portz et isles de la mer, auec summaire mention des meurs des peuples et adresse des ventz propres a naviguer par tout luniuers, compose par Iehan Mallart, escripuain, cosmographe et mathematicien et apres reduyt par luy mesmes en figure', preceded by a dedicatory letter to Henry VIII, also in verse, in which he asks to be made the King's poet as Marot is in France. The work is a close metrical rendering of Les Voyages auantureux du capitaine Ian Alfonce, sainctongeois, Poitiers, 1559, but the poet must have used an earlier manuscript copy. There are two copies of this poem at Paris, Bibl. Nat., fonds franç. 1352 and 13371. That in 1382 is dedicated to Francis I. See Harrisse, Jean et Sébastien Cabot, 1882, p. 222, where the text is described and the passage relating to America (ff. 42 b-46 b of the Royal MS.) printed. The author was probably the 'Maistre Jehan Maillard, poete royal et escriuain et souuerain conducteur des eaues, sources et fontaines', whose Premier recueil des auures de la muse cosmopolitique was printed at Paris circ. 1530 according to Brunet. For other specimens of his calligraphy see above, 2 A. XVI, 7 D. XIII. Dedication beg.:-

'Roy trespuissant si lesprit me deffault Et le scauoir d'escrire comme il fault'

Poem beg.:-

'Icy pres sont et viennent apparoistre De Traffalgar les costes en tirant.'

Vellum; ff. 55. 101/2 in. x 73/8 in. Circ. A.D. 1533-1544. Calligraphically written. Facing f. 5 is a coloured map of the world in hemispheres, and on ff. 1, 5 are coloured initials. Not in the old catalogues.