farfel_n03_013_139

that in the Chronicles of England. Caxton considered that Treviasa's
version, although made within 10 years of Chaucer's Boethise
translation, headed morernizing; he therefore ' changed the
rude and old English .... certain works which in these days
be neither used he understanden.'
-Very few perfect copies are known, + most of these have
been made up from 2 or more imperfect copies.
- An uncut copy must have meausred 11 1/8 x 8 1/2 ".
- The Polychronicon may reasonably be considered on of the
cornerstones of English prose. It is , of its kind, not a
terribly rare book, though most uncommon complete +
perhaps unknown in original state. De Rieci traced 46
copies fo which 9 are complete, + today one can assume
that there are between 50 + 60 copies in existence.
In the autumn of 1476 Caxton returned to England, + established
his press within the precincts at Westminster, issuing some
80 books, many being his own translation from French
originals, between 1477 - his death in 1491.
-This celebrated work was the standard book on general history
during the 14+15th C but its real interest is in the view it gives
of the historical, geographical + scientific knowledge of the time in which
it was written. The author Randulph Higden, was a monk of
St. Werburg's, Chester, + his chronicle originally extended from
the earliest time to 1352. It was translated into English in
1387 by J. Trevisa, who also continued it to 1360, + Caxton
modernised the text + added another book (8th) - '
liber
ultimus' covering the years 1358-1469 (very little of it can
however be laid to Caxton's credit)
-Caxton's editions of Chronicles of England + of Randulph Higden's
Polychronicon both include continuations to year 1461 which
hwave wrongly been taken as Caxton's own composition. In fact, he
printed the Chronicles from a manuscript of an English translation
which already had the continuation; and he reprinted much the
same text in the Polychronicon.