Page 187

Lxxxv

[image: Title: Spheres of the planets
Form: Diagram, 10 lines
Text: Car il auroit plustost fait son cours
Comment:
From the innermost band out, the concentric circles are inscribed: "terre / yane / airs / feus / pur air / planetes"]

Car il auroit plus
tost fait son cours
que nauroit le plus
grant. mais que ilz
alassent egalement
sicomme vous pov
ez veoir par ceste
presente figure:-
Ainsi povez
vous enten
dre des sept planettes dont je vous ay parle que lune
sur laultre sabasse si que lune est la plus basse des sept
et si est la plus petite de toutes. mais pour che quelle
est plus prez de terre semble elle plus grande et plus pa
rant de toutes les aultres. et pour lapprocement de la
terre quelle a et dont elle va si pres na elle point de
pure clarte pour la terre qui est obscure qui de lui vien
gne proprement. Mais la clarte quelle nous rend
prend elle tousjours du soleil ensement comme elle
feroit en ung miroir lors que les rays du soleil se fie
rent dedens et puis ressiert a la paroy et flamboie

85

For it would run its course quicker
than the larger one, but actually they
go at the same speed, as you can see
from this figure.
In this way you
can understand about
the seven planets I told you
about, each one situated below
the next and the lowest
one is the smallest of all.
But because it is closest to the earth it seems to be the largest
and most visible of all the others. And because of its closeness
to the earth, and because it moves so near the earth,
it does not have a pure clarity, for the earth is so
dark that it obscures the brightness that it would othewise
have. But the light that it shines on us
it takes from the sun, as though it were
a mirror that the rays of the sun hit
and then reflect out again all around, burning

Lxxxv

[image: Title: Spheres of the planets
Form: Diagram, 10 lines
Text: Car il auroit plustost fait son cours
Comment:
From the innermost band out, the concentric circles are inscribed: "terre / yane / airs / feus / pur air / planetes"]

Car il auroit plus
tost fait son cours
que nauroit le plus
grant. mais que ilz
alassent egalement
sicomme vous pov
ez veoir par ceste
presente figure:-
Ainsi povez
vous enten
dre des sept planettes dont je vous ay parle que lune
sur laultre sabasse si que lune est la plus basse des sept
et si est la plus petite de toutes. mais pour che quelle
est plus prez de terre semble elle plus grande et plus pa
rant de toutes les aultres. et pour lapprocement de la
terre quelle a et dont elle va si pres na elle point de
pure clarte pour la terre qui est obscure qui de lui vien
gne proprement. Mais la clarte quelle nous rend
prend elle tousjours du soleil ensement comme elle
feroit en ung miroir lors que les rays du soleil se fie
rent dedens et puis ressiert a la paroy et flamboie

85

For it would run its course quicker
than the larger one, but actually they
go at the same speed, as you can see
from this figure.
In this way you
can understand about
the seven planets I told you
about, each one situated below
the next and the lowest
one is the smallest of all.
But because it is closest to the earth it seems to be the largest
and most visible of all the others. And because of its closeness
to the earth, and because it moves so near the earth,
it does not have a pure clarity, for the earth is so
dark that it obscures the clarity that it would othewise
have. But the light that it shines on us
it takes from the sun, as though it were
a mirror that the rays of the sun hit
and then reflect out again all around, burning