Page 253

C.xviii.

celui qui ceste besongue compila y mist toute son enten
te et tout son temps pour che que si tresgrant merveil
le en avoit tant quil perceu plainement che dont il ce
stoit moult doubte. Car il vey tout appertement le so
leil estre trop plus grant que la terre sans aulcune def
faulte par cent et soixantesix foiz. et les trois parties
vingtiesmes de la terre avec tout che sicomme le anciens
le disrent. Et lors creut celui tout leur donne a enten
dre ne ja neust par lui este mis par escript se certaine
ment la verite nen eust este par lui plainement trou
vee. Et che poeut on bien savoir par grant quantite
Car moult est loings de nous assiz quant il nous sem
ble si petit. ne ja ne sera si ensus de nous que bien ne
le sachons chi bas. Et a la verite il ya depuis la terre
jusques au soleil sicomme le roy tholomeus le prouva
v . C . iiij^xx . et . v . tant que toute la terre poeut avoir de grant
ne despez parmy. Chi parle de la haulteur des estoilles et de
ORes vous voeul je racompter leur grandeur
en brief du fait des estoilles du firmement
dont il ya si tresgrant nombre. et si sont
toutes dune meisme haulteur mais elles ne font pas

118

the person who compiled this work, he put all
his understanding and all his time into it, so that it
would have such great marvels in it, things that he perceived
plainly but that there was great doubt about. For he saw the sun
to be very clearly much larger than the earth, without any
defect, 166 and 3/20ths greater than the earth, with everything just
as the ancients had said. And then he believed that which
he had been given to understand. It would not have been
written down by him if he had not been certain of the
truth that he had plainly discovered. And one can know
well that the sun is of great size. It seems so small because it
is so far away from us. It is not (see note) any further above us
than we know it to be below us as well. And the truth is that
from the earth to the sun, as King Ptolemy proved it, is
585 times as much as the whole earth may have in
thickness. [rubric] Here speaks of the height of the stars
and of their size. [/rubric] Now I want to tell you
briefly about the stars in the firmament, of which there
are such a very large number, and that although they
are all at the same height yet they are not

C.xviii.

celui qui ceste besongue compila y mist toute son enten
te et tout son temps pour che que si tresgrant merveil
le en avoit tant quil perceu plainement che dont il ce
stoit moult doubte. Car il vey tout appertement le so
leil estre trop plus grant que la terre sans aulcune def
faulte par cent et soixantesix foiz. et les trois parties
vingtiesmes de la terre avec tout che sicomme le anciens
le disrent. Et lors creut celui tout leur donne a enten
dre ne ja neust par lui este mis par escript se certaine
ment la verite nen eust este par lui plainement trou
vee. Et che poeut on bien savoir par grant quantite
Car moult est loings de nous assiz quant il nous sem
ble si petit. ne ja ne sera si ensus de nous que bien ne
le sachons chi bas. Et a la verite il ya depuis la terre
jusques au soleil sicomme le roy tholomeus le prouva
v . C . iiij^xx . et . v . tant que toute la terre poeut avoir de grant
ne despez parmy. Chi parle de la haulteur des estoilles et de
ORes vous voeul je racompter leur grandeur
en brief du fait des estoilles du firmement
dont il ya si tresgrant nombre. et si sont
toutes dune meisme haulteur mais elles ne font pas

118

the person who compiled this work, he put all
his understanding and all his time into it, so that it
would have such great marvels in it, things that he perceived
plainly but that there was great doubt about. For he saw the sun
to be very clearly much larger than the earth, without any
defect, 166 and 3/20ths greater than the earth all together,
as the ancients had said. And then he believe that which
he had been given to understand. It would not have been
written down by him if he had not been certain of the
truth that he had plainly discovered. And one can know
well that it is of great size. It seems so small because it
is so far away from us. It will not be any further above us
than we know it to be below us as well. And the truth is that
from the earth to the sun, as King Ptolemy proved it, is
585 times as much as the whole earth may have in
thickness. [rubric] Here speaks of the height of the stars
and of their size. [/rubric] Now I want to tell you
briefly about the stars in the firmament, of which there
is such a very large number, and that although they
are all at the same height yet they are not