Mythology & Folklore
Maiden in the Mor Lay
From Bodleian MS Rawlinson D. 913
Maiden in the mor lay,
In the mor lay,
Seuenyst fulle, seuenist fulle,
Maiden in the mor lay,
In the mor lay,
Seuenistes fulle ant a day.
Welle was hire mete;
Wat was hire mete?
Þe primerole ant the,—
Þe primerole ant the,—
Welle was hire mete;
Wat was hire mete?—
The primerole ant the violet.
Welle was hire dryng;
Wat was hire dryng?
Þe chelde water of þe welle-spring.
Welle was hire bour;
Wat was hire bour?
Þe rede rose an te lilie flour.
Codex Note
An incantatory song of a maiden who lay in the moor for seven nights, and what she ate and drank — primrose and violet, the cold water of the well-spring — written, like ‘Icham of Irlaunde’, on a flyleaf of a Bodleian manuscript. Text from Kenneth Sisam, Fourteenth Century Verse & Prose (Oxford, 1921).
Cite this poem
MLA
Anonymous (Middle English). “Maiden in the Mor Lay.” Poetry Codex, poetrycodex.com/poem/anonymous-middle-english/12/.
Chicago
Anonymous (Middle English). “Maiden in the Mor Lay.” Poetry Codex. https://poetrycodex.com/poem/anonymous-middle-english/12/.
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