Old French Tales from Brittany
Marie de France: The Story of Guigemar
12th century, Old French: British Library, Bibliothèque Nationale Paris.
A bed was draped with silk and at the boat's prow were two candelabra with lighted candles. The lady climbed aboard, telling herself that it was in this place that Guigemar had drowned.
The lady whom Guigemar loved had been imprisoned in a tower of black marble. For two long years she had endured the most unimaginable grief at her separation from Guigemar.
‘My love!’ she cried, ‘I would rather quickly die than languish here in this misery! If I could find a way of escaping I would go and drown myself in the harbour where you were forced to embark for your home.’ And trying the door, she found that it was unlocked. It was all so easy. She walked down to the harbour and there was the boat, at the very place where she meant to throw herself into the water. In it was a bed draped with silk and at its prow were two candelabra with lighted candles. She climbed aboard, telling herself that it was in this place that Guigemar had drowned. The boat was soon underway, although there was nobody aboard but her, and at length it came to a harbour beneath a castle in Brittany.
broomstick
∩ The Breton lai of Guigemar, abridged and retold.
references
Breton Lays - Wikipedia
Amazon
