{ Of the Sun at half Azimuth 9 . 17 a. m.
{ Of the Sun at altitude 45° 9 . 58 a. m.
Apparent { Of the Sun at altitude 29° 4 . 2 p. m.
Time { Of apparent entrance
{ of Moon's centre into Libra 3 . 45 p. m.
It will be seen that, if the place here assigned to the moon be correct,
Chaucer could not have described it more appropriately than by the
phrase "In méné Libra:" providing (of which there can be little doubt)
that he used those words as synonymous with "in hedde of Libra." "Hedde
of Libra," "hedde of Aries," are expressions constantly used by him to
describe the equinoctial points; and the analogy that exists between
"head," in the sense head-land or promontory, as, for example, "Orme's
Head," "Holyhead," "Lizard Head," and the like; and "menez" in the same
sense, need not be further insisted upon. Evidence fully sufficient to
justify a much less obvious inference has been already produced, and I
am enabled to strengthen it still further by the following reference,
for which I am indebted to a private communication from H. B. C.
"Menez, _s. m._ Grande masse de terre, ou de roche, fort élevée
au-dessus du sol de la terre.
"Mean, ou Maen, _s. m._ Pierre, corps dur et solide qui se forme
dans la terre.
"(En Treguier et Cornouailes), MÉNÉ."
(Gonidec, _Dictionnaire Celto-Breton_.
Angoulême, 1821.)
This last reference is doubly valuable, in referring the word _méné_ to
the very neighbourhood of the scene of Chaucer's "Frankleine's Tale,"
and in dispensing with the terminal letter _z_, thereby giving us the
_verbum ipsissimum_ used by Chaucer.
I must not be understood as entertaining the opinion that Chaucer's
knowledge of astronomy--although undoubtedly great, considering the age
in which he lived and the nature of his pursuits--would have enabled him
to determine the moon's true place, with such correctness, wholly from
theory; on the contrary, I look upon it as more probably the result of
real observation at the time named, and, as such, adding another link to
the chain of presumptive evidence that renders it more probable that
Chaucer wrote the prologues to his _Canterbury Tales_ more as a
narration (_with some embellishments_) of events that really took place,
than that they were altogether the work of his imagination.