As much as if not more than any book of Early modern English poetry, The Devine Weeks and Works of duBartas translated by Joshua Sylvester depicts the European spirit and culture of the Jacobean early 17th century. In this one book we find French, Scottish, and English authors interacting and sharing creative forms , theological ideas and worldwide aspirations. This book truly is a wonderful exploration in early modern literary activity.
I hope you enjoy it as much as I have.
244F du Bartas, Guillaume de Saluste du Bartas (1544-1590) tr. Josuah Sylvester (1563–1618)
Du Bartas His Deuine Weekes and Workes Translated: And dedicated to the Kings most excellent Maiestie by Joshua Syluester. Now fourthly corr: & augm
Printed by Humfrey Lownes, London: 1613.
Quarto in eight’s, 7 x 5 inches Signatures: A-Z8, Aa-Zz8, Aaa-Qqq8, Rrr4. with Fourth edition, first published in 1605. Includes translations of “Quatrains” by Guy du Faur seigneur de Pibrac and “Paradoxe que les adversitez sont plus necessaires que les prosperites” by Odet de La Noue seigneur de Teligny in verse. Also a very interesting “A brief Index, explaining most of the Hardest words Scattered throughout this whole Worke. ” (see the image at the bottom, the arrow added to the foto points to maerica, pretty early distinction for 1605). The title page is engraved and signed: W Hole sculp. . This copy is in very good condition internally. It is still bound in its original English calfskin boards, with large gilt lozenges on front and back boards, it has been sympathetically rebacked, and the binding is in good condition.
The ownership signature if Guilielmi Harrison,on the free endpaper did not show up in any of the provenance search list I could find, and there is also a snippet of verse on the second blank “Great strong loves heir no less conscisit doth cause: Thine humble sings aspire to you” Also doesn’t match any existing vest I searched.
Like so many early-modern books the reach of topics in this book surpass a more modern tradition of adhering to a specific genre. So, before I write about Saluste du Bartas or Joshua Sylvester, I think it is worth of listing the contents and the composition of the various parts.
This volume begins With two Gates or a Doors (to a Temple proceeding Herbert and Crashaw by some dozen years) inhabited by The “Indignis” sonnet built to two anaphora covered by Arches , they are warning to unworthy readers, advising that the sacred content of the poem is not for those with impure hearts or intentions. The phrase “Factors for hearts profane” suggests that those who approach the work with unholy motives are agents of corruption. The repetition of “Hence” underscores the urgency and severity of the admonition.
Here I’m willing to propose that before we are introduced to du Bartas and his creation of the poetic earth, we must pass through among others the profane Green-sick Wits…Idiots..Apes et c. (it is a good time to remind us that Gabriel Harvey compares du Bartas to both Virgil and Dante). Those who are WELCOME to this sacred wor(l)d are the King of Farie, Queen (his virtue’s vertuous Love) ÆGLETS, .. etc!
The Dedicatoria Inscription & the Corona Dedicatoria To King James VI/I itself could be a small book , a colonnade formed by the Spirits of the Goddess of Memory MNYMOSYNE.. and the final Column is Uraina , the clear sky to come. These are followed by the Anagrammata Regia; Regi.
Du Bartas had met James VI/I in 1587 and was warmly received at the Scottish court. He resided at Falkland Palace and was honored with lavish gifts, including velvet saddle pads worth a hundred crowns. James VI, held Du Bartas in high esteem for his poetic works, knighted him and accompanied him to the sea, urging him to return. This visit solidified Du Bartas’s influence in Scotland, particularly among poets and scholars. Du Bartas translated James’s poem Lepanto into French, while James translated Du Bartas’s La Seconde Semaine into Scots. These translations were published together in James’s Poetical Exercises at Vacant Hours (1591), showcasing their collaborative efforts and shared literary interests.
But before the text can begin we have 10 Pages of dedicatory poems to Joshua Sylveste from 16 different authors including Ben Johnson, John Davies, Samuel Daniel and Joseph Hall, and an Acrostick by R.N. Green.
On the back of the title to The First Week:
A Dedication from Sylvester to Sir Philip Sidney, with a distinctive pyramidal “England’s Apelles…” layout, with the hedgehog/printer’s device, where Sidney is the painter of poets.
Saluste du Bartas’s translations began to appear as verse pamphlets in the 1590’s The first collected edition was printed in 1605, and was a work of enormous contemporary influence Shakespeare and Milton can be numbered among its readers, and indeed Milton’s first English poems, two translations from the Psalms, are wholly in the style of Sylvester “Saluste du Bartas was a Huguenot, and served under Henry IV of France He is known as an epic poet La Sepmaine; ou, Creation du monde (1578) was a hugely influential hexameral work, relating the creation of the world and the history of man It was translated into many languages, including English, and formed the basis for Milton’s Paradise Lost. The ornate style of the original offered no difficulty to Sylvester, who was himself a disciple of the Euphuists and added many adornments of his own invention. The Sepmaines of Du Bartas appealed most to his English and German co-religionists, and the translation was immensely popular. It has often been suggested that John Milton owed something in the conception of Paradise Lost to Sylvester’s translation. It was followed quickly by La Seconde Sepmaine (1584) which Du Bartas did not manage to finish before falling fatally ill.
Sylvester’s translation of Du Bartas’ Divine Weeks, first published in 1598 and revised in 1613, played a pivotal role in shaping 17th-century English literature. By introducing English readers to Du Bartas’ ornate, Latinate diction and elaborate imagery, Sylvester provided a model for both stylistic and thematic innovation. Poets such as Edmund Spenser absorbed this influence in works like The Faerie Queene, particularly in the moralized epic scope of Book VI, while the devotional and spiritually reflective qualities of Du Bartas resonated with religious writers like Richard Sibbes. Sylvester’s emphasis on divine grandeur and moral order reflect a cosmic and devotional vision that English poets emulated. Other passages, like “Hence profane hands, Factors for hearts profane,” as see in the first Anaphoric poem here demonstrate his use of epistolary and exhortatory diction, which prefigures the meditative and moralized language of the Metaphysical poets. During the early 1620s and 1630s, George Herbert and Henry Vaughan explored intricate metaphors and natural-spiritual correspondences reminiscent of Sylvester’s translation, particularly in his depiction of creation:
The Triumph of Faith
“See how the waters, skies, and earth in harmony / Obey the Word of Heaven, and dance as one.” Most notably, John Milton drew on this tradition in his early works, such as On the Morning of Christ’s Nativity, with lines like “This most holy night doth weep, and shines with sacred fire,” and ultimately in Paradise Lost, where the epic grandeur, cosmic vision, and moral weight of Du Bartas’ original are refracted through Sylvester’s English rendering. Sylvester’s translation consistently links human piety with cosmic order, as in the exhortation, “Adore, obey, and let thy humble mind Reflect the heavens’ perfection in thy soul,” a model echoed in the spiritually ambitious poetry of 17th-century England. Drummond’s occasional use of descriptive catalogues and extended allegorical sequences—can be traced back to familiarity with Sylvester’s work. Even the metrical experimentation in Scottish verse, including occasional attempts to emulate the French alexandrine in English heroic lines, owes something to Sylvester’s stylistic example. Throughout the century, Sylvester reinforced the idea that poetry could simultaneously educate, morally uplift, and celebrate Protestant identity, ensuring that Du Bartas’ influence persisted across multiple generations of English poets as seen by the Editions appearing after Sylvester’s death.
The Triumph of faith
The above is the Title to the Triumph of faith, it is dedicated to Guy de Faur, Lord of Pibrac (1529–1584). Is a poetic entrenchment where Faith allows the believer to overcome human weakness, fear of death, and moral corruption. In resistance to earthly power, wealth, and knowledge are transient; faith connects humans to eternal truth, reinforcing Protestant ideals of piety and trust in God.
The history of Iudith is Englished by Tho. Hudson .
Thomas Hudson’s translation of The Historie of Judith (1584) was commissioned by King James VI of Scotland, reflecting the monarch’s deep engagement with literary and cultural initiatives during his reign. In the preface to his translation, Hudson recounts a conversation with James VI, where the king expressed admiration for Du Bartas’s poetry and encouraged Hudson to undertake the translation. This interaction underscores James’s active role in promoting literary works that aligned with his cultural and religious ideals . Little is know about Hudson,except that he was an English poet and musician, was a member of the Castalian Band, a group of court poets and musicians under James’s patronage.
An Index of the Hardest Wordes
Included in The index of hardest wordes is the Word America, “the French disease brought first from the Indies to Naples, from there to France &c.” There are many more delightful definitions to be found in this list !
STC 21652.
https://datb.cerl.org/estc/S116459
JAMESGRAY2@ME.COM
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