Fair Rosamund

Ma dame ye ben of Al Beaute ſhryne
As fer As cercled is the mapamonde
For As the cristall glorious ye ſhyne
And lyke Ruby ben your chekys rounde

[Madame, you are a shrine of all beauty,
As far encircling as the map of the world.
For you shine as the glorious crystal,
And your round cheeks are like Ruby.]

-- Geoffrey Chaucer, Balade to Rosemound

Illustration: Fair Rosamund, John William Waterhouse, 1905, public domain