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For the purposes of the new edition, every poem has been assigned a unique short title. The original short titles, taken eclectically from a number of sources, are retained as alternative short titles.
Links to the miniatures of the Códice Rico are now live on the Miniature section of this page, as well as on the MSS pages for that manuscript. Links to the miniatures of the Florence MS are currently being added.
Links to Ms T display individual pages; links to Ms F open the document viewer which displays double page spreads (users have the option to select single pages in the viewer).
For new critical texts of the poems, return to the listing page and click on the poem number, or go to the archive of texts .
For epigraphs and layout information click on the appropriate manuscript location.
For information on Latin and vernacular sources of miracle stories follow the links to Miracles and collections.
Follow the links to the appropriate pages of Todd McComb and Pierre Roberge's online discography, to the BITAGAP archive, and to linked entries in the Bibliography.
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| CSM Number : 222 | |||
| Short name: | The Chaplain who Swallowed a Spider | Alternative: | Spider in the chalice (Chelas) |
| Incipit: | Quen ouver na Groriosa | fiança con fe comprida | ||
| Refrain: | Quen ouver na Groriosa | fiança con fe comprida/ non lle nozirá poçõia | e dar-ll-á por sempre vida. | ||
| Summary of narrative | |||
| Setting: | a convent of nuns in Chelas [Portugal] | Protagonist(s): | a chaplain |
|
In Portugal, near Lisbon, there is a convent of nuns called Chelas. One time a chaplain was singing the mass there and as he was consecrating the elements, a large black spider fell into the chalice. The chaplain hesitated for a moment, but trusting in the Virgin, he drank the wine, spider and all. As soon as he had said the mass, the chaplain told the nuns and the prioress about the spider. The prioress was alarmed and ordered him to be bled, thinking he may have been poisoned. An incision was made in his arm and the spider emerged from it alive. The nuns marvelled at the miracle and showed the spider to many people. |
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| Metrical data | |||
| Stanza: | 15’ [7’ 7’] 15’ [7’ 7’] 15’ [7’ 7’] 15’ [7’ 7’] | Refrain: | 15’ [7’ 7’] 15’ [7’ 7’] |
| No. of Stanzas: | 10 | ||
| Rhyme scheme: | AA | bbba | Zejel: | |
| MS locations: | |||
| F93, E222 | |||
| Poncelet reference | |||
| None | |||
| Keywords | |||
| blood-letting, chalice, chaplain, Eucharist, mass, nun, priest , spider, wine, convent | |||
| Discography | |||
| Click HERE for a list of recordings of this poem | |||
| BITAGAP ID | |||
| 3973 | |||
| Bibliography | |||
| Milagres e romarias portuguesas nas Cantigas de Santa Maria Martins, Mário | |||
| The Miracles Came in Two by Two: Paired Narratives in the Cantigas de Santa Maria Parkinson, Stephen | |||
| Aberturas e finais: rubricas, refrães, estrofes iniciais e estrofes terminais nas Cantigas de Santa Maria Parkinson, Stephen | |||
| A Selected and Annotated Discography of Recordings of Music from the Middle Ages in Spain Tinnell, Roger D. | |||