Adam lay ybounden

Adam lay ybounden in the British Library's Sloane Manuscript 2593 .

Michelangelo : The Fall and the Expulsion from Paradise ( ceiling fresco in the Sistine Chapel )

Lucas Cranach the Elder Ä. : The tree of knowledge , section of the painting “Paradise” in the Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna

Adam lay ybounden ( Adam lay bound ) or in the original title: Adam lay i-bowndyn is a traditional English carol (Christmas carol), which probably dates from the 15th century . Its central theme is the Fall of Man and its consequences: if Adam had not taken the apple in Paradise (cf. Gen 3,6 EU ), Our Lady (i.e. Mary, mother of Jesus ) would never have become Queen of Heaven .

history

The text is from an anonymous author. It is preserved in a manuscript in the British Library .

It is speculated that the text might have belonged to a wandering minstrel (i.e. bard, minstrel). Other songs in the manuscript are I have a gentil cok , the famous I syng of a mayden, and two riddle songs : A minstrel's begging song and I have a yong suster .

The text was edited by Boris Ord (1897–1961), Benjamin Britten (1913–1976) in A Ceremony of Carols (1942), Norman Fulton (1909–1980), Peter Warlock (1894–1930), John Ireland (1879 –1962) and Philip Ledger (1937–2012) set to music.

Boris Ord's phrase is probably the best-known version because it traditionally follows the first lesson of the annual Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols in the chapel of King's College , Cambridge , where Ord was organist from 1929 to 1957.

English	translation
Adam lay ybounden, Bounden in a bond; Four thousand winter Thought he not too long. And all was for an apple, An apple that he took, As clerkës find written In their book. Nor had one apple taken been, The apple taken been, Then had never Our Lady A-been heaven's queen. Blessed be the time That apple taken was. Therefore we may sing Deo gratias!	Adam lay bound, bound in ribbons. He didn't think four thousand winters were too long. And everything was because of an apple, An apple he had taken, As churchmen find it written in their book, If the apple had not been taken, The apple had not been taken, Our lady would never have become Queen of Heaven. Blessed be the moment when the apple was taken. That's why we can sing: Deo gratias!

Web links

Boris Ord - Adam Lay Ybounden. The Choirs of Saint John's Episcopal Church (2010). (YouTube video, 1:24 min.)
Benjamin Britten - Adam Lay y-bounden. Coro Zenobia Música (2015). (YouTube video, 1:23 min.)
Peter Warlock - Adam Lay Ybounden. Choir of St. Matthew's Church, Ottawa, Canada (1999). (YouTube video, 1:25 min.)
John Ireland - Adam lay ybounden. Capilla gótica Universidad de Deusto (2010). (YouTube video, 1:35 min.)
Philip Ledger - Adam Lay Ybounden St Thomas Choir of Men and Boys (2003). (YouTube video, 2:31 min.)

Individual evidence

↑ hymnsandcarolsofchristmas.com , by Thomas Wright, songs and carols from a manuscript in the British Museum of the fifteenth century. London: T. Richards, 1856 ( digitized )
^ Text "probably created 15th century" (William E. Studwell: Christmas Carols. A Reference Guide. New York & London 1985, p. 10 (No. 30))
↑ Sloane 2593, ff.10v-11; on the Sloane collection, see thescribeunbound.wordpress.com , bl.uk , The Digital Index of Middle English Verse ( Memento from December 2, 2013 in the Internet Archive )
↑ See also the English language Wikipedia under Category: Sloane Manuscript 2593
↑ kings.cam.ac.uk

[1] ymnsandcarolsofchristmas.com , by Thomas Wright, songs and carols from a manuscript in the British Museum of the fifteenth century. London: T. Richards, 1856 ( digitized )

[2] Text "probably created 15th century" (William E. Studwell: Christmas Carols. A Reference Guide. New York & London 1985, p. 10 (No. 30))

[3] Sloane 2593, ff.10v-11; on the Sloane collection, see thescribeunbound.wordpress.com , bl.uk , The Digital Index of Middle English Verse ( Memento from December 2, 2013 in the Internet Archive )

[4] See also the English language Wikipedia under Category: Sloane Manuscript 2593

[5] s.cam.ac.uk