Gripla - 2020, Blaðsíða 146

145
Sä keisarj, er Catalichtuz var ad nafni […] sat i Constantynopel,
sem hófudborg var ä Gricklandi og sem med sÿnum lóndum, vard-
veitti tru cristinna manna, hann atti jafnan orrostu vid þær þiödir,
sem kólludust Sarasenoz, sem voru grimmar þiodir og vykingar […]
og ei þirmdu þeir vóggubornum nie þeim sem ä elli sæng läu og þvi
mätti þä blódhunda kalla, af þeirri þiód, eru tartarar komnir […]
vmm þennan tyma var eirn grimmur kongur þesza lydz […] sem
sat vm Constantynopel med iiij M vopnfæra manna […] hann het
Baiasetez, eda Bastianus, óknafn hanz var ottomanus, hann hafdi
storan ofmetnad, i óllu öhofi holldzinz eptirlætj […] hann framdi
hinn vesta lifnad, med ærnum skómmum, hann tok þær ägiætustu
meyar og konur, þar hóndla kunni, og lagdj þær i syna huilu, og
hiellt med þ[eim] samfarir medann hann listi, og þa hann girntist
ecki leingra hina sómu, risti hann hennar kuid i sundur med hnyfi
og drap so eina eptir adra57
[The emperor named Catalichtuz […] ruled from Constantinople,
which was the capital of Greece, and which along with his lands
observed the faith of the Christian people. He was always having
battles against those people who were called Saracens, who were
cruel peoples and marauders […] and did not spare children in the
cradles nor the aged lying in their beds, and thus they might be
called bloodthirsty. The Tartars are descended from those people.
[…] At that time there was a cruel king ruling over those people
[…] who had besieged Constantinople with 4,000 armed men
[…] He was called Bayezid or Bastíanus and his cognomen was
‘the Ottomanʼ. He displayed overweening pride and partook of
corporal pleasures beyond all moderation […] his lifestyle was most
terrible and exceedingly shameful. He would take the most excellent
maidens and women whom he could get his hands on and lay them
down in his bed and have sex with them as much as he liked and
when he no longer desired the woman, he would cut open her belly
with a knife and in this manner killed them one after the other] (my
translation, likewise below)
57 My own transcription of AM 521 c 4to, f. 6v. Italics are used where I have expanded
abbreviations. The same applies to the two additional passages from AM 521 c 4to quoted
below.
TIMUR, ‘THE WRATH OF GODʼ