SAGA-BOOK - Viking Society Web Publications

228 Saga-Book of the Vik£ng Society
brother Iohannes, but the closeness of wording of part of
the passage on Lapp magic suggests that he derived it
from a written source, presumably either Ziegler or
Muenster, with alterations to suit his more ecclesiastical
temperament.
Neither the Short Title Catalogue nor Ramage record
a translation of Olaus Magnus's history into English
before 1640. The first English version seems to be that of
1658, but the book was certainly popular early on the
Continent, appearing in French in 1561, Dutch in 1562,
Italian in 1561 and 1565, German in 1567, while there were
numerous editions, both complete and abridged, in
Latin. Muenster also was not translated into English in
the sixteenth century, though three abridgments of his
work appeared, none containing the material on Lapp
magic. 33 Ziegler's Schondia was extensively used, with
acknowledgment, in R. Eden's The Decades of the Newe
Worlde or West India . . . (London, 1555). This travel
book inspired by the new discoveries mainly west across
the seas also contains a section "Of the north regions "
in which Scandinavia is described on the authority of
Ziglerus. Eden's text is more a close paraphrase than
a translation. Dealing with the Greenlanders he says,
"it is sayde that they (as also the people of Laponia) doo
rayse tempestes on the sea with magical inchauntmentes,
and brynge such shyppes into daungeour as they intende
to spoile "Opposite the marginal note "Lapponia
and Gronlande" he adds, "the Lapones consent with them
in the lyke magical practises and doo neyther imbrase the
Christian religion nor refuse it" Finally, in a section
headed "Laponia", defined as "beinge thextreme lande
of Scondia knowen towarde the north pole", he states, in
a close translation of Ziegler and with a reference to the
33 R. Eden, A Treatyse of the Newe India . . . (London, 1553), and A Brief
Collection and Compendious Extract of Straunge and M emorable Thinges, gathered
oute of the Cosmographye of S. Munete« (London, 1572); G. North, The
Description of Swedland, Gotland and Finland . . . chiefly out of s. Mounster
(London, 1561).