Guidon and Marphise fight (Roland furieux, ch19, 1570)
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Description
Marphise and her companions, diverted by a storm, have landed at Alexandrette in Syria. This kingdom is ruled by women, who, to avenge an ancient betrayal by men, impose a terrible test on all arrivals: one of them must fight ten knights alone, then triumph in bed over ten women in one night. Marphise, though a woman, rises to the challenge. She kills nine knights, then fights the tenth, Guidon, but is unable to defeat him. At nightfall, Guidon offers Marphise hospitality, then decides to flee with her and her companions.
When Guidon and Marphise fight, Marphise is wearing weapons, making it impossible to recognize her as a woman. The fight takes place in a city arena, not in the countryside near a bridge. The audience is the entire city of women, not just the two spectators in the upper right. The engraving is therefore not very faithful to the text : while the shield brandished by the female warrior does indeed represent a toad, it is possible that the image was designed to illustrate the fight between Roger and Eriphile in Canto VI, and then reused for Canto XIX.
Another oddity: the combatants don't fight with spears, but with swords.
3. Bnf Rés Yd 247
Technical Data
Notice #001279