Page:Archaeological Journal, Volume 1.djvu/172

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154
ORIGINAL DOCUMENTS.

[Fol. 213, r°.]

For to make whit leed. Tak a gret erthen pot or a barel, and put therynne a porcioun of good strong reed wyn drestise[1], and hong in the pot faire brode platis of newe leed so that noon touche other an ynche fro the drestis, and close it in hoot hors-dunge so that now eyer com yn ne out, and let it stonde so vj. wokis or more, for legger it stondith the betre is. Whanne thu wilt opene thy vessel, and tak owt al thi platis of leed, take an hamor and smyte of al the white leed that is gederid above upon a faire whit lether or a clene vessel, and thanne hast thu whit leed faire and good. But if thu wilt make this leed into picis as summen usen for to sellen, tak the white poudre of the leed that thu hast of thi plates, and put it in a newe erthen pot, and put clene water therto that the leed be biwose[2] in the water, and stere it wel togidre, thanne covere wel thi vessel, and let it stonde so stille to thi water be drunken up, and that it be as it were thikke pappe; thanne gedre it out of the pot with a spone, and sprede it abrod on papere leves, or on a fair table, and thanne sete it in a faire clere sonne and let it drie up, and thanne breke it on faire square gobetis[3].

Now for to make reed leed. Whane thi whit leed is drie, grinde it to smale poudre, and thanne put it in a pot of erthe, and ley that pot asid as thu wost, and make under fire, and evere among stere it as thu wost with a ladle, and so alwey make fire therunder till thou se that thi leed be as fyne of colour as thou wilt have.

For to make vertegrece. Take platis of clene coper, or ellis of pannes or caudrones, but nether pot-bras ne of basenes, for that is latoun[4], and is not therfore; and hong thes platis in the same maner as ȝe doth platis of leed, and vynegre or stronge lies in the botme of the vessel as bifore of leed, and that the vessel stonde hote as in hors-dunge or in mattis or in good pese straw, but hors-dunge is the beste and most kinde therfor; and whanne it hath stonde a vj. wokes or more as bifore is seid, thanne opene ȝoure pot, and if ȝoure platis beth wel gederid with faire grene poudre aboven and al aboute in colour of fair vertegrece; and if the thynkith that ther is gadered aboven bote litel in quantité, late hem hange stille in the same vessel, and close wel the vessel aȝeyn, and whanne ȝe opene it and fynde hem grene, take out ȝoure platis, and scrape hem clene with a knyf al the grene poudre into a clene panne or a skyn, and thanne grynd it on a clene ston, and put it in a clene cornetrey, and medle it with good strong vynegre in manere of nesche past, and thanne lat it stonde so still in the same cornetrey to it be waxen sumdel more stef, and thanne gadere it clene out of thi cornetrey with a croked knyfe that be ordeyned therfore, and put it up in a clene letheren bagge toward the greyn side, and thanne presse it down togidres al on a gobet, and lat it drie so up in the same bagge, and thanne is don; and alle the platis that ben scraped so bifore times, hong hem aȝeyn in her vessel as bifore is seid, and so doith alwey to thei be al defied[5] and clene rotid into faire vertegrece.

  1. Lees.
  2. Washed.
  3. Lumps.
  4. Latoun, or latten, was a hard mixed metal closely resembling brass, but the precise nature of its composition does not appear to be known. It is very frequently mentioned in old writers.
  5. Consumed.