Page:Elizabeth Elstob - An English-Saxon homily on the birth-day of St. Gregory.djvu/88

geond Romana burh
mid ^[1] fellenum gir-
lum. & scinendum gym-
mum. & readum gold
^[2] frætewode჻ Ac æfter
his gecyrrednysse he
þenode godes þearfum &
^[3] hine sylfe þearfa mid
wacum ^[4] færelse befan-
gen჻ Swa fulfremedlice
he drohtnode on angyn-
ne his gecyrrednysse
swa ꝥ he miht þa iu beon

pass along the City of Rome
in Garments of Silk, spark-
ling with Gemms, and a-
dorn'd with rich Embroide-
ry of Gold and Red. But
after his Conversion he mi-
nistred to God's Poor, and
himself took upon him the
Profession of Poverty in a
mean Habit. So perfectly
did he behave himself at the
beginning of his Conversion,
that he might hereafter be

seems to give us the Image of Gregory thus habited serico contectus, ac gemmis micantibus solitus erat per urbem procedere trabeatus. By which it appears, that the Trabea was made of some rich Silk, and adorn'd with Jewels and Gold Embroidery. This Trabea, embellish'd with Jewels and Embroidery, was in antient times worn only by the Emperors themselves in their Consulship. Now we find in Gregory's time it was also made use of by the Prætor. The Poet Claudian gives us these flourishing Descriptions of it in the several Confulships of Honorius.

——————Cinctusque mutata Gabinos
Dives Hydaspæis angescat purpura gemmis.

And again,

——————Asperat Indus
Velamenta lapis, pretiosaque fila smaragdis
Ducta virent.——————

And in the laft,

<poem>Membraque gemmato trabea viridantia cinctu;

1. pællenum gyrlum. C. H.
2. gefrætewode. C. H.
3. him. C. H.
4. wæfelse. C. H.