Purity, two to Patience, and four to Sir Gawain. The first of the illustrations to Sir Gawain shows Gawain taking the axe from King Arthur, and also the beheading scene before the dais, with the Green Knight holding up his severed head; all this is combined in one picture. The second (Which is the clearest, and is reproduced as frontispiece) shows the lady's stealthy visit to Sir Gawain; above the picture is written (in a different hand from that of the copyist)
Mi minde is mukul on on Þat wil me noȝt amende
Sum time was trew as ston & fro scham couþe hir defende.
These lines have no relevance to the situation in the poem. The third illustration shows Sir Gawain and the Green Knight at the Green Chapel; it is very indistinct. The fourth pictures Gawain’s return to Arthur.
The four main divisions of the poem are indicated by large ornamental coloured capitals. Smaller coloured capitals without ornament occur at the beginning of lines 619, 1421, 1893, 2259.
It is now known where the manuscript was written, but as the Lancashire character of the language is perfectly preserved, it is likely that the copying as well as the composition belongs to Lancashire.
The Story.
A summary of the story of Sir Gawain at this point may be a convenience:
