This edition of a seventeenth-century Scottish poem gives modern audiences insight into the ways previous generations perceived and engaged with local nature and architecture. Henry Adamson's "The Muses Threnodie" (1638) offers insights into the lives, amusements and anxieties of of the residents of the town of Perth. In it, two of Perth's citizens venture out on foot and by boat into the vicinity of their cramped, closely overseen town. In whimsically funny conversations, they observe local natural phenomena and landmarks while discussing the buried, ruined evidence of the region's architectural history. Their perceptions of waterways and landforms highlight their sometimes conflicted understanding of historical change at Perth on the eve of the Scottish National Covenant. The beguilingly inglorious verse in which Henry Adamson clothes his characters' sentiments serves as the outermost layer of several stylistic misdirections, as if to distract official attention from any dangerous contemporary criticism within.

Table of Contents:
Preface Acknowledgements List of Abbreviations Introduction Authorship and date - Evidence for authorship in An - John Adamson's role - Henry Adamson: biography - The date of MT Witnesses - An - Bo Language and versification - Spellings, rhymes, and sounds - Inflections - Parts of speech and phrasal construction - Simple and composite sentences - Words and meanings in Scots and English - Versification Literary and historical significance - Master Gall and Monsier George - A poem on Perth - The bridge and its mysteries Previous edition Editorial practice The Muses Threnodie: Or Mirthfull Mournings on the Death of Master Gall by Henry Adamson 1Pre. Title Page 2Pre. Dedication 3Pre. To the Reader - William Drummond, Letter to Henry Adamson 4Pre. Henry Adamson, The Inventarie of the Gabions 5Pre. Henry Adamson, An Apologie of the Author 6Pre. Thomas Crawford, De authoris præmaturo obitu 7Pre. John Adamson, To Perth 8Pre. Thomas Crawford, On Patrick Adamson 9Pre. In authorem libri 10Pre. Ad Pertham 11Pre. John Moore, To the Memorie of the Author 1Mu. The First Muse 2Mu. The Second Muse 3Mu. The Third Muse 4Mu. The Fourth Muse 5Mu. The Fifth Muse 6Mu. The Sixth Muse 7Mu. The Seventh Muse 8Mu. The Eighth Muse 9Mu. The Ninth Muse Textual Notes Explanatory Notes Bibliography Glossary Index of names and places in the poem