This is an original-spelling, critical edition of Anthony Munday’s (1560–1633) translation of Palmerín de Olivia, an anonymous Iberian chivalric romance published in 1511 — here conjecturally attributed to a female author — that was also translated into Dutch, French, and Italian during the early modern period. Munday translated it into English not directly from the Spanish original, but instead using Jean Maugin’s French version (printed in 1546) as his source text, while also consulting Mambrino Roseo da Fabriano’s Italian rendition. The English Palmerin d’Oliva, first published in 1588 in two parts, was printed at least five times by 1637 but has not been reissued since then. Therefore, this volume now presents the English Palmerin d’Oliva to modern-day readers for the first time since 1637.

The editorial standards of this MLA-approved edition exceed the corpus of Iberian romances of chivalry. The method followed aims to present the English text in a form as close as possible to its authorial inscription as can be recovered from the extant printed editions and other textual witnesses. All editorial interventions and departures from the copy-text are recorded in the textual apparatus and intended to restore authorial intentions, eliminate textual corruption, and present authoritative readings. Thus, the critical text is accompanied by a comprehensive textual apparatus that guarantees the traceability of all editorial decisions and provides readers with all the evidence needed for accessing the entire printed tradition of this romance.

Edited with an introduction, critical apparatus, notes, and glossary by Jordi Sánchez-Martí