The Horn of Plenty and the Grail

Cornucopia: vessels that provide food & drink

he Grail is variously described as a cup or deep dish. In the earlier Grail romances, the word graal is not explained, perhaps because the readers could be expected to be familiar with the word. Some years after Chrétien wrote his poem (but not earlier than 1211) the monk Hélinand of Froidmont defined the similar word gradale as meaning scutella lata et aliquantulum profunda, a wide and slightly deep dish. Only later, in Robert de Boron's Joseph d'Arimathie, was the Grail identified with a cup or chalice.

ne of the characteristic properties of the Grail is the provision of food and drink. According to Manessier's Continuation, as the Grail procession passes through the hall, the tables are filled on every side with the most delectable dishes. Although Wolfram's Grail is a stone rather than a dish or cup, it too has this property: whatever one stretched one's hand out for in the presence of the Grail, it was waiting, one found it all ready and to hand — dishes warm, dishes cold, newfangled dishes and old favourites, the meat of beasts both tame and wild ... Clearly the Grail is related to the horn of plenty or ambrosial cup found in various mythologies — such as the Horn of Brân, one of the Thirteen Treasures of Britain — although it never appears in any of the romances as a horn.

The Body

.S.Loomis held that several of the strange features of the Grail romances had arisen as a result of mistranslation or the misunderstanding of ambiguous words in various texts. He pointed out that the Old French nominative case for both "horn" and "body" were the same: li cors; and he suggested that this might explain the remarkable feature of a graal, or wide and deep dish, containing a single consecrated wafer, the Corpus Christi. He suggested that originally this might have been a magic horn. Another possibility is that this is a development from the body of the dead knight, a feature of Gawain's visits to the Grail castle; in the First Continuation, for example, the body is carried on a bier in the Grail procession. So there are three possible variations on li cors:

• The horn of plenty: possibly the original of the Grail, forgotten or rejected before any of the surviving Grail romances was written.
• The body of the knight: which is a feature of several "Gawain versions" of the story, which J.L. Weston considered to have been derived from a version preceding the "Perceval versions".
• The body of Christ, a consecrated wafer: which, carried on a broad dish, is the otherwise inexplicable feature of Chrétien's version of the story and those accounts that derived from it. Perhaps explained by Loomis' theory that li cors had been misunderstood.

he mystery that Perceval does not understand, in Chrétien's version of the story, is simply that the consecrated wafer is carried through the room in a strange procession to a door through which the Quester gets only a glimpse of an old king. It is later revealed that this person is the father (prototype of Wagner's Titurel) of the Maimed King (prototype of Wagner's Amfortas), who is kept alive by the wafer that is served from the Grail. For scholars, the mystery has been why a large dish was needed for this purpose; to which Loomis' theory provides a possible explanation.

The Grail Castle

the genre of Grail romances developed, elements of Chrétien's story were modified and combined with other material, including Celtic traditions that Loomis identified in stories from Welsh and Irish mythology. A common feature in these varied romances is the Grail castle, which in all its variations is somewhere not of this world, even if it is, perhaps temporarily, in this world. It is of the essence that the Grail castle is hidden; it cannot be found simply by seeking it. Usually the Grail castle is surrounded by water; in addition it might be hidden in a mist, or in the depths of a pathless forest. Usually there is a river that must be crossed to reach the Grail castle; in one instance it is approached along a narrow causeway. It is not difficult to see the origins of this castle in the Otherworld palaces of Irish mythology or in a Celtic Underworld.

hereas only one person was kept alive by the wafer, in Chrétien's story, other authors made it (more or less) clear that the entire community was kept alive — and perhaps also kept young and healthy — by the regenerative power of the Grail. In Chrétien's story, a banquet is served but it is not stated that the food and drink has been provided by the Grail. In later romances, it is usually stated that the food and drink appears as the Grail passes through the hall. In some of the romances, the Grail provides the guest with his favourite food and drink. What is certain is that the Grail became interpreted both as a fountain of eternal youth and as a cornucopia; what is less certain is whether these elements were drawn from an earlier poem or an oral tradition in which the magic castle contained a fountain of youth or a horn of plenty.

Gawain's Visit to the Grail Castle

n many of the Grail romances, the hero who visits the Grail castle is called Perceval, Parzival or something similar. In other romances, the hero is called Gawain; and in some, both Gawain and Perceval separately visit the Grail castle. In the Prose Lancelot, from which the following extract has been taken, there are five visits to the Grail castle, successively by Gawain (see below), Lancelot (who gets to know the Grail King's daughter quite well), Bors (twice) and finally by Lancelot again, who is cured of his insanity by the Grail. In this version of the Grail castle, there is no procession with a bleeding lance, only the Grail maiden bearing the mysterious vessel. Jessie Laidlay Weston drew attention to the curious fact that the hall is filled with perfume only in versions where Gawain is the Quester; in this example there are many censers burning incense.

... Sir Gawain beheld and saw a white dove, which bore in its beak a censer of the richest gold. As it soon as it came there, the hall was filled with the sweetest odours that heart of man could conceive, or tongue of man tell. All that were there became mute and spoke never a word more but kneeled down as soon as they beheld the dove. It entered a chamber and at once the folk in the hall ran and set the tables and the cloths on the dais; and they sat them down, the one and the other, and never a man of them spoke a word. Sir Gawain marvelled greatly at this adventure but he sat him down with the others, and beheld and saw how they were all in prayers and orisons. Then there came forth from the chamber where the dove had entered a damsel, the fairest he had beheld any day of his life. Her hair was cunningly plaited and bound,and her face was fair to look upon. She was beautiful with all the beauty that pertaineth unto a woman, none fairer was ever seen on earth. She came forth from the chamber bearing in her hands the richest vessel that might be seen by the eye of mortal man. It was made in the semblence of a chalice and she held it on high above her head, so that all those who were there saw it and bowed. Sir Gawain looked on the vessel and esteemed it highly in his heart, yet knew not of what it was wrought; for it was not of wood nor of any manner of metal; nor was it in any wise of stone, nor of horn, nor of bone, and therefore was he sore abashed. Then he looked on the maiden and marvelled more at her beauty than at the wonder of the vessel, for he had never seen a damsel with whom she might be compared; and he mused so fixedly upon her that he had no thought for aught beside. But as the damsel passed before the knights, the holy vessel in her hand, all kneeled before it; and forthwith were the tables replenished with the choicest meats in the world, and the hall filled with the sweetest odours. When the damsel had passed the dais once, she returned into the chamber whence she came, and Sir Gawain followed her with his eyes as long as he might; and when he saw her no more, he looked on the table before him and saw naught that he might eat, for it was void and bare; yet there was none other but had great plenty, yea, a surfeit of viands, before him. When he saw this he was sore abashed, and knew not what he might say or do, since he deemed well that he had in some point transgressed, and for that transgression was his meat lacking to him. So he withheld him from asking until the tables were taken away. But then all gat them forth from the palace, so that Sir Gawain wist not what had become of them and knew naught but that he was left alone; and when he himself would have gone forth into the courtyard below, he might no longer do so, for all the doors were fast shut. When he saw this, he leaned him against one of the windows of the hall and fell into deep thought. Then there came forth from the chamber a dwarf, bearing a rod in his hand, and when he saw Sir Gawain, he cried upon him: 'What is this evil knight, for by ill chance are ye leaning at our windows? Flee ye from hence, here may ye not remain, for in you is much vileness. Go, get ye to rest in one of these chambers that none behold you there!'

Right: Gawain on the Perilous Bed, on an ivory mirror-case, Paris, 14th century. Attribution: I, Sailko.

Gawain is not able to escape the castle before he has suffered several trials and adventures, for it seems that this Grail castle is also the Castle of Wonders, with all of the usual trick furniture, hidden weapons, fiery dragons, lamenting maidens and the whole apparatus usually found in Chastel Merveilleus. He is injured in the shoulder by a lance that comes out of nowhere; despite the loss of much blood he resolves to stay in the castle. After fighting a large and heavily armed knight, Gawain falls unconscious, only to be woken by celestial music.

Then Sir Gawain saw come forth from the chamber the damsel who the evening before had borne the holy vessel before the table. Before her came two tapers and two censers. When she came even to the middle of the hall, she set the holy vessel before her on a table of silver. Sir Gawain beheld all around censers to the number of ten, which ceased not to give forth perfume. All the voices began to sing together more sweetly than the heart of man might think or mouth speak. All said with one voice, 'Blessed be the Father of Heaven'. When the song had endured a long time, the damsel took the holy vessel and bore it into the chamber whence she had come, and then were the voices silent as if they had departed hence, and all the windows of the hall opened and closed again, and the hall grew dark so that Sir Gawain saw naught but of this he was well aware that he felt hale and whole as if naught ailed him, nor might he fell aught of the wound in his shoulder, for it was right well healed...

hen Gawain is surrounded by many people, who drag him from the hall and tie him to a cart. He falls asleep. In the morning he is paraded through the streets and pelted with dung and old shoes, before he is driven out of the town.

The Rise of Gawain

ir Gawain, also known as Gawan, Gavan, Gawen, Gayain, Gawaine, Gauwaine, Gauvain, or Walewein, is King Arthur's nephew and a Knight of the Round Table in the Arthurian stories. Under the name Gwalchmei (which might mean "hawk of May" or "hawk of the plain") — if we accept the identification with Gawain that was made by R.S. Loomis — he appears very early in Arthurian legend, being mentioned in some of the earliest Welsh sources. As Gawain, he appears in Latin, French, English, Dutch, German and Italian literature, notably as the protagonist of the alliterative poem Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, of two other English poems in alliterative verse and of the related French verse romance La Mule sans frein ("The Mule without a Bridle"), as well as another verse romance Le Chevalier à l'épée (The Knight of the Sword). Other tales of Gawain include Diu Crône by Heinrich von dem Tûrlin, and The Weddynge of Syr Gawen and Dame Ragnell; he appears in the works of Chrétien de Troyes and in the Prose Lancelot.

awain is one of a select number of knights of the Round Table to be referred to as one of the greatest knights and closest companions of King Arthur. He is usually the son of Arthur's sister Morgause (or Anna, according to Geoffrey of Monmouth and in the early Latin romance De ortu Waluuanii nepotis Arturi, "The Rise of Gawain, Nephew of Arthur") and King Lot (or Loth) of Orkney and Lothian. His brothers or half-brothers are Agravain, Gaheris, Gareth, and Mordred. In earlier romances he is portrayed as a formidable, courtly, valorous and compassionate warrior, fiercely loyal to his king and to his friends. In later stories, in particular the French tales that influenced Sir Thomas Malory, Gawain is a less likeable character. He is a chivalric defender of damsels in distress including Orgelûse, as told in Wolfram's Parzival. But he is also, in some accounts, inclined to take advantage of young women, after which he is pursued by their fathers and brothers. Gawain married, in various tales, Ragnell, Amurfine, the daughter of Carl of Carlisle, and the daughter of the king of Sorcha. One of his sons is the Fair Unknown, Gingalain or Gyngolyn.

awain plays an important role in the Grail romances, where he is one of the questing knights. In the Perceval/Parzival stories the adventures of Sir Gawain and his "best buddy" Sir Perceval are interwoven, and the characters of these two very different knights are contrasted. In the Lancelot stories, Gawain is more of a supporting character but in many other medieval romances, as well as in more modern works based on them, Gawain is the central character and the story is about his adventures. In the early "Bleheris" version of the quest for the Holy Grail — appended to the Perceval as the "First Continuation" but according to Weston earlier than the Perceval — Gawain does not entirely succeed: he asks about the Lance only, which brings about a partial restoration of the land. He is more successful in the later version Diu Crône, in which Gawain breaks the spell which holds the Grail King in semblence of life: in this version the king is dead and not just infirm. In all later stories about the Grail, Gawain fails in the quest.

walchmei (or Gwalchmai) was a traditional hero of Welsh mythology. His popularity greatly increased after foreign versions, particularly those derived from Geoffrey of Monmouth's Historia Regum Britanniae, became known in Wales. An early Welsh romance Culhwch and Olwen, written in the 11th century and eventually included with the Mabinogion, ascribes to Gwalchmei the same relationship with Arthur that Gawain is later given: he is a son of Arthur's sister and one of his leading warriors. However, he is mentioned only twice in the text; once in the extensive list of Arthur's court towards the beginning of the story, and again as one of the "Six Helpers" who Arthur sends with the protagonist Culhwch on his journey to find his love Olwen. Unlike the other helpers he takes no further part in the action, suggesting he was added to the romance later, likely under the influence of the Welsh versions of Geoffrey's Historia. He also appears in Peredur fab Efrawg (Peredur son of Efrawg), a branch of the Mabinogion, where he aids the hero Peredur in the final battle against the nine witches of Caer Loyw.

The Decline of Gawain

eading the Grail romances, one can feel sorry for poor Gawain. In the earliest texts, Gawain is a brave hero who either entirely or partly achieves his quest. As the genre developed, the achievements of Gawain were played down. He fails, more and more. He is more interested in chasing damsels, whether in distress or not, than he is in seeking the Grail. In Wolfram's Parzival, Gawain becomes the more worldly knight who provides a contrast to the unworldly Parzival; and he meets his match in the haughty damsel Orgeluse. Gradually Gawain is eclipsed by Perceval, who will in his turn (in the Vulgate Cycle) be superseded by Galahad. In a later work, the Prose Lancelot, Gawain is not served any food by the Grail; apparently because he was more interested in the Grail maiden than in what she was carrying. It seems a little unkind when Loomis derives this element from the cauldron of a Celtic tale (The Spoils of Annwn) that would not cook food for a coward; which Gawain certainly is not. By the time we reach Wagner's Parsifal, Gawain only gets a brief mention.