Henry Vaughan, Olor Iscanus, or The Swan of Usk

Glyn Pursglove (Swansea University)

The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.2.1.04: English Writing and Culture of the Seventeenth Century, 1625-1688.
Vol. editors: Jennifer Brady (Rhodes College), Daniel Cook (University of Dundee), Neil Forsyth (Université de Lausanne), Claire Preston (Queen Mary, University of London), J A Roe (University of York), Virginia Mason Vaughan (Clark University)

Dates

First circulation or publication 1651

Places

Wales (Country of Origin)

Genres and Modes

Poem collection
Translation

Resources

Olor Iscanus (“The Swan of Usk”) is a very miscellaneous collection, mixing prose and verse, both original and translated, in a variety of genres. On its title-page it is described as “A Collection of some select Poems, and Translations, formerly written by Mr. Henry Vaughan ,Silurist. Published by a Friend”. A puzzle surrounds its publication. The dedication of the book is dated “Newton by Usk this 17. of Decemb. 1647”, some four years before the book was actually published. The delay was perhaps due to a change in Vaughan's conception of the purposes of poetry. His Poems of 1646 was a collection well within the mainstream of Cavalier love poetry. In 1650, when his Silex …

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448 words

Citation: Pursglove, Glyn. "Olor Iscanus, or The Swan of Usk". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 07 July 2001 [https://staging.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=3086, accessed 25 November 2024.]

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