Kloster Lüne, Hs. 15, Lage 9, fol. 16v

Lateinisch und Niederdeutsch.

Die Absenderin dankt für ein kostbares Glas und Marienbild, genauso wie für die Medizin gegen Schlaganfall (apoplexia). Bitte um Auskunft, wie oft Elisabeth Medingen mit dem Kräutersud baden möge, ob einmal monatlich oder öfter; es ginge ihr leidlich gut. Sie bittet auch um Auskunft zur Anwendung der Lavendelsalbe und wie sie herzustellen sei. Im Gegenzug sei man gern behilflich. Entschuldigung für Versäumnis, da man angenommen habe, dass der Bote noch dabliebe, nachdem er den Brief aus Walsrode geliefert hatte, aber er war bereits weg. Sie schicke einen Speiseteller, von dem die Priorin zu Weihnachten essen möge.

After a salutation which bears some resemblance to the final model salutation from Letter 102, the Lüne nun thanks the prioress of Walsrode for the precious glass, the image of Mary and the remedy for apoplexy. One of the Lüne nun’s expressions praising the recipient’s goodness and kindness is an example of the contemporary reworking of an old metaphor whose original meaning was a misogynistic suggestion that if all the oceans were filled with ink, there would still not be enough to record just how deceitful and wicked women can be! However, from around the early fourteenth century, this metaphor began to be used more positively to suggest that even if all the oceans were filled with ink, there would not be enough to record the virtues of a woman. This is clearly also the case in this letter, where it is used to express deep gratitude for the recipient’s kindness and generosity to the sender and the other nuns of Lüne. She asks for more information about how often Elisabeth Medingen should bathe with the herbal extract (whether she should use it once a month or more frequently), as she is currently reasonably well. She asks about the use of the lavender salve and how it should be made. She offers assistance in return. She apologises for the delay in writing, as she had expected the messenger to wait for her reply after delivering the letter from Walsrode, but he left straight away. She sends a plate of food for the prioress to eat at Christmas. A later note added to the beginning of the letter suggesting that it was written to Elisabeth Medingen as prioress of Walsrode is incorrect; even though Elisabeth is mentioned later in the text, Anna Behr was prioress of the convent at the time.