LENNE. Nicholas of Lynne in Norfolk, fl. fourteenth century, was a Carmelite lecturer in theology. He is not to be confused with Nicholas the Franciscan friar, who is remembered as philosopher, cosmographer, and astronomer. In 1386 John of Gaunt requested a calendar from Nicholas of Lynne, who composed one for the years 1387 to 1462, arranged for the latitude and longitude of Oxford and set with elaborate astronomical tables.

Chaucer says that he has used the Kalendarium of Nicholas of Lynne in his Treatise on the Astrolabe and that he intends to give the tables used to find the altitude meridian after the calendars of Frere J. Somer and N. Lenne, Astr Prol 80-85. Besides this brief mention, there is evidence that Chaucer used the Kalendarium in The Canterbury Tales. Sigmund Eisner points out that the astronomical periphrasis of MLI 1-14, where Bailly calculates that it is ten o'clock on April 18 on the Julian calendar, is indebted to the Kalendarium. The phrase "the ark of his artificial day" is explained correctly in Astr II.7.1-22, but Bailly makes an error, for he is "nat depe ystert in loore," MLI 4. Chauntecleer, on the third of May, gives the sun's position in an astronomical periphrasis, NPT 3187-3199, which, Eisner points out, uses Nicholas of Lynne's shadow scale. The astronomical periphrasis at ParsP 1-11 is also indebted to the shadow scale of Nicholas of Lynne. Here the narrator makes an error: he says that Libra is the moon's exaltation, but Libra is Saturn's exaltation or point of greatest influence. The lines mean that Libra is just a few degrees above the horizon, 3 degrees in ascension. [Somer]