Legenda Aurea, De Sancta Anastasia: a prefect deluded.

The Legenda Aurea is an inexhaustible source of anecdotes and miracles, often loosely connected and miracles performed by one saint, could easily have been performed by another. The following story is taken from the De Sancta Anastasia, but she plays no part in these story and it could almost be part of the vita every saint, except for hermits, as they don’t have servants and certainly not maids. This story is lacking in William Caxton’s translation and it could well be that it was not in his Latin text. Copyists and publishers of De Voragine’s Legenda have in due course inserted their own stories and - given the large number of manuscripts, prints and translations - it is almost impossible to establish a scholarly text. Years ago an edition was announced for the prestigious Fontes Christiani: I am still waiting.

acobus de Voragine, Legenda Aurea, De Sancta Anastasia (part)

aec habebat tres ancillas pulcherrimas, quae sorores erant. Quarum una dicebatur Agapete, altera Thionia et altera Irenia. Quae cum Christianae essent et praefecti monitis nullatenus oboedirent, in cubiculum eas reclusit, ubi coquinae utensilia servabantur. Praefectus autem in earum ardens amorem ad eas ivit, ut suam libidinem exerceret. Qui in amentiam versus putans se tractare virgines cacabos, patellas, caldaria et similia amplectens osculabatur et, cum ex hoc satiatus fuisset, foras exiit nigerrimus et deformis et vestimentis concisis. Quem servi, qui eum pro foribus exspectaverant, sic aptatum videntes cogitantes, quod in daemonem versus esset, eum verberibus affecerunt et fugientes solum reliquerunt. Cumque imperatorem adiret, ut de hoc conqueretetur, alii virgis percutiebant, alii lutum et pulverem in eum proiciebant suspicantes, quod in furiam versus esset. Oculi autem eius tenebantur, ne sic se deformem videret. Videbatur enim ei, quod ipse et omnes albis vestibus essent induti. Quapropter mirabatur plurimum, cum sic eum omnes deridebant, quem in tanto honore habere consueverant. Putans vero, cum sic se deformem ab aliis didicisset, quod puellae sibi per artem magicam hoc fecissent, iussit eas coram se exspoliari, ut eas saltem nudas aspiceret. Sed statim earum vestimenta sic corporibus adhaeserunt, ut nullo modo exui valerent. Praefectus autem prae admiratione ita obdormivit stertens, quod etiam a pulsantibus non poterat excitari.

haec: Anastasia
praefectus: prefect, governor (praefecti: no indication is given in the Legenda Aurea in which town Anastasia lived, but other sources name Sirnium, now in modern Serbia)
monitum: admonition
nulatenus: no way, by no means
cubiculum: room, chamber
recludo reclusi reclusum: in Classical Latin this word means `to open, reveal’, but in ML the meaning shifted to ‘to shut up’, cf English recluse `hermit’
coquina: kitchen
in amentiam versus: turned into madness
putans se tractare: thinking that he handled/grasped
cacabos, patellas, caldaria: cooking-pots, platters, pots for boiling
amplector amplexus: to embrace
osculor: to kiss
foras: outside
deformis: deformed, ugly
concido concidi concisus: to ruin, cut to pieces
pro foribus: in front of the door
sic aptatum: in such condition
verber verberis (n.): lash, whip
adiret: the praefectus
conqueror conquestus: to complain (bitterly)
virga: twig
percutio percussi percussum: to strike heavily
lutum: mud
furia: fury
oculi autem eius tenebantur, ne sic se deformem videret: his eyes though were in a condition that he could not see that he was deformed
albus: white
induo indui indutum (-ere): to dress
quapropter: therefor
plurimum: very much
consuesco consuevi consuetum: to be accustomed
cum sic se deformem ab aliis didicisset: when he had learnt from others that he was that ugly
per artem magicam: but in reality it was God or the Holy Ghost who protected these girls
coram: openly, in his presence
exspolio (-are): (here) to undress
saltem: at least
adhaereo adaesi (the perfect only in ML): to stick
exuo exui exutum: to take off
valeo valui: to be able
obdormio obdormivi obdormitum (-ire) = to sleep
sterto (-ere): to snore
pulso (-are): to beat, hammer
excito (-are): to wake

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anastasia_of_Sirmium