Come down, O Love divine

Come down, O Love divine. Bianco da Siena* (d. 1434), translated by Richard Frederick Littledale* (1833-1890). The Italian text, beginning ‘Discendi, amor santo’*, was published in Laudi Spirituali del Bianco da Siena, Povero Gesuato del Secolo XIV (Lucca, 1851), edited by Telesforo Bini from a manuscript source. It had eight verses: for the complicated details of Littledale’s selection, see ‘Discendi, amor santo’. Littledale’s translation of four verses appeared in his collection, The People’s Hymnal (1867). It remained unnoticed until the compilers of EH must have brought it to the attention of Vaughan Williams*, who produced an inspired tune for it, DOWN AMPNEY (named after the village...