Pedro Tafur, Andanzas y viajes.

After two days which I spent resting, I went to
pay my respects to the Emperor of Constantinople,
and all the Castilians came to accompany me, and
I arranged myself as best I could and donned the
order of the Escama, which is the emblem of King
Don Juan, and I sent for one of the Emperor's
interpreters, named Juan de Sevilla, of Castilian
nationality; and it is said that the Emperor,
besides [Juan's] being an interpreter, [chose him]
because he sang to him Castilian romances with a
lute [lacuna] and he came with me to the palace.

Después de dos días que yo estuve reposando,
fui á fazer reverençia al emperador de
Constantinopla, é vinieron todos los castellanos
á me acompañar, é yo puseme a punto Io mejor
que pude, é con el collar descama, que es Ia
devisa del rey Don Juan, é enbie per un
trujaman del Emperador, que Ilamavan Juan de
Sevilla, castellano por nacion; é dizen quel
Emperador, allende de ser Trujaman, porque Ie
cantava romançes castellanos con un laud
[lacuna] é fue conmigo al palacio.

ramirezarellanoTAF. p. 139: Lute;
English translation: lettsPT, p. 117.

[Texts from corona1999, page 247: Pero Tafur, Andanzas e viajes (c. 1435-1439). Consulted in ramirezarellanoTAF, p. 139.
The only extant manuscript is an early eighteenth-century copy, which shows the lacunae in the original by means of three dots; see Letts, Malcom (ed.). Pedro Tafur, Travels and Adventures 1435-1439. London, 1926, p. 1. Letts translates this passage (p. 117) as: "the Emperor chose him to be interpreter because he sang him Castilian romances to a lute".]