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A series o f well-known histories and bibliographies o f technical writings in English begin from the premise that start with A Treatise on the Astrolabe by the English poet Geoffrey Chaucer. Nevertheless, it can be shown that there is a notable tradition o f practical technical writings - translations and adaptations o f Latin and Arabic sources - both in Old and Middle English, which pre-date or are contemporary with Chaucer’s. A number o f their characteristics, especially structural, seem to anticipate similar traits o f contemporary scientific and technical discourse.