
Line 647: May retires to 'hire chambre' for four days? after the consumation of their marriage. The comment is 'as usage is of wives for the beste.'
What practice is this? are there any other sources which describe something like this? Why did they do it?
Or is it purely a literary device to get May out of the way for a while?
edit: more detail added to the custom, lines 673 - 684...
I tried googling, but oddly, a keyword search of 'medieval sexual practices' isn't getting me very far...

Thanks everyone (: