As the oldest extant collection of vernacular riddles in western europe, the ninety five old englishriddlesof the exeter book exeter, cathedral library, ms 3501. Here are ten things you should know about the exeter book. Old english in general can thus be seen to harbour an ambiguity around the creation of offspring on the level of its. Exeter book, the largest extant collection of old english poetry.
Reading the exeter book riddles as lifewriting the. The riddles in the exeter book were probably authored by multiple people and are difficult to date. As the oldest extant collection of vernacular riddles in western europe, the ninetyfive old englishriddlesof the exeter book exeter, cathedral library, ms 3501. The best anglosaxon riddles interesting literature. The exeter book varied collection of old english poetry authorship and dating of the riddles unclear.
It may be over a thousand years old, and has been kept alive by children learning it from one another and repeating it in the playground. From the exeter book by michael alexander 2007, paperback old english riddles. Two historical riddles of the old english exeter book. Use the buttons on the right to navigate to each set of riddles. In many cases, answers are just provisional, and still the subject of some discussion. Shielded behind glass it will be a little hard to place ones pint of guinness on its covers once more. Here are two of these anglosaxon riddles, both in old english and translated into modern english. The exeter book riddles in context the british library. Two historical riddles of the old english exeter book by john donald hosler a thesis submitted to the graduate faculty in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of master of arts major.
Here are a few obscure facts related to their relationship. Some anglosaxon riddles have survived as playground rhymes. Riddle numbers are taken from muirs exeter anthology 1994, though i follow williamson in considering the. In addition to approximately 95 old english riddles from the exeter book, we have hundreds of latin poetic and prose enigmata by. Three exeter book riddles are printed in introduction to old english as minitexts i and l. One of the most distinguished pieces of literature in the past thousand years contains a very comprehensive set of riddles in english. Exeter book riddles solutions anglosaxon narrative. Anglosaxon riddles of the exeter bookindex of solutions. Publication date 1910 topics riddles, english old publisher boston ginn collection robarts. Scholars believe that a number were composed in the the exeter book riddles. Anglosaxon riddles of the exeter book wikisource, the free. Perhaps the most enigmatic cultural artifacts that survive from the anglosaxon period are the old english riddle poems that were preserved in the tenth century exeter book manuscript. In addition to approximately 95 old english riddles from the exeter book, we have hundreds of latin poetic and prose enigmata by anglosaxon authors that survive in english and european manuscripts.
The old english riddles of the exeter book 1977 edited. In some very few instances, my idea of the solution differs from the generally accepted range. Variae collectiones aenigmatum merovingicae aetatis. Krapp, george philip, and elliot van kirk dobbie, eds. While the answers to latin riddles were given by their titles the latin riddles being rhetorical word games rather than true enigmas, few of the old english riddles provide solutions. Encoded references in exeter book birdriddles medieval. The old english riddles of the exeter book by craig williamson. In my my most recent blog, encoded references in the exeter book bird riddles, i discuss arcane references in the exeter book riddles and build on a previous piece, reading runes in the exeter book riddles, which explores the cryptic use of runes in this old english riddle collection. The riddles are of particular interest to students of old english poetry and anglosaxon culture, to archeologists, anthropologists, and folklorists.
Old english riddles are commonly filled with double entendre. Thomas klein, the old english translation of aldhelms riddle lorica, res, 48 1997, 3459. Anglosaxon riddles of the exeter book wikisource, the. The exeter book, a late tenthcentury manuscript of early old english poetry, is an anthology of religious homiletic verse, elegiac poetry, and ninetyone lyric. University of north carolina press, 1977, by the university of north carolina press. It is probably the oldest surviving book of poetry from anglosaxon england, and contains a fascinating array of old english works, from christian and elegaic poems, to riddles. Some of the riddles were written down, so we are able to read them today. Several other separate editions and several translations of the riddles are available. And its the exeter book that yields a whole host of smaller masterpieces of old english verse, from the dream of the rood to the battle of maldon to the ruin to the wanderer and the seafarer and the celebrated riddles. Both of these blogs note how certain riddles contained in the exeter book exeter cathedral library. Clever, challenging, and notoriously obscure, the riddles have fascinated readers for centuries and provided crucial insight into the period. Poems found in the book of exeter include the wanderer and the wifes lament greenblatt and abrams. In working with the old english text of the exeter book, it is important to pay attention to all the riddles and read them as a whole collection.
The old english texts used on this site appear in professor craig williamsons edition of the old english riddles of the exeter book, chapel hill. The riddle has a rich history in the english language. On the leiden riddle and riddle 35 see williamson, the old english riddles of the exeter book, 2438. This volume will supersede all earlier editions of the riddles as the text.
The riddle was a major, prestigious literary genre in anglosaxon england, and riddles were written both in latin and old english verse. University of north carolina press, 1977 ocolc557646302. The original exeter book resides in you guessed it exeter castle in the united kingdom. The date of authorship of many of the riddles is unclear. Among the other texts in the exeter book, there are over ninety riddles. The language of the anglosaxon riddles is often difficult, and even those who are fairly familiar with old english cannot read them readily. Commentary for riddle 26 the riddle ages old english. Riddle numbers are taken from muirs exeter anthology 1994, though i follow williamson in considering the first three as parts of a single riddle. Exeter book, or the codex exoniensis, is a 10th century book, or codex, that contains most of the surviving anglosaxon poetry. Exeter book project gutenberg selfpublishing ebooks.
Some of them have been dated as far back as the 7 th century. While the poetry of the exeter book is mainly anonymous, some of the authors composing latin riddles are named. The exeter book is a 10 thcentury anthology of poetry in old english and is of major importance to exeter cathedral, the cathedral library and english literature itself exeter dean and chapter manuscript 3501, usually known as the exeter book, was written down by. Niles riddle 74 is one of a handful of old english riddles of the exeter book that have stubbornly resisted a solution. The old english riddles of the exeter book by craig. Chalice 15 chalice 16 churn 77 coat of mail 50 cock and. The old english riddles of the exeter book book, 1977.
That leaves the cotton manuscript whose anglosaxon poetry comprises beowulf and nothing more and the exeter book. In continuing my discussion of cryptic information encoded in runes in the exeter book riddles, in which i argue runic literacy functions as a form of esotericism, i wish to expand the conversation by considering the variety of specialized information contained in a group of old english riddles featured in the collection riddles 710. It seems likely they were composed in the 700s when riddles were popular in english monasteries. The exeter book was created by the first bishop of exeter in the eleventh century, when he collected poetry and riddles into a single tome. Edited with introduction, notes, and glossary, by frederick tupper by tupper, frederick, 18711950.
In 970 ad, one of the uks greatest literary treasures was written. Search for library items search for lists search for. Riddle 23 is one of the rare riddles of the exeter book that gives its answer. This illustrated edition is a translation of most of the riddles those that the editor deems too badly corrupted to include in his main text, he has reprinted, in translation, in his notes. Though some of the best have been translated in scattered places, and there is a prose lineforline translation in the e. Leofric, the first bishop of exeter, originally donated it to the library of exeter cathedral. The exeter book contains one of largest collection of old english literature and anglosaxon poetry written in the middle ages consisting of mainly poems, elegies and riddles. If multiple possibilities are possible, ill give the best or most likely. They are written in the style of anglosaxon poetry and range in topics from the religious. I will refer to these as bird riddles, by which i mean. Here is a list of solutions for the exeter book riddles as numbered in the translation. Anglosaxon riddles of the exeter book 1963 translated by paull franklin. Exeter book riddle 74 and the play of the text john d.
The exeter book contains in all ninetyfive riddles or fragments of. The exeter book, a late tenthcentury manuscript of early old english poetry, is an anthology of religious homiletic verse, elegiac poetry, and ninetyone lyric riddles. Exeter book riddles anglosaxon narrative poetry project. Following these are a number of shorter religious verses intermingled with poems of. Only four collections of old english verse exist, out of which the exeter book is the largest and most impressive.