Riddles from the exeter book

The exeter book riddles include four items in old english consisting of no more than a single verse or line krappdobbie nos. Here are ten things you should know about the exeter book. The original exeter book resides in you guessed it exeter castle in the united kingdom. Obscene riddles of the exeter book everything english.

Nevertheless, in working with the old english text of the exeter book, i chose to pay close attention to the obscene riddles and how they differ from riddles with the same answer. Jump to navigation jump to search riddles riddle 73. Exeter book riddles 1, 2, 3, 25, 44, 45, 47, 72 summary. They are written in the style of anglosaxon poetry and range in. Exeter book, the largest extant collection of old english poetry. There is no list of upsidedown answers at the end of the exeter book where these riddles are found. Unesco lists exeter book among worlds principal cultural. Some strange solutions have been proposed, but the correct one is no doubt the monthly contest of sun and moon. Encoded references in exeter book birdriddles medieval. An intriguing riposte to the famous collection of anglosaxon riddles in the original exeter book. Both of these blogs note how certain riddles contained in the exeter book exeter cathedral library. 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 riddles. In the manuscript the riddles appear in no particular order. There are about 95 riddles included in exeter book the number sometimes changes when translators group multiple riddles into one. Pause the video each time the screen fades to black to try to guess the answers to the riddles. The ninetysix anglosaxon riddles in the eleventhcentury exeter book are poems of great charm, zest, and subtlety. Exeter book riddles anglosaxon narrative poetry project. Only four collections of old english verse exist, out of which the exeter book is the largest and most impressive. The author discusses the exeter book riddles, some of the earliest poems in english, specifically old english, as perfect examples of how play and. Its solution is accepted to be iceberg though there have been other proposals along similar lines. Exeter book riddle 69 according to the numbering of the anglosaxon poetic records is one of the old english riddles found in the later tenthcentury exeter book. Most of the literature from its era has been lost to religious escapades, making it one of the few pieces left from this time period.

This is the third in a series of pieces about the book in poetry released at this blogspot. In many cases, answers are just provisional, and still the subject of some discussion. The riddles from the exeter book are almost unique within the wider genre, because they are written in the vernacular in old english, rather than latin apart from one latin riddle, which sits towards the end of the book. Riddle 43s commentary is once again by the terribly clever james paz, lecturer in early medieval english literature at the university of manchester. Anglosaxon riddles of the exeter book74 wikisource. The book was donated to the library of exeter cathedral by leofric, the first. The lack of riddles in the beowulf, junius, or vercelli manuscripts makes the interpretation of the riddles in codex exoniensis a unique challenge. Riddle hero play and poetry in the exeter book riddles eric. Anglosaxon riddles of the exeter book wikisource, the free. Exeter book riddle 45 according to the numbering of the anglosaxon poetic records is one of the old english riddles found in the later tenthcentury exeter book. Riddles tend to be metaphorical indeed, the trick is to discern what the metaphor signifies and, in that.

Though some of the best have been translated in scattered places, and there is a prose lineforline translation in the e. The exeter book riddles in my anglosaxon literature recommendations blog post, i gave an overview of the exeter book riddles and included some of my favourites. This is a translation of the 96 anglosaxon poems from the 11thcentury exeter book. Leofric, the first bishop of exeter, originally donated it to the library of exeter cathedral. It was not feasible to arrange them by types, because the typical forms of the riddle are not clearly fixed and the anglosaxon riddles are too few to illustrate many types. Ranging from natural phenomena to animal and bird life, from the christian concept of creation to prosaic domestic objects, the riddles are full of sharp observation and earthy humour.

Exeter book, or the codex exoniensis, is a 10th century book, or codex, that contains most of the surviving anglosaxon poetry. The best anglosaxon riddles interesting literature. Book details, anglosaxon riddles of the exeter book. This book contains an array of anglosaxon poetry including nearly a hundred riddles that have been prized for the intrigue they create. However, the description evokes a penis becoming erect. Riddlesare generally thought to end once a solution has been found, but exeter book riddle 9, although apparently straightforward and only twelve lines long, has more to offer than a disguised description of a cuckoo. They comprise a rich source of information for the study of anglosaxon concepts of life courses and life stages, but have yet to be treated as such despite current enthusiasm surrounding the study of historical life cycles. Among the other texts in the exeter book, there are over ninety riddles.

Riddle 53, commonly solved as battering ram, opens with a scene of growing wood, which water and earth nourished beautifully wudu. Housed in exeter cathedral since it was given to the institution by its first bishop, leofric, in the 11th century, the exeter book was written around 970. The translations are mine, so that the clunky literalism is preserved. In analyzing riddle 12, i am hoping to contribute meaningfully to our understanding of anglosaxon england as a whole. It has been argued that the two items are imperfect or fragmentary although there is no textual loss or gap in the manuscript, and that therefore their solutions are uncertain. Riddle 26 in the exeter book the carmelite library. Anglosaxon riddles of the exeter book3 wikisource, the. This is to sayif you are literate and can read the runic alphabetyou have an important clue to solving the puzzle. A selection of riddles from the exeter book riddles. Exeter book riddles riddle numbers are taken from muirs exeter anthology 1994, though i follow williamson in considering the first three as parts of a single riddle riddle songs of the storm. Riddle numbers are taken from muirs exeter anthology 1994, though i follow williamson in considering the first three as parts of a single riddle. There may have been an attempt to assemble 100 riddles in the exeter book like in some latin collections. The ninetyodd riddles in anglosaxon which have come down to us in a single manuscript are naturally a.

Exeter book project gutenberg selfpublishing ebooks. We do not have the names of any of these poets, though there is no reason to doubt that some may have cunningly hidden their names in the text. The moon would like to make itself a home in the heavens, but the familiar sun comes up and the moon is routed. Riddle numbers are taken from muirs exeter anthology 1994, though i follow williamson in considering the first three as parts of a single.

Its interpretation has occasioned a range of scholarly investigations, but clearly has something to do with ice. The anthropomorphism that serves as the birds disguise reveals social commentary regarding the practice of fostering, which may cast light on the heros childhood in. Exeter book riddles 1, 2, 3, 25, 44, 45, 47, 72 summary and. In this weeks dispatches from the secret library, dr oliver tearle ponders some of the best of the anglosaxon riddles from the exeter book the anglosaxon riddles are especially interesting.

Some of them have been dated as far back as the 7 th century. First their history and transmission will the thematised by having a closer look at the exeter cathedral, its library and the exeter book. Of the six riddles in the exeter book that employ runes,riddles58 and 75 have elicited comparatively little scholarly interest. This work is licensed under a creative commons attributionsharealike 3.

In my my most recent blog, encoded references in the exeter book birdriddles, 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. Every time a work is analyzed or interpreted, we get a little closer to figuring it out simply by producing new ideas and applying different lenses. Anglosaxon riddles of the exeter book, 1963 online. The riddles are of particular interest to students of old english poetry and anglosaxon culture, to archeologists, anthropologists, and folklorists. Two historical riddles of the old english exeter book. The bookworm riddle can be found in the exeter book, one of the greatest literary treasures to survive from anglosaxon england. It includes contributions from a hundred contemporary poets, among them alan brownjohn, gillian clarke, vicki feaver, michael longley, roger mcgough and kit wright. As with tolkiens moonletters, runes found in the exeter book riddles serve to both obscure and illuminate their riddle and its solution. Reading the exeter book riddles as lifewriting the. They are written in the style of anglosaxon poetry and range in topics from the religious to the mundane. Some of them are double entendres, such as riddle 25 below. The following translations have been grouped according to subject.

Then typical features of the riddles shall be discussed. The exeter book riddles kevin crossleyholland isbn. The exeter book riddles in context the british library. The book was donated to the library of exeter cathedral by leofric, the first bishop. Ranging from natural phenomena such as icebergs and storms at sea to animal and bird life, from the christian concept of the creation to prosaic domestic objects such as a rake and a pair of bellows, and from weaponry to the peaceful pursuits of music and writing, they are. 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 a single scribe no doubt a monk in about 970. If multiple possibilities are possible, ill give the best or most likely. Far from being idle brainteasers to divert people for half an hour during their lunch break or provide a. In some very few instances, my idea of the solution differs from the generally accepted range.

The riddle or, as they are sometimes called by academics, enigmatica is a developed form in anglosaxon poetry, the most important collection of riddles being the exeter book. The obscene riddles encompass an area of study littered with double meanings throughout the text. Riddle 45 also sounds like it is referring to a mans genitals, but it is actually a description of bread dough. Anglosaxon riddles of the exeter book 74 wikisource. Exeter book riddle 33 according to the numbering of the anglosaxon poetic records is one of the old english riddles found in the later tenthcentury exeter book. From wikisource anglosaxon riddles of the exeter book. A careful source study of this sequence of exeter book birdriddles riddles 710 demonstrates how although isidores etymologiae does discuss three of the four birdriddles in the group, in many cases the specifics of the old english riddles reference information in sources a bit more ancient and esoteric, and other sources from classical.

Use the buttons on the right to navigate to each set of riddles. Which of you heroes is so sharpwitted and so mindcrafty, who can speak aloud about who impels me on this mission, when i mount up strong, sometimes ferocious, thundering majestically, at times whipping ahead. The riddles in the exeter book were probably authored by multiple people and are difficult to date. Exeter book riddles solutions anglosaxon narrative. It seems likely they were composed in the 700s when riddles were popular in english monasteries. Shielded behind glass it will be a little hard to place ones pint of guinness on its covers once more. Heres a fun party game for the meadhall that gives you a sense of anglosaxon hilarity. Here is a list of solutions for the exeter book riddles as numbered in the translation. There is much to be gained from interpreting the tenthcentury exeter book riddles as a characteristically biographical group of texts. The riddles are one of the most wellknown works in the exeter book, and they focus on an eclectic mix of themes. The exeter book, exeter cathedral library ms 3501, also known as the codex exoniensis, is a tenthcentury 1 book or codex which is an anthology of anglosaxon poetry. Here are two of these anglosaxon riddles, both in old english and.