What is the Exeter Book of riddles?
The Exeter Book, compiled by 10th-century clerics, contains a number of surprisingly euphemistic riddles. Megan Cavell explores what these bawdy puzzles tell us about sex and gender in Anglo-Saxon England.
How many riddles are in the book Exeter?
ninety riddles
Riddles. Among the other texts in the Exeter Book, there are over ninety riddles. They are written in the style of Anglo-Saxon poetry and range in topics from the religious to the mundane. Some of them are double entendres, such as Riddle 25 below.
What does the Exeter Book contain?
The Exeter Book is comprised solely of poetry excepting the contents of eight leaves added to the codex after it was written and, unlike the other Anglo-Saxon manuscript containing poetry alone—Oxford, Bodleian Library, MS Junius 11, “The Junius Manuscript”—which is dedicated to biblically inspired items, the Exeter …
What is the Exeter Book and what does it include?
The book that is considered the beginning of English literature is a medieval manuscript known as the Exeter Book. The Exeter Book contains religious and secular poems, placed side by side with riddles written in double entendres that will make you blush.
What famous poem was written in Old English?
poem Beowulf
The poem Beowulf, which often begins the traditional canon of English literature, is the most famous work of Old English literature. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle has also proven significant for historical study, preserving a chronology of early English history.
How many original manuscripts of Beowulf still exist?
one original copy
There is only one original copy of Beowulf left. Beowulf was written in Anglo-Saxon, the oldest variant of the English language.
How old is the Exeter Book?
The Exeter Book was made in c. 960–80. It was copied by one scribe from a variety of exemplars (textual sources). In the 11th century it seems to have been acquired for Exeter Cathedral by Bishop Leofric (died 1072).
What is the longest poem in Old English?
Beowulf
Beowulf, the longest surviving Old English poem, is a good example of this in its own right, but it also shows signs of the rich tradition of heroic poetry that flourished after the settlement of Germanic peoples in Britain from the 5th century onwards.
Who found the Exeter Book?
Bishop Leofric
The Exeter Book was made in c. 960–80. It was copied by one scribe from a variety of exemplars (textual sources). In the 11th century it seems to have been acquired for Exeter Cathedral by Bishop Leofric (died 1072)….Exeter Book.
| Full title: | Exeter Book |
|---|---|
| Held by | Exeter Cathedral Library |
| Shelfmark: | MS 3501 |