The Anglo-Saxon riddles are a fascinating verbal realm where ambiguity and polysemy, suggestion and a big dose of distraction and deflection make the rule rather than the exception. Andy Orchard paves a way through this slippery territory by bringing together in one place the entire riddle corpus, Latin and Old English, with a detailed and informative commentary.
The size of the work alone bespeaks years of industrious effort. The author revisits all the riddles and the literature on them, and proposes many new solutions. I must mention as well some sharp critical thinking. Orchard’s introduction, for example, disproves much earlier scholarship which drew rigid divisions between the Latin and the vernacular, and instead emphasizes commonalities: a brief glance at the commentary citations of the many points of contact between riddles Latin and English proves the case beyond any real argument.
The two volumes make an immensely valuable contribution to scholarship. The all-inclusive scope of the editions, the detail of the commentary, and the usefulness of the indexes combine for a reader-friendly treatment of a subject which has been most often a monopoly of specialists. Orchard’s work is certainly not the last word on Anglo-Saxon riddling, but it will just as certainly be a first stop for all who want to read and write about these enigmatic texts. The author’s states the expectation that his work will stimulate a new wave of scholarship dedicated to this interesting subject. I can only concur.
David J. Porter
Bryn Mawr Classical Review
