midterm Flashcards
manuscripts
handwritten books that were often written and illuminated by monks in monasteries. Manuscripts are vital to Old English Poetry considering they contain important literature from the time period that helps us understand the history of our ancestors. Examples include the Beowulf manuscript, the Junius manuscript, the vercelli manuscript, and the Exeter book.
What is put in place if words are damaged and cannot be translated?
XXXXX
What are the manuscripts written on?
parchment paper made from the skin of sheeps and goats
What was used to decorate the manuscripts?
Gold and gemstones
3 parts to an illuminated page?
words, miniature, and border decoration
Scriptorium
place where books are copied and illuminated
scribe
wrote the text for the manuscript
recto
front of a manuscript
vecto
back of a manuscript
scop
person who recited poetry aloud
illuminator
painted pictures for manuscript
Four known poetic manuscripts
the Beowulf manuscript in the British Library, the Junius manuscript in Oxford, the Vercelli Book in Italy, and the Exeter Book.
Junius manuscript
copied year 1000
Currently held by the Bodleian library at the University of Oxford.
What text does Junius manuscript have
Contains a series of paraphrases of stories from the bible. (Gensis, Exodus, and Daniel) and contains a poem called “Christ and Satan”
Illustrations are very detailed and contain angels, naked bodies, religious figures, and anglo saxon drawings.
Text and lines are perfectly symmetrical.
The vercelli book
Contains “The dream of the rood” and 23 religious homilies and a saint’s life.
Copied down in the late 10th century and found in the library of the cathedral in Italy in 1822.
Scholars believe the vercelli book was left by
an English pilgrim on his way to Rome in the 11th century.
What is dream of the rood carved into?
The ruthwell cross in the early 8th century in scotland. This shows us the poem was around long before it was copied down.
The Exeter book
is the largest surviving collection of old English poetry and most important. Copied in year 975 and given to the exeter cathedral by it’s bishop leofric who died in 1072. Thought to be scribed by a single monk in 970.
What does the exeter book contain?
It contains a poem about Christ, two poems about the early English Saint Guthlac, Group of elegaiac poem “the ruin”, “the sea farer”, “the wanderer”, “the wifes lament”, “the husbands message” and 95 riddles
Is the exeter book significant?
Yes. An example is that only one other riddle in all other English manuscripts combined. Cultural artifact that matters to all of us. Best survived and perserved.
What does the Beowulf manuscript contain
Contains beowulf which is the single surviving of the oldest poem “our epic” of our language. It also contains a shorter poem Judith and 3 prose works.
Beowulf
8th century. It is currently held by the british library as a special surviving copy of the oldest long poem in our language.
How was beowulf found
It was damaged in a fire while being in Robert Cotton collection in 1731. Someone threw it out of the window to save it.
Kenning
Figurative imaginary phrases. Two words combined to form a poetic expression that refers to a person or thing.
examples:
-Shadow-walker line 702
-Heather-stapper line 1307
alliteration
repeats initial consonants. Many poems have this in Old English because they were made to be recited and perfomed aloud.
What is the ruthwell cross
Cross was created in the early 700’s. Fragments from dream of the rood are carved on it. The cross was destroyed in 1642 but fragments were found and reconstructed from 1771- 1887.
It was carved in 8th century in Scotland.
Sutton Hoo
Most significant Anglo Saxon archaeological discovery in Suffolk, England. Found in june 1939 by archeologist in England. The center of the ship had a royal burial and the artifiacts proved to us that the anglo saxons were not the savage people we though they were. The items inside and entire burial proved they were highly skilled people with a vibrant culture. They laid the foundation for England.
What objects may suggest an important king
The Sutton Hoo helmet. The style of the helmet was influenced by earlier Roman cavalry helmets and Swedish helmets. This shows us that they traveled and were engaged and influenced by other cultures.
How many burial mounds are their at Sutton Hoo?
18 and they date back to 7th century AD.
Who was buried at Sutton Hoo
Impossible to know with no written record but historian highly suggest it was the royal dynasty of East Anglia. the Wuffingas, who claimed descent from the god Woden.
Where is sutton hoo treasure displayed now?
The british muesem
Examples of treasures or objects found at Sutton Hoo?
gold belt buckle, a sword with a gold and garnet cloisonne pommel, military equipment, textiles, helmet, drinking vessels, clothing, metal objects, a silver bowl, and a unique coat of mail armor, frankish coins, gold frame of purse lid, siver spoons, ten silver bowls, coins from different places across the English channel, large decorated purse, wooden shield, sharpening stone, iron chains, wooden tubs,
What did sutton hoo do?
Rewrote our understanding of the time. It proved that the anglo-saxons embodied a society of remarkable artistic achievement, complex belief systems and far-reaching international connections, not to mention immense personal power and wealth.
Wryd (pronounced werth)
fate (term that embodies the concept of inevitability
Beowulf mortally wounds Grendel by
Tearing off his arm
T/F most anglo saxon literature was written not oral
false
T/F the epic and the elegy are the most prominent genres in Old English Literature
True
What character did Beowulf argue with
Unferth
Kenning
A device in oral poetry, communicating an indirect metaphor using a figurative compound expression.
