An Introduction to English Runes by Ri Page

An Introduction to English Runes by Ri Page

Runes are quite frequently mentioned in modern writings, usually imprecisely as a source of mystic knowledge, power or insight. This book sets the record straight. It shows runes working as a practical script for a variety of purposes in early English times, among both indigenous Anglo-Saxons and incoming Vikings. In a scholarly yet readable way it examines the introduction of the runic alphabet (the futhorc) to England in the fifth and sixth centuries, the forms and values of its letters, and the ways in which it developed, up until its decline at the end of the Anglo-Saxon period. It discusses how runes were used for informal and day-to-day purposes, on formal monuments, as decorative letters in prestigious manuscripts, for owners' or makers' names on everyday objects, perhaps even in private letters. For the first time, the book presents, together with earlier finds, the many runic objects discoveredover the last twenty years, with a range of inscriptions on bone, metal and stone, even including tourists' scratched signatures found on the pilgrimage routes through Italy. It gives an idea of the immense range of information on language and social history contained in these unique documents. Professor R.I. PAGE is former Elrington and Bosworth Professor of Anglo-Saxon in the University of Cambridge, and Librarian of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge.

Remains the only book-length study providing a comprehensive and scholarly guide to the Anglo-Saxon use of runesThe new edition has been substantially updated and expanded...No serious library of Anglo-Saxon studies should be without it. -- John Hines * JOURNAL OF ENGLISH AND GERMANIC PHILOLOGY *

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9780851157689
ISBN 10	0851157688
Title	An Introduction to English Runes
Author	R I Page
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Hardback
Publisher	Boydell & Brewer Ltd
Year published	1973-01-01
Number of pages	266
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.
Note	Unavailable