An Introduction to English Runes. 2nd edition. By R. I. Page. Woodbridge:
Boydell Press, 1999. Pp. xvi + 249, 77 figures. $55.
The study of runes is not a particularly fast-moving subject, yet a good deal has
changed between the early 1970s, when the first edition of this monograph was
written, and the later 1990s. An Introduction to English Runes was the first and remains
the only book-length study providing a comprehensive and scholarly guide
to the Anglo-Saxon use of runes. The new edition has been substantially updated
and expanded, to the extent that it could no longer be referred to as "the little
red rune book." (To be honest, I have not heard anyone other than Ray Page refer to the first edition as that [cf. Preface, p. xi], but let us humour him!) A larger
format not only delivers a clearer and more pleasing text layout, but also allows
for better quality illustrations, the number of which has all but doubled. In its
scope, the discussion has expanded to take account of the considerable number
of new finds, of further studies, and of major new developments in Anglo-Saxon
studies generally. Page makes it perfectly clear how important it is to place the
study of English runes in their context in such a way.
John Hines
Cardiff University, Wales |
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