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The Old English poem known popularly as the "Descent into Hell", found on folios 119v to 121v of the Exeter Book, has to date received little critical attention, perhaps owing to various contextual problems and lacunae on the leaves that contain it. This first full-length study offers a full account of the poem, together with an edition of the text and facing translation. It aims to resolve some of the poem's vexing issues and provides a variety of possible interpretations of the poem. The in-depth literary analysis seeks to enrich modern scholarly perceptions of the poem, suggest a more appropriate title, and contribute to continued scholarly discussion and analysis of the Exeter Book and its compilation. It provides a guide towards understanding the poem's main theme, presents the text in light of its position in ecclesiastical history, and sheds fresh light into its place and significance within the corpus of Old English poetry.
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Anglo-Saxon Studies 21 JOHN THE BAPTIST’S PRAYER or THE DESCENT INTO HELL FROM THE EXETER BOOK Anglo-Saxon Studies ISSN 1475–2468 General Editors John Hines Catherine Cubitt ‘Anglo-Saxon Studies’ aims to provide a forum for the best scholarship on the Anglo-Saxon peoples in the period from the end of Roman Britain to the Norman Conquest, including comparative studies involving adjacent populations and periods; both new research and major re-assessments of central topics are welcomed. Books in the series may be based in any one of the principal disciplines of archaeology, art history, history, language and literature, and inter- or multi-disciplinary studies are encouraged. Proposals or enquiries may be sent directly to the editors or the publisher at the addresses given below; all submissions will receive prompt and informed consideration. Professor John Hines, Cardiff School of History and Archaeology, Cardiff University, Colum Drive, Cardiff, Wales, CF10 3EU Professor Catherine Cubitt, Centre for Medieval Studies, University of York, The King’s Manor, York, England, YO1 7EP Boydell & Brewer, PO Box 9, Woodbridge, Suffolk, England, IP12 3DF Previously published volumes in the series are listed at the back of this book JOHN THE BAPTIST’S PRAYER or THE DESCENT INTO HELL FROM THE EXETER BOOK text, translation and critical study M. R. Rambaran-Olm D. S. BREWER © M. R. Rambaran-Olm 2014 All Rights Reserved. Except as permitted under current legislation no part of this work may be photocopied, stored in a retrieval system, published, performed in public, adapted, broadcast, transmitted, recorded or reproduced in any form or by any means, without the prior permission of the copyright owner The right of M. R. Rambaran-Olm to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 First published 2014 D. S. Brewer, Cambridge ISBN 978-1-84384-366-5 D. S. Brewer is an imprint of Boydell & Brewer Ltd PO Box 9, Woodbridge, Suffolk IP12 3DF, UK and of Boydell & Brewer Inc. 668 Mt Hope Avenue, Rochester, NY 14620-2731, USA website: www.boydellandbrewer.com A CIP catalogue record of this publication is available from the British Library The publisher has no responsibility for the continued existence or accuracy of URLs for external or third-party internet websites referred to in this book, and does not guarantee that any content on such websites is, or will remain, accurate or appropriate. This publication is printed on acid-free paper. Typeset by Word and Page, Chester Contents List of Illustrations vi Acknowledgements vii Abbreviations ix Introduction 1 1. Paleography, Codicology and Language 11 2. The Desc