Exeter Book Riddle 47 (or 45), A moth ate words… / Moððe word fræt…
An Old English riddle from the tenth century, set to new music.
Composed and performed by Hanna Marti and Stef Conner.
Old English text:
Moððe word fræt. Me þæt þuhte
wrætlicu wyrd, þa ic þæt wundor gefrægn,
þæt se wyrm forswealg wera gied sumes,
þeof in þystro, þrymfæstne cwide
ond þæs strangan staþol. Stælgiest ne wæs
wihte þy gleawra, þe he þam wordum swealg.
Translation:
A moth ate words! It struck me
super strange, when I heard
a worm had swallowed someone’s speech-craft.
A thief in darkness, munching through the might of myth.
and its earthly imprint. But that cheeky trespasser was
no wiser for having gulped down all those words!
Click here to read more about the riddle (and see possible solutions), on Megan Cavell’s ‘The Riddle Ages’ blog. And click here to see an alternative translation.