The Mead Hall

Contents FOREWORD 9 ABBREVIATIONS & GLOSSARY 12 Notes on conventions. 14 INTRODUCTION 15 1 FEASTING AND SOCIETY 19 A Window on Early English Society 19 Feasting in the Hall 31 Meals and Mealtimes 36 Symbel 38 Organisation of the Symbel 42 Ritual Background To The Symbel 47 The Lord As Ring-Giver 51 Oaths And Boasts 54 Gebeorscipe 55 Feasts, Marriages and Alliances 60 2 LIVING SPACE: THE HALL IN REALITY 65 The Hall and its Settlement 65 Construction & Layout 68 Building Techniques 71 Measuring and Laying-Out 73 Woodworking techniques 75 Hearth 78 Seating 80 Chairs & Stools 80 Frithstool 81 Gift-Stool (Giefstol) 81 Mead-benches 84 Boards & Tables 85 Flooring 86 Hall Development in Anglo-Saxon England 88 Early -Saxon Period - 5th to 7th centuries 88 Mid-Saxon Period - 8th & 9th centuries 93 Lare-Saxon Period - 10th & 11th centuries 95 The British tradition 97 ' 3 RITUAL SPACE: THE HALL IN IDEOLOGY 99 The Hall as the Ideal Dwelling 99 Heorot 101 Mead-hall and Men's Hall 105 The Hall as 'Central Place' 111 The Hall Of Dreams 114 The Joys Of The Hall 116 4 FOOD AND FEASTING EQUIPMENT 119 Consumables 121 Food 123 Drink 128 Tableware 130 Wood 130 Horn 131 Metal 132 Ceramic 133 Glass 134 Bone, Ivory and Antler 137 Leather 138 Cutlery 139 Plates, Bowls & Dishes 141 Dishes 141 Bowls 141 Drinking Vessels 143 Cups & Bottles 143 Drinking Horns 146 Buckets & Tubs 151 Strainers 154 Clawbeakers 157 Conebeakers 161 Cauldrons & Hanging Bowls 162 Hanging Bowls 162 Cauldrons 166 Textiles & Clothing 167 Textiles 167 Clothing 171 Female Dress 174 Male Dress 175 Table Linen, Tapestry & Embroidery 176 5 POSITIONS OF POWER 181 Lord (Hlaford) 182 Lady (Hlafdige) 183 Household (Hlafatan) 187 A yle 188 Flyting and Verbal Duelling 188 UnferA and The Role of the A yle 189 Poet (Scop) 190 Hall Attendants 195 Metedegn 195 DiscA egn 196 Byrele 196 BurA egn 197 Doorkeeper (DuruA egn) 198 6 ENTERTAINMENT 199 Storytelling & Poetry 199 Music 202 Harp or Lyre 204 Riddles 208 Riddle 45 214 Riddle 33 214 Riddle 23 215 Board games 215 APPENDICES 221 1 Hall- and Feasting-Themes in Old English Verse 221 2 Some Old English Sources 226 The Poet Cadmon 226 From the Old English version of 226 Bede's Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglorum. 226 Beowulf (extract) - Heorot's Feasting 232 Beowulf (extract) - UnferA 's Flyting 234 The Fortunes Of Men (extracts) 240 The Seafarer (extract) 240 Vainglory (extract) 240 The Battle of Maldon (Extract) 242 The Wanderer 244 WidsiA 250 3 The Structure and Origins of the Warband 259 BIBLIOGRAPHY 267