Anglo-Saxon Riddles of the Exeter Book/Annotated/71

71 (k-d 64)

I saw W and I     going over the plain bearing B E.     For them both as they went was the owner’s joy;     H and A very strong.     TH and E; the F and A rejoiced;     flew over EA S and F     of the people themselves.

Ic seah · ᚹ · ⁊ · ᛁ ·     ofer wong faran beran · ᛒ · ᛖ ·     bæm wæs on siþþe hæbbendes hyht     · ᚻ · ⁊ · ᚪ · swylce þryþa dæl     · ᚦ · ⁊ · ᛖ · gefeah · ᚠ · ⁊ · ᚫ ·     fleah ofer · ᛠ ᛋ · ⁊ · ᛈ ·     sylfes þæs folces

W and I is for wicg, ‘horse’: B E for beorn, ‘man’; H and A for haofoc, ‘hawk’; TH for þeow, ‘slave,’ or þegn, ‘thane’; F and AE possibly for fælca, ‘falcon’; EA for ear, ‘ground’ or ea, ‘water’; S and P for spere, ‘spear.’ In brief: “I saw a man riding along on horseback with a hawk which was his joy (and pride). They were all happy, the man, the horse, the servant, and the hawk also; it flew over the water (or the ground).” F in the last line must be a mistake for P.