Exeter Book Riddle 27 facts for kids

Exeter Book Riddle 27 is one of many old English riddles found in a very old book called the Exeter Book. This book was written a long time ago, around the year 975. Most people agree that Riddle 27 is about 'mead'. Mead is a sweet drink made from honey, water, and yeast. It was a popular drink in ancient times.

What is the Exeter Book?

The Exeter Book is a famous collection of Old English poems and riddles. It is one of the most important books from the Anglo-Saxon period in England. It contains many different types of writing, including religious poems and stories about heroes. The book is kept safe in Exeter Cathedral in England.

The Mead Riddle

Riddle 27 is a short poem where an object describes itself without saying its name. The reader has to guess what it is. This riddle describes how it is made and what happens when people use it. It gives clues about its journey from nature to a drink.

The Riddle's Words

Here is the riddle in English:

I am valuable to men, found widely,
brought from groves and from mountain slopes,
from valleys and from hills. By day, feathers carried me up high,
took me skillfully under the shelter of a roof. A man then washed me in a container.
Now I am a binder and a striker; I bring a slave to the ground,
sometimes an old farmer.
Immediately he discovers, he who goes against me
and contends against my strength,
that he shall meet the ground with his back,
unless he stops his foolishness early;
deprived of his strength, loud of speech,
his power bound, he has no control over his mind,
his feet, or his hands. Ask what I am called,
who thus binds people to the earth with blows, by the light of day.

Unraveling the Mystery

The riddle gives many clues that point to mead:

• "Found widely, brought from groves and from mountain slopes, from valleys and from hills": This describes where honey (the main ingredient of mead) comes from – flowers and plants in nature.
• "By day, feathers carried me up high, took me skillfully under the shelter of a roof": This refers to bees, which have feathers (wings) and collect nectar to make honey. They carry it back to their hives, which are like a "shelter of a roof."
• "A man then washed me in a container": This describes how honey is processed and mixed with water to start making mead.
• "Now I am a binder and a striker; I bring a slave to the ground, sometimes an old farmer": This part describes the strong effects of mead. It can make people lose their balance and control, causing them to fall down.
• "Deprived of his strength, loud of speech, his power bound, he has no control over his mind, his feet, or his hands": This describes how someone might feel after drinking too much mead. They might speak loudly, feel weak, and not be able to control their body or thoughts.

These clues together strongly suggest that the answer to Riddle 27 is mead.