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Anglo-Saxons and the North is a wide-ranging collection of essays by acknowledged experts in the field of Anglo-Saxon studies. In his reassessment of the Rök Stone, Harris reveals close links between Scandinavia and Western Europe, and Frisia in particular. Battaglia examines the culture of early Scandinavia, locating the replacement of lakes and bogs as ritual sites by buildings in ca. 500 A.D. Three papers make comparisons between vernacular literatures, Wilcox exploring the applicability of Steblin-Kamenskij’s saga theory to Old English literature, and Russom and Roper comparing Old English meter to Eddic and Finnic meters respectively. Brown gives a state-of-the art account of studies on the “Leningrad Bede.” The paper by Yorke reviews how the Victorians used stories of Alfred and the Vikings to political ends. The final papers reflect on Anglo-Saxon vis à vis Scandinavian material culture, Thier discussing ship terminology and Banham innovations in agriculture.
