{quotable thursdays}

Today's quote is a medieval riddle:

An enemy ended my life, took away

My bodily strength; then he dipped me

In water and drew me out again,

And put me in the sun where I soon shed

All my hair. The knife’s sharp edge

Bit into me once my blemishes had been scraped away;

Fingers folded me and the bird’s feather

Often moved across my brown surface,

Sprinkling useful drops; it swallowed the wood dye

(Part of the stream) and again travelled over me,

Leaving black tracks. Then a man bound me,

He stretched skin over me and adorned me

With gold; thus I am enriched by the wondrous work

Of smiths, wound about with shining metal….

(trans. K. Crossley-Holland, The Exeter Book Riddles, Penguin Classics, revised edition 1993- I found it on the web here))

Can you guess what it is?

It is a book! Of course in the Middle Ages books were made from animal skin (made into parchment).

{Antonello da Messina, St Jerome in His Study, National Gallery, London. Wikimedia commons)

I realise that this is a day late, but yesterday was World Book Day and I had a very busy day of back to back meetings so couldn't get up a quote but wanted to make sure I celebrated books!

If you read my blog regularly you'll know I love books!

{reading}

Happy Reading!

xo

L