I have remained as objective as possible in the diplomatic
transcriptions of the texts. Here I have made no substitutions, only
standard expansions. That is, þ has been replaced by
þæt, -á and -ú have
been replaced by -am and -um, respectively. þon' has been replaced by
þonne, m' by men, L by Leofan Men, xp by Crist,
æft' by æfter, and wæt'
by wæter. In addition, I have opted to replace the Anglo-Saxon 7 with
the
modern &, the runic wynn with w, and the yogh with g. Standard
Latin abbreviations have also been expanded. Punctuation and capitalization
are modernized. Legible glosses are given in the critical apparatus, as
are notes on textual variations.
Critical Text
In the critical text, I have opted for inclusion, rather than exclusion, of phrases which help elucidate points made by the author. I have only dismissed contradictory material from the body of the text, relegating it to the critical apparatus. Spelling has not been normalized; rather I have adopted the spelling preferred by the scribe of the Cotton manuscript. This manuscript, not only because of the glosses that are attributed to Wulfstan, but also because of its relative completeness, has been selected as the base text. Unlike previous editors, however, I have not taken the markings of a fifteenth century glossator as indicative of Wulfstan's original intentions -- I have left the text as is. I have also attempted to reconstruct two erasures, which are noted in the apparatus, along with more detailed notes.
The critical text is set up so that the line numbers link to notes on that line and following; at every five line interval is the opportunity to link to the apparatus. Viewers a web browser that supports frames will be able to move easily from one document to another, facilitating the use of the apparatus, glossary, analogues, and witnesses to the text.