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330 Eckewart, see note 7 to page 2.

Xanten, see note 3 to page 4.

cognizance, ‘jurisdiction.’

dames, i. e., Siegelind and Kriemhild.

Norway. The interpolated character of the adventures XI to XIII, which are not found in the earlier versions, is shown by the confusion in the location of Siegfried’s court. The poet has forgotten that Xanten is his capital, and locates it in Norway. No mention is made, however, of the messengers crossing the sea; on the contrary, Kriemhild speaks of their being sent down the Rhine.

meiny (M. E. meiny, O. F. mesnee), ‘courtiers,’ ‘serving folk.’

housings, ‘saddle cloths.’

leman (M. E. lemman, O. E. léof mann, ‘lief man,’ i. e., ‘dear one’), ‘mistress’ in a bad sense.

brach, ‘hunting dog,’ cognate with M. H. G. bracke, used here.

lion. It is hardly necessary to state that lions did not roam at large in the forests of Germany. They were, however, frequently exhibited in the Middle Ages, and the poet introduced one here to enhance Siegfried’s fame as a hunter.

ure-oxen, the auerochs, or European bison, now practically extinct.

shelk (M. H. G. schelch), probably a species of giant deer.

fragrance. It was believed that the odor of the panther attracted the game. Compare the description of the panther in the older Physiologus, where the odor is said to surpass that of all ointments.

otter translates here M. H. G. ludem, whose exact connotation is not known. Some interpret it to mean the fish otter, others the Waldschrat, a kind of faun.

Balmung, see note 2 to page 14.

Spessart wood lies forty to fifty miles east of Worms and is therefore too distant for a day’s hunt, but such trifles did not disturb the poet.

mulled wine, see note 2 to page 67.

feet. This was probably done as a handi-