Hand: Added Glosses, BL Royal 2.B.v

Stokes, English Vernacular Script, ca 990–ca 1035, Vol. 2 (PhD Thesis, University of Cambridge, 2006)

These glosses seem to have been added in various layers: some are large and written roughly with a thick pen, some with long ascenders and a thin pen, and one faintly and laterally extended. The letter-forms are all much the same, however, and so the glosses may have been added by a single scribe at different times. Ascenders are generally long and have small wedges. Descenders can also be long and turned slightly left, or can be straight and shorter but still longer than minims. Minims themselves have wedges or approach-strokes and have horizontal feet. Single-compartment a is found throughout, the back normally vertical and the body teardrop-shaped, although the top can sometimes be flat. No æ is found. Round c was used, and e is normally round as well, although the back can be somewhat angular and a small hook is found once (hyre, 19v5). The tongue of e is angled up slightly and can be turned down at the tip. The back of d is short and concave down. The tongue of f is flat and the hook branches from close to the base-line. The top of g is flat, the mid-section hangs from the centre and bulges out to the left, then turns right and extends horizontally to the edge of the top-stroke, and the tail curves around, ending either horizontally or angled down and left. The shoulders of h, m, n, and r branch from below cue-height and are usually quite angular but can be more rounded. Long s is found most often, the hook narrow and reaching at least to ascender-height, and the back extending below the base-line. Low s was used in final position (but also hosp, 80v), in which case the hook is quite angular. No þ is found, although there was little opportunity for using it. The back of ð is long and straight, usually thick and angled at about 45° but sometimes steeper; a single through-stroke is hooked down in oððe, and a thinner stroke has no hook in the three occurrences of -ehteð. Straight-limbed dotted y is found, the right branch hooked left.