3. General layout
This is not currently part of the peer-reviewed material of the project. Do not cite as a research publication.
a. Skald Biography
A maximum of 150 words, this will be printed before the first extended poem of each skald ; if there are no extended poems, before the lausavísa numbered 1.
b. Title of extended poem
Titles should follow the evidence of the mss, where available. Where there is none, a conservative, descriptive title, should be given in English, e.g. referring to the situation, event, person or topic that the poem appears to be about. A date should follow the title, if this can be given with reasonable certainty. A full discussion of titles is found in >> 2. Sigla for the corpus.
c. Introduction
A brief introduction to extended poems will include such information as: traditions about the circumstances of composition; evidence for the title and, if appropriate, discussion of its possible meaning (e.g. Haustlǫng); evidence for the reconstruction of the poem (>> 2. Reconstruction).
The introduction to the lausavísur in a particular prose source may cover such topics as: ms. preservation, authenticity, speakers credited with verses, relation to the themes of the work and theories about the possible origins of verses in extended poems (>> 2. Reconstruction). It should not duplicate information in the Contexts to individual verses.
All editors should note the prose works in which the poetry is preserved, and specify the main ms. chosen (or mss, if this varies), together with its date and the reason(s) for giving it priority. In many cases a somewhat more extensive discussion of textual matters will be appropriate, outlining issues of transmission, textual relations, and editorial policy, especially where verses are preserved in more than one major ms. grouping. (The edition as a whole will include discussions of textual relations within individual ms. groupings.)
The introduction must include a list of all the mss which contain all or part of the poem. On first mention of a ms. the full siglum plus abbreviation should be given. Thereafter, only the abbreviated siglum should be cited (see >> 6. Sigla for sources 1).
In cases where mss are extremely numerous, those not used in the edition should be listed in the Introduction but not thereafter.
d. Individual verses
See next section.