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In 1272 some dozen men in Northamptonshire, England were pursued by king’s wardens for poaching deer in the royal forest of Rockingham. Legal records for the ensuing case, a “forest plea,” tell us that the wardens caught up with the poachers at a certain forest track where members of the band set up a deer’s head on a stake, intended as an insult to the king and his men. Bo Almqvist, in his defining work  Norrön Niddiktning  (1965), cites this incident, which occurred in a Norse settlement area, as an instance of Old Norse sculptural  níð . Thomas L. Markey references it again in his own study (1972). Since then little notice has been given to it. But should there be? After all, detailed descriptions of sculptural  níð  are rare in historical sources. This study revisits the claim that this forest plea contains an instance of sculptural  níð . In examining the strength of the evidence, the study raises several methodological questions specific to this case but also to the study of  níð  in general. This study finds that the Rockingham forest plea cannot be definitively linked to sculptural  níð  as depicted in Old Norse sources. Nevertheless, it is a warranted comparison that informs us about the structure, function, and possible boundaries of  níð . Moreover, certain agreement in details might be used to discern additional  níð -like practices in Old Norse sources.

The Forest Pleas of Rockingham: A (Re)Discovered Instance of Sculptural Níð?