A hint to this riddle is that it would have been easier to solve 200+ years ago…
When I Was Taken from the Fair Body
Riddle
When I was taken from the fair body,
They then cut off my head,
And thus my shape was altered.
It's I that make peace between King and ring*,
And many a true lover glad.
All this I do, and ten times more,
And more I could do still;
But nothing can I do
Without my guider's will.
Notes
Another version has this line as, "It's I that make peace between king and king".
Comments
Scroll down for the answer…
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Answer: A Quill Pen.
The first line refers to the feather that came from the bird's "fair body" to make a feather pen. Goose feathers were most commonly used for quill pens.
This riddle would have been easier to solve 200 years ago because quill pens were still used then, as they had been used for centuries before. Metal nib pens started to be used in the early 1800's.
Thanks and Acknowledgements
This rhyme can be found in The Little Mother Goose (1912), illustrated by Jessie Willcox Smith, and printed in the USA.
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