Subject: (urth) Questions re Lexicon Urthus

From: adam louis stephanides <astephan at students.uiuc.edu>
Date: Wed, 08 Jul 1998 14:34:33 +0000

I recently bought _Lexicon Urthus_--an amazing feat of erudition, both
concerning the New Sun cycle and in general.  But there are a couple of
things in it I had questions on.  These questions are mainly for mantis,
though of course anyone is welcome to answer.

1) The entry for "Atrium of Time" refers to it as "a time-traveling
structure."  What is the basis for this?  I don't see any suggestion of
this in the passages where Severian visits the Atrium of Time.

2) The entry for Valeria states that "she becomes regent during the
decades of [Severian's] absence."  I don't think this is correct.
In _Urth_, ch. IV, p. 27 (hardcover), Severian says: "'I was the
Autarch--the ruler--of the Commonwealth; now I'm the surrogate of Urth,
and its ambassador.'"  Later, there's this dialogue: "'Then you still
claim you're really the Autarch?'  'I was,' I told him." (ch. XVI, p. 115)
These passages indicate clearly that when Severian left Urth, he ceased to
be the Autarch.  That being the case, Valeria could not have been
Severian's regent.  Furthermore, Eata refers to Valeria as being Autarch
before she marries Dux Caesidius. (ch. XLVI, p. 328)

3) My copy of Lexicon Urthus came with a copy of _Additions, Errata
&cetera Volume II_, but not Volume I.  Is Volume I available anywhere?

--Adam

*More Wolfe info & archive of this list at http://www.urth.net/urth/

---

From: Matthew Malthouse <matthew.malthouse at guardian.co.uk>
Date: Thu, 09 Jul 1998 02:45:29 +0000

> before she marries Dux Caesidius. (ch. XLVI, p. 328)

Um, my memory supplies the titbit that Valeria had reigned as Autarch
_without_ her predecessors' memories and thus without the very important
knowledge of the Second House.  Also Valeria reigns because Severian has been
so long absent that his return is no longer looked for, indeed a memorial is
raised to his memory. Veleria is not regent but ruler.

Matthew