In this possibly very ancient Scottish ballad, two carrion crows cast a cold and hungry eye over a dead knight As I was walking all alane, I heard twa corbies making a mane; The tane unto the t’other ...

This ballad has a Scots version and an English version, called The Three Ravens. In the English version, three ravens plan to eat a knight’s body but it is protected by his hawk, hound, and a pregnant ...

IAN Hamilton does not understand what a variant is (Letters, March 23). ''The Two Ravens'' he refers to is, I assume, ''The Three Ravens'' which is not a variant of ''The Twa Corbies'' but may well ...