Kari Ellen Gade (ed.) 2017, ‘Anonymous Lausavísur, Stanzas from Snorra Edda 13’ in Kari Ellen Gade and Edith Marold (eds), Poetry from Treatises on Poetics. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 3. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 525.
This helmingr (Anon (SnE) 13) is transmitted in mss R (main ms.), Tˣ, A, B (and 744ˣ) and C of Skm (SnE) and in TGT (mss A and W). It is anonymous in all mss. In Skj Finnur Jónsson dates it to the tenth century, but it cannot be older than the middle of the eleventh century (see Note to l. 1 below).
Hrauð í himin upp glóðum
hafs; gekk sær af afli;
bǫrð, hykk, at ský skerðu;
skaut Ránar vegr mána.
Hrauð glóðum hafs upp í himin; sær gekk af afli; hykk, at bǫrð skerðu ský; {vegr Ránar} skaut mána.
‘The embers of the ocean were thrown up towards heaven; the sea moved powerfully; I believe that prows pierced the clouds; the road of Rán <goddess> [SEA] dashed against the moon. ’
In Skm the helmingr illustrates that the name of Rán, wife of the sea-giant Ægir, can be used in kennings for ‘sea’ (vegr Ránar ‘the road of Rán’). In TGT it is given as an example of yperbola ‘hyperbole’ which is defined as follows (TGT 1927, 82): … yfirganga sannleiks yfir þat framm, sem trúanligt er, sem hér er kveðit … Hér er óeiginlig líking ok merking milli mǫru-elds ok náttúruligs loga ‘… the exaggeration of truth beyond that which is believable, as is said here … Here there is an improper comparison between, and an interpretation of, phosphorescence and normal fire’.
[1]: This is a Type A-line with a resolved second lift and a heavy dip in position 4, which is a metrical type that originated among the skalds of the Norwegian king Haraldr harðráði ‘Hard-rule’ Sigurðarson (d. 1066). See Note to Hharð Gamv 2/1II and Kuhn (1983, 68). Hence it is highly unlikely that the present helmingr is older than from c. 1050 (see Introduction above).
Text is based on reconstruction from the base text and variant apparatus and may contain alternative spellings and other normalisations not visible in the manuscript text. Transcriptions may not have been checked and should not be cited.
Hrauð í himin upp glóðum
hafs; gekk sær af afli;
bǫrð, hykk, at ský †skorþa†;
skaut Ránar vegr mána.
Hrauð í himin upp glóðum
hafs; gekk sær af afli;
bǫrð, hykk, at ský †scordo†;
skaut Ránar vegr mána.
Hrauð í himin upp glóðum
hafs; gekk sjór af afli;
borð, hykk, at ský skerði;
skaut Ránar vegr mána.
Hrꜹð ihimin vpp glóðvm hafs | gækk sior af afli borð hygg ek at sky skærði skꜹt ránar végr mana |
(VEÞ)
Hrauð í himin upp †gloð[…]†
hafs; gekk sjár †[…]† afli;
borð, †[…]†, skerði;
skaut Ránar vegr mána.
Hrauð í himin upp †glodum†
hafs; gekk sær af afli;
bǫrð, †hýgg ek at ský†, skerðu;
skaut Ránar vegr mána.
Hrauð í himin upp glóðum
hafs; gekk sjór af afli;
bǫrð, hykk, at ský skerðu;
skaut Ránar vegr mána.
Hrauð í himin upp glóðum
hafs; gekk sjór af afli;
borð, hykk, at ský skerði;
skaut Ránar vegr mána.
hrꜹ́ð ihi | min vpp glóðvm hafs gækk siór af afli borð hygg ek at sky skęrði skꜹt ránar | vegr mána .
(VEÞ)
Hrauð í himin upp glóðum
hafs; gekk sæ af afli;
borð, hykk, at ský skerði;
skaut Ránar vegr mána.
Hrauð i hímín vpp | gloðvm hafs gekk sę af aflí. borð hygg ek at sky skerði skavt rꜳnar vegr mꜳ̋na.
(TW)
Use the buttons at the top of the page to navigate between stanzas in a poem.
The text and translation are given here, with buttons to toggle whether the text is shown in the verse order or prose word order. Clicking on indiviudal words gives dictionary links, variant readings, kennings and notes, where relevant.
This is the text of the edition in a similar format to how the edition appears in the printed volumes.
This view is also used for chapters and other text segments. Not all the headings shown are relevant to such sections.