Diana Whaley (ed.) 2012, ‘Eyjólfr Valgerðarson, Lausavísa 1’ in Diana Whaley (ed.), Poetry from the Kings’ Sagas 1: From Mythical Times to c. 1035. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 1. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 276.
Selit maðr vápn við verði;
verðr dynr, ef má, sverða;
verðum Hropts at herða
hljóð; eigum slǫg rjóða.
Vér skulum Gorms af gǫmlu
Gandvíkr þokulandi
— hǫrð, es vôn, at verði
vápnhríð — sonar bíða.
Selit maðr vápn við verði; {dynr sverða} verðr, ef má; verðum at herða {hljóð Hropts}; eigum rjóða slǫg. Vér skulum bíða {sonar Gorms} af gǫmlu þokulandi Gandvíkr; es vôn, at verði {hǫrð vápnhríð}.
‘May no man sell his weapon for a price; a tumult of swords [BATTLE] will come about if it can; we must vigorously pursue the noise of Hroptr <= Óðinn> [BATTLE]; we have to redden weapons. We must wait for the son of Gormr [= Haraldr] from the ancient mist-land of Gandvík; there is expectation that a harsh weapon-storm [BATTLE] will come about.’
King Haraldr Gormsson of Denmark brings a fleet against Norway but, once a formidable force has gathered around Hákon jarl Sigurðarson, decides against war and instead considers attacking Iceland in revenge for the níð stanza Anon (ÓTHkr). Eyjólfr Valgerðarson composes the present stanza when his retainer has sold his axe in exchange for a cloak, and when Haraldr’s hostile intention has become known in Iceland. After the stanza we are told that Haraldr sensibly accepted his counsellors’ advice to return to Denmark.
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.
Selit maðr vápn við verði;
verði dynr, ef má, sverða;
verðum †hǽ̨ft† at herða
hljóð; eigum slǫg rjóða.
Vér skulum Gorms af gǫmlu
Gandvíkr þokulandi
— hǫrð, es vôn, at verði
vápnhríð — sonar bíða.
Selit maþr vapn viþ verþi verþi dynr ef ma sverþa | verþom hǽ̨ft at herþa hlioþ æigvm slꜹg rióþa ver scolom Gorms | af gomlo gaɴdvikr þoko landi hꜹrþ er van at verþi vapn hriþ so | nar biþa·
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