Matthew Townend (ed.) 2012, ‘Óttarr svarti, Hǫfuðlausn 2’ 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. 744.
Góðmennis þarfk gunnar
glóðbrjótanda at njóta;
hérs alnennin inni
inndrótt með gram svinnum.
Þarfk at njóta góðmennis {{gunnar glóð}brjótanda}; hérs alnennin inndrótt inni með svinnum gram.
‘I need to enjoy the favour of the good men of the breaker of the ember of battle [(lit. ‘ember-breaker of battle’) SWORD > WARRIOR]; here there is a very active household retinue inside with a wise king.’
The helmingr is quoted twice in SnE (Skm). The first citation illustrates how ‘gold’ is used in kennings for ‘man’ (specifying brjótr gullsins ‘breaker of gold’), and the second how ‘men’ or ‘retainers’ are to be referred to (here inndrótt ‘household retinue’).
Following on from st. 1, this helmingr is of interest in illustrating how a skald might feel obliged to appeal to a king’s retinue, as well as to the king himself, in seeking new service.
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.
Góðmennis þarfk gunnar
gollsbrjótanda at njóta;
†her er† alnennin inni
inndrótt með †gu[...]a† svinnum.
Goð meɴis þarf ec gvɴar gvllz brivtan | da at niota her er alneɴinn iɴi iɴdrott með gram viɴvm . |
(DW)
Góðmennis þarfk gunnar
glóðbrjótanda at njóta;
hérs alnennin inni
inndrótt með gram svinnum.
Góðmennis þarfk gunnar
goll-brjótanda njóta;
hérs alnennin inni
inndrótt með gram svinnum.
Góðmennis þarfk gunnar
glóð-brjótandi at njóta;
hérs alnennin inni
inndrótt með gram svinnum.
Góðmennis †þarf e† gunnar
goll-brjótanda njóta;
hann er alnennin inni
inndrótt með gram svinnum.
Góðmennis þarfk gunnar
glóðbrjótanda at njóta;
hérs alnennin inni
inndrótt með gram svinnum.
Góð†[…]ennis þar[…] ek† gunnar
goll-brjótanda at †ni[…]†;
†[…] […]is† inni
†[…]†drótt með gram svinnum.
Góðmennis þarfk gunnar
glóðbrjótanda at njóta;
hérs alnennin inni
inndrótt með gram svinnum.
Goð mænnis þarf | ek gvnnar gloðbriotanda at nióta hann ær alnænnin inni inndrótt mæð | gram svínnvm .
(VEÞ)
Góðmennis þarfk gunnar
goll-brjótanda njóta;
hérs alnennin inni
inndrótt með gram svinnum.
Góðmennis þarfk gunnar
gollsbrjótanda njóta;
hérs alnennin inni
inndrótt með gram svinnum.
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