Jayne Carroll (ed.) 2009, ‘Markús Skeggjason, Eiríksdrápa 27’ in Kari Ellen Gade (ed.), Poetry from the Kings’ Sagas 2: From c. 1035 to c. 1300. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 2. Turnhout: Brepols, pp. 456-7.
Bôru menn ór borgum stórum
bleyðiskjarrs á móti harra
— sungit vas, þás herr tók hringja —
hnossum gǫfguð skrín ok krossa.
Aldri fær í annars veldi
jǫfra ríkir metnað slíkan;
eitt vas sér, þats jafnask mátti
engi maðr við Dana þengil.
Menn bôru skrín, gǫfguð hnossum, ok krossa ór stórum borgum á móti bleyðiskjarrs harra; vas sungit, þás herr tók hringja. {Ríkir jǫfra} fær aldri slíkan metnað í veldi annars; eitt vas sér, þats engi maðr mátti jafnask við {þengil Dana}.
Men carried reliquaries, decorated with precious ornaments, and crosses out of great towns towards the cowardice-shy lord; there was singing, when men began to ring. {A ruler of princes} [KING] will never receive such honour in the realm of another [ruler]; unique it was, that no man could equal {the prince of the Danes} [= Eiríkr].
Mss: JÓ(166-168), 873ˣ(55r-v), 180b(31v), 20b II(3rb) (Knýtl)
Readings: [2] á: í 180b, at 20b II; móti: so 180b, 20b II, mót JÓ, 873ˣ [3] þás (‘þá er’): ‘þꜳ hier’ 180b [4] gǫfguð: gǫfugt 180b, 20b II; krossa: so 180b, 20b II, krossar JÓ, 873ˣ [6] ríkir: ríkr 180b; slíkan: ‘skikan’ 180b
Editions: Skj AI, 450-1, Skj BI, 419, Skald I, 207; JÓ 1741, 166-9, ÍF 35, 236 (ch. 81).
Context: Eiríkr continued on his journey, and wherever he came, he was received by the townspeople with honour. Clerics met him with processions, carrying holy relics.
Notes: [All]: The prose of Knýtl preceding this st. is merely a paraphrase of the poetry. — [3] vas sungit ‘there was singing’: Lit. ‘it was sung’. — [4] krossa (m. acc. pl.) ‘crosses’: Krossar (m. nom. pl.) ‘crosses’ (so JÓ, 873ˣ) is ungrammatical. — [7] eitt vas sér ‘unique it was’: Lit. ‘one thing was in itself’. So also ÍF 35. Skj B and Skald emend to eitt vas sét ‘one thing was seen’ (eitt vas sétt, Skald).
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