Kari Ellen Gade (ed.) 2009, ‘Oddr kíkinaskáld, Poem about Magnús góði 1’ 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, p. 32.
Vas fyr Míkjálsmessu
malmgrimm háið rimma;
fellu Vinðr, en vǫnðusk
vápnhljóði mjǫk þjóðir.
Enn fyr jól vas ǫnnur
óhlítulig lítlu
— upp hófsk grimm með gumnum
gunnr — fyr Árós sunnan.
Malmgrimm rimma vas háið fyr Míkjálsmessu; Vinðr fellu, en þjóðir vǫnðusk mjǫk vápnhljóði. Enn lítlu fyr jól vas ǫnnur, óhlítulig, fyr sunnan Árós; grimm gunnr hófsk upp með gumnum.
A sword-grim battle was waged before Michaelmas; Wends fell, and people became much accustomed to weapon-sound. And shortly before Christmas there was another [battle], by no means trivial, south of Århus; grim fighting erupted among men.
Mss: Kˣ(519r), 39(18ra), F(41va), E(9v), J2ˣ(256r) (Hkr); H(13r), Hr(11rb) (H-Hr); Flat(191vb) (Flat)
Readings: [1] Vas: so Hr, Vás Kˣ, F, ‘Vass’ 39, Vann E, J2ˣ, Var H, Varð Flat; Míkjáls‑: so 39, F, E, J2ˣ, ‘Michials’ Kˣ, ‘mikaels’ H, Hr, ‘micels’ Flat; ‑messu: om. E [2] malm‑: mann‑ E, H, Hr, marg‑ Flat; háið: so 39, F, H, Flat, hátt Kˣ, E, J2ˣ, háin Hr [3] Vinðr: vindir Hr, vindar Flat [4] vápnhljóði mjǫk þjóðir: valtafni þar hrafnar H, Hr, valtafni þeir hrafnar Flat; ‑hljóði: hljóðr J2ˣ [5] vas (‘var’): varð H, Hr, Flat [6] ó‑: æ‑ Flat [7] grimm: om. Flat [8] gunnr: gunn J2ˣ; sunnan: om. Hr
Editions: Skj AI, 354-5, Skj BI, 327, Skald I, 165; ÍF 28, 63-4 (Mgóð ch. 35); F 1871, 191, E 1916, 32; Fms 6, 90 (Mgóð ch. 41); Flat 1860-8, III, 284, Mork 1928-32, 51, Andersson and Gade 2000, 125, 470 (MH).
Context: Magnús engaged in battles in Denmark at Lyrskovshede (present-day Lürschau, some kilometres north of Schleswig) against the Wends and south of Århus against Sveinn Úlfsson.
Notes: [All]: For these battles, see also Arn Hryn 11-15, Arn Magndr 8-18, ÞjóðA Magnfl 6-19, and ÞjóðA Magn 1-14. — [1] Míkjálsmessu ‘Michaelmas’: 29 September. — [2] malmgrimm ‘sword-grim’: Lit. ‘iron-grim’. This reading is preferable to those of E, H, Hr (manngrimm ‘man-grim’) and Flat (marggrimm ‘much-grim’). — [3-4] en þjóðir vǫnðusk mjǫk vápnhljóði ‘and people became much accustomed to weapon-sound’: The variant en hrafnar vǫnðusk valtafni þar ‘and ravens became accustomed to corpse-food there’ (so H, Hr) is an equally good reading, which may represent the Mork version (cf. Flat en þeir hrafnar vǫnðusk valtafni ‘and the ravens became accustomed to corpse-food’). — [6] óhlítulig ‘by no means trivial’: For a discussion of this word and its cognates, see Note to Arn Hardr 11/4. — [8] Árós ‘Århus’: Located in Jylland (Jutland), Denmark.
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