Vísi þat heyrði, hvat valkyrjur mæltu
mærar af mars baki;
hyggiliga létu ok hjalmaðar stóðu
ok hǫfðusk hlífar fyrir.
Vísi heyrði þat, hvat mærar valkyrjur mæltu af baki mars; létu hyggiliga ok stóðu hjalmaðar ok hǫfðusk hlífar fyrir.
The leader heard what the renowned valkyries said from [on] horseback; they behaved prudently and remained, helmeted, and held shields in front of them.
[5] stóðu ‘remained’: The reading stu ‘sat’ of J1ˣ, J2ˣ is preferred by nearly all the poem’s eds, and it is suitable to valkyries on horseback, but it is surely an alteration. Stóðu, rather than having its usual sense ‘stood’, may here mean ‘remained, stayed’ (Fritzner: standa 7).