Cite as: Kari Ellen Gade (ed.) 2009, ‘Blakkr, Breiðskeggsdrápa 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, pp. 647-8.

Bjǫrt kveða brenna kerti Breiðskeggs yfir leiði; ljóss veitk at mun missa meir hǫfðingi þeira. Vitumat vánir betri — vér hugðumk því brugðit — — þollr fekk illt með ǫllu ǫrþings — af gǫrningum. Bjǫrt kveða brenna kerti Breiðskeggs yfir leiði; ljóss veitk at mun missa meir hǫfðingi þeira. Vitumat vánir betri — vér hugðumk því brugðit — — þollr fekk illt með ǫllu ǫrþings — af gǫrningum. Kveða bjǫrt kerti brenna yfir leiði Breiðskeggs; veitk, at hǫfðingi þeira mun meir missa ljóss. Vitumat betri vánir af gǫrningum; vér hugðumk brugðit því; þollr ǫrþings fekk illt með ǫllu.

text prose order   They say bright candles are burning above Breiðskeggr’s grave; I know that their chieftain may rather be lacking in light. We [I] do not know that he has better expectations from his undertakings; we [I] thought an end had been put to that; {the tree {of the arrow-assembly}} [BATTLE > WARRIOR] was wretched in all respects.

context: Blakkr speaks out against the sanctity of Þorleifr Breiðskeggr.

notes: [1-2]: These ll. recall st. 20/5, 6 of Einarr Skúlason’s Geisli (Geisl^VII): Síðan brann ljós yfir líki vísa ‘Then light burned over the body of the prince’. Thus it appears that Blakkr is deliberately ridiculing the ‘sanctity’ of Breiðskeggr by alluding to the miracles connected with the sanctity of S. Óláfr.

texts: ‹Sv 13›, ‹Flat 819›

editions: Skj Blakkr: 1. Breiðskeggsdrápa 1 (AI, 537; BI, 518); Skald I, 253; ÍF 30, 176 (ch. 116), Sv 1920, 122, Flat 1860-8, II, 636, E 1916, 364, Sv 1910-86, 152.

sources

Holm perg 8 fol (8)	13r, 6 - 13r, 8	(Sv)
AM 327 4° (327)	59v, 30 - 59v, 32 [1-6]	(Sv)
GKS 1005 fol (Flat)	156va, 24 - 156va, 24 [1-6]	(Sv)
AM 47 fol (E)	105v, 7 - 105v, 8 [1-6]	(Sv)
AM 81 a fol (81a)	34ra, 1 - 34ra, 4 [1-6]	(Sv)
AM 325 VIII 4 a 4° (325VIII 4 a)	1vb, 34 - 1vb, 34 [1-6]	(Sv)
AM 761 b 4°x (761bx)	20r - 20r