Cite as: Peter Jorgensen (ed.) 2017, ‘Ásmundar saga kappabana 2 (Hildibrandr, Lausavísur 2)’ in Margaret Clunies Ross (ed.), Poetry in fornaldarsögur. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 8. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 17.
Tveir váru þeir, tír*argjarnir,
Buðlanautar; nú er brotinn annarr. |
Svá höfðu dvergar dauðir smíðat,
sem engi mun áðr né síðan. |
Þeir váru tveir, tír*argjarnir, Buðlanautar; nú er annarr brotinn. Dvergar dauðir höfðu smíðat svá, sem engi mun áðr né síðan.
They were two, eager for fame, treasures of Buðli <legendary king>; now one is broken. Dwarfs [now] dead had forged [them] in such a way that no one could before or since.
Mss: 7(43r) (Ásm)
Readings: [2] tír*ar: ‘tyrvir’ 7
Editions: Skj: Anonyme digte og vers [XIII], E. 12. Vers af Fornaldarsagaer: Af Ásmundar saga kappabana I 2: AII, 320-1, BII, 340, Skald II, 183, FF §32; Peringskiöld 1722, 21-2 (ch. 9), FSN 2, 485 (ch. 9), Detter 1891, 99, FSGJ 1, 405-6 (ch. 9) (Ásm); CPB I, 191, Halvorsen 1951, 12; Edd. Min. 53, NK 314.
Notes: [All]: The reference is to two
swords, forged by Alíus and Olíus, two dwarfs who visit King Buðli and who each
fashion a sword for him. The king finds fault with that of Olíus and commands
him to make another. Olíus does so
and predicts that it will bring death to the king’s grandsons, whereupon the
dwarfs disappear. — [2] tír*ar- ‘for fame’: The ms. reads ‘tyrvar’, which does not correspond to a known Old Norse word. Most eds emend. Kock (FF §32), drawing on the parallel phrase tírargjarn ‘eager for glory’ (Hfr Óldr 6/8I), offers the emendation to tírar ‘for fame’ adopted here. — [6] dauðir ‘[now] dead’: Skj B emends to Dáinsleif ‘Dáinn’s legacy’, the name of a sword forged by dwarfs, that belonged to the hero Hǫgni (SnE 1998, I, 72), while Kock (Skald; cf. FF §32) emends to dáðgir ‘dynamic’, but neither emendation has any ms. support.
