áðr ór hneigihliðum
hárs ǫl-Gefjun sára
reiði-Týs it rauða
ryðs hœlibǫl gœli.
Gǫrla lítk á Geitis
garði þær of farðir.
Baugs þák bifum fáða
bifkleif at Þórleifi.
áðr ǫl-Gefjun gœli it rauða hœlibǫl ryðs ór hneigihliðum hárs reiði-Týs sára. Lítk gǫrla þær of farðir á garði Geitis. Þák bifkleif baugs, fáða bifum, at Þórleifi.
until the ale-Gefjun <goddess> [WOMAN = Gróa] could enchant the red boasting destruction of rust [WHETSTONE] from the inclined slopes of the hair [HEAD] of the bearing-Týr <god> of wounds [= Þórr]. I see clearly these happenings [depicted] on the fence of Geitir <sea-king> [SHIELD]. I received the quivering cliff of the shield-boss [SHIELD], decorated with moving stories, from Þorleifr.
[2] ǫl-Gefjun ‘the ale-Gefjun <goddess> [WOMAN = Gróa]’: A standard woman-kenning, based on the concept that women serve ale, beer or mead to men (cf. Meissner 418). It is possible, however, that the name Gefjun would seem particularly appropriate as a base-word here, as Gefjun’s most notable exploit, her ploughing loose of the island of Sjælland from Sweden, involved some kind of deception, if not sorcery (cf. Bragi Frag 1 and Note to st. 2/6 above). Cf. ǫl-Gefn st. 11/2 and Note. Kock (NN §1918) proposes taking ǫl-Gefjun sára ‘the ale-Gefjun of wounds’ together, but, as Marold (1983, 174) observes, this would overdetermine the kenning since ‘the Gefjun of wounds’ would by itself be a good woman-kenning, as would ‘the ale-Gefjun’.