Ótt Knútdr 8I
Matthew Townend (ed.) 2012, ‘Óttarr svarti, Knútsdrápa 8’ in Diana Whaley (ed.), Poetry from the Kings’ Sagas 1: From Mythical Times to c. 1035. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 1. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 777.
text and translation
Framm gekkt enn, þars unnuð
— almr gall hátt — við malma;
knôttut slæ, þars sóttuð,
sverð, kastala, verða.
Unnuð eigi minni
— ulfs gómr veit þat — rómu,
hnekkir hleypiblakka
hlunns, á Tempsar grunni.
Enn gekkt framm, þars unnuð við malma; almr gall hátt; sverð knôttut verða slæ, þars sóttuð kastala. {Hnekkir {hleypiblakka hlunns}}, unnuð eigi minni rómu á grunni Tempsar; gómr ulfs veit þat.
‘Still you went forward, where you fought against metal weapons; the bow cried loudly; swords did not become blunt where you attacked the fortification. Restrainer of the leaping steeds of the roller [SHIPS > SEAFARER], you fought no less a battle in the shallows of the Thames; the wolf’s gums know that. ’
notes and context
This stanza is quoted in the course of Knýtl’s account of Knútr’s attack on London.
For the sequencing of sts 8-10 in this edn, see the Introduction. — [1-4]: Assuming the first helmingr to refer to the same events as the second, these lines record Knútr’s attack on London in mid 1016. London did not fall to Knútr in the siege described here (see ASC s. a. 1016); the helmingr therefore praises Knútr as warmly as possible without committing an actual untruth. The syntax again poses problems. (a) The four lines are divided here into two self-contained couplets (so also NN §739). (b) Skj B prefers a complex structure, with the main sentence, in prose order Gek(k)t enn framm, þars unnuð sverð slæ við malma ‘Still you went forward, where you made the swords blunt against metal weapons’, extending through the whole helmingr and punctuated by two intercalary sentences, one containing a subordinate clause.
readings
- [1] gekkt: gekk all
- [1] þars (‘þar er’): ‘þar e’ 41ˣ
- [3] slæ: sæ 20dˣ
- [6] ulfs: ulf 20dˣ
- [7] hnekkir: ‘heckir’ 20dˣ
- [7] ‑blakka: bakka 41ˣ
sources
Text is based on reconstruction from the base text and variant apparatus and may contain alternative spellings and other normalisations not visible in the manuscript text. Transcriptions may not have been checked and should not be cited.
-
Jón Ólafsson 1741 (JÓ) — 24 - 24
images -
AM 20 d folx (20dx) — 9r/25 - 9v/4
Framm gekk enn, þars unnuð
images
— almr gall hátt — við malma;
knôttut sæ, þars sóttuð,
sverð, kastala, verða.
Unnuð eigi minni
— ulf gómr veit þat — rómu,
†heckir† hleypiblakka
hlunns, á Tempsar grunni. -
NKS 873 4°x (873x) — 11r/15 - 11r/22
images -
Holm papp 41 4°x (41x) — 8v - 8v
Framm gekk enn, †þar e† unnuð
— almr gall hátt — við malma;
knôttut slæ, þars sóttuð,
sverð, kastala, verða.
Unnuð eigi minni
— ulfs gómr veit þat — rómu,
hnekkir hleypibakka
hlunns, á Tempsar grunni.
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