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skaldic

Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages

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Note to Herv Lv 8VIII (Heiðr 25)

[6-8] hvassan mæki, þann er dvergar slógu ‘the sharp sword which dwarfs forged’: I.e. Tyrfingr. In Old Norse literature dwarfs were consistently portrayed as craftsmen. In Old Norse mythology, they were said to have made a variety of magical objects valuable to the gods (Simek 1993, 68); in the later traditions of the fornaldarsögur and riddarasögur they became more narrowly associated with the crafting of weapons (Motz 1977, 49). Cf. Heiðr 26/7-8, 33/7.

References

  1. Bibliography
  2. Simek, Rudolf. 1993. Dictionary of Northern Mythology. Trans. Angela Hall. Cambridge: D. S. Brewer.
  3. Motz, Lotte. 1977. ‘The Craftsman in the Mound’. Folklore, 46-60.
  4. Internal references
  5. Hannah Burrows (ed.) 2017, ‘Hervarar saga ok Heiðreks 73 (Gestumblindi, Heiðreks gátur 26)’ in Margaret Clunies Ross (ed.), Poetry in fornaldarsögur. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 8. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 440.

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