Note to StarkSt Vík 11^VIII (Gautr 19)

[6] með höfuðgnípum ‘with head-peaks’: The cpd höfuðgnípa is a hap. leg. and its meaning is uncertain. Most interpretations have understood the phrase með höfuðgnípum to be a metaphorical way of referring to the tall heads of the warriors inside their helmets, as in Skj B’s proposed translation vi huggede hjælmene med (på) de höje hoveder ‘we hewed the helmets with (on) the high heads’. However, other senses are possible, including that með ‘with’ might have instrumental function, and refer to some kind of weapon, or that the ‘head-peaks’ were some kind of ornament or crest on top of the warriors’ helmets. The C10th helmet from a chieftain’s grave at Gjermundbu in Ringerike has a crest with a small spike on it (Graham-Campbell 1980, no. 271; Grieg 1947). Swedish helmets from the Vendel period also bore crests, often with protective images of boars surmounting them, as did several from Anglo-Saxon England dated from C7th-11th (Marzinzik 2007, 33-42; Beowulf ll. 303-6). In the Viking Age and later, the typical Scandinavian helmet is conical, as can be seen from the figures on the Bayeux Tapestry and other witnesses (cf. Steuer 1999, 337-8).

References

1. Bibliography
2. Skj B = Finnur Jónsson, ed. 1912-15b. Den norsk-islandske skjaldedigtning. B: Rettet tekst. 2 vols. Copenhagen: Villadsen & Christensen. Rpt. 1973. Copenhagen: Rosenkilde & Bagger.
3. Graham-Campbell, James and Dafydd Kidd. 1980. The Vikings. London: The British Museum and New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art.
4. Marzinzik, Sonja. 2007. The Sutton Hoo Helmet. British Museum Objects in Focus. London: The British Museum Press.
5. Grieg, Sigurd. 1947. Gjermundbufunnet. En hövdingegrav fra 900-årene fra Ringerike. Norske Oldfunn 8. Oslo: Universitets Oldsaksamling.
6. Steuer, Heiko. 1999. ‘Helm. §8. Karolinger- und Wikingerzeit’. In RGA, 14, 335-8.
7. Internal references
8. Not published: do not cite (Run^VI)
9. Not published: do not cite ()