in progress
A mock sacrifice to Óðinn goes wrong when the legendary hero Starkaðr is tricked into killing King Víkarr. Víkarr is accidentally hung from a tree and stabbed when the calf-guts and a reed used by Starkaðr in the mock sacrifice transform into a noose and a spear.
text
Gautr ch. 7
7. Starkaðr varð at bana Víkari konungi
Víkarr konungr gerðist hermað... | King Víkarr became a great wa... |
[status: unverified copy]
[excerpt from] Gautr ch. 7b
7b. Starkaðr varð at bana Víkari konungi
Starkaðr játar þessu. Þá fekk... | Starkaðr agreed, and Hrosshár... |
[status: referenced copy]
commentary
context
This account occurs within the longer version of Gautreks saga. The longer version of the saga focuses on the deeds of legendary hero Starkaðr and his relationship with King Víkarr, his companion, which culminates here in the sacrifice scene.
commentary
The mock-sacrifice to Óðinn is reminiscent of Óðinn's sacrifice to himself in Hávamál, where he hangs on the world tree Yggdrasil and is pierced by a spear.
There is also similarity between Óðinn's sacrifice and Christ's crucifixion (with the tree as the cross, and spear as the lance).
The saga's description of hanging a human sacrifice from a tree finds parallels in written sources, such as Adam of Bremen's account of sacrifice in Gamla Uppsala, in addition to pictorial representations on the Oseberg Tapestry of people hanging from trees.
(Contributed by Anna Millward.)
tags
Main text: Gautreks saga
Attributes: tree Sacrifice Hanging Sacral kingship Spear Ritual
Text sections: Gautr ch. 7 Anon Gautr 7bVIII