Haraldsdrápa blátannar — Eskál Hardr^III

The mention of Lund in st. 1/1 of Haralds drápa blátannar ‘Drápa about Haraldr blátǫnn’ (Eskál Hardr) indicates that this poem must be about a Danish king, as also does the reference to the family of Haraldr hilditǫnn ‘War-tooth’ (st. 2/1-4). The king intended is thus perhaps Haraldr blátǫnn ‘Blue-tooth’ Gormsson, who died in the late 980s and was thus a contemporary of Einarr skálaglamm (see Fidjestøl 1982, 96). That these two helmingar do in fact belong to a single composition cannot be proved, but they are both panegyric in nature, and they both allude to a Danish monarch, so that the inference is not improbable. The title is, thus, of course, modern rather than medieval. Both helmingar are found only in Skm (SnE), where they are widely separated from each other, since they illustrate different types of kennings, but in both instances they are plainly attributed to Einarr skálaglamm. Stanza 1 is transmitted in mss R, Tˣ, W, U, A, B (and 744ˣ) and C and st. 2 in R, Tˣ, W and U. As is usual in regard to poetry cited in Skm, R seems the most reliable ms. in respect to st. 1, but R is less reliable in regard to st. 2, for which no ms. is impeccable, though U seems the least deficient. Stanza 1 (but not st. 2) is given in the same context in the Y redaction of LaufE (LaufE 1979, 347; mss 2368ˣ(92), 743ˣ(72v)), which has no independent value.

References

1. Bibliography
2. LaufE 1979 = Faulkes, Anthony, ed. 1979. Edda Magnúsar Ólafssonar (Laufás Edda). RSÁM 13. Vol. I of Two Versions of Snorra Edda from the 17th Century. Reykjavík: Stofnun Árna Magnússonar, 1977-9.
3. Fidjestøl, Bjarne. 1982. Det norrøne fyrstediktet. Universitet i Bergen Nordisk institutts skriftserie 11. Øvre Ervik: Alvheim & Eide.
4. Internal references
5. Edith Marold 2017, ‘Snorra Edda (Prologue, Gylfaginning, Skáldskaparmál)’ in Kari Ellen Gade and Edith Marold (eds), Poetry from Treatises on Poetics. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 3. Turnhout: Brepols [check printed volume for citation].
6. (forthcoming), ‘ Snorri Sturluson, Skáldskaparmál’ in Kari Ellen Gade and Edith Marold (eds), Poetry from Treatises on Poetics. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 3. Turnhout: Brepols, p. . <https://skaldic.org/m.php?p=text&i=112> (accessed 26 April 2024)
7. (forthcoming), ‘ Unattributed, Laufás Edda’ in Kari Ellen Gade and Edith Marold (eds), Poetry from Treatises on Poetics. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 3. Turnhout: Brepols, p. . <https://skaldic.org/m.php?p=text&i=10928> (accessed 26 April 2024)