Russell Poole (ed.) 2017, ‘Breta saga 40 (Gunnlaugr Leifsson, Merlínusspá II 40)’ in Margaret Clunies Ross (ed.), Poetry in fornaldarsögur. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 8. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 170.
‘En hraustir brœðr hugga galta;
kveðask sár munu sjalfir grœða.
“Fara skulum báðir fótar at leita
hlustar ok hala þér; hér bíð þú, galti!”
‘En hraustir brœðr hugga galta; kveðask sjalfir munu grœða sár. “Skulum báðir fara at leita fótar hlustar ok hala þér; hér bíð þú, galti!”
‘But the brave brothers will comfort the boar; they will say they themselves will heal its wounds. “We will both go to find your foot, ear, and tail; you wait here, boar!”
Mss: Hb(50r) (Bret)
Editions: Skj AII, 17, Skj BII, 18, Skald II, 11; Bret 1848-9, II, 30 (Bret st. 40); Hb 1892-6, 275; Merl 2012, 105.
Notes: [All]: Cf. DGB 116 (Reeve and Wright 2007, 155.198-200; cf. Wright 1988, 110, prophecy 43): Qui ut causam inierint, promittent ei duos pedes et aures et caudam et ex eis porcina membra component. Acquiescet ipse promissamque restaurationem expectabit ‘Plotting together, they will promise it two feet and ears and a tail to replace the boar’s members. The boar will consent and await their promised restitution’ (cf. Reeve and Wright 2007, 154). Merl differs from Geoffrey in being consistent about the number of feet and ears to be replaced. Altogether, the treatment in Merl is notably free, especially in its incorporation of direct speech, and suggests that Gunnlaugr had contemporary beast epic in mind (see Introduction). — [8] þú ‘you’: Omitted in Skald.
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