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skaldic

Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages

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Anon Krm 14VIII

Rory McTurk (ed.) 2017, ‘Anonymous Poems, Krákumál 14’ in Margaret Clunies Ross (ed.), Poetry in fornaldarsögur. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 8. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 745.

Anonymous PoemsKrákumál
131415

text and translation

Hjuggu vér með hjörvi.
Hörð kom ríð á skjöldu;
nár fell niðr til jarðar
á Norðimbralandi.
Varat um eina óttu
öldum þörf at frýja
Hildar leiks, þar er hvassir
hjálmstofn bitu skjómar.
Benmána sá ek bresta;
brá því fira lífi.

Hjuggu vér með hjörvi. Hörð ríð kom á skjöldu; nár fell niðr til jarðar á Norðimbralandi. Um eina óttu varat þörf at frýja öldum {leiks Hildar}, þar er hvassir skjómar bitu {hjálmstofn}. Ek sá {benmána} bresta; því brá lífi fira.
 
‘We hewed with the sword. A hard storm assailed shields; a corpse fell down to earth in Northumbria. Once, at daybreak there was no cause to reproach people over the game of Hildr <valkyrie> [BATTLE], where sharp shiners <swords> bit [many a] helmet-peg [HEAD]. I saw wound-moons [SHIELDS] break; men’s lives ceased as a result.

notes and context

In 147 (108v, l. 1) ll. 9-10 of st. 1 (apart from the final word of l. 10) appear in abbreviated form between the present stanza and st. 13. — [9-10]: As the Readings above indicate, R702ˣ and LR have, in place of these two lines as preserved in 1824b, 147, and (this last acknowledging the LR reading), what are printed as ll. 9-10 of st. 20 in the present edn. In common with earlier eds up to and including Wisén (1886-9), the present ed. here follows the text of 1824b, now with the added support of the fragmentary text of 147 (cf. Note to ll. 5, 6-7 above and cf. also Ragn 1906-08, 188, and Skj AI, 645). Subsequent eds (i.e. Finnur Jónsson 1893b; 1905; Skj B; Skald) have followed R702ˣ and LR in reproducing here the lines printed below as st. 20/9-10. The present ed. differs from the earlier group of eds, however, in adopting here the reading benmána acc. pl. (or sg.) ‘wound-moon(s) [SHIELD(S)]’, which seems to have the support of 1824b, as opposed to the reading böðmána acc. pl. (or sg.) ‘battle-moon(s) [SHIELD(S)]’ found in st. 20/9 as preserved in R702ˣ, LR , and 693ˣ; see the relevant Readings and Notes to st. 20 below.

readings

sources

Text is based on reconstruction from the base text and variant apparatus and may contain alternative spellings and other normalisations not visible in the manuscript text. Transcriptions may not have been checked and should not be cited.

editions and texts

Skj: Anonyme digte og vers [XII], H. Krákumál 14: AI, 645, BI, 652, Skald I, 318; Rafn 1826, 12-13, 123-5, Pfeiffer 1860, 125, CPB II, 342, FSNVÁ, I, 226-7, Wisén 1886-9, I, 64, Krm 1891, 226-7, Finnur Jónsson 1893b, 88, Finnur Jónsson 1905, 154-5; Ragn 1906-8, 188.

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