Kari Ellen Gade (ed.) 2017, ‘Snorri Sturluson, Háttatal 52’ in Kari Ellen Gade and Edith Marold (eds), Poetry from Treatises on Poetics. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 3. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 1161.
Sær skjǫldungs niðr skúrum;
skǫpt darraðar lyptask;
hrindr gunnfana grundar
glygg of frœknum tiggja.
Geisa vé fyr vísa;
veðr stǫng at hlym Gungnis;
styrk eru mót und merkjum
málms of ítran hilmi.
{Niðr skjǫldungs} sær skúrum; skǫpt darraðar lyptask; glygg hrindr gunnfana of {frœknum tiggja grundar}. Vé geisa fyr vísa; stǫng veðr at {hlym Gungnis}; {mót málms} eru styrk und merkjum of ítran hilmi.
‘The sovereign’s kinsman [= Skúli] sows showers [of missiles]; the shafts of the standard are lifted; the strong wind presses against the battle-banner above the bold lord of the land [RULER]. Pennants rush before the prince; the standard-pole advances towards the crash of Gungnir <spear> [BATTLE]; meetings of metal [BATTLES] are mighty beneath the banners around the glorious leader. ’
The dróttkvætt variant is skothendr háttr ‘the half-rhymed form’, and it is characterised by skothending rather than aðalhending in the even lines.
Ms. R is partly damaged, and Tˣ is the main ms. The heading in Tˣ is Nú er skothendr háttr. 44 ‘Now comes the half-rhymed form. 44’. The variant is quite common in informal poetry.
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.
Sær skjǫldungs niðr skúrum;
skǫpt darraðar lyptask;
hrindr gunnfana grundar
†gl[…]† af †fræ[…]† tiggja.
†geisa[…]† ;
†[…]† at hlym Gungnis;
styrk eru mót und merkjum
málms of ítran hilmi.
Sær skjǫldungs niðr skúrum;
skǫpt darraðar lyptask;
hrindr gunnfana grundar
glygg af frœknum tiggja.
Geisa vé fyr vísa;
veðr stǫng at hlym Gungnis;
styrk eru mót fyr merkjum
málms of ítran hilmi.
Sær skjǫldungs niðr skúrum;
skǫpt darraðar lyptask;
hrindr gunnfara grundar
glugg um frœknum tiggja.
Geisa vé fyr vísa;
veðr stǫng at hlyn Gungnis;
styrk eru mót und merkjum
hjálms vin ítrum hilmi.
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