Steinn Nizv 4II
Kari Ellen Gade (ed.) 2009, ‘Steinn Herdísarson, Nizarvísur 4’ in Kari Ellen Gade (ed.), Poetry from the Kings’ Sagas 2: From c. 1035 to c. 1300. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 2. Turnhout: Brepols, pp. 362-3.
Nýtr bað skjǫldungr skjóta
— skammt vas liðs á miðli —
hlífar styggr ok hǫggva
hvárrtveggi lið seggja.
Bæði fló, þás blóði
brandr hrauð af sér rauðu,
— þat brá feigra flotna
fjǫrvi — grjót ok ǫrvar.
Hvárrtveggi nýtr skjǫldungr, styggr hlífar, bað lið seggja skjóta ok hǫggva; vas skammt á miðli liðs. Bæði grjót ok ǫrvar fló, þás brandr hrauð af sér rauðu blóði; þat brá fjǫrvi feigra flotna.
Each bountiful prince, shunning protection, told the troop of warriors to shoot and strike; there was a short distance between the troops. Both rocks and arrows flew when the blade shed red blood; that put an end to the life of doomed sailors.
Mss: Kˣ(561r), 39(27ra), F(48vb), E(21r), J2ˣ(283r) (Hkr); H(56r), Hr(41ra) (H-Hr)
Readings: [1] skjǫldungr: skjǫldu E [2] vas (‘var’): varð E; miðli: milli H [5] Bæði fló þás: benja flóð í H, Hr; þás (‘þa er’): þá E [6] sér: om. Hr [7] þat: þar E, fljótt H, Hr; feigra: frægra H; flotna: gotna H, Hr
Editions: Skj AI, 408, Skj BI, 377, Skald I, 188; ÍF 28, 149 (HSig ch. 63), F 1871, 228, E 1916, 75; Fms 6, 316 (HSig ch. 78).
Context: The battle began, and both rulers urged their men on.
Notes: [5-8]: The H-Hr variant of this helmingr, which is clearly secondary, can be construed as follows:
Benja flóð í blóði
brandr hrauð af sér rauðu;
fljótt brá feigra/frægra gotna
fjǫrvi grjót ok ǫrvar.
Prose order: Brandr hrauð af sér flóð benja í rauðu blóði; grjót ok ǫrvar brá fljótt fjǫrvi feigra/frægra gotna. Translation: The blade shed a flood of wounds [BLOOD] in the red blood; rocks and arrows quickly put an end to the life of doomed/famous men. — [5] fló (3rd pers. sg. pret. indic.) ‘flew’: The verb is in the sg. but has a pl. subject (see NS §70).
References
- Bibliography
- Fms = Sveinbjörn Egilsson et al., eds. 1825-37. Fornmanna sögur eptir gömlum handritum útgefnar að tilhlutun hins norræna fornfræða fèlags. 12 vols. Copenhagen: Popp.
- Skald = Kock, Ernst Albin, ed. 1946-50. Den norsk-isländska skaldediktningen. 2 vols. Lund: Gleerup.
- NS = Nygaard, Marius. 1906. Norrøn syntax. Kristiania (Oslo): Aschehoug. Rpt. 1966.
- ÍF 26-8 = Heimskringla. Ed. Bjarni Aðalbjarnarson. 1941-51.
- F 1871 = Unger, C. R., ed. 1871. Fríssbók: Codex Frisianus. En samling af norske konge-sagaer. Christiania (Oslo): Malling.
- E 1916 = Finnur Jónsson, ed. 1916. Eirspennill: AM 47 fol. Nóregs konunga sǫgur: Magnús góði – Hákon gamli. Kristiania (Oslo): Den norske historiske kildeskriftskommission.
- Internal references
- (forthcoming), ‘ Unattributed, Hulda-Hrokkinskinna’ in Kari Ellen Gade (ed.), Poetry from the Kings’ Sagas 2: From c. 1035 to c. 1300. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 2. Turnhout: Brepols, p. . <https://skaldic.org/m.php?p=text&i=84> (accessed 26 April 2024)
- (forthcoming), ‘ Heimskringla, Haralds saga Sigurðssonar’ in Kari Ellen Gade (ed.), Poetry from the Kings’ Sagas 2: From c. 1035 to c. 1300. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 2. Turnhout: Brepols, p. . <https://skaldic.org/m.php?p=text&i=142> (accessed 26 April 2024)
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