Þham Lv 1^II

Orð frák Agli verða,
unnar dags, á munni,
Sól, við siklings þræla
satt einarðar latta.
Hvern þeira kvað hæra
(hjaldrbliks) an sik miklu
(beið ofmikit eyðir
angr) makligra at hanga.

{Sól {dags unnar}}, frák satt orð verða Agli á munni við þræla siklings, latta einarðar. Kvað hvern þeira miklu makligra at hanga hæra an sik; {eyðir {hjaldrbliks}} beið ofmikit angr.

{Sól <goddess> {of the wave’s daylight}} [GOLD > WOMAN], I heard that a true word was spoken by Egill to the ruler’s slaves, reluctant to be faithful. He said that each of them indeed deserved to hang higher than himself; {the destroyer {of the battle-shimmer}} [SWORD > WARRIOR] suffered too great a grief.

Mss: Mork(21v-22r) (Mork); H(82v), Hr(58ra) (H-Hr); Kˣ(596r), 39(34ra), F(57rb), E(32r), J2ˣ(307r), 42ˣ(8r) (Hkr); FskBˣ(84v-85r), FskAˣ(334) (Fsk)

Readings: [1] frák (‘fra ec’): frá ek at F;    Agli: ‘Egli’ FskBˣ, ‘æghle’ FskAˣ    [3] við: viðr FskAˣ    [6] hjaldr‑: ‘havlldr‑’ H, ‘hiol‑’ Hr    [7] beið: bað FskBˣ    [8] ‑ligra: ‑liga 42ˣ, ‑ligri FskBˣ, FskAˣ

Editions: Skj AI, 439, Skj BI, 409, Skald I, 201-2; Mork 1867, 135, Mork 1928-32, 305, Andersson and Gade 2000, 290, 484 (Mberf); Fms 7, 13 (Mberf ch. 7); ÍF 28, 217 (Mberf ch. 6), F 1871, 265, E 1916, 113; ÍF 29, 306 (ch. 80).

Context: During the uprising in 1094, Magnús captures the leaders of the conspiracy, Steigar-Þórir Þórðarson and Egill Áskelsson (or Ásláksson), and hangs them both.

Notes: [All]: For this event, see Þham Magndr 1 above and SteigÞ Kv, Bkrepp Magndr 2-3. Gísl Magnkv 1-8, Anon (Mberf) 2-3. For hanging as humiliation, see Gade 1985. — [1, 2, 4] frák satt orð verða Agli á munni ‘I heard that a true word was spoken by Egill’: Lit. ‘I heard that a true word was on the lips of Egill’. — [2, 3] Sól dags unnar ‘Sól <goddess> of the wave’s daylight [GOLD > WOMAN]’: For such apostrophes to unknown women, see Note to Hharð Gamv 3/1. — [4] latta einarðar ‘reluctant to be faithful’: Latta (m. acc. pl.) ‘reluctant’ is the p. p. of letja ‘make sby reluctant, unwilling’ construed with gen. (einarðar f. gen. sg. of einǫrð ‘honesty, faithfulness’). — [6] miklu ‘indeed’: This intensifying adv. could also modify hæra ‘higher’ (l. 5): kvað hvern þeira makligra at hanga miklu hæra an sik ‘he that said that each of them deserved to hang much higher than himself’ (ll. 5, 6, 8).

References

1. Bibliography
2. Fms = Sveinbjörn Egilsson et al., eds. 1825-37. Fornmanna sögur eptir gömlum handritum útgefnar að tilhlutun hins norræna fornfræða fèlags. 12 vols. Copenhagen: Popp.
3. Skald = Kock, Ernst Albin, ed. 1946-50. Den norsk-isländska skaldediktningen. 2 vols. Lund: Gleerup.
4. Andersson, Theodore M. and Kari Ellen Gade, trans. 2000. Morkinskinna: The Earliest Icelandic Chronicle of the Norwegian Kings (1030-1157). Islandica 51. Ithaca and London: Cornell University Press.
5. Mork 1928-32 = Finnur Jónsson, ed. 1928-32. Morkinskinna. SUGNL 53. Copenhagen: Jørgensen.
6. ÍF 26-8 = Heimskringla. Ed. Bjarni Aðalbjarnarson. 1941-51.
7. F 1871 = Unger, C. R., ed. 1871. Fríssbók: Codex Frisianus. En samling af norske konge-sagaer. Christiania (Oslo): Malling.
8. E 1916 = Finnur Jónsson, ed. 1916. Eirspennill: AM 47 fol. Nóregs konunga sǫgur: Magnús góði – Hákon gamli. Kristiania (Oslo): Den norske historiske kildeskriftskommission.
9. Gade, Kari Ellen. 1985a. ‘Hanging in Northern Law and Literature’. MM, 159-83.
10. ÍF 29 = Ágrip af Nóregskonunga sǫgum; Fagrskinna—Nóregs konungatal. Ed. Bjarni Einarsson. 1985.
11. Mork 1867 = Unger, C. R., ed. 1867. Morkinskinna: Pergamentsbog fra første halvdel af det trettende aarhundrede. Indeholdende en af de ældste optegnelser af norske kongesagaer. Oslo: Bentzen.
12. Internal references
13. (forthcoming), ‘ Heimskringla, Magnúss saga berfœtts’ 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=144> (accessed 26 April 2024)
14. Kari Ellen Gade 2009, ‘(Biography of) Steigar-Þórir Þórðarson’ 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. 391-2.
15. Kari Ellen Gade and Diana Whaley (eds) 2009, ‘Anonymous Lausavísur, Lausavísur from Magnúss saga berfœtts 2’ 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. 829-30.
16. Kari Ellen Gade 2009, ‘ Steigar-Þórir Þórðarson, Kviðlingr’ 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. 391-2. <https://skaldic.org/m.php?p=text&i=1386> (accessed 26 April 2024)
17. Kari Ellen Gade (ed.) 2009, ‘Bjǫrn krepphendi, Magnússdrápa 2’ 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. 397-8.
18. Kari Ellen Gade (ed.) 2009, ‘Gísl Illugason, Erfikvæði about Magnús berfœttr 1’ 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. 417.
19. Kari Ellen Gade (ed.) 2009, ‘Þorkell hamarskáld, Magnússdrápa 1’ 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. 410-11.
20. Kari Ellen Gade (ed.) 2009, ‘Haraldr harðráði Sigurðarson, Gamanvísur 3’ 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. 38.