Margaret Clunies Ross (ed.) 2017, ‘Gautreks saga 5 (Ímsigull Skafnǫrtungsson, Lausavísa 1)’ in Margaret Clunies Ross (ed.), Poetry in fornaldarsögur. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 8. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 249.
Þat var spell, er spörr um vann
á akri Ímsiguls.
Axi var skatt, ór var korn numit;
þat mun æ Tötru ætt um trega.
Þat var spell, er spörr um vann á akri Ímsiguls. Axi var skatt, korn var ór numit; þat mun ætt Tötru æ um trega.
‘It was devastation that a sparrow caused on Ímsigull’s field. An ear of corn was destroyed, the grain was taken from it; that will grieve Tǫtra’s family for ever. ’
Another brother, Ímsigull, was inspecting his cornfields when he noticed that a sparrow had plucked a single grain from one of the ears of corn. He thought this such serious damage that he decided to plunge over the family cliff, taking his wife with him. Before he did so he spoke this stanza.
The stanza is a rather amusing example of hyperbole, pointing up the ridiculous lack of proportion in the Skafnǫrtungr family’s view of their trivial losses. Ms. 567XIV γ has been used as base ms. here, as it offers the most conservative text.
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.
Þat var spell,
er spörr of vann
á akri Ímsiguls.
Axi var skatt,
ór var korn numit;
þat man æ Tötru of trega .
þat var spell er spaurr of vann ꜳ akri jmsiguls | axi uar skatt or var korn numit þat man æ tautru of trega.
(HA)
Þat var spells,
spörr um vann
á akri Ímsiguls.
Axi var skatt,
ok var korn numit;
þat mun †ꜳ† Tötru ætt um trega.
Þat var spell,
ok spörr um vann
á akri Ímsiguls.
Axi var skatt,
ór var korn numit;
þat mun æ Tötru ætt um trega.
Þat var spjöll,
ok spörn um vann
á akri Ímsiguls.
Axi var skatt,
ór var korn numit;
því slíkt mun ætt vór trega .
Þat var sjell,
ok spörr um vann
akri heimsyguls.
Axi var skatt,
ór var korn †nuid†;
þat mun Tötru mög tregaz .
Þat var spjöll,
er spörr gerði
á akri Ímsiguls.
Axi var skatt,
ór var korn numit;
þat mun †ockr faa† trega Hjötru vinkonu .
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