Anon (Heiðr) 7^VIII (Heiðr 88)

Hannah Burrows (ed.) 2017, ‘Hervarar saga ok Heiðreks 88 (Anonymous Lausavísur, Lausavísur from Hervarar saga ok Heiðreks 7)’ in Margaret Clunies Ross (ed.), Poetry in fornaldarsögur. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 8. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 457.

text and translation

notes and context

King Heiðrekr’s second son, Hlǫðr, is introduced. The prose rationalises the stanza (Heiðr 1960, 46): þat var fornt mál þann tíma, at maðr væri borinn með vápnum eða hestum ‘it was an old saying at that time, that a man was born with weapons or horses’, explaining: þat var til þess haft, at þat var mælt um þau vápn, er þá váru gǫr þann tíma, er maðrinn var fœddr, svá ok fé, kykvendi, yxn eða hestar, ef þat var þá fœtt; ok var þat allt fœrt saman til virðingar tignum mǫnnum ‘it was for this reason, that it was said about those weapons which were made at the time a man was born, and likewise of animals, cattle, oxen or horses, if they were born then; and that was all brought together to honour noble men’. The stanza is introduced sem hér segir um Hlǫð Heiðreksson ‘as it says here about Hlǫðr Heiðreksson’.

[1-4]: Kock (NN §1204C) highlights the alternation between the use of the dat. instr. by itself (saxi ‘with short-sword’, síðri brynju ‘with long mailcoat’; also attributes in ll. 5-7) and with the preposition með ‘with’ in l. 3. A similar effect occurs in HlǫðH Lv 2/7-12 (Heiðr 94). — [3-8]: See Note to Heiðr 94/3-8. — [3-6]: These lines, listing Hlǫðr’s weaponry, are reminiscent of Herv Lv 9/5-8 (Heiðr 26), which list Hervǫr’s. — [6]: The same half-line, except in the acc. case, occurs as Herv Lv 8/6 and 16/3 (Heiðr 25 and 40). Exactly what kind of sword was a mækir is unclear (Falk 1914b, 14-16). — [8]: Probably a reference to Myrkviðr, which is referred to as því inu mæta hrísi ‘that excellent forest’ in Heiðr 94/13-14 (on the p. n. see Note to those lines).

readings

• [6] hvössum: ‘hꜹssum’ 2845

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.

• GKS 2845 4° (2845) — 73r/19 - 73r/21

  Hlöðr var þar borinn
  í Húnalandi
  saxi ok með sverði,
  síðri brynju,
  hjálmi hringreifðum,
  †hꜹssum† mæki,
  mari veltömum
  á mörk inni helgu.

  hlꜹþur uar | þar boríɴ i huna landi saxi ok med suerdi siþri bryníu hialmi hringreifþom | hꜹssum mæki marí uel tꜹmom a mꜹrk íɴni helgu

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