Jonna Louis-Jensen and Tarrin Wills (eds) 2007, ‘Anonymous Poems, Plácitusdrápa 16’ in Margaret Clunies Ross (ed.), Poetry on Christian Subjects. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 7. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 192.
Sik bað stríða stǫðvir
stirðs, es at kom firði,
hyrlund heiðni kenndan
herleiks of sæ ferja.
Veittit fremðar flýti
flugstyggum aldyggva
fetrjóðr Fenris jóða
farning inn bǫlgjarni,
{Stǫðvir stríða}, es kom at firði, bað {{{stirðs herleiks} hyr}lund}, kenndan heiðni, ferja sik of sæ. {Inn bǫlgjarni fetrjóðr {jóða Fenris}} veittit aldyggva farning {flugstyggum flýti fremðar},
{The calmer of distress} [HOLY MAN], when [he] came to the bay, asked {the tree {of the fire {of harsh army-play}}} [(lit. ‘fire-tree of harsh army-play’) BATTLE > SWORD > WARRIOR], known for paganism, to ferry them over the sea. {The evil-eager paw-reddener {of the offspring of Fenrir <wolf>}} [WOLVES > WARRIOR] did not provide reliable transportation {for the flight-shy begetter of honour} [HOLY MAN],
Mss: 673b(2r-v)
Readings: [1] bað: ‘[...]’ 673b, ‘baþ’ 673bFJ [3] hyr‑: ‘h(y)[...]’(?) 673b, ‘hot’ 673bÞH, ‘hyr’ 673bFJ [4] ferja: ‘[...]’ 673b
Editions: Skj AI, 610, Skj BI, 610-11, Skald I, 297; Sveinbjörn Egilsson 1833, 17, 46, Finnur Jónsson 1887, 233, Louis-Jensen 1998, 101.
Notes: [All]: In the legend, Plácitus and his family seek passage to Egypt with a ship’s captain who is variously described as dominus … barbarus ‘the barbarous master’ and scips drottiɴ …heiþiɴ oc grímr ‘the ship’s captain … heathen and cruel’ (A1) (Tucker 1998, 32). The warrior-kennings in sts 16 and 17 refer to this man, who quickly sees that the family is destitute and decides to seize Theopista, whom he finds very attractive, in payment for the crossing. — [3] hyrlund ‘fire-tree’: Proposed by Finnur Jónsson 1887, who could apparently read the now-illegible letters in the ms. — [4] herleiks ‘of army-play [BATTLE]’: This cpd is treated as a kenning in Meissner (199); however, terms for ‘warriors’ are rare as determinants of battle-kennings (cf. Meissner, 177, 194).
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