Refr Ferðv 3^III

En sægnípu Sleipnir
slítr úrdrifinn hvítrar
Ránar rauðum steini
runnit brjóst ór munni.

En {úrdrifinn Sleipnir {sægnípu}} slítr brjóst, runnit rauðum steini, ór munni hvítrar Ránar.

But {the spray-spattered Sleipnir <mythical horse> {of the sea-peak}} [WAVE > SHIP] tears its breast, covered with red paint, out of the mouth of white Rán <sea-goddess>.

Mss: R(26v), Tˣ(27r), W(57), U(29v), B(5r), 744ˣ(31v) (SnE); 2368ˣ(126), 743ˣ(94v-95r) (LaufE)

Readings: [1] sæ‑: snjá‑ U;    Sleipnir: ‘sneipnir’ Tˣ    [2] slítr: slítr í U;    úrdrifinn: vindriðinn Tˣ, U, B;    hvítrar: hvítum U, hvítar B    [3] rauðum: ‘raþum’ Tˣ;    steini: so all others, ‘steni’ R    [4] runnit: ‘r[…]it’ B, runnit 744ˣ;    brjóst: brjót U, hjarta 2368ˣ, 743ˣ;    ór: ‘[…]’ B, ór 744ˣ

Editions: Skj AI, 321, Skj BI, 296, Skald I, 151; SnE 1848-87, I, 326-7, II, 316, 529, III, 52, SnE 1931, 117, SnE 1998, I, 37; LaufE 1979, 389.

Context: See Context to st. 1. In LaufE the stanza is cited in the passage on sea-kennings and heiti.

Notes: [2, 3, 4] slítr brjóst … ór munni hvítrar Ránar ‘tears its breast … out of the mouth of white Rán <sea-goddess>’: A metaphorical depiction of the ship as it re-emerges from the trough of a foaming wave, thus escaping from the jaws of the sea which threatens to swallow it. As in the previous stanza the sea appears as a cannibalistic monster. The description of Rán as hvítrar ‘white’ presumably refers to the white crests of waves. — [2] úrdrifinn ‘spray-spattered’: The variant reading, vindriðinn ‘wind-ridden, wind-oppressed’ (mss Tˣ, U, B), is also possible. — [3-4] runnit rauðum steini ‘covered with red paint’: There are some indications that ships were painted: glæsidýr lauks … fagrdrifin steini ‘the splendid beasts of the mast [SHIPS] … beautifully covered with colour’ (Þfagr Sveinn 3/5, 6-7^II and Note); steinnǫkkva (Hallm Hallkv 9/5^V (Bergb 9)) is presumably not a stone ship but a painted ship; possibly also Þhorn Gldr 2/6, 8^I. See also the section on heiti for ‘stone’ in LaufE 1979, 307: item söl, birti, prydi, skipa eda böka (þui bækur eru lystar, skip steind ‘also sun, brightness, adornments on ships or books (because books are illuminated and ships [are] painted’. See also HSt Frag 6 Context and Note to l. 3 there.

References

1. Bibliography
2. SnE 1848-87 = Snorri Sturluson. 1848-87. Edda Snorra Sturlusonar: Edda Snorronis Sturlaei. Ed. Jón Sigurðsson et al. 3 vols. Copenhagen: Legatum Arnamagnaeanum. Rpt. Osnabrück: Zeller, 1966.
3. Skald = Kock, Ernst Albin, ed. 1946-50. Den norsk-isländska skaldediktningen. 2 vols. Lund: Gleerup.
4. LaufE 1979 = Faulkes, Anthony, ed. 1979. Edda Magnúsar Ólafssonar (Laufás Edda). RSÁM 13. Vol. I of Two Versions of Snorra Edda from the 17th Century. Reykjavík: Stofnun Árna Magnússonar, 1977-9.
5. SnE 1931 = Snorri Sturluson. 1931. Edda Snorra Sturlusonar. Ed. Finnur Jónsson. Copenhagen: Gyldendal.
6. SnE 1998 = Snorri Sturluson. 1998. Edda: Skáldskaparmál. Ed. Anthony Faulkes. 2 vols. University College London: Viking Society for Northern Research.
7. Internal references
8. Edith Marold (ed.) 2017, ‘Hallar-Steinn, Fragments 6’ in Kari Ellen Gade and Edith Marold (eds), Poetry from Treatises on Poetics. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 3. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 208.
9. Kari Ellen Gade (ed.) 2009, ‘Þorleikr fagri, Flokkr about Sveinn Úlfsson 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, pp. 315-16.
10. Edith Marold (ed.) 2012, ‘Þorbjǫrn hornklofi, Glymdrápa 2’ in Diana Whaley (ed.), Poetry from the Kings’ Sagas 1: From Mythical Times to c. 1035. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 1. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 78.
11. Tarrin Wills (ed.) 2022, ‘Bergbúa þáttr 9 (Hallmundr bergbúinn, Hallmundarkviða 9)’ in Margaret Clunies Ross, Kari Ellen Gade and Tarrin Wills (eds), Poetry in Sagas of Icelanders. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 5. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 49.
12. (forthcoming), ‘ Unattributed, Laufás Edda’ in Kari Ellen Gade and Edith Marold (eds), Poetry from Treatises on Poetics. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 3. Turnhout: Brepols, p. . <https://skaldic.org/m.php?p=text&i=10928> (accessed 24 April 2024)