Hskv Hardr 3^II

Ásbjǫrn varð, sás orðum
illa helt of stilli,
— gramr fœðir val víða
vígs — í Sarp at stíga.
Nereið lét gramr á grimman
grandmeið Sigars fjanda
(húsþinga galt) hengja
(hrannbáls glǫtuðr mála).

Ásbjǫrn, sás helt illa orðum of stilli, varð at stíga í Sarp; gramr fœðir {val vígs} víða. Gramr lét hengja Nereið á {grimman grandmeið {fjanda Sigars}}; {glǫtuðr {hrannbáls}} galt mála húsþinga.

Ásbjǫrn, who kept poor control of his words about the ruler, had to plunge into Sarpfossen; the lord feeds {the falcon of slaughter} [RAVEN/EAGLE] far and wide. The lord had Nereiðr hanged on {the grim harm-tree {of Sigarr’s <legendary king’s> enemy}} [= Hagbarðr > GALLOWS]; {the destroyer {of wave-fire}} [GOLD > GENEROUS MAN] paid for his speeches at the assemblies.

Mss: Kˣ(631r), 39(41vb), F(67va), E(48r), J2ˣ(338r), 42ˣ(33r) (Hkr); H(114r), Hr(75rb) (H-Hr)

Readings: [2] of: so 39, F, E, J2ˣ, 42ˣ, H, við Kˣ, Hr    [4] vígs: víg 39    [6] fjanda: branda F    [7] hengja: hringa 42ˣ    [8] hrannbáls: ‘hrandals’ 42ˣ, hrafnbáls H;    glǫtuðr: so all others, glǫtuð Kˣ

Editions: Skj AI, 489, Skj BI, 461, Skald I, 226; ÍF 28, 283-4 (MbHg ch. 4), Andersson and Gade 2000, 362, F 1871, 312, E 1916, 167; Fms 7, 181 (MbHg ch. 6).

Context: After returning to Norway from Denmark, Haraldr executed two of Magnús’s district chieftains in Sarpsborg.

Notes: [2] of ‘about’: So the majority of the mss. The variant reading við ‘to’ (so Kˣ, Hr) changes the meaning of the sentence somewhat: sás helt illa orðum við stilli ‘who kept poor control of his words to the ruler’, i.e. he failed to keep his promises (ll. 1-2). The ms. witnesses show that this variant is secondary. — [4] í Sarp ‘into Sarpfossen’: This is a large waterfall in the town of Sarpsborg, south-eastern Norway. According to Hkr, Ásbjǫrn got the choice of being hanged or plunging into the waterfall, and he chose the latter because he found that mode of death more cruel. — [5-6] á grimman grandmeið fjanda Sigars ‘on the grim harm-tree of Sigarr’s <legendary king’s> enemy [= Hagbarðr > GALLOWS]’: For a similar kenning, also employing the adj. grimmr ‘grim’, see Eyv Hál 4/5^I. — [6] fjanda Sigars ‘of Sigarr’s enemy [= Hagbarðr]’: King Sigarr hanged Hagbarðr, the lover of his daughter Signý (see Saxo 2005, I, 7, 1-17, pp. 464-77). — [7] mála húsþinga ‘speeches at the assemblies’: Lit. ‘speeches of house-assemblies’. For húsþing, see Note to Gísl Magnkv 4/2.

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. ÍF 26-8 = Heimskringla. Ed. Bjarni Aðalbjarnarson. 1941-51.
6. F 1871 = Unger, C. R., ed. 1871. Fríssbók: Codex Frisianus. En samling af norske konge-sagaer. Christiania (Oslo): Malling.
7. E 1916 = Finnur Jónsson, ed. 1916. Eirspennill: AM 47 fol. Nóregs konunga sǫgur: Magnús góði – Hákon gamli. Kristiania (Oslo): Den norske historiske kildeskriftskommission.
8. Saxo 2005 = Friis-Jensen, Karsten, ed. 2005. Saxo Grammaticus: Gesta Danorum / Danmarkshistorien. Trans. Peter Zeeberg. 2 vols. Copenhagen: Det danske sprog- og litteraturselskab & Gads forlag.
9. Internal references
10. (forthcoming), ‘ Unattributed, Heimskringla’ 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=4> (accessed 26 April 2024)
11. (forthcoming), ‘ Heimskringla, Magnúss saga blinda ok Haralds gilla’ 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=145> (accessed 26 April 2024)
12. Russell Poole (ed.) 2012, ‘Eyvindr skáldaspillir Finnsson, Háleygjatal 4’ 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. 202.
13. Kari Ellen Gade (ed.) 2009, ‘Gísl Illugason, Erfikvæði about Magnús berfœttr 4’ 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. 419.