‘Sprett es í miðju mótpenningum;
mun gǫrst gleðu glatask ránsemi.
Tennr munu gylðis trausti numnar,
ok léons vargar verða at fiskum
hvassir hvelpar hvaltúnum í.
‘Sprett es í miðju mótpenningum; ránsemi gleðu mun gǫrst glatask. Tennr gylðis munu numnar trausti, ok vargar léons, hvassir hvelpar, verða at fiskum í hvaltúnum.
‘There will be a split down the middle of stamped pennies; the thieving ways of the kite will completely come to a stop. The wolf’s teeth will be deprived of their strength, and the lion’s wolves, keen cubs, will become fish in the whale-enclosures [SEA].
[3] gleðu: gleði Hb
[3] gleðu ‘of the kite’: Emended from ms. gleði ‘gladness’ (not refreshed) in Skj B (followed by Skald). In Bret 1848-9 an otherwise unattested m. by-form of gleða (*gleðr?) is proposed. Merl 2012 retains gleði, translating this in combination with ránsemi as das Vergnügen am Rauben ‘pleasure in robbery’. Gunnlaugr no doubt rendered Geoffrey’s animal lore accurately but in subsequent transmission of Merl the phrase was possibly misinterpreted in this way.