Hvat er þat dýra, er drepr fé manna,
ok er jarni kringt útan?
Horn hefir átta, en höfuð ekki,
ok fylgja því margir mjök.
Heiðrekr konungr, hyggðu at gátu.
Hvat dýra er þat, er drepr fé manna, ok er kringt útan jarni? Hefir átta horn, en ekki höfuð, ok mjök margir fylgja því. Heiðrekr konungr, hyggðu at gátu.
What is the creature who slays men’s flocks and is surrounded outside with iron? It has eight horns, but no head, and a great many follow it. King Heiðrekr, think about the riddle.
[4] hefir átta horn ‘it has eight horns’: If the solution is to be interpreted as ‘die’ (see Note to [All] above), this line puns on two meanings of horn, ‘horns’ and ‘corners’, referring to the eight corners on a six-faced die. It is less clear what this line would refer to if the solution is ‘playing piece’, although Murray (1978, 61) suggested the solution to be the hnefi or ‘king’-piece, with the eight ‘horns’ being the eight defending pieces on a 7x7 board.