Kostigr ríðr at kesti,
kynfróðs þeims goð hlóðu
hrafnfreistaðar, hesti
Heimdallr, at mǫg fallinn.
Kostigr Heimdallr ríðr hesti at kesti, þeims goð hlóðu at fallinn mǫg kynfróðs hrafnfreistaðar.
Splendid Heimdallr rides a horse to the pyre which the gods erected for the fallen son of the kin-wise raven-tester [= Óðinn > = Baldr].
[3] hrafnfreistaðar ‘raven-tester’: On kennings referring to Óðinn as the raven-god, see Meissner 253. According to Gylf (SnE 2005, 32), the two ravens Huginn and Muninn report to Óðinn every morning what they have witnessed on their flights throughout the world. The word might refer to Óðinn as a wise augur (on bird augury, see Pesch 2003, 136-7; ARG I, 428-9; ARG II, 61-3).