Scandinavian Mythology

144 Pages·1969·55.15 MB·English

by  Hilda Roderick Ellis Davidson

SCANDINAVIAN
MYTHOLOGY
The religion of Odin, god of death and magic,
of Thor, ruler of the thunder, of Freyr, god of
fertility, the tales of Valkyries and berserks, of
dragons and giants—all are often thought of as
being the creation of the Vikings. These brave
adventurers roamed the world from Greenland
to the Volga and from the Mediterranean to
the North American coast during the ninth
and tenth centuries.
Certainly the religion of the Northern gods
reached its highest point of devotion and
fervour during this period. But the mythology
of Scandinavia, Germany and Iceland can be
traced back as far as the Bronze Age. The
development of the myths over so many cen­
turies and in various lands in itself makes a
fascinating story, and indeed one for which
evidence is continually being sought and found.
Scandinavian mythology reflects the Norse­
men’s love of battle and conflict. Death and
violence are rarely far away, for that was the
only life that the early warriors knew. They
believed that those who died heroic deaths in
battle went to ValhaHa. There each night they
feasted on never failing meat and mead. During
the day they fought once more, but as night
approached, the fallen were raised up again to
partake of the feast.
The author brings vividly to life this world of
mighty warriors, ruthless gods, giants, dwarfs,
elves and strange beasts. She shows how
Christianity gradually spread and overcame
the old religion. But for many years stories and
carvings showed the two religions strangely
intermingled. Hilda Davidson has made a
special study of the archaeology and literature
of the Norse people and has written several
authoritative works on various aspects of their
culture. This is the first fully illustrated popular
treatment of Scandinavian mythology for many
years. Its splendid illustrations are drawn from
many countries and include some archaeolo­
gical finds not previously published.
24 pages in colour. Over 100 black and white
illustrations. Index.

SCANDINAVIAN
MYTHOLOGY
A
H .R. Ellis D avidson
SCANDINAVIAN
MYTHOLOGY
PAUL HAMLYN
LONDON NEW YORK SYDNEY TORONTO
I O n t / * n Í Q Introduction
IL W I The religion of the North 12
The sources 15
Saxo and Snorri 15
The poems 17
Prose works 17
Archaeology and art 17
Outside Scandinavia 19
The coming of the gods
Megalithic tombs 20
Bronze Age religion 22
The sky god and the sun disc 22
The sacred ship 23
Sacred animals 25
Twin gods 25
The goddess 25
The divine marriage 26
The cult of Odin
Feasting in Valhalla 28
The cult of kings 28
Battle sacrifices 32
Ritual hanging 33
The spear of Odin 36
The ring of Odin 37
Odin’s champions 38
The berserks 38
Wolf, eagle and raven 40
The valkyries 41
Valhalla in the grave 42
Women sacrificed to Odin 43
Cremation and Odin 43
Sleipnir, the horse of Odin 45
Odin in eagle form 46
The winning of the mead 46
Odin hanging on the tree 47
The one-eyed god 48
The death of Balder 48
The wooing of Rind 49
Traditions of Odin’s cult 50
The god of the sky
Symbols of the sky 52
The god Tyr 52
The binding of the wolf 56
Odin as sky god 56
The Germanic thunder god 57
The god Thor 57
Thor and the World Serpent 58
Thor’s duel 60
Thor’s visit to Gerrod 62
The recovery of Thor’s hammer 62
Thor’s visit to Utgard-Loki 64
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Thor’s wagon and goats 67 The road to the other world 113
The symbol of the hammer 68 The creation 114
The making of the hammer 69 The elves and fair giants 115
The axe of Thor 70 The realm of Gudmund 115
Worship of Thor 71 Elves and land-spirits 117
The pillars of the house 71 Giants in the mountains 117
Thor and fertility n The homes of the gods 118
Dwarfs and monsters 118
The deities of the earth The fiery dragon 119
The wooing of Gerd 74 The destruction of the world 120
The dead king 76 The renewal of life 122
The king from the sea 79 Carvings of the last battle 123
Wagon and ships 79 The fall of Odin 123
The goddess Nerthus 82
Freyr’s progress 83 The coining of Christianity
The boar of Freyr 83 The two cultures 126
The sacred horse 85 Visits from Odin 128
Sacrifice to Freyr 85 Meeting with Thor 130
The king on the mound 86 The rejection of the Vanir 130
The king reborn 87 The troll women 131
The god Njord 88 The terrors of hell 132
Njord and Skadi 88 Thor after the conversion 132
The Lord and Lady 88 The destruction of the shrines 133
The goddess Freyja 89 Thor versus Christ 133
The mother goddess 90 The driving out of the guardian spirits 134
Idun and the apples of youth 90 The vengeance of the goddesses 135
The goddesses of plenty 91 Pagan martyrs 135
The symbols of Freyja 92 The missionary king 136
Divination ceremonies 92 Conversion of Iceland 137
The ship-graves 92 Conversion of Northumbria 137
The strength of Christianity 137
The family of the gods
War of the Aesir and the Vanir 94 Further reading list 138
Worship of the gods 96 Acknowledgments 139
Groups of deities 97 Index 140
The character of Loki 100
The ransom for Otter 100
The roasting of the dragon’s heart 101
The binding of Loki 101
The giant of the Underworld 104
The Trickster 105
The god Heimdall 105
The visits of Rig 107
Aegir and Ran 107
The giants of the sea 107
Hoenir and Ull 108
The god Forseti 108 The Hamlyn Publishing Group Limited
The minor deities 109 London New York Sydney Toronto
Hamlyn House Feltham Middlesex England
The world of the gods
The World Tree 110 Copyright© H. R. Ellis Davidson 1969
The spring beneath the tree 112 SBN 600 036 375
Odin on the World Tree 112 All rights reserved
The tree at the centre 112 Printed in Italy by O.G.A.M. Verona
Q
Colour plates
Frontispiece: part of a woven tapestry of about
A.D. 1100, from Skog Church, Hälsingland,
Sweden. The three standing figures in long
tunics and hats or helmets have been taken
for the trio of gods worshipped by the
pagan Swedes, Odin, Thor and Freyr.
Odin, with one eye, is on the left, with a
tree beside him, although he carries an axe
instead of a spear. The central figure has
a hammer, and should therefore be Thor.
The third holds what might represent fruit
or an ear of corn, and could be Freyr,
with the small figure of the goddess
beside him.
Viking warriors on stone from Lindisfarne
Priory 27
Bronze Age rock carving with men, ships
and sun disc 27
Chariot of the sun 30
Spearhead of the Viking Age 34
Rock carving on which sun discs are trans­
formed into warriors 34
Bear and other animal shapes carved from
amber 51
Purse lid from Sutton Hoo treasure 54
Bronze fertility god 55
Gilded dragon from Sutton Hoo treasure 59
Shield from Sutton Hoo treasure 59
Gold clasp from Sutton Hoo treasure 73
The Franks Casket 73
Slaying of a bull from the Gundestrup bowl 77
Tapestry from Oseberg ship burial 80
Ceremonial axehead 84
Wagon from Oseberg ship burial 84
Outline of ship in stones on Gotland 98
Helmet with boar crest 99
Gold collar 99
Head of monster from Oseberg ship burial 102
Viking warrior on Middleton Cross 103
Gilded bronze buckle from Finglesham 106
West face of the Gosforth Cross 121
Thingvellir, assembly place of the Icelandic
chieftains 124
Gold bracteate from Riseley 125
Silver amulet in form of hammer 125
Stave church in Norway 129
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