Höfuðlausn
Encyclopedia
Höfuðlausn or the "Head's Ransom" is a skaldic poem attributed to Egill Skalla-Grímsson in praise of king Eirik Bloodaxe.
It is cited in Egils Saga
(chapter 61), which claims that he created it in the span of one night. The events in the saga that lead up to the composition and recitation of the poem can be summarized in the following way. Egil falls into king Eirik's hands after being shipwrecked in Northumbria
. Faced with the decision to either dishonorably flee and risk being exposed as a coward or to directly face his adversary and ask for reconciliation, Egil chooses the latter. The two men are enemies during the saga, which makes Egil’s decision especially bold. Earlier in the saga Egil goes as far as to construct a Nithing pole
, a sign of disrespect in medieval Scandinavian society. For this and other reasons King Eirik tells Egil not to expect any outcome other than death for his arrival in his court. This would be the end for Egil, however, one of his allies, who has allegiance to Eirik, intercedes on Egil’s behalf. Arinjborn the Hersir tells the king that it would be dishonorable to kill his enemy under such circumstances. Futhermore he states that Egil, also a renowned poet, “can make recompense with words of praise that will live for ever.” This argument along with it being considered scornful to kill during the night, convinces Eirik to delay his judgement until the next day. During the night Egil composes and memorizes the entire poetic drápa known as the Head Ransom. He recites it in the presence of the king Eiríkr and receives his freedom, but not any sort of reconciliation. The two remain enemies and Egil continues on his original journey to visit king Athelstan of England. This poem is considered to be one of the great works of Scandinavian literature
; indeed, if the poem is authentic it constitutes one of the earliest uses of end-rhyme in the northern artistic tradition.
It is cited in Egils Saga
Egils saga
Egils saga is an epic Icelandic saga. The oldest transcript dates back to 1240 AD. The saga is centered on the life of Egill Skallagrímsson, an Icelandic farmer, viking and skald...
(chapter 61), which claims that he created it in the span of one night. The events in the saga that lead up to the composition and recitation of the poem can be summarized in the following way. Egil falls into king Eirik's hands after being shipwrecked in Northumbria
Northumbria
Northumbria was a medieval kingdom of the Angles, in what is now Northern England and South-East Scotland, becoming subsequently an earldom in a united Anglo-Saxon kingdom of England. The name reflects the approximate southern limit to the kingdom's territory, the Humber Estuary.Northumbria was...
. Faced with the decision to either dishonorably flee and risk being exposed as a coward or to directly face his adversary and ask for reconciliation, Egil chooses the latter. The two men are enemies during the saga, which makes Egil’s decision especially bold. Earlier in the saga Egil goes as far as to construct a Nithing pole
Nithing pole
A nithing pole , sometimes normalized as nithstang or nidstang, was a pole used for cursing an enemy in Germanic pagan tradition.-History and usage:...
, a sign of disrespect in medieval Scandinavian society. For this and other reasons King Eirik tells Egil not to expect any outcome other than death for his arrival in his court. This would be the end for Egil, however, one of his allies, who has allegiance to Eirik, intercedes on Egil’s behalf. Arinjborn the Hersir tells the king that it would be dishonorable to kill his enemy under such circumstances. Futhermore he states that Egil, also a renowned poet, “can make recompense with words of praise that will live for ever.” This argument along with it being considered scornful to kill during the night, convinces Eirik to delay his judgement until the next day. During the night Egil composes and memorizes the entire poetic drápa known as the Head Ransom. He recites it in the presence of the king Eiríkr and receives his freedom, but not any sort of reconciliation. The two remain enemies and Egil continues on his original journey to visit king Athelstan of England. This poem is considered to be one of the great works of Scandinavian literature
Scandinavian literature
Scandinavia literature or Nordic literature is the literature in the languages of the Nordic countries of Northern Europe. The Nordic countries include Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway , Sweden and associated autonomous territories .The majority of these nations and regions use North Germanic...
; indeed, if the poem is authentic it constitutes one of the earliest uses of end-rhyme in the northern artistic tradition.
Further reading
- Hines, John. "Egill's Höfuðlausn in Time and Place." Saga-Book of the Viking Society 24 (1995): 83-104 http://www.vsnrweb-publications.org.uk/Saga-Book%20XXIV.pdf.
- Smiley, Jane, (2001). "The Sagas of the Icelanders." Penguin Books, London. ISBN 0141000031.
External links
- Hǫfuðlausn from heimskringla.no
- Höfuðlausn in Icelandic at Wikisource Höfuðlausn
- Egill, Höfuðlausn, ed. Margaret Clunies Ross. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages