Hyrrokkin - Gullveig Part 5
Flame smoked / 'fire-withered' or 'fire-steamer'
Previous post in this series: Angrboða - Gullveig Part 4
The appearance of Hyrrokkin is a strange one.
The saga of Gylfaginning 49 is taken from a collection of 10th century poems called Húsdrápa by skaldic poet Úlfr Uggason, but sadly only fragments remain (12 verses) that are preserved in Snorri's Edda, but they tell us of various myths, but of interest is Baldr's Funeral and the presence of Hyrrokkin. This is one of only a few surviving references to Hyrrokkin. In Gylfaginning 49, the Aesir are having trouble getting the boat containing Baldr's funeral pyre out to sea. We are told of this enigmatic Jotun, who rides on a wolf with snakes for reigns, called upon by Odin:
"Then word was sent to Jötunheim after that giantess who is called Hyrrokkin. When she had come, riding a wolf and having a viper for bridle, then she leaped off the steed; and Odin called to four berserks to tend the steed; but they were not able to hold it until they had felled it. Then Hyrrokkin went to the prow of the boat and thrust it out at the first push, so that fire burst from the rollers, and all lands trembled. Thor became angry and clutched his hammer, and would straightway have broken her head, had not the gods prayed for peace for her."
This mysterious female giant shows up and can do what Thor - the strongest of the Aesir - cannot do: she shoves Baldr's funeral ship out into the water effortlessly, which enraged Thor, who was held back from killing her by the other gods in attendance.
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| Moe, Louis. Hyrrokkin Riding a Wolf. From: Moe, Louis Maria Niels Peder Halling. Ragnarok: En Billeddigtning. København, A.F. Høst, 1929. [16]. MyNDIR: My Norse Digital Image Repository. Ed. P. A. Baer. 2024. Edition 2.6. Victoria, B. C.: Humanities Computing and Media Centre, University of Victoria. 2024. |
Another source, Skáldskaparmál 11, simply lists Hyrrokkin in a list of Jotuns killed by Thor at Baldrs funeral, although this clearly conflicts with Gylfaginning. This reference is found in one and a half surviving stanzas by a late 10th century skaldic poet, Þorbjörn dísarskáld - Thorbjörn Lady's-Skald (Faulkes - Uppsala Edda et al):
Thou didst smite the head of Keila,
Smash Kjallandi altogether,
Ere thou slewest Lútr and Leidi,
Didst spill the blood of Búseyra;
Didst hold back Hengjankjapta,
Hyrrokkin died before;
Yet sooner in like fashion
Svívör from life was taken.
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| von Lode, Odvardt Helmolde. Header for Mallet's Edda, ou Mythologie Celtique. From: Mallet, Paul-Henri. Monuments de la mythologie et de la poésie des Celtes, et particulièrement des anciens Scandinaves, pour servir de supplément et de preuves à l’“Introduction à l’histoire du Dannemarc”. Hafniae, 1756. 1. MyNDIR: My Norse Digital Image Repository. Ed. P. A. Baer. 2024. Edition 2.6. Victoria, B. C.: Humanities Computing and Media Centre, University of Victoria. 2024. |
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| Louis Moe - Balder's bonfire journey- 1890s |
What is different about these next two poems is that they are said to be interpretations of sculptures or art on walls, carved into wood in a building described in the Laxdæla saga ch29.
"The wedding feast was a very crowded one, for the new hall was finished. Ulf Uggason was of the bidden guests, and he had made a poem on Olaf Hoskuldson and of the legends that were painted round the hall, and he gave it forth at the feast. This poem is called the "House Song," and is well made. Olaf rewarded him well for the poem."
The hall described in Laxdæla saga (The Hall at Hjardarholt) is said to be from around the 8th century (AD 985)
However in Húsdrapa 11 deals with the Valkyrie Hildr, not Hyrrokkin, but refers to her as a Jotun, but also mentions that companions of Odin kill the Giantesses steed.
fram haf-Sleipni þramma
Hildr, en Hrofts of gildar
hjalmelda mar felldu.
"{The exceedingly strong Hildr <valkyrie> of the mountains} [GIANTESS] made {the sea-Sleipnir <horse>} [SHIP] lumber forward, and the companions of Hroptr <= Óðinn> killed the steed {with helmet-fires} [SWORDS]".
Perhaps a clue - perhaps nothing, but we're speculating and interpreting, here - but in the Angrboda post, I mention Helgakvida Hundingsbana I 37-40 wherein Angrboda/Gullveig is called a Valkyrie:
a deceit-wise woman, you drew together lies!
You said you wanted to possess no man,
[no] mail-coated fighter, except Sinfjǫtli!
[38] ‘You were the wounding one, a witch, a valkyrie,
awful, immensely mighty, at Alfaðir’s!
The unique champions would all fight each other,
headstrong woman, for your sake!
It is all very confusing, and we are led to believe the possibility Snorri had access to manuscripts lost to time, or he had too many brandy's that night and was being "creative".
In Helgakviða Hjǫrvarðssonar 30 - 31, Snorri writes of the King Hjorvardr's son, Hedinn, who comes across a "troll-woman" riding a wolf with snakes for reins, who offers him company. Hedinn refuses and is ominously told he will pay for his insult. It's later suggested that this was his fylgja (in Old Norse tradition, seeing one's fylgja is an omen of one's impending death. For more on the Norse concept of the fylgja, see Wolf the Red's video below). The description here bears a sticking resemblance to that of Hyrrokkin.
On Yule Eve, Heðinn was coming home from the forest alone and found a troll-woman. She was riding a wolf and had snakes as reins and offered Heðinn her company
And Hyrrokkin, who pushed Baldr's funeral ship out to sea, (who is stronger than Thor, the strongest of all the gods!) is reminiscent of Aurboda's aspect as a storm-god in Skáldskaparmál 33
Wiles the Bear of Twisted Cables
Oft into Ægir's wide jaws,
Where the angry billow breaketh.
With all that said, Hyrrokkin as a name is an interesting addition to the pile of possible evidence linking to Gullveig. "Hyrrokkin" means 'flame-smoked' / 'fire-withered' or 'fire-steamer' (a compound word with hyrr meaning fire, and hrokkinn meaning wrinkled or withered, but there has been many a discussion from linguists around this word)... and is an obvious similarity to the stories of Gullveig being burned in Odin’s hall, and Angrboda's charred heart being found and eaten by Loki. It makes sense to me that "Hyrrokkin" must be an epithet of a giantess known by some other name, one who had been burned at some point, and one worthy of being remembered in the myth. However, instead of being completely burned (like what we know of Gullveig and Angrboda), the result was her being smoked.
Lots of take in! Based on what we have discussed, we have a Jotun, riding a wolf - a wolf so strong it needed many of Odins warriors to contain it, a Jotun stronger than all the gods they needed to call on her, a Jotun Odin knew to call, and a Jotun with a name meaning half burnt. Compelling stuff, and I think it is reasonable to assume that this refers to Gullveig, thrice burned, thrice born.
The Hunnestad Monument
A final little extra tidbit, is the depiction of Hyrrokkin on Runestone dr 284 - The Hunnestad Monument first documented in the 1630 It was originally the largest stone site in Scandinavia, containing many more stones than what survived; it was largely destroyed as the area in Sweden was modernised, but three of the original stones were rediscovered in 1814. DR 284 is of interest here.
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| Jakob Sigurðsson. Hyrrokkin Riding to Baldr's Funeral. From: Copenhagen: Det Kongelige Bibliotek. NKS 1867 4to. 1760. 110r. Hand copied paper manuscript. MyNDIR: My Norse Digital Image Repository. Ed. P. A. Baer. 2024. Edition 2.6. Victoria, B. C.: Humanities Computing and Media Centre, University of Victoria. 2024 |
A figure is shown riding a wolf, using serpents as reigns… which should sound familiar by now! The Hunnestad monument is said to be dated circa 1010-1040 and according to Monica Rydbeck, who published her dissertation in 1936 on pictorial stones from Skane, the 'Hyrrokkin-stone' must be of pre-Christian origin.
Next post in this series: Gullveig - Gullveig Part 6
