With hair, stands in the Eastlands Here he is also called Ash. Box, as Arnórr sang: The Box of Ships bade the Rygir At early dusk; through the spear-rain Ash, as Refr sang: The Strife-Lord, gracious Giver, Won the estate of manhood. Maple, as here: 'Hail, Maple of the Ice-Lumps Of the Hand!' So spake the Birnie. Tree, as Refr sang: Since I have appointed To proffer Odin's Breast-Sea, The War-God's Verse, to Thorsteinn; Thou, fierce War-Staff, maintainedst With heroes' kin, where the ravens Starved not; keen-hearted art thou. Thorn, as Arnórr sang: He gathered, the young Wealth-Thorn, For the eagles, and his henchmen XLVII. "How should battle be periphrased? By calling it Storm of Weapons or of Sheltering Shields, or of Odin or the Valkyrs, or of Host-Kings; and Din and Clashing. Thus sang Hornklofi: The king hath held a Spear-Storm Thus sang Eyvindr: And that hero At Háar's Tempest Of gray wolf-skin. Thus sang Bersi: In earlier days I seemed not To Gunn's War-Bushes useful In the Sleet of Hlökk, when younger Thus sang Einarr: The stark prince lets Hildr's Shield-Sails As Einarr Tinkling-Scale sang: The mail-sarks of the warriors, The seemly youths 'gainst Högni's Even as here: They set the Point-Net's edge-band And again: 'Neath eagles' claws the king's foes XLVIII. "Weapons and armor should be periphrased in figures of battle, and with reference to Odin and the Valkyrs and host-kings: one should call a helmet Cowl, or Hood; a birnie, Sark, or Kirtle; a shield, Tent; and a shield-wall is termed Hall and Roof, Wall and Floor. Shields, periphrased in figures of warships, are called Sun, or Moon, or Leaf, or Sheen, or Garth, of the Ship; the shield is also called Ship of Ullr, or periphrased in terms of Hrungnir's feet, since he stood upon his shield. On ancient shields it was customary to paint a circle, which was called the 'ring,' and shields are called in metaphors of that ring. Hewing weapons, axes or swords, are called Fires of Blood, or of Wounds; swords are called Odin's Fires; but men call axes by the names of troll-women, and periphrase them in terms of blood or wounds or a forest or wood. Thrusting weapons are properly periphrased by calling them by names of serpents or fishes. Missile weapons are often metaphorically termed hail or sleet or storm. Variants of all these figures have been made in many ways, for they are used chiefly in poems of praise, where there is need of such metaphors. So sang Víga-Glúmr: With the Hanged-God's helmet The bravest held the venture. Thus sang Einarr Tinkling-Scale: Helm-folded strife-bold Búi,- Sark of Ródi, as Tindr sang: When came the birnied Hákon To cast away the ring-rent Streaming Sark of Odin, Ródi's rocking sea-steeds were cleared. Hamdir's Kirtle, as Hallfredr sang: The war-sleet hard and streaming Of the foremost wave-deer's warriors. Sörli's Garments, as he sang further: Thence the bright Weeds of Sörli Shields are called Tents of Hlökk, as Grettír sang: Hlökk's Tent-Raisers held their noses Of the Rain-Storm of Hildr's Shield-Wall Ródi's Roof, as Einarr sang: Ródi's Roof's great Ice-Lump Wall of Hildr, as Grettír sang, and as we have written before. Ship-Sun, as Einarr sang: In the sea Ólafr's Kinsman Reddens the flame of the Ship-Sun. |