Sources & reading | Norse Myths Folklore.im

Our three labels

History: what records, historians and heritage bodies say, based on evidence. Literature: what a named poem or book says, and when. Tradition: sayings, customs and folk tales, recorded by a named source. Reading notes marked as our own comment are interpretation, not fact.

How we checked

Each labelled sentence on this site was checked against the text of the source it links to, by matching the exact wording in that source. Retellings are our own words; they follow the events in the named text and do not add new events. Quotations are short and come from public-domain texts or from the named heritage pages.

Primary texts (public domain, free online)

Snorri Sturluson, The Younger Edda (the Prose Edda), trans. Rasmus B. Anderson, Project Gutenberg ↗

Historians, heritage bodies and reference works

When sources disagree

We show both sides rather than picking one silently.

Odin or Vidar on the first face?

History Manx National Heritage describes one face as a scene from Ragnarok: Odin, one of his ravens on his shoulder, stabs at the wolf Fenrir with his spear, as the beast grips him in its jaws. iMuseum (Manx National Heritage): Replica of Thorwald’s cross ↗

History The Isle of Man Guide describes Odin plunging his spear into the breast of the Fenris Wolf, and adds: ‘afterwards comes Vidar the silent, son of Odin’. Isle of Man Guide: Thorwald’s Cross-Slab (no. 128), Kirk Andreas ↗

History Another reading of the first face he discusses is Vidar killing the Fenris-Wolf. Dirk H. Steinforth, Thorvald’s Cross: the Viking-Age cross-slab ‘Kirk Andreas MM 128’ and its iconography (Archaeopress), free sample ↗

Manx National Heritage reads the scene as Odin and the wolf at Ragnarok. The Isle of Man Guide also sees Odin, then quotes a line about Vidar, and Steinforth discusses a reading in which the figure is Vidar killing the wolf. We give each reading with its source.

Priest or missionary?

History On the other face, a figure holds a cross and what appears to be a book. Manx National Heritage says the figure is interpreted as a priest. iMuseum (Manx National Heritage): Replica of Thorwald’s cross ↗

History The guide calls the figure on the other side a missionary, holding a cross in one hand and a copy of the Gospel in the other. Isle of Man Guide: Thorwald’s Cross-Slab (no. 128), Kirk Andreas ↗

Both describe a figure with a cross and a book. Manx National Heritage says the figure is interpreted as a priest; the Isle of Man Guide calls him a missionary. We quote each as its source puts it.

A Christian scene, or Thor fishing?

History Nearby are a fish and two knotted serpents, one trampled underfoot. Manx National Heritage says the fish is a potent symbol of Christianity, and the trampled serpent signifies the triumph of Christ over evil. iMuseum (Manx National Heritage): Replica of Thorwald’s cross ↗

History One reading of the second face that Steinforth discusses is Thor fishing for the Midgard-Serpent. Dirk H. Steinforth, Thorvald’s Cross: the Viking-Age cross-slab ‘Kirk Andreas MM 128’ and its iconography (Archaeopress), free sample ↗

Manx National Heritage reads the fish and the trampled serpent as Christian symbols. Steinforth also discusses a reading of the second face as Thor fishing for the Midgard-Serpent. These are readings of a carving, so we label them as what each writer says.

Pictures

All paintings, drawings and prints are public domain, from Wikimedia Commons. See picture credits. An old painting shows how an artist imagined a story; it is not a portrait or a reconstruction.

Corrections

Found something wrong? Email info@reallybyte.com with the page and a source, and we will check it.