[21] Respecting this glove, the following is Finn Magnussen’s idea of the mythe. Skrymur is the frost-giant, personification of winter. Thor reposing in the glove denotes the beginning of winter, when the thunder or thunderer may be said to rest therein, allegorically (there being no thunder in winter). This hieroglyph is very ancient, inasmuch as Icelandic word vöttr (glove) proceeds probably from vetr (winter); the glove being the part of dress particularly appropriate to and only used in winter in those times, as the muff is still, in northern Europe.
[22] Respecting Skrymur’s wallet, which Thor is unable to untie or open, Finn Magnussen says: “I think this mythe is enigmatical, and alludes to winter (the frost-giant), which may be said to prevent man from getting his food from the earth, by envelopping it in ice.” In the prosaic Edda, Utgard-Lok says, in explaining to Thor his magic spells, “The wallet I gave to you, was made fast with an iron girdle;” now there is a close analogy between the words denoting ice and iron in many of the Gothic languages. Ex: in Icelandic, is (ice) isarn (iron); in German, eis (ice) eisen (iron); in Dutch, ijs (ice) ijzer (iron); in Anglo-Saxon, is (ice) isen (iron).
[23] The ancient northmen, who oriented themselves with the help of the mountains, figured to themselves the north as lying towards our east or north-east. This will serve to explain the phrase, “mountains vast which towards the north appear.” The mountains lie really towards the east. Towards the north, on the contrary, the land becomes less and less elevated, as you draw near the pole.
NOTES TO THE THIRD CANTO.
Specimen of the metre in the original.
En Saga fast utroli̱g
Jeg nu kundgi̱öre maa;
Mod Utgards fierne Boli̱g
Vilde de Kaemper gaae.