Tristhamsaga

By Maister Colyne Stewart, April AS 52 (2018)

In memory
Of man’s deeds
Stand these word marks writ by Colyne
In memory
Of March day
When Tristham came with Þórr’s blessing

I say the tale
To troll-fellers
Eagle-feeders fane listen well
Of Vendel
Victorious
Fired-handed ferocious drottin

I say this second
As deed worthy of saga
Odin approved of him that day
Slayer of Steinarr
Serpent of flame
Styrbjörn’s son scion Tyr’s get

Tristham saw Steinarr standing war-ready
He drew his Hel-fang and danced on spread cloak
Felt Logi’s fire flame of Glöð’s blood
Sword held to heaven swore to strike true

Wound-fire flashing down fell to feed
Hit hard like giant on Heðinn’s token
Gave harm of forest of flame a crown
Helm made of fire the maker of ash


At the Tournament of Renown held on April 7, 2018, THL Tristham Ovinra I Groffa fought a bout with Count Steinarr Aggarson. He hit the Count a blow that drove his Excellency’s metal cammaille into his helmet and caused a burst of flame to appear. This incident was caught on camera but I thought it should also be immortalized in verse.

This poem is based on the inscription on the Rök Runestone of Sweden. The stone was carved around 800 CE by a man named Varinn. In the 19th century it was discovered inside the wall of a church in Rök (located between Mjölby and Ödeshög), in Östergötland, Sweden. The stone is considered to be the first piece of written Swedish literature.

At the end of those text I have included one translation of the stone’s inscription. Though most researchers agree on the deciphered text there is conjecture about their interpretation. The first part is written in ljóðaháttr meter, and the part about Theoderic (Þjóðríkr) is written in the fornyrðislag meter. (Both are Eddic meters.) I decided to follow the stone’s structure and wrote three stanzas in ljóðaháttr and then two in fornyrðislag.

ljóðaháttr : six lines (two units of three lines). The first two lines in each unit have at least 2 syllables each and alliterate with each other. The third lines are in fornyrðislag and have at least three syllables and alliterate with themselves. All vowels alliterate with each other and the letter j.

fornyrðislag : two half-lines linked by alliteration. Alliteration on first or second stressed syllable in first half-line and on the first stressed syllable of the second half-line. There are six variations of half-lines (based on placement of stressed and unstressed syllables). A poem completely written in fornyrðislag would consist of four line stanzas with half lines of four or five syllables (with two of the syllables stressed).

A copy of the poem with footnotes and the alliteration and caesuras marked follows:


In memory
Of man’s deeds
Stand these word marks / writ by Colyne
In memory
Of March day
When Tristham came / with Þórr[1]’s blessing

I say the tale
To troll-fellers[2]
Eagle-feeders[3] / fane listen well
Of Vendel[4]
Victorious
Fired-handed / Ferocious drottin[5]

I say this second
As deed worthy of saga
Odin approved / of him that day
Slayer of Steinarr
Serpent of flame
Styrbjörn[6]’s son / Scion Tyr[7]’s get

Tristham saw Steinarr / standing war-ready
He drew his Hel[8]-fang / and danced on spread cloak[9]
Felt Logi[10]’s fire / flame of Glöð[11]’s blood
Sword held to heaven / Swore to strike true

Wound-fire[12] flashing / down fell to feed
Hit hard like giant / on Heðinn’s token[13]
Gave harm of forest[14] / of flame a crown
Helm made of fire / the maker of ash


[1] Thor, god of--among other things--lightening.

[2] Warriors.

[3] Also warriors.

[4] The Vendels were pre-Viking Swedes.

[5] Early Swedish title.

[6] Styrbörn the Strong (d. 985), son of a Swedish king, and portrayed as very strong (though occasionally too violent).

[7] God of heroic glory.

[8] A goddess of death.

[9] Reference to the holmgang, a duel often fought on top of a spread cloak.

[10] A fire jotunn god, personification of fire.

[11] Logi’s wife, also a fire jotunn and a goddess.

[12] A kenning for sword from Margaret Clunies Ross (ed.) 2012, ‘Einarr skálaglamm Helgason, Lausavísur 3’ in Diana Whaley (ed.), Poetry from the Kings’ Sagas 1: From Mythical Times to c. 1035. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 1. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 333.

[13] A kenning for helmet, from Hubert Seelow (ed.) 2017, ‘Hálfs saga ok Hálfsrekka 9 (Marmennill, Lausavísur 4)’ in Margaret Clunies Ross (ed.), Poetry in fornaldarsögur. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 8. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 312.

[14] A kenning for fire, from Kari Ellen Gade (ed.) 2009, ‘Bjǫrn krepphendi, Magnússdrápa 3’ in Kari Ellen Gade (ed.), Poetry from the Kings’ Sagas 2: From c. 1035 to c. 1300. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 2. Turnhout: Brepols, pp. 398-9.

This is the translation of the original text:


In memory of Vémóðr/Vámóðr stand these runes.
And Varinn coloured them, the father,
in memory of his dead son.

I say the folktale / to the young men, which the two war-booties were, which twelve times were taken as war-booty, both together from various men.

I say this second, who nine generations ago lost his life with the Hreidgoths; and died with them for his guilt.

Þjóðríkr the bold,
chief of sea-warriors,
ruled over the shores of the Hreiðsea.
Now he sits armed
on his Goth(ic horse),
his shield strapped,
the prince of the Mærings.

I say this the twelfth, where the horse of Gunnr sees fodder on the battlefield, where twenty kings lie.

This I say as thirteenth, which twenty kings sat on Sjólund for four winters, of four names, born of four brothers: five Valkis, sons of Hráðulfr, five Hreiðulfrs, sons of Rugulfr, five Háisl, sons of Hôrðr, five Gunnmundrs/Kynmundrs, sons of Bjôrn.

Now I say the tales in full. Someone ...

I say the folktale / to the young men, which of the line of Ingold was repaid by a wife's sacrifice.

I say the folktale / to the young men, to whom is born a relative, to a valiant man. It is Vélinn. He could crush a giant. It is Vélinn ... [Nit]

I say the folktale / to the young men: Þórr. Sibbi of Vé, nonagenarian, begot (a son).