''Velents þáttr smiðs'' is the name given to the part of the ''
Þiðrekssaga af Bern'' saga that deals with
Wayland the Smith
In Germanic mythology, Wayland the Smith ( ang, WÄ“land; , ; Old Frisian: Wela(n)du; german: Wieland der Schmied; goh, Wiolant; ''Galans'' (''Galant'') in Old French; gem-x-proto, WÄ“landaz, italic=no from ', lit. "crafting one") is a master ...
(Velent, Wieland, Völundr).
Summary
Velent is the son of the
giant
In folklore, giants (from Ancient Greek: '' gigas'', cognate giga-) are beings of human-like appearance, but are at times prodigious in size and strength or bear an otherwise notable appearance. The word ''giant'' is first attested in 1297 fr ...
Vaði from
Sjaelland.
[''The Saga of Didrik of Bern''. Translated (from the Swedish) by Ian Cumpstey, Skadi Press, 2017. ] He is sent as an apprentice to
MÃmir
MÃmir or Mim is a figure in Norse mythology, renowned for his knowledge and wisdom, who is beheaded during the Æsir–Vanir War. Afterward, the god Odin carries around MÃmir's head and it recites secret knowledge and counsel to him.
MÃmi ...
, a smith from
Húnaland
Hunaland and its people are mentioned several times in the Poetic Edda, and in the Fornaldarsagas.
Its origins are partly the old Frankish kingdom (the Franks were once called ''Hugones'', in Latin, and ''HÅ«gas'' in Old English) and partly in t ...
. But
Sigurðr is also there by that time, and he beats the other apprentices. When Vaði learns that, he brings Velent back home and sends him to two skilful
dwarves who live in a mountain called Kallava. The dwarves agree to teach Velent everything they know, but threaten to kill him if his father does not fetch him at the appointed time. Vaði dies in an avalanche, but Velent escapes the dwarves' threat by killing them.
Velent then sails to
Denmark
)
, song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast")
, song_type = National and royal anthem
, image_map = EU-Denmark.svg
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark
, establishe ...
in a hollowed-out tree and eventually arrives at
Jutland
Jutland ( da, Jylland ; german: Jütland ; ang, Ēota land ), known anciently as the Cimbric or Cimbrian Peninsula ( la, Cimbricus Chersonesus; da, den Kimbriske Halvø, links=no or ; german: Kimbrische Halbinsel, links=no), is a peninsula of ...
, where king
Niðung is reigning. Velent is soon challenged by Niðung's smith Amilias. Amilias forges a suit of armour, while Velent forges the sword
MÃmung, with which he easily kills his rival. Velent thus gains great fame as a smith.
At the eve of a battle, Niðung realises that he has forgotten his victory stone and offers his daughter and half of his kingdom to the one who can get it before sunset. Velent fetches the stone but, when he brings it to the arm, the king's ''
dróttseti'' (
seneschal
The word ''seneschal'' () can have several different meanings, all of which reflect certain types of supervising or administering in a historic context. Most commonly, a seneschal was a senior position filled by a court appointment within a royal, ...
) asks for it. Velent refuses to give it up and kills the knight. Niðung banishes him.
Later, Velent tries to avenge himself by poisoning the king and his daughter, but he gets caught, is
hamstrung, and is set to work in the forge. But he eventually kills Niðung's two younger sons in his smithy and makes a whole set of tableware for the king out of their bones. He also seduces the king's daughter, getting her pregnant.
Velent's brother
Egill comes to the court. He is a famous archer and Niðung challenges him to shoot an apple from the head of his son. Egill is only allowed to shoot only one arrow, but prepares three. After he succeeds with his first arrow, the King Niðung asks him what the other two were for, and he explains that had he hit the King's son, he would have shot the king with the others.
Velent asks his brother to collect feathers, with which he makes himself wings. He flies to Niðung and reveals to him that he has killed his sons and got his daughter pregnant. He then flies away. Egill is ordered by the king to shoot him down. But Velent has tied a bladder filled with blood under his arm. Egill hits it, thus deceiving the king, and Velent returns to Sjaelland.
Niðung dies shortly after and his surviving son Otvin succeeds him. The princess gives birth to a son called
Viðga. Velent settles a peace agreement with Otvin and he marries the princess, as they both had agreed before his escape.
See also
* ''
Völundarkviða
''Vǫlundarkviða'' (Old Norse: 'The lay of Völund'; modern Icelandic spelling: ''Völundarkviða'') is one of the mythological poems of the '' Poetic Edda''. The title is anglicized in various ways, including ''Völundarkvitha'', ''Völundarkv ...
''
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Velents thattr smids
Þættir