lnu.sePublications
Change search
CiteExportLink to record
Permanent link

Direct link
Cite
Citation style
  • apa
  • ieee
  • modern-language-association-8th-edition
  • vancouver
  • Other style
More styles
Language
  • de-DE
  • en-GB
  • en-US
  • fi-FI
  • nn-NO
  • nn-NB
  • sv-SE
  • Other locale
More languages
Output format
  • html
  • text
  • asciidoc
  • rtf
Kontrakt mellan järn och blod: Sociala relationer mellan vapen och människa i islänningasagorna
Linnaeus University, Faculty of Arts and Humanities, Department of Cultural Sciences.ORCID iD: 0000-0003-0259-2145
2022 (Swedish)In: Chaos: skandinavisk tidsskrift for religionshistoriske studier, ISSN 0108-4453, E-ISSN 1901-9106, Vol. 78, p. 203-224Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]

This article explores the depiction of extraordinary weapons in the Icelandic sagas, examining how they were imbued with lifelike qualities through their names, attributes, and implied personalities. These weapons represented a distinctive and hazardous anomaly, as they were perceived to possess both vitality and material substance simultaneously. One method of managing such anomalies involved forging agreements with the sword itself or with the individual presenting it as a gift. By doing so, the new owner committed to recognizing the weapon’s inherent qualities and character, treating it with a level of reverence akin to that afforded to sentient beings. The purpose of such contracts was to cultivate a sense of friendship between the weapon and its new owner. The supernatural powers believed to reside within these weapons could merge with the wielder if handled with care, requiring an ongoing awareness of the weapon’s desires and intentions. Consequently, the line between the warrior’s skill and the capabilities of the weapon often became blurred. However, there were no certainties; even the most skilled warrior could succumb to an angered or mistreated weapon. This phenomenon potentially contributed to the development of a belief that weapons endowed with unpredictable personalities could be responsible for accidents and unforeseen deaths without implying that the warrior lacked skill in battle or that he was struck by bad luck.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Copenhagen: Museum Tusculanum , 2022. Vol. 78, p. 203-224
Keywords [en]
Old norse religion, Icelandic sagas, Agency of things, Animated objects, Magic
National Category
History of Religions History and Archaeology
Research subject
Humanities; Humanities, Study of Religions
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:lnu:diva-136651OAI: oai:DiVA.org:lnu-136651DiVA, id: diva2:1937451
Available from: 2025-02-13 Created: 2025-02-13 Last updated: 2025-05-06Bibliographically approved

Open Access in DiVA

No full text in DiVA

Authority records

Adetorp, Johan

Search in DiVA

By author/editor
Adetorp, Johan
By organisation
Department of Cultural Sciences
In the same journal
Chaos: skandinavisk tidsskrift for religionshistoriske studier
History of ReligionsHistory and Archaeology

Search outside of DiVA

GoogleGoogle Scholar

urn-nbn

Altmetric score

urn-nbn
Total: 24 hits
CiteExportLink to record
Permanent link

Direct link
Cite
Citation style
  • apa
  • ieee
  • modern-language-association-8th-edition
  • vancouver
  • Other style
More styles
Language
  • de-DE
  • en-GB
  • en-US
  • fi-FI
  • nn-NO
  • nn-NB
  • sv-SE
  • Other locale
More languages
Output format
  • html
  • text
  • asciidoc
  • rtf