Egil Skallagrimsson

Egil Skallagrimsson (c.10th century)

"My stock
stands on the brink,
pounded as plane-trees
on the forest's rim,
no man is glad
who carries the bones
of his dead kinsman
out of the bed."

• A poem attributed to Egil Skallagrimsson in Egil's Saga (chapter 79), recorded c. 13th century possibly by Snorri Sturluson, translated by Bernard Scudder. New York: Penguin Classics, 2004 edition.

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Egil Skallagrimsson

Egil Skallagrimsson (10th century)

"I have wielded a blood-stained sword
and howling spear; the bird
of carrion followed me
when the Vikings pressed forth;
In fury we fought battles,
fire swept through men's homes,
we made bloody bodies
slump dead by city gates."

• Egil's Saga (chapter 48, poem 14), recorded c. 13th century possibly by Snorri Sturluson, translated by Bernard Scudder. New York: Penguin Classics, 2004 edition. 

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Egil Skallagrimsson

Egil Skallagrimsson (semi-mythical Viking poet, c. 10th century)

"Drink every toast down,
though the rider of the waves
brings brimful horns often
to the shaper of verse.
I will leave no drop
of malt-sea, even if the maker
of sword-play brings me
horn until morning."

• Egil's Saga (recorded c. 13th century possibly by Snorri Sturluson), translated by Bernard Scudder. New York: Penguin Classics, 2004 edition.

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Egil Skallagrimsson

Egil Skallagrimsson (10th-century Viking poet)

"West over water I fared,
bearing poetry's waves to the shore
of the war-god's heart;
my course was set.
I launched my oaken craft
at the breaking of ice,
loaded my cargo of praie
aboard my ship aft."

• Egil's Saga (recorded c. 13th century possibly by Snorri Sturluson), translated by Bernard Scudder. New York: Penguin Classics, 2004 edition.

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Egil Skallagrimsson

Egil Skallagrimsson (semi-mythical 10th-century Icelandic Viking-Poet)

"King, bear in mind
how my ode is wrought,
I take delight
in the hearing I gained.
Through my lips I stirred
from the depths of my heart
Odin's sea of verse
about the craftsman of war."

• Egil's Saga (recorded c. 13th century possibly by Snorri Sturluson), translated by Bernard Scudder. New York: Penguin Classics, 2004 edition.

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Egil Skallagrimsson

Egil Skallagrimsson (10th Century)

"I awoke early
to heap my words;
as a servant of speech
I did my morning's work.
I have piled a mound
of praise that long
will stand without crumbling
in poetry's field."

• Egil's Saga (recorded c. 13th century possibly by Snorri Sturluson), translated by Bernard Scudder. New York: Penguin Classics, 2004 edition.

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Egil Skallagrimsson

Egil Skallagrimsson (10th century Viking poet)

"It is rare to find
one to trust
amongst men who dwell
beneath Odin's gallows,
for the dark-minded
destroyer of kin
swaps his brother's
death for treasure."

• Egil's Saga (recorded c. 13th century possibly by Snorri Sturluson), translated by Bernard Scudder. New York: Penguin Classics, 2004 edition.

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Egil Skallagrimsson

Egil Skallagrimsson (10th century Viking poet)

"Their numbers are dwindling, the famous
warriors who met with weapons
and spread gifts like the gold of day.
Where will I find generous men,
who beyond the sea that, nailed with islands,
girds the earth, showered snows of silver
on to my hands where hawks perch,
in return for my words of praise?"

• Egil's Saga (recorded c. 13th century possibly by Snorri Sturluson), translated by Bernard Scudder. New York: Penguin Classics, 2004 edition.

Read more quotes from Egil Skallagrimsson, HERE.

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Egil Skallagrimsson

Egil Skallagrimsson (10th century Viking-poet)

"Time seems long in passing
as I lie alone,
a senile old man
on the downy bed.
My legs are two
frigid widows,
those women
need some flame."

• Egil's Saga (recorded c. 13th century possibly by Snorri Sturluson), translated by Bernard Scudder. New York: Penguin Classics, 2004 edition.

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Egil Skallagrimsson

Egil Skallagrimsson (10th century semi-mythical Viking-Poet from Iceland)

"With its chisel of snow, the headwind,
scourge of the mast, mightily
hones its file by the prow
on the path that my sea-bull treatds.
In gusts of wind, that chillful
destroyer of timber planes down
the planks before the head
of my sea-king's swan."

• Egil's Saga (recorded c. 13th century possibly by Snorri Sturluson), translated by Bernard Scudder. New York: Penguin Classics, 2004 edition.

Read more quotes from Egil Skallagrimsson, HERE.

Take a look at other Sturluson/Norse quote pictures, HERE.

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Egil Skallagrimsson

Egil Skallagrimsson (10th century semi-mythical Viking-poet)

"Let us make our drawn swords glitter,
you who stain wolf's teeth with blood;
now that the fish of the valleys thrive,
let us perform brave deeds."

• Egil's Saga (recorded c. 13th century possibly by Snorri Sturluson), translated by Bernard Scudder. New York: Penguin Classics, 2004 edition.

Read more quotes from Egil Skallagrimsson, HERE.

Take a look at other Sturluson/Norse quote pictures, HERE.

Check out other medieval quote pictures, HERE.

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Egil

Egil Skallagrimsson (10th century Viking)

• Egil's Saga (written between the 10th and 13th centuries) gives a rare glimpse into the mind of a viking warrior who outlived his prime and lived on to become an elderly man. Besides being an incredibly successful viking, Egil was also a life-long poet.

"Blind, I must bear
this eye ailment,
blunder to the fire, beg
mercy from a maidservant;
formerly a fierce king
warmed to my words;
the noble lords of lands
gave me gold as reward."

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