Thorsday Tursday #3

  Sorry, the day is almost gone for me when I just saw this beautiful reminder of Thor Thursday.

  It is a 9th. century C.E. Silver Thor's Hammer  - Bredsatra, Sweden

Former Lord of the Rings Producer Plans Norway Viking Epic

  I get emailed newsletters from TheOneRing.Net on a daily basis. Actually, it is quite a few newsletters I get from The One Ring. In one of today's newsletters came the article of Lord of the Rings producer, Barrie Osborne is showing interest in shooting a Viking film in Norway. He thinks doing this will help Norwegian tourism the way Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit have helped New Zealand tourism.

  Mr. Osborne wants to spend $100 million to film a Viking blockbuster in Norway because of its "authentic landscape" and the expert knowledge that local historians have about the Viking Era.

  Mr. Osborne also states that he wants to make a trilogy about the last great Viking king, Harald Hardrada. From "how Harald evolved from a teenager to the great leader that rallied his kingdom."

  It is not clear if this is the same movie about Harald Hardrada that was announced was reported earlier this month and staring Leonardo di Caprio.

 

 

Shieldmaiden Saturday #3

The shieldmaiden Lagertha, wife of Ragnar Lodbrok  lithograph by Morris Meredith Williams, ca. 1913

Thorsday Thursday #2

Last weeks mass posting tired me out a bit. I guess it was all of that adrenalin I had going through me when I was discovering and deciphering , what is new for me, the Viking mythology. Of course the two most common Norse gods I have heard of are Odin and Thor, when doing a crossword puzzle I have to make sure I have at least one letter so I will know which one to write.

  With that I give to you this weeks Thor Thursday. It is a bronze Norse god statuette replica of Thor from the Jelly Dragon.

Floki Friday #3

Well dear Floki, why don't you tell us what you REALLY think of the wine.

Thorsday Thursday

  I don't know how many of you have ever heard of Thorin Thursday. This is a day devoted to Thorin Oakenshield whether it is because of the book The Hobbit  or like me and  others are fans of Richard Armitage and therefore fans of Thorin. 

  Anyway, in the last few days the thought of Thorin Thursday has put the idea of a THOR Thursday, which makes sense considering Thursday was named for Thor. So in honor of his day I give to you Thor Thursday.

Thor Captures  the Dragon

Var/Vor

Var/Vor is the Norse goddess wisdom, marriage, faith,oaths,promises and contracts.
In the Poetic Edda, the blessed Vor is invoked by the king of the jotunn (giant) Thrymr after his "bride" ( who was actually the god Thor disguised as Freyja) is sacred with Mjolnir, the stolen hammer of Thor, at their wedding.

  In the 35th chapter of the Prose Edda book Gylfaginning, High,one of the three men who answer question posed to them by Gangleri (Gylfi in disguise) about the asynjur. High list Vor as nineth among the sixteen asynjur he presents in the chapter and provides some information about her:
 

     Ninth Var : she listens to peoples oaths and private agreements that women and men make between each other. Thus these oaths are called varvar.She punishes those that break them.

  Also, Var makes two more appearances in the Prose Edda. In Chapter 75 of the Prose Edda book Skaldskaparmal Var 's name appears in a list of 27 asynjur names. In Chapter 87 the name Var is used in a kenning referring to the goddess Skaoi ("bow-string-Var") in the poem Haustlong . A runic inscription inscribed on a stick in Beregen, Norway around 1300 records a common mercantile transaction follwed by a verse of an unsatisfied customer that mentions Var.

     'Wise Var of wire ( "woman of filigree" meaning "wise bejeweled woman") makes (me) sit unhappy.
       Eir(woman) of mackerels'  ground (likely gold) takes often and much sleep from me."

  There are theories regarding the importance of Var as a goddess. Britt-Mari Nasstrom argues that Var was like many other minor goddesses and was one of the many names of the goddess Freyja and was "later apprehended as independent goddesses".
                                                                                                                                                           
The Austrian Germanist and philologist, Rudolf Simek says that the goddesses Saga, Hlin, Snotra, Vor and Var should be considered vaguely defined figures who"who should be seen as female protective goddesses" that are responsible for 'specific areas of the private sphere, and yet clear differences were made between them so they are in many ways similar to matrons."