Knights Of Mjolnir History "Whosoever holds this hammer, if he be worthy, shall possess the power of... THOR" This page is based upon the posts by Balis on the forums.
Let It Begin... Definition: The legendary weapon of the Norse God Thor. "Mjolnir" means "lightning." Made by the Dwarves Brok and Eitri, it possessed magical qualities. It would magically return when thrown, and was used for healing and even resurrection. The hammer was feared by the enemies of the Aesir, and
stolen by the frost Giant Thrym, who demanded the goddess Freyja in
exchange for its return. Instead, Thor disguised himself as the goddess,
siezed control of the hammer, and slew all of the giants in the hall.
The Thor's hammer is often used as an emblem of recognition for members of the Asatru faith.
Runes UR The Aurochs is determined and armed above. Fierce and bold it fights with horns. Monster moor-stepper, it is a mighty creature. (xiv) Summary: Strength, aggression, determination. The aurochs was one of the largest and mightiest animals known to the Anglo-Saxons, the poet's admiration for this impressive beast is clear. The aurochs symbolises pure strength and power, the emphasis on its horns underlines the aggressive potential of this primeval bull. The aurochs shows the positive attributes of strength, confidence, determination and deserved pride. Gods: Thor, Frey, Magni. Animals: Aurochs, bull, stag, wildcat. Plants: (The oak represents strength but not aggression)
THORN Summary: Pain, obstacle, strong defences. Thorn is very sharp for all men. Struggling with them is painful for any warrior. They are severe to those who live among them. (xiv) In Anglo-Saxon times, thorns would have been found on wild rose trees, brambles, blackthorn, hawthorn trees and prickerly shrubs such as gorse or gooseberry. The rune poem gives little doubt that they hurt as much 1000 years ago as they do today. As symbolism the thorn represents passive defence, thorn bushes rarely hurt anyone who isn't climbing over them or pruning them back. They can also symbolise a protective barrier, not just for the plant but also for the farmer who deliberately hedges his land with thorn bearing plants. The magical thorn barrier in the tale of Sleeping Beauty is a good image to bear in mind. Thorny plants also have their plus side, most produce beautiful blossoms, especially the rose and the 'may' of the hawthorn. They are also important sources of wild foods, blackberries, rosehips, sloes and haws would all have been gathered to supplement the food reserves of the early Anglo-Saxons. Plants: Rose, Bramble, Blackthorn, Hawthorn, Holly, Nettle. Animals: Hedgehog. Gods: (in desperation Frey and Thor as the defenders of the farming community - though there is no strong link here)
Modern interpretation of Thor's Hammer Mjolnir. The eagle frequently appears on the ancient hammer talismens and seems to be sacred to Thor, maybe even as a shamanic element of the god. The zig-zag lines represent lightning and the serpents Thor's role as defender of Earth. The names are all titles and kennings for Thor from Norse prose and poetry. Maybe it's not so clearly stated, but eagles are Thor's power animal or... whatever you'd like to call 'em. And that is the head of an eagle in the center. Poorly drawn, in my opinion, but that was like um, thousands? of years ago...
Another depiction of Mjolnir... In my opinion tho, this
hammer would be extremely difficult to weild w/o hurting yourself. When
you see most normaly smithing hammers it's pretty straight forward.
The head of the hammer is rectagular w/ no crazy angles to sides. The
handle is neatly rapped in leather and if it has a thong, it's just
a simple leather band. Now, I understand this is the weapon of a god,
but still... You could draw neat little pictures on the side of a perfectly
made smith hammer and I'm thinkin it would be easier to hold than this
thing... Barbarian? Vikings, compared to what we were told in our youth in our history lessons, were in fact very civilized. Get the fierce image of a viking with horned helms out of your mind, this was what the image "poor" christians made of them to put fear of them in the head of people of the Dark Ages, to put them as savage monsters, demonic people of North that had to be killed on sight... Lets also clear another point first : the word Barbarian. It comes from the ancient Greeks and meant only : "those not of our civilisation", As for Greeks, even the Romans were "barbarians". The word changes to pejorative meaning during the "barbarian invasions" in the III to the VI century AD and meant by that time "those of the other civilisation" for Romans thought that to have a civilisation, you needed large bustling cities. Only the Arabs by that time knew of the real civilisation of the Northmen as it is reported in the book "Germania" by Ibn Fadlan, one of the first to write chronicles about the other people on earth and more precisely the Vikings and Norsemen. It went to the meaning we have today in the Dark Ages when the first Viking Raiders invaded Lindisfarne in 793, a monastery on the East coast of England, the monks were so afraid of these mighty fighters that they made them a fierce reputation. Obviously, the word barbarian has no roots in any languages
as the linguists across the world know, it is an amalgame of letters
that you could understand in the Nordic language as it is very guttural,
the people who didn't spoke Norse or any germanic language understood
all but "B"R"B"R" (pronounce these letters
fast and you'll get the idea of where the word comes from...). Ranks List of ranks: Konge Konge : This is the king, the ruler of the land, in viking era, there could be many kings as many areas were divided by natural obstacles (mountains, inner seas, ... He is voted out by the Council (such reunions were called Althings) and can be demoted at any times by the people and Council. He has some Counsellors which are his Jarls. Stallari : These are the Generals of the armies, they are responsible in maintaining the men at arms at their full potential as well as Counsellors in times of war for the Jarls. Jarl : The Jarl are the Chieftains and rulers of the land
who are responsible for many things : Straesman : These are the right hands of the Jarls, when a Jarl cannot be present, he is responsible to make the decisions of the Jarls known to the others and have the complete authority of the Jarl while he (the Jarl) is absent. This is more a title than a rank as anyone over Bondi (included) can be selected by the Jarl to have this responsability. He also serves as a Political Cousellor. Thule : These are the men of law and prayers which sit at the Council, they are responsible for the social and lawful side of the Hirth. They are NOT judges, but have to know the laws on the tip of their fingers as they are the reference from which a Jarl and his Council can take decisions for the people they govern. Kinsman (dr) : These are simply the body guards of the Jarls and King. It is a very honorific position as they respond ONLY to their leader to which they swore loyalty to the death and they are as well received as their leader when visiting another Jarl or the Konge himself. Bondi (r) : These could be considered as Captains of the Army, they are proven warriors (or else) and members of the Elite Corps of the Hirth. They are land owners and have many followers (I'll describe the number of men every rank can have in the next article) Gothi (ar) : These are the same as the Thule, but for the Council of the Bondi. It is still a respectable rank. Karl (s) and Huskarl (s) : These are the same as the Kinsmandr but for the Bondir. the main difference between Karl and Huskarl being that Karls are fighters and not Huskarls (not to be mistaken for the Anglo-Saxon's Huskarls which were the the elite fighters of a Earl) Hirthman (dr) : Members of the elite troops of the Hirth. Fighters, archers, and every class can be represented here, as long as they are amongst the best. Thegn (ar) : Thses are the regular troops, well trained and well equipped, they represented the majority of troops of the army. Dreng (ar) : These are the proven soldiers but not yet regular forces. Friman (dr) : Free-men among the Hirth, proven loyal but not yet into the military ranks. He doesn't have the right to vote but can say what he thinks of any subject proposed on a Thing Thjòn (ar) : A proven thrall of the Hirth. He has no rights of voting nor the right to tell his opinion on a given subject during a Thing ut has the right to assist the reunion. Thrall (s) : These are the new comers, not yet proven to the Hirth, they have no rights of any sort. They can usually buy their freedom at the cost of 20 aurar (gold pieces) , of course, for game play, this amount will have to be discussed to better fit the monetary system of the game, it could lowered to 1 gold for exemple)
Definition: The Solar cross is probably the oldest religious symbol in the world, appearing in Asian, American, European, and Indian religious art from the dawn of history. Composed of a equal armed cross within a circle, it represents the solar calendar- the movements of the sun, marked by the solstices. Sometimes the equinoxes are marked as well, giving an eight armed wheel. (The swastika is also a form of Solar cross.) The cross in its most simplified form (shown above) is
known in Northern Europe as Odin's cross, after the Chief God of the
Norse pantheon. It is often used as an emblem by Asatruar, followers
of the Norse religion. Definition: An emblem of the Norse God Odin. This symbol consistes of three interlocked drinking horns.
Ursa Major This is the saucepan shaped constellation which points to the pole star. It is most frequently known as the Plough in England and the Big Dipper (i.e. a deep spoon) in the USA. All across Scandinavia and in Germany this constellation is known as the Wain. This constellation seems to have been ascribed to at least three of the Norse gods, Odin, Irmin and Thor. When given to Thor the constellation is called 'Karl Wagen', Karl being the familiar title given to the god in Scandinavia, normally translated as 'the Old Man'. This name is found in Denmark, Sweden and Iceland. It is highly likely that the Wain was given to any prominent deity who travelled in a chariot, which would also include Freyr, Freyja, and the old earth goddess Nerthus. The name Irmin is interesting as this elusive god may be Tyr. ------ http://www.thorshof.org/zthorstar.htm
Forging of the Mjolnir: http://www.thorshof.org/howsif.htm |