Gudrun & Ghost, Laxdale Saga

11 days left

Invest in History Education

By supporting our charity World History Foundation, you're investing in the future of history education. Your donation helps us empower the next generation with the knowledge and skills they need to understand the world around them. Help us start the new year ready to publish more reliable historical information, free for everyone.
$3029 / $10000

Illustration

Emma Groeneveld
by Andreas Bloch (1860-1917)
published on 07 December 2018
Gudrun & Ghost, Laxdale Saga Download Full Size Image

A scene from the 13th-century Icelandic Laxdæla Saga (anglicised as Laxdale Saga), which is set in the Viking Age (c. 790-1100). Illustration from "Vore fædres liv" : karakterer og skildringer fra sagatiden, collected and published by Nordahl Rolfsen, translated by Gerhard Gran., Kristiania: Stenersen, 1898.

Here, we see one of the saga's main characters, Guðrún, meeting a ghost:

That same evening that Thorkell and his followers were drowned, it happened at Holyfell that Gudrun went to the church, when other people had gone to bed, and when she stepped into the lichgate she saw a ghost standing before her.
He bowed over her and said, "Great tidings, Gudrun."
She said, "Hold then your peace about them, wretch."

(Laxdæla Saga, ch. 76)

Remove Ads
Advertisement

Cite This Work

APA Style

(1860-1917), A. B. (2018, December 07). Gudrun & Ghost, Laxdale Saga. World History Encyclopedia. Retrieved from https://www.worldhistory.org/image/9692/gudrun--ghost-laxdale-saga/

Chicago Style

(1860-1917), Andreas Bloch. "Gudrun & Ghost, Laxdale Saga." World History Encyclopedia. Last modified December 07, 2018. https://www.worldhistory.org/image/9692/gudrun--ghost-laxdale-saga/.

MLA Style

(1860-1917), Andreas Bloch. "Gudrun & Ghost, Laxdale Saga." World History Encyclopedia. World History Encyclopedia, 07 Dec 2018. Web. 20 Dec 2024.

Membership