Gunnlaug the Worm-Tongue and Raven the Skald by William Morris, Fiction, Fairy Tales, Folk Tales, Legends & Mythology

The story of Gunnlaug the Worm-Tongue and Raven the Skald is the first Icelandic saga to be published in an English edition.

Gunnlaug the Worm-Tongue and Raven the Skald is an Icelandic saga composed in the 13th century, concerning the tragic rivalry of two poets for the hand of orsteinn Egilsson's daughter, Helga the Fair. The rivalry is carried out first in poetry, and later with weapons, as Gunnlaug challenges Hrafn to a holmgang -- a duel recognized by the Norse as a way to settle disputes.

The saga, said to have taken place around the introduction of Christianity in Iceland, tells the story of two Icelandic poets, Gunnlaugr Ormstunga and Hrafn Önundarson. Their love of Helga the Fair, granddaughter of Egill Skallagrímsson, results in a competition leading to a deadly duel of honor.

Author: William Morris, Anonymous
Binding Type: Paperback
Publisher: Aegypan
Published: 05/01/2007
Pages: 112
Weight: 0.39lbs
Size: 9.00h x 6.00w x 0.27d
ISBN: 9781603122436

About the Author
Morris, William: - "William Morris ( 1834 - 1896) was an English textile designer, poet, novelist, translator and socialist activist. Associated with the British Arts and Crafts Movement, he was a major contributor to the revival of traditional British textile arts and methods of production. His literary contributions helped to establish the modern fantasy genre, while he played a significant role in propagating the early socialist movement in Britain."Magnusson, Eiríkr: - "Eiríkr or Eiríkur Magnússon (1833 - 1913) was an Icelandic scholar who was Librarian at the University of Cambridge, taught Old Norse to William Morris, translated numerous Icelandic sagas into English in collaboration with him, and played an important role in the movement to study the history and literature of the Norsemen in Victorian England."