Prose Edda

  • Hel of the North: The Hidden Place, the Half-Dark Goddess,

    Companion to Journal Entry XII, this field study examines Hel, the Norse realm and goddess of the dead, through excerpts from Snorri’s Edda and Gisla saga: the word’s meaning, her half-dark body, her hall of slow death, the bridge over Gjöll, Baldr’s failed return, and the debate over her antiquity.

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  • Entry XII — On Hel, and the Hall That Hides

    In Entry XII, the Archivist studies Hel, the Norse realm and goddess of the dead, through Snorri Sturluson’s Edda: her half-dark body, her hall of Hunger and Sickbed, the golden bridge over the river Gjöll, and her terrible condition for Baldr’s return, weighing what is ancient belief against medieval invention.

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