InNorse mythology,Brísingamen (orBrísinga men) is thetorc ornecklace of the goddessFreyja,[1] of which little else is known for certain.[2]
The name is anOld Norse compoundbrísinga-men whose second element ismen "(ornamental) neck-ring (of precious metal), torc".[3][a][b]
The etymology of the first element is uncertain. It has been derived from Old Norsebrísingr, a poetic term for "fire" or "amber" mentioned in the anonymous versified word-lists (þulur) appended to many manuscripts of theProse Edda,[7] making Brísingamen "gleaming torc", "sunny torc", or the like. However,Brísingr can also be anethnonym, in which caseBrísinga men is "torc of the Brísings"; theOld English parallel inBeowulf supports this derivation, though who the Brísings (Old NorseBrísingar) may have been remains unknown.[8]
Brísingamen is referred to in the Anglo-Saxon epicBeowulf asBrosinga mene. The brief mention inBeowulf is as follows (trans. by Howell Chickering, 1977):
[S]ince Hama bore off
to the shining city the Brosings' necklace,
Gem-figured filigree. He gained the hatred
Of Eormanric the Goth, chose eternal reward.
TheBeowulf poet is clearly referring to thelegends about Theoderic the Great. TheÞiðrekssaga tells that the warriorHeime (Háma in Old English) takes sides againstErmanaric ("Eormanric"), king of theGoths, and has to flee his kingdom after robbing him; later in life, Hama enters a monastery and gives them all his stolen treasure. However, this saga makes no mention of the great necklace.
In the poemÞrymskviða of thePoetic Edda,Þrymr, the king of thejǫtnar, stealsThor's hammer,Mjölnir. Freyja lendsLoki herfalcon cloak to search for it; but upon returning, Loki tells Freyja that Þrymr has hidden the hammer and demanded to marry her in return. Freyja is so wrathful that all theÆsir’s halls beneath her are shaken and the necklace Brísingamen breaks off from her neck. Later, Thor borrows Brísingamen when he dresses up as Freyja to go to the wedding atJǫtunheimr.[9]
Húsdrápa, askaldic poem partially preserved in theProse Edda, relates the story of the theft of Brísingamen byLoki. One day when Freyja wakes up and finds Brísingamen missing, she enlists the help ofHeimdallr to help her search for it. Eventually they find the thief, who turns out to beLoki and who has transformed himself into a seal. Heimdallr turns into a seal as well and fights Loki (trans. Byock 2005):
...it was on this occasion that [Heimdall] and Loki came to blows over the ring of the Brisings. The skald Ulf Uggason devotes a lengthy passage to that story in his poemHusdrapa, and it is stated there that Heimdall and Loki took on the shape of seals.
After a lengthy battle atSingasteinn, Heimdallr wins and returns Brísingamen to Freyja.
Snorri Sturluson quoted this old poem inSkáldskaparmál, saying that because of this legend Heimdallr is called "Seeker of Freyja's Necklace" (Skáldskaparmál, section 8) and Loki is called "Thief of Brísingamen" (Skáldskaparmál, section 16). A similar story appears in the laterSörla þáttr, where Heimdallr does not appear.
Sörla þáttr is a short story in the later and extended version of theSaga of Olaf Tryggvason[10] in the manuscript of theFlateyjarbók, which was written and compiled by two Christianpriests, Jon Thordson and Magnus Thorhalson, in the late 14th century.[11] In the end of the story, the arrival ofChristianity dissolves the old curse that traditionally was to endure untilRagnarök.
Freyja was a human in Asia and was the favoriteconcubine of Odin, King of Asialand. When this woman wanted to buy a golden necklace (no name given) forged by four dwarves (named Dvalinn, Alfrik, Berlingr, and Grer), she offered them gold and silver but they replied that they would only sell it to her if she would lie a night by each of them. She came home afterward with the necklace and kept silent as if nothing happened. But a man called Loki somehow knew it, and came to tell Odin. King Odin commanded Loki to steal the necklace, so Loki turned into a fly to sneak into Freyja's bower and stole it. When Freyja found her necklace missing, she came to ask king Odin. In exchange for it, Odin ordered her to make two kings, each served by twenty kings, fight forever unless somechristened men so brave would dare to enter the battle and slay them. She said yes, and got that necklace back. Under the spell, king Högni and king Heðinn battled for one hundred and forty-three years, as soon as they fell down they had to stand up again and fight on. But in the end, the Christian lordOlaf Tryggvason, who has a great fate and luck, arrived with his christened men, and whoever slain by a Christian would stay dead. Thus the pagan curse was finally dissolved by the arrival of Christianity. After that, the noble man, king Olaf, went back to his realm.[12]
The battle of Högni and Heðinn is recorded in several medieval sources, including the skaldic poemRagnarsdrápa,Skáldskaparmál (section 49), andGesta Danorum: king Högni's daughter, Hildr, is kidnapped by king Heðinn. When Högni comes to fight Heðinn on an island, Hildr comes to offer her father a necklace on behalf of Heðinn for peace; but the two kings still battle, andHildr resurrects the fallen to make them fight until Ragnarök.[13] None of these earlier sources mentions Freyja or king Olaf Tryggvason, the historical figure whoChristianized Norway and Iceland in the 10th Century.
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AVölva was buriedc. 1000 with considerable splendour in Hagebyhöga inÖstergötland,Sweden. In addition to being buried with herwand, she had received great riches which included horses, a wagon and an Arabian bronze pitcher. There was also a silver pendant, which represents a woman with a broad necklace around her neck. This kind of necklace was only worn by the most prominent women during the Iron Age and some have interpreted it asFreyja's necklace Brísingamen. The pendant may represent Freyja herself.[14]
Alan Garner wrote a children'sfantasy novel calledThe Weirdstone of Brisingamen, published in 1960, about an enchanted teardrop bracelet.
Diana Paxson's novelBrisingamen features Freyja and her necklace.
Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab has a perfumed oil scent named Brisingamen.
Freyja's necklace Brisingamen features prominently inBetsy Tobin's novelIceland, where the necklace is seen to have significant protective powers.
The Brisingamen feature as a major item inJoel Rosenberg'sKeepers of the Hidden Ways series of books. In it, there are seven jewels that were created for the necklace by the Dwarfs and given to the Norse goddess. She in turn eventually split them up into the seven separate jewels and hid them throughout the realm, as together they hold the power to shape the universe by its holder. The book's plot is about discovering one of them and deciding what to do with the power they allow while avoiding Loki and other Norse characters.[15]
InChristopher Paolini'sThe Inheritance Cycle, the word "brisingr" means fire. This is probably a distillation of the wordbrisinga.
Ursula Le Guin's short storySemley's Necklace, the first part of her novelRocannon's World, is a retelling of the Brisingamen story on an alien planet.
Brisingamen is represented as a card in theYu-Gi-Oh! Trading Card Game, "Nordic Relic Brisingamen".
Brisingamen was part of MMORPGRagnarok Online lore, which is ranked as "God item". The game is heavily based from Norse mythology.
In theFirefly Online game, one of the planets of theHiminbjörg system (which features planets named after figures from Germanic mythology) is named Brisingamen. It is third from the star, and has moons named Freya, Beowulf, andAlberich.
The Brisingamen is an item that can be found and equipped in the video game,Castlevania: Lament of Innocence.
In the French comicsFreaks' Squeele, the character of Valkyrie accesses her costume change ability by touching a decorative torc necklace affixed to her forehead, named Brizingamen.