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InNorse mythology,Gjallarbrú (lit. "bridge ofGjöll") is a bridge that crosses the river Gjöll, serving as the passage to reachHel.[1]
It figures most prominently inSnorri Sturluson'sGylfaginning, in the section of theBaldr myth describing the journey ofHermód toHel in an attempt to retrieve Baldr. After riding nine nights through deep and dark valleys, he comes to the bridge, and there he has a conversation withMódgud, the maiden who guards the bridge. She asks Hermód his name and family and informs him that five troops of dead men rode over the bridge the day before, but the bridge shakes no less under him alone and he does not resemble the dead. When she asks Hermód his mission, he tells her and asks whether Baldr has come that way. He has, she replies, and she tells him that the way to Hel lies down and north. Snorri adds the detail that the bridge is thatched with glittering gold.[1][2]