صور الصفحة
PDF
النشر الإلكتروني

leges, such as write Latin poetry cannot to this day rob their verses of the ornamental affistance of ancient Fable: But at the expence of reason, taste, and even Religion, we fee facred and profane Mythology jumbled together; and falfe Gods and Angels,. Nymphs and Apostles in friendly converse. If our Icelanders have not given into these abufes, they at least, for a long time, composed their poetry in the old taste, and I am even assured that, at this day, the verses that are composed in Iceland often preferve strong traces of it. A knowledge of the

ancient Runic ** Mythology continuing thus neceffary for the purposes of poetry, it would eafily occur to a lover of that art, to compile a kind of Dictionary of the Figurative Expressions employed by the ancient SCALDS; with which the fucceeding Bards were as fond of embellishing their works as our modern Latin Poets are of patching theirs with the shreds of Horace and Virgil. This dictionary could only become useful, by subjoining to the figurative expreffion, the Fable which gave rife to the figure. Thus, when they read in the dictionary, that the Earth was poetically stiled the Body of the Giant YMER;" the Last Day, " the Twilight of "the Gods;" Poetry, "the Beverage of

[ocr errors]

66

*Celiique. Orig.

" ODIN," the Giants, "the Sons of the " Frost," &c. they would naturally wish to know the origin of such fingular modes of speech. It was then to render this knowledge easy, that the Author of the EDDA wrote; nor am I surprized, that this book hath appeared whimsical and unintelligible to those who were ignorant of its defign.

1

Hence likewife we learn why this work came to be divided into Two principal parts. The FIRST consists of this brief Syftem of Mythology, necessary for understanding the ancient Scalds, and for perceiving the force of the Figures, Epithets and Allusions with which their poetry abounds. This is properly called the EDDA. The SECOND is a kind of Art of Poetry, which contains a Catalogue of the Words most commonly used by the Poets, together with Explanations and Remarks; it contains also a treatise on the ancient Language, and Orthography; and an explication of the Structure and Measure of their different forts of Verse. Hence it is, that this part is called SCALDA or POETICS. It is very extensive, and leads one to suppose that this people had among them a vast number of Bards, and that the Author poffeffed an uncommon depth of erudition on these subjects. The Reader will doubtless be surprized to find so compleat a Treatife of Poetry, amid the few monuments now remaining of ancient Scandinavia: Efpecially among those Goths and Normans, who contributed fo much to replunge Europe into ignorance, and whom many nations have had fo much reason to accuse of ferocity and barbarifm. Could one have expected to find among such a people, so decisive a taste for an Art which feems peculiarly to require sensibility of foul, a cultivation of mind, and a vivacity and splendor of imagination? for an Art, I say, which one would rather suppose must be one of the last refinements of luxury and politenefs.

I trusted we should find the caufes of this their love of poetry, in the ruling paffion of the ancient Scandinavians 'for war,' in the little use they made of writing, and especially in their peculiar system of Religion. What was at first only conjecture, a later research hath enabled me to discover to have been the real cafe: And I flatter myself that the perusal of the EDDA will remove every doubt which may at first have been entertained from the novelty and fingularity of the facts which I advanced.

IT now remains for me to relate in a few words the history of this Book, and to give a short account of my own labours. I have already hinted that there have been two EDDAS. EDDAS. The first and most ancient was compiled by SOEMUND SIGFUSSON, firnamed the LEARNED, born in Iceland about the year 1057. This Author had ftudied in Germany, and chiefly at Cologne, along with his countryman Are, firnamed alfo FRODE, or the LEARNED; and who likewife diftinguished himself by his love for the Belle Lettres *. Sæmund was one of the first who ventured to commit to writing the ancient religious Poetry, which many people still retained by heart. He seems to have confined himself to the meer selecting into one body fuch of the ancient Poems as appeared most proper to furnish a fufficient number of poetical figures and phrases. It is not determined whether this collection (which, it should feem, was very confiderable) is at present extant, or not: But without engaging in this dispute, it fuffices to say, that Three of the Pieces of which it was compofed, and perhaps those three of the most important, have come down to us. We shall give a more particular account of these in the body of this work.

* V. Arii Frode scheda, feu libellus de Islandia, editæ ab And. Buffco. Havn. 1733. in Præfat. This ARE FRODE is the oldest of all the northern historians whose works have

come down to us. He wrote many Histories which are loft; that which remains is on the establishment of the Norwegians in Iceland.

b3

This

A

The first collection being apparently too voluminous, and in many respects obfcure, and not fufficiently adapted to common use, the young poets would naturally with that some body would extract from the materials there collected, a course of Poetic Mythology, more eafy and intelligible. Accordingly, about 120 years afterwards, another learned Icelander engaged in this task: This was the famous SNORROSTURLESON, born in the year 1179, of one of the most illuftrious families in his country, where he twice held the dignity of first magistrate, having been the fupreme judge of Iceland in the years 1215 and 1222. He was also employed in many important negotiations with the King of Norway, who incessantly strove to fubdue that ifland, as being the refuge of their malcontent subjects. SNORRO, whose genius was not merely confined to letters, met at last with a very violent end. He was afsaffinated in the night that he entered into his 62d year, anno 1241*, by

* Vid. Pering skiold in Præfat. ad Hiemskringla Saga, &c. Since I first wrote this, it hath been observed to me, that the second part of the EDDA mentions the Kings of Norway who have lived

I

down to the year 1270, and consequently who outlived SNORRO near thirty years; whence it is inferred, that this must have been the work of a later hand. Nevertheless, as tradition and universal opinion

« السابقةمتابعة »