Hymiskvitha (literally “Hymir’s Poem”) tells the tale of Thor and Tyr retrieving a cauldron large enough to brew beer for all the gods; the gods lack such a cauldron, but Tyr’s father, a giant named Hymir, owns one. This poem also relates the story of Thor fishing for the Midgard-serpent with the head of an ox for bait, a scene that was commonly depicted in art in the Viking period.
Hymiskvitha appears in both the Codex Regius and in the manuscript AM 748 I 4to.
A LONG TIME AGO the gods came back from hunting, but they started feeling thirsty before they were done eating. They waved their wands, looked for omens in blood, they learned that Aegir owned some cauldrons.
Aegir, giant from the stones, sat there, happy as a child; he looked much like Miskorblindi’s son. Thor, son of Odin, stared fiercely into his eyes: “You will often provide a feast for the gods.”
The argumentative god frustrated Aegir; the giant immediately sought some revenge against the gods. He asked Thor to fetch him a cauldron— “I promise to brew beer in it for all of you.”
The gods did not know how to proceed; none of them could get a cauldron. But Tyr, in private, spoke to Thor alone, and revealed a welcome secret:
“My mighty father, Hymir the wise, lives to the east of Elivagar, near the end of the sky. He owns a cauldron that’s a mile deep; it’s the biggest cauldron of all.”
Thor said:
“Do you know if we can borrow this cauldron?”
Tyr said:
“Yes, friend, if we
can play a few tricks.”
They left swiftly and traveled the whole day from Asgard, till they came to Egil’s house. They left Thor’s big-horned goats in his care, and then they went to where Hymir lived.
Tyr found his ugly grandmother, she had nine hundred heads. But another woman was there, all golden, with a pretty face, and gave her son a beer:
“Son of giants!” she said. “I’ll hide you courageous men beneath the cauldron; my husband will abuse any guests who come to our home.”
That angry, hard-minded man came home late from his fishing, came into his hall— glaciers shook at each step— the beard on his face was frozen.
Hymir’s concubine, Tyr’s mother, said:
“Hail, Hymir, come in and be happy! Your son has come to your home, as we expected after his long absence. And our famous enemy, the friend of humans, Thor, son of Odin, follows him.
“You see them sitting beneath your own hall’s roof, they’re hiding by that wall.” The giant reached out and broke the wall, and snapped a beam in half.
Eight cauldrons shattered, except a well-forged one which fell in one piece. Thor and Tyr came forward; the old giant bent his gaze upon his enemy.
His thoughts were not kind when he fixed his eyes on Thor, killer of giants, here, in his own home. But the giant ordered three bulls killed— reluctantly, he ordered them cooked.
They beheaded the bulls, and brought them to the cook-pot; and before he went to bed, Thor, son of Odin, ate two whole bulls of Hymir’s.
Gray-haired old Hymir saw it would be costly to feed the hunger of Thor. “If all three of us want to eat tomorrow, then we’d better go fishing.”
Thor said he was willing to row and fish, if the bold giant would let him have some bait.
Hymir said:
“Well, giant-killer,
if you’re brave enough,
go out to my herd.
You’ll find some bait there.
“I suspect you’ll find it easy to take some bait from one of my oxen.” So Thor went quickly out in the forest, and he saw before him a black ox.
Thor broke the whole head off the ox, gripping its horns.
Hymir said:
“What you’ve done
here is even worse
than it was having you inside,
sitting and eating.”
Then Thor asked the giant to come with him to sea, to row out with him. But Hymir rowed a little, and was unwilling to row any further out in the deep sea.
Famous Hymir caught a whale, and then caught two whales on one hook, but Odin’s son sat in the rear and craftily baited his own hook.
Thor, friend of humans, enemy of the serpent, put the ox’s head on his hook. Then the gaping Midgard-serpent came up, the one that hates the gods and lives in the encircling sea.
The bold Thor pulled bravely to bring that poison-slick serpent up on board. With his hammer, he struck a blow on the head of Fenrir’s serpent brother.
The monster howled, volcanoes erupted, and the old earth trembled all over, but that sea monster sank back into the waves.
The giant was gloomy as they rowed home; he sat at the oars and said not a word as they steered the boat back toward land.
Hymir said:
“Share my work with me, do your half— either take the whales to my house, or stay and tie up the boat.”
Thor went and grabbed up the boat and oars— he didn’t bail out the water, he just lifted the whole thing— and he took the whole boat, with its oars and buckets (it was a good boat) to the home of the giant. Thor carried it through the forest.
But the giant was still angry, he demanded a test of strength from Thor: He said it was no test at all to row a boat, but a truly strong man would be able to break his cup.
So Thor took the cup in hand, but he broke a stone trying to shatter that glass cup. Then he threw it through a wall, but it was brought back unbroken to Hymir.
Till Hymir’s pretty concubine told Thor a useful secret: “Hit it on Hymir’s head! That giant’s skull is made of harder stuff than any cup!”
Thor stood up vigorously, he summoned all his godly strength; he left not a mark on that giant’s head, but the wine cup broke into pieces.
Hymir said, “I know my loss is great, when I see my cup fall broken at my knees; I know that I will never say again, ‘The drinks are ready!’
“The cauldron is yours, Thor and Tyr, if you can carry it out of my house!” Tyr tried twice to lift it, but the cauldron remained unmoved.
Thor, strong father of Mothi, took a turn. His feet broke through the floor while he lifted, but he lifted that cauldron over his head, and the chains that held it broke, and rattled at his heels.
They walked a long time before Thor, son of Odin, turned around to take a look behind him, and he saw, coming from the rocky east, Hymir, with an army of giants coming at him, some with more than one head.
Thor threw the cauldron down from his shoulders and stood, ready to fight. He threw Mjollnir, his killing hammer, and he killed all those lava giants.
They didn’t walk long before Thor, son of Odin, saw before him one of his goats, half-dead. The goat was walking with a lame leg, and this was caused by lie-telling Loki.
But audience, you have heard all this, this story is often told among the stories of the gods. It’s told how Thor was paid back by the lava giant Egil; Thor took both his children.
Then Thor, mightiest of gods, returned to Asgard with the cauldron of Hymir. And now the gods drink good beer every winter’s day in Aegir’s hall.