This painting, by the Swedish artist Nils Andersson (1817 – 1865), depicts the Norse deities, Freyja (the versatile goddess linked to love, battle, death and magic) and Heimdall—the watchman-god and guardian of Asgard. It alludes to their shared myth featuring the Necklace (or Ring) of the Brisings, known as the Brisingamen, or, in this case, the Brisinga Jewelry. Possession of the Brisinga Jewelry was a defining feature of Freyja. On her, the Icelandic poet and scholar, Snorri Sturluson (c. 1179-1241), wrote, “Freyja is the most splendid of the goddesses. She has a home in heaven called Folkvangar. Wherever she rides into battle, half of the slain belong to her…Her hall Sessrumnir, is large and beautiful. When she travels, she drives a chariot drawn by two cats. She is easily approachable for people who want to pray to her…She delights in love songs, and it is good to call on her in matters of love” (Snorri Sturluson, Prose Edda, Gylfaginning, chapter 24). More specifically on the Brisinga Jewelry, Snorri Sturluson wrote, “Freyja, along with Frigg, is the most noble…Freyja owned Brisingamen. She is called the goddess of the Vanir” (Snorri Sturluson, Prose Edda, Gylfaginning, chapter 35). Freyja’s Brisingamen was one of the most coveted items in the Norse mythological universe. Consequently, the jewelry was also the target of theft.
Loki, a treacherous and mischievous trickster in Norse mythology, once orchestrated a successful heist of Freyja’s jewelry. Thankfully for Freyja, the watchman god, Heimdall, was able to track down and confront Loki. Snorri Sturluson wrote of Heimdall and his confrontation with Loki, stating, “[Heimdall is] the watchman of the gods, as stated previously, the white one of the Æsir, Loki’s foe, or seeker of Freyja’s ring…Heimdall is the owner of the horse Gulltopp. He is also the voyager to Vagasker and Singastein; it was on that occasion that he and Loki came to blows over the ring of the Brisings” (Snorri Sturluson, Prose Edda, Skaldskaparmal, chapter 10). Heimdall won in the fight over the jewelry and successfully confiscated the stolen property from Loki. After his success, Heimdall journeyed back to Freyja and returned the Brisinga Jewelry to its rightful owner. This hand-off of the Necklace/Ring of the Brisings from Heimdall to Freyja is what Nils Andersson re-created in his painting.
Written by C. Keith Hansley
Sources:
- The Prose Edda by Snorri Sturluson, translated by Jesse Byock. New York: Penguin Classics, 2005.
- The Poetic Edda (produced anonymously in 13th-century Iceland). Translation by Carolyne Larrington (Oxford University Press, 2014).
- https://www.britannica.com/topic/Freyja
- https://www.britannica.com/topic/Heimdall
- https://www.britannica.com/topic/Loki
- https://collection.nationalmuseum.se/en/collection/item/154196/
