lightportal01.jpg (15577 bytes) Why the SIGURD portal

Sigurd is one of several carved doorposts of the medieval stave church at Hylestad, Setesdal, Norway. Although part of a Christian church, the carvings represent scenes from the heathen story of Sigurd the dragon slayer.

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Since this project aims at discussing differences and similarities between a collection of Germanic fairy-tales and other historical texts, we have chosen the Sigurd Portal, which brings us back to Viking times, as an entrance or portal to these old Germanic texts. 

Dragons were considered to evil and destructive. They are mentioned in mythology and many stories are woven around them. In Greece, dragons were slain by Hercules, Apollo, and Perseus. Siegfried and Beowulf killed them in German and early English legend.

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Sigurd (Siegfried) was a Germanic hero. He was the foster-son of Regin, who sent him to recover a fabulous hoard of gold. Regin's father Hreidmar had first acquired this treasure from the dwarf Andvari. To get their hands on the gold Regin and his brother Fafnir had killed their father Hreidmar; but Fafnir wanted the treasure for himself and turned into a dragon to guard it, thereby preventing Regin from getting any of it. Sigurd found Fafnir and by cunningly stabbing the monster from underneath, succeeded in slaying him, thus gaining both wealth and wisdom (by licking the blood of the slain dragon), since Fafnir was said to have understood the language of birds.

 

More details on Sigurd

 

Webmaster: 2002-06-12