Wayland Smith

Wayland (also spelled Weyland, Weland, Welent and Watlende) is a smith in Teutonish tales.

In Scandinavish stems, he kythes (as Völund Smed) in Völundarkviða, a lay in the Layish Edda, and in Þiðrekssaga, and his tale is also shown on the Ardre onlyness stone VIII. In Angle-Saxish stems, he kythes in Deor, Waldere and in Beowulf and the saga is shown on the Franks Chest. The only Teutonlandish stem that speaks of him is Der grosse Rosengarten.

Weyland had two brothers, Egil and Slagfiðr (Slagfid/Slagfinn). In one kind of the lore, the three brothers lived with three valkyries: Ölrún, Alvitr and Svanhvít. After nine years, the valkyries left their lovers. Egil and Slagfiðr followed, never to come back. In another kind, Weyland married the swan maiden Hervör, and they had a son, Heime, but Hervör later left Weyland. In both tales, his love left him with a ring. In the first lore, he made seven hundred againbits of this ring.



At a later time, he was taken in his sleep by King Nidud in Nerike who had him hamstrung and locked up on the iland of Sævarstöð. There he was put to make things for the king. Weyland's wife's ring was given to the king's daughter, Bodvild. Nidud wore Weyland's sword. In betell back, Weyland killed the king's sons when they came to him hiddenly, made mugs from their skulls, gemstones from their eyes, and a pin from their teeth. He sent the mugs to the king, the gemstones to the queen and the pin to the king's daughter. When Bodvild took her ring to him to be mended, he took the ring and lustlead her, fathering a son and fleeing on wings he made. Völund made the spellcraftly sword Gram (also hight Balmung and Nothung) and the ring that Thorsten got back. Wayland's helper is Flibbertigibbet.

As Weland he also made the mesh shirt worn by Beowulf by lines 450-455 of the saga of the same name:


 * "No need then
 * to mourn for long or lay out my body.
 * If the battle takes me, send back
 * this breast-webbing that Weland made
 * and Hrethel gave me, to Lord Hygelac.
 * Wyrd goes ever as wyrd must." (Heaney trans.)

He is namely linked with Wayland's Smithy, a burial borwen in Oxfordshire. This was hight by the Saxes, but the greatstony borwen was there much before them. It is from this linking that the belief came about that a horse left there overnight with a small silver mint (groat) would be shod by morning.

Stems

 * Heaney, Seamus (2000). Beowulf: A New Verse Translation. W. W. Norton. ISBN 978-0-393-32097-8.
 * Larrington, Carolyne (transl.) (1996). The Poetic Edda. Oxford World's Classics. ISBN 0-19-283946-2.

Outward links

 * Writing on Wayland the Smith; also deals with Egil (English)
 * Weland on the Franks Chest; writ on the Saga (English)