Velents þáttr smiðs

"Velents þáttr smiðs" is the name given to the part of the "Þiðrekssaga af Bern" that deals with Wayland Smith (Velent, Wieland, Völundr).

Velent was the son of the giant Vaði from Sjaelland. He was sent as an apprentice to Mímir, a smith from Húnaland. But Sigurðr was also there by that time, and he beat the other apprentices. When Vaði learnt that, he brought Velent back home and sent him to two skilful dwarves who lived in a mountain called Kallava. The dwarves agreed to teach Velent everything they knew, but threatened to kill him if his father did not come to get him back. Vaði died in an avalanche, and Velent killed the dwarves.

He then sailed to Denmark in a hollowed tree and eventually arrived to Jutland, where king Niðung was reigning. Velent was soon challenged by Niðung's smith Amilias. Amilias forged a suit of armour and Velent a sword, Mímung, with which he easily killed his rival. He thus gained great fame as a smith.

At the eve of a battle, Niðung found out that he had forgotten his victory stone and offered his daughter and half of his kingdom to the one who would get it before sunset. Velent fetched the stone but, when he came back, the king's "dróttseti" (seneschal) asked for it. Velent refused to give it up and killed the knight. Niðung banished him.

Later he tried to avenge himself by poisoning the king and his daughter but he got caught, was hamstrung and set to work in the forge. But he eventually killed Niðung's two younger sons in his smithy and made a whole set of tableware for the king with their bones. He also raped the king's daughter.

Velent's brother Egill came at the court. He was a famous archer and Niðung challenged him to shoot an apple from the head of his son. He could shoot only one arrow, but took three. After he succeeded with his first arrow, the king asked him what the other two were for, and he explained that had he hit his son, he would have shot the king with the others.

Velent asked his brother to collect feathers, with which he made himself wings. He flew to Niðung and revealed to him that he had killed his sons and made his daughter pregnant. He then flew away. Egill was ordered by the king to shoot him down. But Velent had tied a bladder filled with blood under his arm. Egill hit it, thus deceiving the king, and Velent returned to Sjaelland.

Niðung died shortly after and his son Otvin succeeded him. The princess gave birth to a son called Viðga. Velent settled a peace agreement with Otvin and he married the princess, as they both had agreed before his leaving.

ee also

* Völundarkviða