download - Sage's Lore Library

202 RELIGION OF THE NOETHMEN.
selves suddenly. May the man wlio has done this
be driven away from Valhalla and never come
thither ! " The outrage had been committed by
Hrapp, an Icelander, -who had been for a time a
guest with Gudbrand.* It is related of the Icelander
Grimkel that he saw the statues of the Gods in his
temple preparing to move away from their seats, out
of displeasure at his son HorS.f Of a statue of Frey,
in Sweden, the peasants had the belief that it had
connubial intercourse with a woman who attended
Besides the proper idols there was a kind of sacred
images, which was foimd in heathen times in the
house of every Northman, namely, the so-called
Ondvegis-sllur, or Pillars of the High-Seat, some-
times also called Setstokkar. These were two high
wooden posts fashioned by hewing, which stood one
upon each side of the High-Seat of the Master of the
house, and had the lower end set in the ground.§
These Ondvegis-siUur were looked upon as peculiarly
sacred, it might almost be said as a kind of Household
Gods. It was a universal custom among the Northmen
who left their native land to settle in Iceland,
to take with them the Sacred Columns from their
old homes, and cast them overboard when they firsts
* |)4 t6k GuCbrandr til orBa: "Mikill mittr er gefiim goSum
vorum, er ]jau hafa gengit sjilf lir elldinum 1 " " Eigi munu goSin
Jjessii vallda," segir Jarl; "maSr mun brent hafa hofit, en borit
lit goSin. En goS hefna eigi allz fegar. Mun B&. maSr braut
rekinn tir VallhoUu ok far alldri koma, er ])etta hefir gart"
t HorBs S. 18.
i 01. Tr. S. in Fornm. S. IIS.
§ Vatnad. S. 15.
NiSls S. 89.