Loki, Thor’s Hammer, Mjolnir, and other Treasures

Thor’s hammer began with a prank. Snorri Sturluson tells how Loki, for mischief, sneaked into the bedroom of Thor‘s wife Sif one night and cut off all her golden hair. Thor caught him and threatened to break every bone in his body, so Loki swore he would get the dark elves to make Sif new hair of real gold that would grow like the old. (Snorri’s dark elves and dwarves, Dr. Jackson Crawford notes, seem to be the same beings.)

Ivaldi’s Sons and Their Inventions

These dwarves are the sons of Ivaldi. They make the requested hair. They also make a ship and a spear. The ship, Skidbladnir, always has a fair wind; it can be folded to fit in a pocket. The spear, Gungnir, never misses its target.

Loki’s Wager

Loki takes the three treasures to the dwarves Brokkr, or “Badger,” and Eitri (also called “Sindri”), “Poison.” Loki shows Badger and Poison the hair, the ship and the spear and wagers his own head against the head of Badger that Badger and Poison cannot make better treasures.

Badger and Poison’s Works

Badger and Poison set to work. Loki transforms into a fly and tries to distract Badger from his work at the bellows. The distraction doesn’t work as Badger works the bellows and Poison forges a golden boar, Gullinbursti, who shines with light no matter how dark it is. The next treasure is the ring, Draupnir, which makes eight copies of itself every ninth night. (Nine being a magical number in Old Norse beliefs.)

Thor’s Hammer, Mjolnir

Then they began the hammer. Loki, now truly worried, landed between Brokkr’s eyes and bit his eyelids until blood ran into them. Brokkr let go of the bellows for just a moment to wipe it away, and that was enough: the hammer’s handle came out too short. The name Mjölnir is often linked to words for ‘crusher’ or ‘grinder’, and some scholars connect it to words for lightning. Snorri says Thor could strike as hard as he liked, it would never miss, it would always return to his hand, and it could shrink small enough to carry inside his shirt.

The God’s Council

To settle the wager, Loki and Brokkr brought the treasures before the gods, with Odin, Thor and Freyr as judges. Odin received the spear and the ring, Thor the hair (for Sif) and the hammer, and Freyr the ship and the boar. The gods ruled for the dwarves: Mjölnir alone was the best defense against the frost giants.

Loki’s Fate

Brokkr came to collect Loki’s head. Loki offered to buy it back; Brokkr refused. Loki fled in his shoes that could run over sea and sky, but Thor caught him. Then Loki found his loophole: he had wagered his head, he said, but not his neck, and no one could cut one without the other. So Brokkr settled for sewing Loki’s lips shut. His knife couldn’t pierce them, so he wished for his brother’s awl, and at once it was in his hand. He stitched Loki’s mouth with a thong called Vartari. Loki ripped the thong out.

Mjolnir the Pendant

Small hammer-shaped pendants became popular in the later Viking Age, and many were worn as amulets. Dr. Crawford suggests the fashion arose ‘in response to the wearing of crucifixes as protective amulets by Christians in the Medieval period.’ Today the hammer is still a symbol of protection, strength and courage.

The Creation of Mjölnir – Thor’s Hammer