In Norse mythology wherever the raven-god is mentioned in the Prose Edda, (Wöden or Odin) travels with his two loyal ravens named Huginn meaning (thought) and Muninn meaning (memory.) According to the archaeological evidence, bracteates Odin has been connected to Huginn and Muninn since the 4th to 7th century CE termed the Migration Period. Bracteates are worn as amulets attached to a string and worn around the neck of the Germanic Kings of the past.
Photo below: B-bracteate of the B7 or “Fürstenberg” type, found in Welschingen (IK 389), displaying the goddess Freyja. (Public Domain)
These feisty ravens fly around the nine worlds especially Midgard informing Odin on the news of folks and other beings. Huginn and Muninn are mentioned in the Poetic Edda written by Snorri Sturluson, compiled in the 13th century from early traditional sources such as the Prose Edda, and Heimskringla. Odin’s ravens are also noted in the poetry of the skalds,
Below: Huginn and Muninn sit on Odin’s shoulders in an illustration from an 18th-century Icelandic manuscript. (Public Domain)
In the Poetic Edda, a disguised Odin mentions he fears that they may not return from their daily flights. In the Prose Edda and the Third Grammatical Treatise, the two ravens are described as perching on Odin’s shoulders. Heimskringla notes that Odin gave Huginn and Muninn an ability to speak.
Above illustration: a plate from a Vendel era helmet featuring a figure riding a horse, holding a spear and shield, and confronted by a serpent. The rider is accompanied by two birds. (Public Domain)
In Chapter Seven of the Ynglinga saga, Snorri Sturluson writes, “Odin could shift his appearance. When he did so his body would lie there, as if he were asleep or dead, but he himself, in an instant, in the shape of a bird…went to distant countries on his or other men’s errands.”
Photo and replica above courtesy of Irish Archaeology of Muninn, one of Odin’s ravens. Bronze harvest clasp found in Vadstena, on the island of Gotland, Sweden.
Source and Reference:
- Hollander, Lee Milton. (Trans.) (2007). Heimskringla: History of the Kings of Norway. University of Texas Press. ISBN 978-0-292-73061-8
- Jensen, Stig (1990). “Odin from Ribe” as collected in Old tidens Ansigt: Faces of the Past. Det kongelige Nordiske Oldskriftselskab. ISBN 87-7468-274-1
- Poul Kjærum, Rikke Agnete Olsen. Oldtidens Ansigt: Faces of the Past (1990), ISBN 978-87-7468-274-5
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