THE SCENE: The Saga of Bosi and Herraud offers plenty of moment of heroic violence, such as this stirring scene capturing ship to ship combat between the heroic Herraud and a rival Russian champion Siggeir.
THE TEXT: The battle hadn’t gone on for long when Siggeir boarded Herraud’s ship and quickly started killing men. Herraud’s forecastleman was named Snidil. [Snidil] flung the spear at Siggeir, who caught the spear in the air and flung it back at the thrower. The spear flew right through Snidil and so far into the ship’s prow that it pinned him against it. Herraud turned to face Siggeir and stabbed at him with a great spear, piercing his shield, but Siggeir twisted the shield so hard that Herraud lost his grip on the spear. Siggeir struck the shield so hard that Herraud lost his grip on the spear. Siggeir struck at Herraud, and the blow landed on his helmet and cut off a quarter of it, along with his right ear. But Herraud seized a large beam from the deck and smashed him in the nose, so that his helmet visor was driven into his face, his nose broken and all his teeth knocked out. [Herraud] struck at Siggeir, and the blow landed under his ear and his entire skull was shattered. He was knocked overboard and never came up again.
– The Saga of Bosi and Herraud, 14th Century AD
