THE SCENE: After enduring a full winter of hauntings from his trollish and vindictive father’s ghost, Arnkel and his followers endeavor to resolve the situation by re-buried his corpse. Even this relatively mundane task, however, is beset with strange events.
THE TEXT: Winter passed and fine spring days began to thaw the earth. Once it was completely thawed, Arnkel sent a messenger over to Karsstadir to the Thorbrandssons and asked them to go with him to move Thorolf out of Thorsadal and to find another burial site. According to the laws of the time, everyone was bound to help move dead people into graves if they were asked.
[Arnkel] got ready for his journey straightaway and left with eleven men, a sled and digging tools. They rode up along the ridge and came into Thorsdardal, where they broke open Thorolf’s cairn. Thorolf’s body had not decayed but he was very hideous to look at. They took him out of the grave and laid him on the sled which was drawn by two strong oxen. Arnkel was planning to take [Thorolf] over to Vadilshofdi and bury him there, but when they came to the edge of the ridge, the oxen went crazy and broke loose. They ran down the ridge and headed out along the hillside and from there to the foreshore where they both collapsed and died. Thorolf was by now so heavy that they could hardly manage to lift him at all. They dragged him across to a small headland which was nearby and buried him there. It has been known as Lame-foot Headland ever since. Then Arnkel had a wall built across the headland above the cairn, so high that no one could see over it except a bird in flight. Thorolf lay there quietly as long as Arnkel lived.
– The Saga of the People of Eyri, 13th Century AD
[Image Credit: Surrealistic Creations, Instagram: @somaiistic]
