THE SCENE: King Fjolnir was rumored to be the son of the Norse god Frey. That noble lineage, however, could not save him from the disgrace of ending his life by drowning in a vat of honeyed beer.
THE TEXT: Once when Fjolnir went to visit Frothi on the Island of Selund, a great banquet had been prepared and many had been invited from near and far. Frothi had a large estate, and a vat had been built there, many ells high, and reinforced by stout timbers. It stood on the lower floor of a storehouse, and above it was a balcony with an opening in the floor, so that liquids could be poured down, and mead mixed in it. An exceedingly strong drink had been prepared. In the evening Fjolnir and his retinue were led to lodgings in a loft close by. During the night he went out on the balcony and on his way back to his lodgings he went along the balcony and to the wrong loft door and through it. He missed his footing and fell into the mead vat and drowned.
– The Song of the Ynglings, Snorri Sturluson, 13th Century AD
