Stanza 4. _holmgång_, a duel, so called because originally fought on a
small island _(holme)_.
8. _Hagbart_, a Norse sea king, was secretly betrothed to Signe, daughter
of Sigar, king of Seeland, who caused Hagbart to be captured and hanged.
Signe then put fire to her chamber and perished in the flames. The tragic
story formed a popular theme for Scandinavian bards.
8. _rista blodörn_, inscribe the blood eagle. This was a monstrous
practice by which the Northmen sometimes wreaked vengeance upon their
fallen enemies. The ribs were severed from the spinal column and bent
outward in the form of wings and salt poured into the wounds, whereupon
the entrails were torn out.