Hvat, quotho, hapta snytrir hjálmfaldinn, thvi valda?
"They (the gods) said (_quotho_): Why cause this (_hvat thvi valda_) thou ornament-giver of the gods (_hjálmfaldinn hapta snytrir_), concealed in a guise (eagle guise)?" He at once answers that he desires his share of the sacred meal of the gods, and to this Odin gives his consent. Nothing indicates that Odin sees a foe in Thjasse. There is then no difficulty in regard to the roast; and when it is ready and divided into four parts Thjasse flies down, but, to plague Loke, he takes so much that the latter, angry, and doubtless also depending on Odin's protection if needed, seizes the rail lying near at hand and strikes the eagle a blow across the back. But Loke could not let go his hold of the rail; his hand stuck fast to one end while the other end clung to the eagle, and Thjasse flew with him and did not let go of him before he had forced him to swear an oath that he would bring Idun into Thjasse's hands.
So long as it was impossible to assume that Thjasse had been the friend of the gods before this event happened, and in the capacity of ancient artist had given them valuable products of his skill, and thus become a _hapta snytrir_, it was also impossible to see in him, though he was concealed in the guise of an eagle, the _hjálmfaldinn_ here in question, since _hjálmfaldinn_ manifestly is in apposition to _hapta snytrir_, "the decorator of the gods." (The common meaning of _hjálmr_, as is well known, is a covering, a garb, or which _hjálmr_ in the sense of a helmet is a specification.) It therefore became necessary to assume that Odin was meant by _hjálmfaldinn_ and _hapta snytrir_. This led to the changing of _quotho_ to _quad_, and to the insertion in the manuscripts of a _mun_ not found there, and to the exclusion of a _thvi_ found there. The result was, moreover, that no notice was taken of the use made of the expressions _hjálmfaldinn_ and _snytrir_ in a poem closely related to Haustlaung, and evidently referring to its description of Thjasse. This poem is Einar Skalaglam's "Vellekla," which celebrates Hakon Jarl, the Great. Hakon Jarl regarded himself as descended from Thjasse through the latter's daughter, Skade (Háleygjatal), and on this account Vellekla contains a number of allusions to the mythic progenitor. The task (from a poetic and rhetorical point of view) which Einar has undertaken is in fact that of taking, so far as possible, the kernel of those paraphrases with which he celebrates Hakon Jarl (see below) from the myth concerning Thjasse, and the task is performed with force and acumen. In the execution of his poem Einar has had before him that part of Thjodulf's Haustlaung which concerned Thjasse. In str. 6 he calls Thjasse's descendant _thjódar snytrir_, taking his cue from Haustlaung, which calls Thjasse _hapta snytrir_. In str. 8 he gives Hakon the epithet _hjálmi faldinn_, having reference to Haustlaung, which makes Thjasse appear _hjálm faldinn_. In str. 10 Hakon is a _gard-Rögnir_, just as Thjasse is a _ving-Rögnir_ in Haustlaung. In str. 11 Hakon is a _midjungr_, just as Thjasse is a _midjungr_ in Haustlaung. In str. 16 an allusion is made in the phrase _vildi Yggsnidr fridar bildja_ to Haustlaung's _málunautr hváts mátti fridar bidja_. In str. 21 Hakon is called _hlym-Narfi_, just as Thjasse in Haustlaung is called _grjót Nidadr_ (_Narfi_ and _Nidadr_ are epithets of Mimer; see Nos. 85, 87). In str. 22 Hakon is called _fangsæll_, and Thjasse has the same epithet in Haustlaung. Some of the paraphrases in Vellekla, to which the myth about Thjasse furnishes the kernel, I shall discuss below. There can, therefore, be no doubt whatever that Einar in Haustlaung's _hjálmfaldinn_ and _hapta snytrir_ saw epithets of Thjasse, and we arrive at the same result if we interpret the text in its original reading and make no emendations.