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Galhad — The Funeral of Baldr
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Published: 2008-03-28 15:39:44 +0000 UTC; Views: 11001; Favourites: 294; Downloads: 231
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Description
This illustration depicts the funeral of the god Baldr, the second son of Odin.In the Norse Mythology, Baldr is the only Gods who has been killed and his death is seen as the first in the chain of events which will ultimately lead to the destruction of the gods at Ragnarok.
In the Prose Edda by Snorri Sturluson, he is described as:
“He is the wisest of the Æsir, and the fairest-spoken and most gracious; and that quality attends him, that none may gainsay his judgments. He dwells in the place called Breidablik, which is in heaven; in that place may nothing unclean be”
It is told in Snorri Sturluson's Gylfaginning that at Baldr's funeral his wife Nanna died of grief and was placed alongside him on his pyre, thus joining her husband in Hel. Hringhorni, Baldr's ship, was the largest of all such vessels and was to serve as the god's funeral ship.
“The Æsir took the body of Baldr and brought it to the sea. Hringhorni is the name of Baldr's ship: it was greatest of all ships; the gods would have launched it and made Baldr's pyre thereon.”
From the Gylfaginning (or the Tricking of Gylfi) that is the first part of Snorri Sturluson's Prose Edda
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Comments: 87
This is perhaps your best work. You chose your colours carefully - but a clever play of greys avoid a too straight black&white contrast, going instead for a softer, richer effect. The whale in the front is wonderful: an impressive idea, showing the underwater as a contrast to the sky in the upperside of the illustration and to the water's surface in the middle. Loved it.
You had, like, half a billion of favourites for this drawing, already, or it would have been my choice for the Favourites. x°D My compliments!
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Ehi! grazie! beh, anche a me piace molto.. ma forse non è la mia migliore... mannaggia!! non ha neppure una daily deviation!!
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love the vertical presentation and those colours and designs. really beautiful. Norse mythology has always seemed fascinating, i need to learn more about it.
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The whales add a strange touch, like two mythologies have suddenly merged. Very beautiful.
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I'm glad you like it! thank you for the kind words!
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Lovely original composition. I've never seen anyone else combine a viking ship, with a killer whale before. Is there any particular reason that you decided on doing so?
The very simple almost monochromatic color scheme with that strong dash of vibrant red just really speaks to me. Especially since I find the vertical blocky shape of the landscaped background only accentuates that pop of red.
It's really lovely!
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It was quite common that at the funeral ceremony the body was accompanied by a funeral procession with also horses...In the Norse traditions, the funeral ceremony consisted, among other possibility, in burning the corpse in a ship left in the middle of the sea... In my illustration I decided that the funeral procession for a God could have been made by more powerful, elegant and majestic animal such as the killer whales.... in addition, in nature, when a pack of Orca swim calmly close to the surface they really look like a procession.. and, finally, also because the horses don't like to swim!
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You're really too kind! Thanks!
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This is a great picture
Umm..you seem to know alot of the Norse mythology,which I am currently studying,and if you could tell me a book or two on the subject,it'd be a great help.But seeing as Im not fluent in many languages,it'd be best if they were in English.Thank you
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You're flattering me!! Thank you so much for the nice comment!
Some of the book you can read are:
Beofulw
The prose Edda by Snorri Sturluson
The Völsunga saga
The Hervarar saga
The Gesta Danorum by Saxo Grammaticus
then I think you can find some essays by Jorge Luis Borges...
...The other books I've read are all in Italian...
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You're very welcome^^
Thank you for all the stuff...
Ive heard of the prose edda,im gonna get it.But ive never heard of it^^
Im so gonna try the other ones though...thank you so much^^
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Lovely! I like how the woman's dress is being unfurled by the wind, and the red sail is a nice contrast. Somber, but very pretty.
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One thousand thanks for the comment!!
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beautiful composition and athmosphere 
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Yes, you are right! I've tried several times to draw something inside the sail... but always I was unhappy of the result! Thus I decided to live it simply red...
thank you for the comment and suggestion: it's always highly appreciated!!
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I love the way you've used the killer whales here. So perfect fitting into Arctic myth.
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Thank you very much! I'm very glad that you like my work!
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Beyond words...
the red vessel fits perfectly with the black and white and the entire composition.
It's perfect.
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you're too kind! and sorry for a such late reply!
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Thank you!! and sorry for a such late reply!
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No no, davvero meraviglioso
Mi ha proprio lasciato basito... dalla composizione (che è comunque nel tuo stile), a quel tocco di colore al centro... splendido
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thank you! I'm glad you like it!
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this pic have a really relaxatic feeling. i love it <3
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