Myths and Legends of the Vikings

What tales did real Vikings tell their children and did they mention how to tame a dragon?

The motifs of the legends of Northern Europe permeate our entire culture — from Wagner's operas to Tolkien's "The Lord of the Rings." From... the songs of the "Edda" and "Kalevala," threads extend to chivalric romances and the cycle of King Arthur. Folk tales about elves, dwarfs, and trolls gave rise to the genre of fairy-tale fantasy — from "The Chronicles of Narnia" to "Harry Potter."

The tales born in the territories of Sweden, Finland, Norway, Denmark, and Iceland, in the lands we know as the realm of the fearless Vikings, are filled with the clang of swords and the magic of runes, where the most fantastic creatures and the greatest heroes reside.

The Russian reader was introduced to the legends from the world of Thor and Odin, dragons and Valkyries, in the mid-19th century by the historian, literary scholar, and translator Pyotr Polevoy. His collection of myths and legends of Scandinavia became as much of a revelation for Russian schoolchildren as "Legends and Myths of Ancient Greece" by Kuna. After one and a half centuries, this book returns to us with magical illustrations by Joseph Alanen, Robert Wilhelm Ekman, Akseli Gallen-Kallela, Ferdinand Lecke, Arthur Rackham, and other famous artists.