Mjölnir – Thor’s Hammer

Part 5 of A Year of Norse Paganism…

Mjolnir – intricately decorated cosplay hammer made of fibreglass resin, 50cm long, weighing 2kg)

One of the items I need this year for my personal altar is a representation of Thor’s Hammer, Mjölnir (pronounced Miol-neer).^[1] My youngest son very generously lent me his cosplay Mjölnir for the year but I eventually decided it really was a bit too big and heavy for practical purposes so I decided to make my own.

I could have used a drawing or an image found online to place on the altar, or a piece of jewellery or even a store-bought hammer or mallet which I could decorate accordingly, but I thought that making a hammer from scratch would be more fun, especially as I already had access to the required tools and some timber offcuts to make it from. My newly constructed Mjölnir, at 32cm long and weighing 780g, is much easier to wield than the 50cm, 2kg cosplay version, and I enjoyed making it and decorating it with wood-burning. Progress photos are shown below…

1. Suitable plan/style found on internet and printed then ‘stretched’ to the preferred size – 3 pieces traced onto timber.

2. Pieces cut out using jigsaw.

3. 3 pieces cut out using jigsaw.

4. 3 pieces glued and clamped together.

5. 3 pieces glued and clamped together.

6. Glue completely dried and hammer securely clamped into a vice and sanded to smooth out irregularities.

7. Edges sanded smooth.

8. Preparing to trace pattern onto wood using carbon paper.

9. Pattern successfully transferred.

10. Outline completed using wood-burning tool.

11. Stippling added to background.

12. Pattern completed on handle.

Mjölnir made by Topaz — click images to enlarge and scroll through gallery.

The main symbols I chose to decorate the hammer with are the Aegishjalmur (Helm of Awe) and the Dragon (shown in the centre of the hammer-head as an Ouroboros, representing Jormungandr the Midgard Serpent, plus some other dragons either side and on the handle which could be Nidhoggr, Fafnir or any of the other Norse dragons). Read more about these symbols in my post about Norse Symbols.

This was my first serious attempt at wood-burning so I learned a lot along the way. It’s not as neat as I was hoping to get it, but overall I’m happy with the end result. So far I’ve only decorated one side of the hammer. Not sure yet when/if I’ll do the other side as well but I will add more photos here when/if I do. 🙂

Thor’s Hammer — Mjölnir

Mjölnir (pronounced Miol-neer)^[1] is the hammer of the thunder god Thor in Norse mythology, used both as a devastating weapon and as a divine instrument to provide blessings. The hammer is attested in numerous sources, including 11th century runic Kvinneby amulet, and the Poetic Edda, a collection of eddic poetry compiled in the 13th century, and the Prose Edda, a collection of prose and poetry compiled in the 13th century. The hammer was commonly worn as a pendant during the Viking Age in the Scandinavian cultural sphere, and Thor and his hammer occur depicted on a variety of objects from the archaeological record. Today the symbol appears in a wide variety of media and is again worn as a pendant by various groups, including adherents of modern Heathenry.^[2]

How Mjölnir Was Made

The legend of Mjölnir’s creation began, as many Norse myths did, with a trick played by Loki.^[3]

Thor’s wife Sif was known for her beautiful, flowing blonde hair. One night while she slept, Loki cut off her magnificent locks. When Sif awoke to find her hair cut short, Thor was outraged. He threatened to break every bone in Loki’s body if a solution could not be found. Loki said that he could go to Svartálfheim and have new hair made for the goddess. It would grow like real hair but, he said, would be even better because it would be made of real gold. Thor agreed to let Loki go, but the trickster knew that the punishment would be severe if he could not deliver on his promise.^[3]

A group of dwarves, the sons of Ivaldi, created new hair for Sif that was as lovely and realistic as Loki had promised. They also gave him two additional gifts to take to the gods of Asgard. Loki, who always tried to get the upper hand, realized that he might be able to bring even more gifts back from the dwarves. The more wonders he could deliver to the gods, the more good will he would earn from them.^[3]

So the trickster went to two brothers, Brokkr and Sindri, with the three remarkable items he had been given. He bet the two that they could not create gifts for the gods that would match these in quality and beauty. Loki was so confident that he bet his own head again the skill of the dwarves. Of course, he intended to cheat Brokkr and Sindri out of their work.^[3]

As Brokkr worked the forge, a fly bit him on the arm. Undeterred, he made a boar with golden hair. As the brother made a magical golden ring, the fly bit one of them on the neck. Although the bite was painful, he was not distracted from his work. When the two began to create their final gift, the fly bit Brokkr’s forehead. Blood dripped into his eyes, clouding his vision as he worked. The fly was Loki in disguise. By blinding Brokkr, he felt sure that he had won the bet.^[3]

Mjölnir, their final creation, was an amazing weapon. It could strike any surface without breaking, would always hit its target, and when thrown would return to the user’s hand after it struck. However, because Brokkr had been blinded by the fly’s bite, the hammer’s handle was slightly too short. The weapon was powerful and embued with strong magic, but it was slightly off balance.^[3]

Loki returned to Asgard and happily presented the gods with his gifts. Thor accepted Sif’s new hair and Mjölnir, forgiving Loki for his previous crime. Soon, Brokkr and Sindri came to Asgard to collect their prize. They were certain that the gods would be pleased with their gifts and they would win the right to cut off Loki’s head. Loki argued that Mjölnir was slightly imperfect, so the brothers had actually lost the bet. The gods disagreed; Thor was so pleased with Mjölnir that he agreed to give the dwarves Loki’s head. A final act of trickery saved Loki from a beheading. He said that he had told the dwarves that they could take his head but not any of his neck. The dwarves and the gods talked at length about how to determine where Loki’s head began and his neck ended, but no clear division could be seen. Because they could not take even a fraction of his neck, the dwarves were forced to give up their claim to Loki’s head. As a compromise, the gods allowed Brokkr and Sindri to sew Loki’s lips together with a piece of leather. While he kept his head, Loki learned that his clever words could have serious consequences.^[3]

References

[1] https://mythology.net/norse/norse-concepts/mjolnir/

[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mjölnir

[3] https://mythologysource.com/mjolnir-thors-hammer/