Nibelungenhort- Germanic ArtifactArtifact

The Cursed Treasure

When the gods killed Otr and owed his father Hreidmar a blood-price, the payment came from the dwarf Andvari's hoard. The gods stripped Andvari of everything, down to his last ring. As it left his hand, Andvari cursed the gold: it would destroy everyone who held it. The Reginsmál records his words. No owner would enjoy it. No heir would keep it in peace.

From Dwarf to Dragon

Hreidmar had the gold for one night before his son Fafnir murdered him and dragged the treasure to Gnita-heath. Fafnir lay on the hoard in the shape of a dragon, and there he stayed until the smith Regin sent his foster-son Sigurd to kill the beast. Regin was Fafnir's brother. He planned to take the gold for himself once Sigurd had done the work. Sigurd killed Fafnir, tasted the dragon's blood, and heard the birds say that Regin meant to kill him next. So Sigurd cut off Regin's head and rode away with everything.

The Ring and the Deception

In the Nibelungenlied, the hoard's destruction works through a stolen ring. Siegfried subdues Brunhild while invisible beneath the Tarnkappe, acting as proxy for the weaker Gunther. During the struggle he takes Brunhild's ring and belt as trophies and gives them to his wife Kriemhild. When the two queens quarrel over precedence, Kriemhild produces the ring and belt as proof that it was Siegfried, not Gunther, who conquered Brunhild. Brunhild's honor is shattered. Hagen murders Siegfried to protect his king's reputation.

Sunk in the Rhine

After Siegfried's death, the hoard passes to Kriemhild as her inheritance. She distributes gold freely to win followers until Hagen seizes the entire treasure and sinks it in the Rhine. The Nibelungenhort vanishes beneath the waters. Kriemhild's fury at losing both husband and hoard drives her to marry Etzel and lure the Burgundians to annihilation at his court. By the final bloodbath, every figure connected to the treasure lies dead. The gold sits at the bottom of the Rhine, beyond anyone's reach.