Grotti- Norse ArtifactArtifact
Also known as: Grótti
Domains
Description
A magic mill that grinds out whatever its owner commands. King Fróði used it to produce gold and peace, but when the enslaved giantesses Fenja and Menja turned it in vengeance, it ground out an invading army.
Mythology & Lore
Fróði's Peace
King Fróði of Denmark acquired two giantesses, Fenja and Menja, as slaves during a visit to Sweden. He owned a millstone called Grotti, so massive no human could turn it. The giantesses could. Fróði set them to grinding gold and peace, and for a time Denmark knew an age without theft or drawn swords. Gold lay unguarded on the roads.
But Fróði allowed them no rest, not even a pause longer than the cuckoo's silence. Fenja and Menja chanted songs of their giant lineage as the stones turned faster. They stopped grinding wealth. They ground out vengeance: the sea-king Mýsingr and his warband, who fell upon Fróði's hall and killed the king.
The Salt and the Sea
Mýsingr took Grotti aboard his ships and set the giantesses to grinding salt. When they asked how much, he told them to keep grinding. They ground through the night until the ship sank under the weight. In the Grottason̈gr, the mill still turns on the ocean floor. The sea is salt because of it.
Relationships
- Associated with