Hymir- Norse GiantGiant

The Cauldron Quest

The Hymiskviða opens with the gods needing a cauldron vast enough to brew ale for all the Æsir at Ægir's hall. Týr tells Thor that his father Hymir owns one a league deep, the only vessel large enough. The two gods travel to Hymir's hall at the edge of heaven.

Týr's mother welcomes them and warns them to hide. Hymir is ill-tempered toward guests. When the giant returns from hunting, the pillar his gaze falls upon shatters. Eight cauldrons crash from the rafters and break. Only the great brewing vessel survives. Hymir offers hospitality and slaughters three oxen for the evening meal. Thor eats two of them himself.

The Fishing Expedition

The next morning Thor and Hymir go fishing. Thor tears the head off Hymir's largest ox, Himinhríóðr, to use as bait. The giant says nothing kind about this. They row far past Hymir's usual fishing grounds, and Thor casts his line with the ox head.

Jörmungandr takes the bait. The Midgard Serpent rises, and Thor braces his feet so hard against the bottom of the boat that the planks break and his soles press against the ocean floor. He raises Mjölnir. Hymir, white with terror at the serpent and the sea pouring into the boat, cuts the line with a knife. Jörmungandr sinks back into the deep. Thor knocks Hymir overboard with his fist.

The Goblet and the Cauldron

Back at the hall, Hymir challenges Thor to break his enchanted goblet. Thor hurls it at the stone pillars. The pillars crack; the goblet does not. Týr's mother whispers the secret: the goblet can only shatter against Hymir's own skull. Thor throws it at the giant's forehead, and the goblet splits apart while Hymir's head holds.

The gods take the cauldron. As Thor and Týr carry it away, Hymir rallies a host of giants to pursue them. Thor sets the cauldron down, turns, and kills Hymir and his company with Mjölnir. The cauldron reaches Ægir's hall.