the Icelander finally tells this saga during the Christmas holidays while men are
drinking.
On the thirteenth day, when the story had been finished earlier in the day, the king
said:
‘Aren’t you curious to know, Icelander,’ he asked, ‘what I think of the story?’
‘I am afraid to ask, sire,’ he said.
The king said: ‘I am very pleased with it. It is perfectly faithful to the actual
events. Who taught you the story?’
He replied: ‘It was my custom out in Iceland to go to the thingmeeting every
summer, and every summer I learned something of the story from Halldórr
Snorrason.’
‘Then it is not surprising,’ said the king, ‘that you know the story well, and it will
turn out to your benefit. You are welcome to stay with me whenever you wish.’Although this account may not be historically accurate, it may still be used as a valuable
source of information about the custom of sagnaskemtan. The telling of stories was
evidently a well-known pastime at festive occasions, and it was known to have taken
place both at the Norwegian court and at Icelandic thingmeetings. Furthermore, it
appears to have been of some importance that the saga was not only entertaining but also
historically accurate, at least if it concerned a still living king such as Harald. This is
obviously why the Icelander refers to Halldórr Snorrason as his source, because Halldórr
was known to have been the king’s closest and most trusted companion during his stay
in Constantinople. Finally, we can learn from this source that an Icelander visiting the
Norwegian court could improve his situation and his social status by being a good
storyteller. This could well have been a major incentive for the production of sagas, oral
as well as written. Quite a few Icelandic saga manuscripts have in fact been preserved in
Norway, where they were probably read aloud, particularly at court and in aristocratic
surroundings.
Another interesting description of saga entertainment is found in a description
of a prominent wedding that is known to have taken place at the Icelandic farm of
Reykjahólar in 1119 :
And now there was much merriment and happiness, good entertainment and many
kinds of games, dancing as well as wrestling and saga entertainment (sagnaskemtan)... People have told, although this is hardly a matter of importance, who provided
the entertainment and how it was done. Such tales were told which now many
people object to and pretend not to have known, for many are ignorant about truth
and believe in lies while they cast doubt upon facts. Hrólfr from Skálmarnes told
the saga about Hröngviðr the Viking and Oláfr Líðsmanna King and how Thráinn
the Berserk broke into the burial mound and about Hrómundr Gripsson – and
several verses were included. This saga was used for King Sverre’s entertainment,
and he said that such lying sagas were the most enjoyable. And yet people know
how to trace their ancestry back to Hrómundr Gripsson! Hrólf himself had com-
posed this saga. Ingimundr, the priest, told the saga of Ormr Barreyjasrskáld
including many verses and at the end of the saga a good poem that Ingimundr had
made – and yet many wise men hold this saga to be true.
–– chapter 23: The Icelandic sagas––