![]() He accompanied Odin through all his battles and journeys, taking him across the nine realms at an incomparable speed. Sleipnir was gifted by Loki to Odin, the King of the Aesir gods. Bred from a god and a giant’s stallion, Sleipnir was thus born with the ability to transcend the nine realms of the world, his eight legs long and strong to cover ground and paddle in the water, while his winged body took flight with ease. Loki transformed into a beautiful mare, successfully drawing Svadilfari away from his master, who eventually could not complete his mission without the help of his magical horse. In order to prevent the master of Svadilfari, the magical horse, from completing the wall around Asgard and earning the hand of Goddess Freya, Loki lured Svadilfari into mating. Said to be the most powerful steed to exist in Norse mythology, Sleipnir was born from unusual and extraordinary circumstances. An impressive release, it’s hard to imagine a better looking numismatic depiction of this legendary horse and its iconic rider. It’s a neat contrast to the more realistic style (well, as realistic as an eight-legged horse gets…) and is a fine looking piece in its own right. The obverse carries a stylised depiction of Sleipnir in the Norse style, and of Yggdrasil. Everywhere you look, there’s something new to see. Yggdrasil, the famed ‘World Tree’ of Norse mythology is wrapped into and around everything. Odins ravens are following him, and there are nods to all nine realms in the background around the edge. There’s so much packed into this coin that even its 80 mm diameter struggles to contain it. Odin’s eight-legged horse, Sleipnir, is the subject of choice and the vision of Odin charging into battle on horseback is one of the best Viking coins we’ve seen to date. With no more oaths restraining them, the Gods called upon Thor to pay the giant the wage he deserved: a fatal blow from Thor’s hammer Mjolnir, which shattered the giant's skull into fragments and sent him down to the darkest recesses of Helheim.Precious Metal Collectors Week continues with this gorgeous Norse mythology themed release in the producers Bi-Metal Plus format, this time with 2ozs silver over 11.5 ozs of copper. The Aesir now had definitive proof that the builder was a giant in disguise. The builder fell into a mighty rage, revealing himself as a jotun and verbally abusing the Gods for their trickery. When morning came, the builder’s horse was still missing, and the now-despairing builder knew that there was no way that he could now finish the wall in time. His part in the bargain would go incomplete and he would receive no payment. All night long, the three tore through the woods. The mare ran into woods with the stallion close behind, and the builder chased after the two of them, trying to catch the stallion. He tore apart his harness and chased after the mare. When Svaðilfari saw the mare, he went wild with desire. That evening, as the builder drove Svaðilfari out for more stones, Loki, in the guise of a mare, ran out from the woods towards the stallion and neighed at him. Loki pleaded with the Gods to spare his life, and swore an oath that he would prevent the builder from finishing the wall, come what may. The Gods threatened Loki with death if he couldn’t find a way to prevent the builder from finishing his task and making off with their beloved Goddess Freya, the sun and moon. By night, the builder hauled the stones with Svaðilfari, and by day, he set the stones in place. What was even more perplexing was that the builder’s stallion, Svadilfari (“Unlucky Traveler”) seemed to be doing almost twice as much work as the builder himself. ![]() The Gods were marveled at how quickly the structure was raised. Oaths were made and the builder began the constructing the wall. Much to everyone surprise, the builder agreed, as long as he could use his stallion, Svaðilfari, to help him on the job and that the Gods swore unbreakable oaths to ensure that, if their conditions were met, they would fulfill their end of the bargain, and that he himself would be safe in Asgard while he worked. ![]() The builder's payment would be forfeit if the job were not completed by the end of the season. ![]() Under Loki’s counteroffer, the builder would receive his payment only if he completed the job in a single winter and did so without assistance from any man. He proposed a counteroffer for the builder, which he managed to convince the Gods to agree upon. Freyja was understandably adamantly against the builder’s terms from the start, and the Gods had no intention of going against the beloved Freya’s wishes. It was Loki, as always, who came with a cunning plan for the situation. ![]()
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