Was rewatching ep 4 s2 of Ragnarok and I lost my fucking mind (again) at the whole Laurits giving birth to the Jörmungandr like that was so incredible I don’t think I’ll ever get over it. The way they made it fitting to a modern world sense, it’s just fucking insane
Everyone's favourite characters from Ragnarok being like one of the main characters and then there's me with Little O (andlauritsslashlokicauseobviouslybutLITTLEOLOOKATTHISLILNOTSOLILGUY)
Often depicted in complex, coiled Norse knotwork is the Jörmungandr – the tempestuous Midgard serpent of the World Sea and a herald of the final battle to come – Ragnarök. Jörmungandr is a sea serpent of colossal size who encircles the world at the borders of the oceans, biting his tail and thus encompassing the world within his confines. It is when Jörmungandr releases his tail that the world will end. In this sense he holds the world together in structural balance and the shirking of his duties leaves the world in chaos in both a real and symbolic sense. The imagery of the Midgard serpent is similar to the larger, cross-cultural Ouroboros – a mystical symbol of a serpent or snake eating its tail – an icon of destruction, rebirth and the endless cycle between.
This Viking Shield is sturdily built and crafted from thick and robust wood. It is hand-painted with an intricate Norse knotwork featuring entwined serpents and at its center is a steel shield boss to protect the hand. The shield is rimmed in steel for additional durability and hand a wooden grip bar on its reverse.
Aksel Jørgensen (Feb 3., 1883 - 1957) was a Danish, largely autodidact artist, who still rose to the position of professor at the Royal Academy which he held for over 30 years. His students included Asger Jorn, Albert Mertz, Bjørn Wiinblad, Gerhard Sausmark, Ib Spang Olsen, Palle Nielsen, a.m.o.
Jørgensen mastered the woodcut technique and his first works depicted life in a working class neighborhood in Copenhagen whose drunkards, brawlers, prostitutes and entertainers he loved to sketch. Later he refined his woodcuts even more in an Art Nouveau style, as witnessed by this work - one of the illustrations for Oehlenschlæger’s poem, The Norse Gods.
Above: Thor og Midgårdsormen, 1919 - woodcut (SMK)