| Idunn | |
|---|---|
 | |
|
Other Names |
Idhunn, Idunn, Idun, or Ithun |
|
First Appearance |
Norse Myth |
|
Created by |
Unknown |
Origin[]
Bragi sitting playing the harp, Iðunn standing behind him (1846) by Nils Blommér
In Norse mythology, Iðunn is a goddess associated with apples and youth. Iðunn is attested in the Poetic Edda, compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional sources, and the Prose Edda, written in the 13th century by Snorri Sturluson. In both sources, she is described as the wife of the skaldic god Bragi, and in the Prose Edda, also as a keeper of apples and granter of eternal youthfulness.
The Prose Edda relates how Loki was once forced by the jötunn Þjazi to lure Iðunn out of Asgard and into a wood with the promise of apples even fairer than her own. Þjazi, in the form of an eagle, abducts Iðunn from the wood, bearing her off to his home. Iðunn's absence causes the gods to grow old and grey, and they realize that Loki is responsible for her disappearance. Under duress, Loki promises to bring her back and, setting out in the form of a falcon, eventually finds her alone at Þjazi's home. He turns her into a nut and flies back toward Asgard.
When Þjazi returns to find Iðunn gone, he assumes his eagle form once more and flies off in hot pursuit of Loki and his precious burden. The gods build a pyre in the courtyard of Asgard and, just as Loki has stopped short of it, kindle it. Unable to halt his frenzied onrush, Þjazi plunges headlong through the fire, falling to the ground with his feathers aflame, whereupon the gods attack and kill him.
In the first opera, Das Rheingold (1869), which has some basis in Gylfaginning, Fafner and his brother Fasolt try to kidnap the goddess Freia, a composite of the goddesses Freyja and Iðunn, who has been promised to them by Wotan, the king of the gods, in exchange for building the castle Valhalla. Fasolt is in love with her while Fafner wants her as without her golden apples the gods will lose their youth.
Loki and Idun (1911) by John Bauer
Public Domain Appearances[]
All published appearances of Idunn from before January 1, 1930 are public domain in the US.
Some notable appearances are listed below:
Public Domain Literary Appearances[]
- Poetic Edda
- Prose Edda
- Das Rheingold (1869)