Bibliotheca Arnamagnæana - 01.06.2005, Page 332
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Johannes B. Sigtryggsson
The defining variant that divides the manuscripts A4-7 from the others is
that nearly all of chapter 23 (232'34, present in A2 and A3; lacuna in A') is
missing from A4"7, and that also goes for 124. Other variants that differ-
entiate the groups, listed in Slay 1997:xliv, are also shared by 124:10
1.3 j heidnum sid einn A1] heidinn, enn var po A4-7,124.
1.4-5 Hann - landi A1] 4- A4 7,124.
1.15 goliggh yfir liz A1].. lios A4 (space and dots in ms), yfrid lios A5,
lios A6'7,124.
1.19 klerkar A1] + på peir preittu vid hana A4'7,124.
1.21 Pessi fylgdi natura hennar mali at hon giordiz grim ok riklynd
svo A1] Brigidda drottning hafdi oc malsnilld so mikla and + af
pvf hun var so riklundud later in the sentence A4'7,124.
1.25-6 sendo (MS sendi) henni eigi pegar hon giordi eptir A1] feingi hun
(+ pær A5) ecki A4'5’7,124; -f A6.
1.28 gnot fiar ok annars veraldar fagnadar A1] aud fiår oc miklar
(margar A5'6) giersemar A4'7,124.
This means that A4-7 and 124 definitely go back to a lost common inter-
mediary, x in the stemma above. The lost intermediary y is less certain
than x, because it is primarily defined by four fairly extensive omis-
sions in A4, A6 and A7, see Slay 1997:xlviii, while shared secondary read-
ings in these three manuscripts are remarkably few (Slay 1997:xlix).
The four omissions are also found in 124 (the missing text at 18.5 be-
ing, however, supplied in a different hånd); and in those cases where A4
and A6’7 have common innovations against A'/A2,3 and A5, 124 agrees
with A4 and A6,7. It follows that if A4 and A6,7 go back to x through a lost
common intermediary y, this is also true of 124.11
Next we may examine the interrelation between the y group and 124.
It is clear from the following variants that 124 is not derived from A4
(cf. Slay 1997:xlix):
6.5 er hann hafdi A1; A5'7, 724]-rA4.
7.21 pessi villo A1; villo pessi (pessari A6-7,124) A5'7,124] villu med
pier A4.
7.36 j(arl) A1; Hermann jarl A5'7,124] Mfrmann jali A4.
7.46 pa (og A5'7) munum vær A1; A5'7, og mun um vi er 124] -4- A4.
10 All variants, except those taken by me from 124, are from Slay (1997).
11 If the evidence for y is accepted, a better numbering of the sigla would be A4 for Slay’s
A5 and vice versa.