Page:The Finding of Wineland the Good.djvu/34

 Karlsefnis oc Snorra Þorbrandzsonar '], although it is not apparent whether he himself invented this title, or derived it from some now unknown source.

The Saga of Thorfinn Karlsefni was written by three different persons; the first portion is in a hand commonly ascribed to Hauk's so-called ' first Icelandic secretary.' On p. 99, 1. 14, the ink and the hand change, and beginning with the words Eirikr svarar vel, the chirography is Hauk's own, as is readily apparent from a comparison with the autographic letter of 1302, already referred to. Hauk's own work continues throughout this and the following page, ceasing at the end of the second line on p. 100, with the words kglliihu i Hóþt, where he gives place to a new scribe, his so-called ' second Icelandic secretary.' Hauk, however, again resumes the pen on the back of p. loi, and himself concludes the saga. Two of the leaves upon which the saga is written are of an irregular shape, and there are holes in two other leaves; these defects were, however, present in the vellum from the beginning, so that they in no wise affect the integrity of the text; on the other hand the lower right-hand corner of p. 99 has become badly blackened, and is, in consequence, partially illegible, as is also the left-hand corner of p. loi; similarly pp. 100 and loi [back] are somewhat indistinct, but, in the original, still not undecipherable. Initial letters are inserted in red and blue, and the sub-titles in red ink, which has sadly faded. There are three paginations, of which the latest, in red, is the one here adopted.

The genealogy appended to the saga has been brought down to Hauk's own time, and Hauk therein traces his ancestry to Karlsefni's Wineland-born son. By means of this genealogical list we are enabled to determine, approximately, the date of this transcript of the original saga, for we read in this list of Hallbera, 'Abbess of Reyniness,' and since we know that Hallbera was not consecrated abbess until the year 1299, it becomes at once apparent that the saga could not have been completed before that year. This conclusion is corroborated by additional evidence furnished by this ancestral list, for in this list Hauk has given himself his title 'herra.' As has been stated, Hauk is first accorded this title in 1305, he is last mentioned without the title in 1304; which fact not only confirms the conclusion already reached, but enables us to advance the date, prior to which the transcript of the saga could not have been concluded, to 1304. It is not so easy to determine positively when the saga was finished. As Hauk's own hand brings the saga to a conclusion, it is evident that it must have been completed before, or not later than, the year 1334, the year of his death. If we accept the words of the genealogical list literally, it would appear that Hauk wrote this list not many years before his