In Norse
mythology, Hel is a being who presides over a realm of the same name,
where she receives a portion of the dead. Hel 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 addition, she is
mentioned in poems recorded in Heimskringla and Egils saga that date from the
9th and 10th centuries, respectively. An episode in the Latin work Gesta
Danorum, written in the 12th century by Saxo Grammaticus, is generally
considered to refer to Hel, and Hel may appear on various Migration Period
bracteates.
In the Poetic
Edda, Prose Edda, and Heimskringla, Hel is referred to as a daughter of Loki,
and to "go to Hel" is to die.
In the Prose Edda book Gylfaginning, Hel is described as having been appointed
by the god Odin as ruler of a realm of the same name, located in Niflheim. In
the same source, her appearance is described as half blue and half
flesh-colored and further as having a gloomy, downcast appearance. The Prose
Edda details that Hel rules over vast mansions with many servants in her
underworld realm and plays a key role in the attempted resurrection of the god
Baldr.
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