Post by adreannaTal{fb} on Dec 5, 2010 4:16:34 GMT -5
2. What is the Thing? Describe it in detail.
Overview and Historical Basis
Although more than an entire chapter in Marauders was devoted to The Thing, Norman otherwise wrote rather superficially about what took place at this event (eg: the high-Jarl being mentioned yet with no other specifics of how He came to that post)...leaving it to the reader to search deeper into the parts of Earth's history and culture that inspired Norman as he wrote the novels in order to fill in the remaining details. In so doing, this also gives us insight into the lives and culture of the Torvaldslanders themselves.
In the information presented under this topic, we have provided the supporting book quotes wherever possible. For the remainder, there is a very good essay at the following url The Thing Fair providing the basis for what seems to be generally accepted in the Gorean community about The Thing, including the following definition of event itself:
"The Thing is an annual celebration held in Torvaldsland, during which all of the shieldmen of the various Great Jarls travel to the Hall of their particular leader, submit their weaponry for inspection, and formally repledge their oaths of loyalty. The Thing usually occupies a span of from three to five days, and occurs sometime during the middle of the ninth Gorean month (mid-November), varying according to such factors as weather and the current political situation."
Although the main purpose of the Thing was the uniting of peoples and the overseeing of laws, it later became a major cultural event, drawing together entire families and guests from all regions of Gor to discuss common interests, share and learn new skills, and provide a place for craftsmen and merchants to show and sell their wares, including the sale of slaves. There were also contests of skill and strength for which prizes were awarded.
Required Attendance at The Thing
All Free Men of Torvaldsland were required to attend The Thing. The only exception was for those farmers who farmed alone and could not leave their fields unattended. Men would often bring their families and slaves along as well, and the Free of other cities south of Torvaldsland were also invited to attend.
"Most of the men at the thing were free farmers, blond-haired, blue-eyed and proud, men with strong limbs and work-roughened hands; many wore braided hair; many wore talmits of their district; for the thing their holiday best had been donned; many wore heavy woolen jackets, scrubbed with water and bosk urine, which contains ammonia as its cleaning agent; all were armed, usually with an ax or sword; some wore their helmets; others had them, with their shields, slung at their back."
~Marauders of Gor, pg 142
"At the thing, to which each free man must come, unless he work his farm alone and cannot leave it, each man must be present, for the inspection of his Jarl's officer, a helmet, shield and either sword or ax or spear, in good condition. Each man, generally, save he in the direct hire of the Jarl, is responsible for the existence and condition of his own equipment and weapons. A man in direct fee with the Jarl is, in effect, a mercenary; the Jarl himself, from his gold, and stores, where necessary or desirable, arms the man; this expense, of course, is seldom necessary in Torvaldsland; sometimes, however, a man may break a sword or lose an ax in battle, perhaps in the body of a foe, falling from a ship; in such a case the Jarl would make good the loss; he is not responsible for similar losses, however, among free farmers."
~Marauders of Gor, pg 142
"Those farmers who do not attend the thing, being the sole workers on their farms, must, nonetheless, maintain the regulation armament; once annually it is to be presented before a Jarl's officer, who, for this purpose, visits various districts. When the war arrow is carried, of course, all free men are to respond; in such a case the farm may suffer, and his companion and children know great hardship; in leaving his family, the farmer, weapons upon his shoulder, speaks simply to them. “The war arrow has been carried to my house,” he tells them."
~Marauders of Gor, pg 142
"On the wooden dais, draped in purple, set on the contest fields, in heavy, carved chairs, sat Svein Blue Tooth and his woman Bear. Both wore their finery. About them, some on the dais, and some below it, stood his high officers, and his men of law, his counselors, his captains, and the chief men from his scattered farms and holdings; too, much in evidence, were more than four hundred of his men-at-arms. In the crowd, too, in their white robes, were rune-priests."
~Marauders of Gor, pgs 181-182
"We saw, too, may chieftains, and captains, and minor Jarls, in the crowd, each with his retinue. These high men were sumptuously garbed, richly cloaked and helmeted, often with great axes, inlaid with gold. Their cloaks were usually scarlet or purple, long and swirling, and held with golden clasps. They wore them, always, as is common in Torvaldsland, in such a way that the right arm, the sword arm, is free. Their men, too, often wore cloaks, and, about their arms, spiral rings of gold and silver, and, on their wrists, jewel-studded bands."
~Marauders of Gor, pg 142-143
"In the crowd, too, I saw some merchants, though few of them, in their white and gold. I saw, too, four slavers, perfumed, in their robes of blue and yellow silk, come north to buy women. I saw, by the cut of their robes, they were from distant Turia."
~Marauders of Gor, pg 153
"I saw, too, in the crowd, a physician, in green robes, from Ar and a scribe from Cos. These cities are not on good terms but they, civilized men, both in the far north, conversed affably."
~Marauders of Gor, pg 153
"In the crowd, too, much in evidence, were brazen bond-maids; they had been brought to the thing, generally, by captains and Jarls; it is not unusual for men to bring such slaves with them, though they are not permitted near the law courts or the assemblies of deliberation; the voyages to the thing were not, after all, ventures for raiding; they were not enterprises of warfare; there were three reasons for bringing such girls; they were for the pleasure of the men; they served, as display objects, to indicate the wealth of their masters; and they could be bought and sold."
~Marauders of Gor, pg 143
"The Forkbeard had brought with him, too, some bond-maids. They followed us. Their eyes were bright; their steps were eager; they had been long isolated on the farm; rural slave girls, the Forkbeard's wenches, they were fantastically stimulated to see the crowds; they looked upon the thing-fields with pleasure and excitement; even had they been permitted, some of them, to look upon certain of the contests. It is said that such pleasures improve a female slave."
~Marauders of Gor, pg 143
"We saw thralls, too, in the crowd, and rune-priests, with long hair, in white robes, a spiral ring of gold on their left arms, about their waist a bag of omen chips, pieces of wood soaked in the blood of the sacrificial bosk, slain to open the thing; these chips are thrown like dice, sometimes several times, and are then read by the priests; the thing-temple, in which the ring of the temple is kept, is made of wood; nearby, in a grove, hung from poles, were the bodies of six bosk, one of them the ceremonial bosk, six tarsk, and six verr; in past days, it is my understanding, there might have been hung there, in place of the six verr, six thralls; it had been decided, however, a generation ago, by one of the rare meetings of the high council of rune-priests, attended by the high rune-priest of each district, that thralls should no longer be sacrificed; this was not defended, however, on grounds of the advance of civilization, or such, but rather on the grounds that thralls, like urts and tiny, six-toed tharlarion, were not objects worthy of sacrifice"
~Marauders of Gor, pg 152
"The Forkbeard had bought one thrall with him, the young man, Tarsk, who, even now, followed in the retinue of the Forkbeard; it was thought that if the Forkbeard should purchase a crate of sleen fur or a chest of bog iron the young man, on his shoulders, might then bear it back to our tent, pitched among other tents, at the thing."
~Marauders of Gor, page 153
"Peace" of the Thing
Acts of violence were prohibited at The Thing. No man could be captured, killed, or detained for any crime, including outlawry. (Note that this prohibition did not include duels, which are described in a later section). Rune priests helped keep the Peace by overseeing the event and reminding the people that to invite trouble to The Thing was to invite trouble from the gods, who were always watching.
"I carried my short sword. I carried, too, the great bow, unstrung, with quiver of arrows. The Forkbeard, too, and his men, were armed. Blows are not to be struck at the thing, but not even the law of the thing, with all its might, would have the temerity to advise the man of Torvaldsland to arrive or move about unarmed. The man of Torvaldsland never leaves his house unless he is armed; and, within his house, his weapons are always near at hand, usually hung on the wall behind his couch, at least a foot beyond the reach of a bond-maid whose ankle is chained."
~Marauders of Gor, pg 141
“That you have disguised yourself tells us,” said the Blue Tooth, “that you are outlaw.”
Ivar looked at him, as though startled at his perception. “But the peace of the thing is upon you,” said Svein Blue Tooth. “You are safe among us. Do not fear, great Champion. We meet here not to threaten you, but to do you honor. Be not afraid, for the peace of the thing is upon you, as on all men here.”
~Marauders of Gor, pgs 183-184
"The peace of the thing," said the Blue Tooth, "and the peace of my house, for the time of the thing, is upon you. This I have sworn. This I uphold." There was much cheering. The Forkbeard beamed. "I knew it would be so, my Jarl," he said. The high rune-priest lowered the temple ring."
~Marauders of Gor, pg 189
Competitions, Games, and Events
There are 12 contests mentioned in Marauders as being events held at The Thing, including Archery, Swimming, Grappling, Mast Climbing, Spear throwing, Walking the Oar, Jumping the crevice, Bat and ball, Singing, Poetry composition, Rhyming, and Riddle-Guessing. Several of these are described in detail with their supporting quotes (see below).
There was also a separate contest held for slaves, a type of "beauty" contest that involved walking a platform before the crowds.
"Roped together by the waist, on the turf of the thing-fair, we grappled. His body slipped in my hand. I felt my right wrist drawn back, at the side of my head, his two hands closed on it. He grunted. He was strong. He was Ketil, of Blue Tooth's high farm, champion of Torvaldsland. My back began to bend backward; I braced myself as I could, right leg back, bent, left leg forward, bent. The men about cried out. I heard bets taken, speculations exchanged. Then my right wrist, to cries of wonder, began to lift and straighten; my arm was then straight, before my body; I began, inch by inch, to lower it toward the ground; if he did retain his grip, he would, at my feet, be forced to his knees. He released my wrist with a cry of fury. The rope between us, a yard in length, pulled taut. He regarded me, astonished, wary, enraged. I heard hands striking the left shoulders; weapons struck on shields."
~Marauders of Gor, pg 138
"I turned about and saw the Forkbeard. His hair was wet; he was drying his body in a cloak. He was grinning. "Greetings Thorgeir of Ax Glacier", said I. "Greetings, Red Hair," said he. ... "How went the swimming?" I asked him. "The talmit of skin of sea sleen is mine!" he laughed. ... That Thorgeir of Ax Glacier had won the swimming must have seemed strange indeed to those of the thing-fair. Immersion in the waters of the Ax Glacier country, unprotected, will commonly bring about death by shock, within a matter of Ihn."
~Marauders of Gor, pg 139
"Much speculation had coursed among the contest fields as to the true identity of the smooth-shaven Thorgeir. Prior to his winning the swimming he had won talmits for climbing the "mast," a tall pole of needle wood, some fifty feet high, smoothed and peeled; for jumping the "crevice," actually a broad jump, on level land, where marks are made with strings, to the point at which the back heel strikes the earth; walking the "oar," actually, a long pole; and throwing the spear, a real spear I am pleased to say, both for distance and accuracy; counting the distance and the accuracy of the spear events as two events, which they are, he had thus, prior to the swimming, won five talmits. He had done less well in the singing contest, though he had much prided himself on his singing voice; he thought, in that one, the judges had been against him; he did not score highly either in the composition of poetry contest, nor in the rhyming games; "I am not a skald," he explained to me later; he did much better, I might mention, in the riddle guessing; but not well enough to win; he missed the following riddle; "What is black, has eighty legs and eats gold?"; the answer, though it might not seem obvious, was Black Sleen, the ship of Thorgard of Scagnar; the Forkbeard's answer had been Black Shark, the legendary ship of Torvald, reputed discoverer and first Jarl of Torvaldsland; he acknowledged his defeat in this contest, however, gracefully; "I was a fool," he grumbled to me. "I should have known!"
~Marauders of Gor pgs 139-140
"Perhaps the most serious incident of the contests had occurred in one of the games of bat and ball; in this contest there are two men on each side, and the object is to keep the ball out of the hands of the other team; no one man may hold the ball for more than the referee's count of twenty; he may, however, throw it into the air, provided it is thrown over his head, and catch it again himself; the ball may be thrown to the partner, or struck to him with the bat; the bat of course, drives the ball with incredible force; the bats are of heavy wood, rather broad, and the ball, about two inches in diameter, is also of wood, and extremely hard; this is something like a game of "keep away" with two men in the middle. I was pleased that I was not involved in the play. Shortly after the first "knock off," in which the ball is served to the enemy, Gorm, who was Ivar's partner, was struck cold with the ball, it driven from an opponent's bat; this, I gathered, is a common trick; it is very difficult to intercept or protect oneself from a ball struck at one with great speed from a short distance; it looked quite bad for Ivar at this point, until one of his opponents, fortunately, broke his leg, it coming into violent contact with Ivar's bat. This contest was called a draw. Ivar then asked me to be his partner. I declined. "It is all right," said Ivar, "even the bravest of men may decline a contest of bat-and-ball." I acceded to his judgment. There are various forms of ball games enjoyed by the men of Torvaldsland; some use bats, or paddles; in the winter, one such game quite popular, is played, men running and slipping about, on ice; whether there is any remote connection between this game and ice hockey, I do not know; it is, however, ancient in Torvaldsland; Torvald himself, in the sagas, is said to have been skilled at it."
~Marauders of Gor, pgs 140-141
"The target in the shooting was about six inches in width, at a range of about one hundred yards. With the great bow, the peasant bow, this is not difficult work. Many marksmen, warriors, peasants, rencers, could have matched my shooting. It was, of course, quite unusual in Torvaldsland. I put twenty sheaf arrows into the target, until it bristled with wood and the feathers of the Vosk gull."
~Marauders of Gor, pg 167
"Send that one to the platform!" cried out a farmer, indicating Gunnhild.
"To the platform!" roared Ivar Forkbeard. He tore away her kirtle. Soon she, barefoot, was climbing the wooden steps to the platform. This is a wooden walkway, about five feet wide and one hundred yards long. On the walkway, back and forth, smiling, looking one way and then the other, turning about, parade stripped bond-maids. They are not for sale, though many are sold from the platform. The platform is instituted for the pleasure of the free men. It is not unanalogous to the talmit competitions, though no talmit is awarded. There are judges, usually minor Jarls and slavers. No judge, incidentally, is female. No female is regarded as competent to judge a female's beauty; only a man, it is said, can do that.
"Smile, you she-sleen!" roared the Forkbeard. Gunnhild smiled, and walked.
No free woman, of course, would even think of entering such a contest. All who walk on such a platform are slave girls. At last only Gunnhild and the "silk girl," she who had worn the earrings, walked on the platform. And it was Gunnhild who was thrown the pastry, to the delight of the crowds, shouting, pounding their spear blades on their wooden shields.
"Who owns her?" called the chief judge. "I do!" called the Forkbeard. He was given a silver tarn disk as a prize.
~Marauders of Gor, pgs 153-154
Prizes and Awards
"How went the swimming?" I asked him. "The talmit of skin of sea sleen is mine!" he laughed. The talmit is a headband. It is not unusual for the men of Torvaldsland to wear them, though none of Forkbeard's men did. They followed an outlaw. Some talmits have special significance. Special talmits sometimes distinguish officers, and Jarls; or a district's lawmen, in the pay of the Jarl; different districts, too, sometimes have different styles of talmit, varying in their material and design; talmits, too, can be awarded as prizes."
~Marauders of Gor, pg 139
"Ivar Forkbeard, or Thorgeir of Ax Glacier, as we might call him, had won, all told, including the swimming talmit, six talmits. He was much pleased. In the morning talmits would be awarded personally by the hand of Svein Blue Tooth".
~Marauders of Gor, pg 141
"Win Leah, Master!" I heard. I looked upon her, and she looked upon me. She stood on a thick, rounded block; it was about a yard high, and five feet in diameter; she was dark-haired, long-haired; she had a short, luscious body, thick ankles; her hands were on her hips. "Win Leah, Master!" she challenged. She was naked, except for the Torvaldsland collar of black iron on her neck, with its projecting ring, and the heavy chain padlocked about her right ankle; the chain was about a yard long; it secured her, by means of a heavy ring, to the block. She laughed. "Win Leah, Master!" she challenged. She, with the archery talmit, was the prize in the shooting.
~Marauders of Gor, pg 166
"About my forehead were bound two talmits, one which I had won in wrestling, the other in archery"
~Marauders of Gor, pg 181
“This man,” called out Svein Blue Tooth, obviously impressed, “has earned in these contests six talmits. Never in the history of the thing has there been so high a winner.” Svein Blue Tooth was of Torvaldsland himself. He well understood the mightiness of the winner’s exploits. It was rare for one man to win even two talmits. Thousands entered the contests. Only one, in each contest, could achieve the winner’s talmit. “I distinguish myself, and enter into the history of our land,” said the Blue Tooth, “in being the high Jarl to award these talmits in the games. As we honor this man we, in doing this, similarly do honor unto ourselves.” This was cultural in Torvaldsland. One is regarded as being honored when one rightly bestows honor. It is not like one man taking something from another, so much as it is like an exchanging of gifts. To a somewhat lesser extent, it might be mentioned, this is also cultural in the south. Svein Blue Tooth was obviously pleased that it had been in his Jarlship that six talmits had been won at the thing by a single, redoubtable champion.
~Marauders of Gor, pg 182
Dueling
"Let us watch duels," said the Forkbeard. The duel is a device by which many disputes, legal and personal, are settled in Torvaldsland. There are two general sorts, the formal duel and the free duel.
The free duel permits all weapons; there are no restrictions on tactics or field. At the thing, or course, adjoining squares were lined out for these duels. If the combatants wished, however, they might choose another field. Such duels, commonly, are held on wave-struck skerries in Thassa. Two men are left alone; later, at nightfall, a skiff returns, to pick up the survivor.
The formal duel is quite complex, and I shall not describe it in detail. Two men meet, but each is permitted a shield bearer; the combatants strike at one another, and the blows, hopefully, are fended by each's shield bearer; three shields are permitted to each combatant; when these are hacked to pieces or otherwise rendered useless, his shield bearer retires, and he must defend himself with his own weapon alone; swords not over a given length, too, are prescribed. The duel takes place, substantially, on a large, square cloak, ten feet on each side, which is pegged down on the turf; outside this cloak there are two squares, each a foot from the cloak, drawn in the turf. The outer corners of the second of the two drawn squares are marked with hazel wands; there is thus a twelve-foot-square fighting area; no ropes are stretched between the hazel wands. When the first blood touched the cloak the match may, at the agreement of the combatants, or in the direction of one of the two referees, be terminated; a price of three silver tarn disks is then paid to the victor by the loser; the winner commonly then performs a sacrifice; if the winner is rich, and the match of great importance, he may slay a bosk; if he is poor, or the match is not considered a great victory, his sacrifice may be less.
These duels, particularly of the formal variety, are sometimes used disreputably for gain by unscrupulous swordsmen. A man, incredibly enough, may be challenged by such a fellow for his farm, or his companion, or daughter; if the challenge is not accepted, the stake is forfeit; if the challenge is accepted, of course, he who is challenged risks his life among the hazel wands; he may be slain; then, too, of course, the stake, the farm, the companion, the daughter, is surrendered by law to the challenger. The motivation of this custom, I gather, is to enable strong, powerful men to obtain land and attractive women; and to encourage those who possess such to keep themselves in fighting condition. All in all I did not much approve of the custom. Commonly, of course, the formal duel is used for more reputable purposes, such as settling grievances over boundaries or permitting an opportunity where, in a case of insult, satisfaction might be obtained.
~Marauders of Gor, pgs 145-150
"One case interested us in particular. A young man, not more than sixteen, was preparing to defend himself against a large, burly fellow, bearded and richly helmeted. "He is a famous champion," said Ivar, whispering to me, nodding to the large, burly fellow. "He is Bjarni of Thorstein Camp." Thorstein Camp, well to the south, but yet north of Einar's Skerry, was a camp of fighting men, which controlled the countryside about it, for some fifty pasangs, taking tribute from farms. Thorstein of Thorstein's Camp was their Jarl. The camp was of wood, surrounded by a palisade, built on an island in an inlet, called the inlet of Thorstein Camp, formerly known as the inlet of Parsit, because of the rich fishing there.
The stake in this challenge was the young man's sister, a comely, blond lass of fourteen, with braided hair. She was dressed in the full regalia of a free woman of the north. The clothes were not rich, but they were clean, and her best. She wore two brooches; and black shoes. The knife had been removed from the sheath at her belt; she stood straight, but her head was down, her eyes closed; about her neck, knotted, was a rope, it fastened to a stake in the ground near the dueling square. She was not otherwise secured.
"Forfeit the girl," said Bjarni of Thorstein Camp, addressing the boy, "and I will not kill you." "I do not care much for the making of women of Torvaldsland bond," said Ivar. "It seems improper," he whispered to me. "They are of Torvaldsland!"
"Where is the boy's father?" I asked one who stood next to me. "He was slain in an avalanche," said the man. I gathered then the boy was then owner of the farm. He had become, then, the head of his household. It was, accordingly, up to him to defend, as best he could, against such a challenge. "Why do you not challenge a baby?" asked Ivar Forkbeard. Bjarni looked upon him, not pleasantly. "I want the girl for Thorstein Camp," he said. "I have no quarrel with children." "Will she be branded there, and collared?" asked Ivar. "Thorstein Camp," said Bjarni, "needs no free women." "She is of Torvaldsland," said Ivar. "She can be taught to squirm and carry mead as well as my other wench," said Bjarni.
I had no doubt that this was true. Yet the girl was young. I doubted that a girl should be put in a collar before she was fifteen.
I smiled. I went to the young man, who was preparing to step into the area of hazel wands. He was quite a brave lad. Another youngster, about his own age, probably from an adjoining farm, would carry his shield for him. "What is your name, Lad?" I asked the young man preparing to enter the square marked off with the hazel wands. "Hrolf," said he, "of the Inlet of Green Cliffs." I then took both of the boys, by the scruff, and threw them, stumbling, more than twenty feet away to the grass. I stepped on the leather of the cloak. "I'm the champion," said I, "of Hrolf of the Inlet of Green Cliffs." I unsheathed the sword I wore at my belt. "He is mad," said Bjarni.
"Who will bear your shield?" asked one of the referees. "My weapon is my shield," I told him, lifting the sword. "He will not strike me." "What do you expect to do with that paring knife?" asked Bjarni of Thorstein Camp, looking at me, puzzled. He thought me mad.
"Your long sword," I told him, "is doubtless quite useful in thrusting over the bulwarks of ships, fastened together by grappling irons, as mine would not be, but we are not now, my dear Bjarni, engaging in combat over the bulwarks of ships." "I have reach on you!" he cried. "But my blade will protect me," I said. "Moreover, the arc of your stroke is wider than mine, and your blade heavier. You shall shortly discover that I shall be behind your guard." "Lying Sleen!" cried out the man of Thorstein Camp.
The chief referee looked at me. His office was indicated by a golden ring on his arm. To his credit, he had, obviously, not much approved of the former match. "Approve me," I said.
He grinned. "I approve you," said he, "as the champion of Hrolf of the Inlet of Green Cliffs." Then he said to me, "As you are the champion of the challenged, it is your right to strike the first blow." I tapped the shield of Bjarni of Thorstein Camp, it held by another ruffian from his camp, with the point of my sword. "It is struck," I said.
With a cry of rage the shield bearer of Bjarni of Thorstein Camp rushed at me, to thrust me back, stumbling, hopefully to put me off my balance, for the following stroke of his swordsman. I stepped to one side. The shield bearer's charge carried him almost to the hazel wands. Bjarni, sword high, had followed him. I now stood beside Bjarni, the small sword at the side of his neck. He turned white. "Let us try again," I said. Quickly he fled back, and was joined by his shield bearer. In the second charge, though I do not know if it were elegant or not, given the properties of the formal duel, I tripped the shield bearer. One is not supposed to slay the shield bearer but, as far as I knew, tripping, though perhaps not in the best form, was acceptable. I had, at any rate, seen it done in an earlier match. And, as I expected, neither of the referees warned me of an infraction. I gathered, from the swift looks on their faces, that they thought it rather neatly done, though they are supposed to be objective in such matters. The fellow went sprawling. Bjarni, quite wisely, he obviously brighter than his shield bearer, had not followed him so closely this time, but had hung back. Our swords met twice, and then I was under his guard, the point of my sword under his chin. "Shall we try again?" I asked. The shield bearer leaped to his feet. "Let us fight!" he cried. Bjarni of Thorstein Camp looked at me. "No," he said. "Let us not try again." He took the point of his sword and made a cut in his own forearm, and held it out, over the leather. Drops fell to the leather. "My blood," said Bjarni of Thorstein Camp, "is on the leather." He sheathed his sword.
~Marauders of Gor, pgs 145-150
The Thing-Fair
The Thing-Fair is held by the high Jarl of a given territory for all his men to attend, and serves as well as a gathering of Northerners from areas beyond the Jarl's territory. The one and only occurrence of a Thing-Fair the reader happens upon is found in the pages of Marauders of Gor and appears to be set in late spring time (if one uses the clues given about the growth of fall sa-tarna and the access to water for visiting ships).
It is not said whether or not this festival is related to a specific annual event or seasonal time though some of the games and events held at the fair would not be possible in winter time when the waters are frozen. Furthermore, as we are told the ships are put away for the winter months and taken out of the sheds in the spring time, attendance to the fair by as many as is read about would not be likely.
What we do know is that the Thing-Fair is an event that all free men MUST attend unless they are alone, needing to stay on their land to tend to it; that during this fair that they will present their weapons for inspection to one of their Jarl's officers; that there exists a set of rules and laws which pertain to what may or may not happen within the perimeter of the fair and that this law extends over the entire duration of the Thing and seems to supersede other existing laws for that time.
...At the Thing, to which each free man must come, unless he work his farm alone and cannot leave it, each man must present, for the inspection of his Jarl's officer, a helmet, shield and either sword or ax or spear, in good condition. ... Those farmers who do not attend the Thing, being the sole workers on their farms, must, nonetheless, maintain the regulation armament; once annually it is to be presented before a Jarl's officer, who, for this purpose, visits various districts. ...
---Marauders of Gor, 10:142
The general feel of the Thing-Fair may well remind the reader of the fairs at the Sardar in that the Fair is considered to be a peaceful event. Indeed, though the men of Torvalsdland would never consider it acceptable to move about unarmed, use of weapons and bloodshed for other than contests and settlements under what the reader learns is called the 'law of the Thing' are forbidden and will have to wait until after the event.
I carried my short sword. I carried, too, the great bow, unstrung, with its quiver of arrows.
The Forkbeard, too, and his men, were armed. Blows are not to be struck at the Thing, but not even the law of the Thing, with all its might, would have the temerity to advise the man of Torvaldsland to arrive or move about unarmed. ...
---Marauders of Gor, 10:141
"But the peace of the Thing is upon you," said Svein Blue Tooth. "You are safe among us. Do not fear, great Champion. We meet here not to threaten you, but to do you honor. Be not afraid, for the peace of the Thing is upon you, as on all men here."
---Marauders of Gor, 12:183-184
~ The Thing Fair ~
"We saw thralls, too, in the crowd, and rune-priests, with long hair, in white robes, a spiral ring of gold on their left arms, about their waist a bag of omens chips, pieces of wood soaked in the blood of the sacrificial bosk, slain to open the thing; these chips are thrown like dice, sometimes several times, and are then read by the priests; the thing-temple, in which the ring of the temple is kept, is made of wood; nearby, in a grove, hung from poles, were bodies of six verr."
~Marauders of Gor, page 152~
“How went the swimming?” I asked him. “The talmit of skin of sea sleen is mine!” he laughed. The talmit is a headband. It is not unusual for the men of Torvaldsland to wear them, though none of Forkbeard's men did.. They followed an outlaw. Some talmits have special significance. Special talmits sometime distinguish officers, and Jarls; or a district's lawmen, in the pay of the Jarl; the different districts, too, sometimes have different styles of talmit, varying in their material and design; talmits, too, can be awarded as prizes. That Thorgeir of Ax Glacier had won the swimming must have seemed strange indeed to those of the thing-fair. Immersion in the waters of Ax Glacier country, unprotected, will commonly bring about death by shock, within a matter of Ihn. Sometimes I wondered if the Forkbeard might be mad. His sense of humor, I thought, might cost us all our lives. There was probably not one man at the thing-fair who took him truly to be of Ax Glacier."
~Marauders of Gor, page 139~
"Prior to his winning the swimming he had won talmits for climbing the “mast”, a tall pole of needle wood, some fifty feet high, smoothed and peeled: for jumping the “crevice”, actually a broad jump, on level land, where marks are made with strings, to the point at which the back heel strikes the earth; walking the “oar”, actually, a long pole; and throwing the spear, a real spear I am pleased to say, both for distance and accuracy; counting the distance and the accuracy of the spear events as two events which they are, he had thus, prior to the swimming, won five talmits.
He had done less well in the singing contest, though he much prided himself on his singing voice; he thought, in that one, the judges had been against him; he did not score highly either in the composition of poetry contest nor in the rhyming games; “I am not a skald,” he explained to me later; he did much better, I might mention, in the riddle guessing; but not well enough to win; he missed the following riddle; “What is black, has eighty legs and eats gold?”; the answer, though it might not seem obvious, was Black Sleen, the ship of Thorguard of Scagnar; the Forkbeard's answer had been Black Shark, the legendary ship of Torvald, reputed discoverer and first Jarl of Torvaldsland; he acknowledged his defeat in this contest, however, gracefully; “I was a fool.” He grumbled to me. “I should have known!” Though I attempted to console him, he remained much put out with himself, and for more than an Ahn afterward.
In spite of his various losses, he had, even in his own modest opinion, done quite well in the contests. He was in excellent humor.
Perhaps the most serious incident of the contests had occurred in one of the games of bat and ball; in this contest there are two men on each side, and the object is to keep the ball out of the hands of the other team; no one man may hold the ball for more than the referee's count of twenty; he may, however, throw it into the air, provided it is thrown over his head, and catch it again himself; the ball may be thrown to a partner, or struck to him with the bat; the bat, of course, drives the ball with incredible force; the bats are of heavy wood, rather broad, and the ball, about two inches in diameter, is also of wood, and extremely hard; this is something like a game of “keep away” with two men in the middle. I was pleased that I was not involved in the play. Shortly after the first “knock off”, in which the ball is served to the enemy, Gorm, who was Ivar's partner, was struck cold with the ball, it driven from the opponent's bat; this, I gathered, is a common trick; it is very difficult to intercept or protect oneself from a ball struck at one with great speed from a short distance; it looked quite bad for Ivar at this point, until one of his opponents, fortunately, broke his leg, it coming into violent contact with Ivar's bat. This contest was called a draw. Ivar then asked me to be his partner. I declined. “It is all right,” said Ivar, “even the bravest of men may decline a contest of bat-and-ball.” I acceded to his judgment. There are various forms of ball game enjoyed by the men of Torvaldsland; some use bats, or paddles; in the winter, one such game, quite popular, is played, men running and slipping about, on ice; whether there is any remote connection between this game and ice hockey, I do not know; it is, however, ancient in Torvaldsland; Torvald himself, in the sagas, is said to have been skilled at it. Ivar Forkbeard, or Thorgeir of Ax Glacier, as we might call him, had won, all told, counting the swimming talmit, six talmits.
He was much pleased.
In the morning talmits would be awarded personally by the hand of Svein Blur Tooth.
“Let us, this afternoon,” said Ivar Forkbeard, “give ourselves to strolling.”
That seemed to me not a bad idea, unless a better might have been to flee for our lives.
In the morning we might find ourselves chained at the foot of cauldrons of boiling tharlarion oil.
But soon I, following the Forkbeard, together with some of his men, pressed in among the throngs of the thing.
I carried my short sword. I carried, too, the great bow, unstrung, with quiver of arrows.
The Forkbeard, too, and his men, were armed. Blows are not to be struck at the thing, but not even the law of the thing, with all its might, would have the termerity to advise the man of Torvaldsland to arrive or move about unarmed."
~Marauders of Gor, pages 140 & 141~
"Most of the men at the thing were free farmers, blond-haired, blue-eyed and proud, men with strong limbs and work-roughened hands; many wore braided hair; many wore talmits of their district; for the thing their holiday best had been donned; many wore heavy woolen jackets, scrubbed with water and bosk urine, which contains ammonia as it's cleaning agent; all were armed, usually with ax or sword; some wore their helmets; others had them, with their shields, slung at their back. At the thing, to which each free man must come, unless he work his farm alone and cannot leave it, each man must be present, for the inspection of his Jarl's officer, a helmet, shield and either sword or ax or spear, in good condition. Each man, generally, save he in the direct hire of the Jarl, is responsible for the existence and condition of his own equipment and weapons. A man in direct fee with the Jarl is, in effect, a mercenary; the Jarl himself, from his gold, and stores, where necessary or desirable, arms the man; this expense, of course, is seldom necessary in Torvaldsland; sometimes, however, a man may break a sword or lose an ax in battle, perhaps in the body of a foe, falling from a ship; in such a case the Jarl would make good the loss; he is not responsible for similar losses, however, among free farmers. Those farmers who do not attend the thing, being the sole workers on their farms, must, nonetheless, maintain the regulation armament; once annually it is to be presented before a Jarl's officer, who, for this purpose, visits various districts. When the war arrow is carried, of course, all free men are to respond; in such a case the farm may suffer, and his companion and children know great hardship; in leaving his family, the farmer, weapons upon his shoulder, speaks simply to them. “The war arrow has been carried to my house,” he tells them."
~Marauders of Gor, page 142~
"We saw, too, many chieftains, and captains, and minor Jarls, in the crowd, each with his retinue. These high men were sumptuously garbed, richly cloaked and helmeted, often with great axes, inlaid with gold. Their cloaks were usually scarlet or purple, long and swirling, and held with golden clasps. They wore them, always, as is common in Torvaldsland, in such a way that the right arm, the sword arm, is free.
Their men, too, often wore cloaks, and, about their arms, spiral rings of gold and silver, and, on their wrists, jewel-studded bands."
~Marauders of Gor, pages 142 & 143~
"In the crowd, too, much in evidence, were brazen bond-maids; they had been brought to the thing, generally, by captains and Jarls; it is not unusual for men to bring such slaves with them, though they are not permitted near the law courts or the assemblies of deliberation; the voyages to the thing were not, after all, ventures of raiding; they were not enterprises of warfare; there were three reasons for bringing such girls; they were for the pleasure of men; they served, as display objects, to indicate the wealth of their masters; and they could be bought and sold.
The Forkbeard had bought with him, too, some bond-maids. They followed us. Their eyes were bright; their steps were eager; they had been long isolated on the farm; rural slave girls, the Forkbeard's wenches, they were fantastically stimulated to see the crowds; they looked upon the thing-fields with pleasure and excitement; even had they been permitted, some of them, to look upon certain of the contests. It is said that such pleasures improve a female slave."
~Marauders of Gor, page 143~
"The Forkbeard had bought one thrall with him, the young man, Tarsk, who, even now, followed in the retinue of the Forkbeard; it was thought that if the Forkbeard should purchase a crate of sleen fur or a chest of bog iron the young man, on his shoulders, might then bear it back to our tent, pitched among other tents, at the thing."
~Marauders of Gor, page 153~
"In the bond-maid shed there was a rustle of chain, as the girls looked up.
Light filtered into the shed from windows cut high in the wall on our right. The girls at, or knelt or laid on straw along on our right. The shed is some two hundred feet long, about ten feet wide, and eight feet in height."
~Marauders of Gor, page 157~
Overview and Historical Basis
Although more than an entire chapter in Marauders was devoted to The Thing, Norman otherwise wrote rather superficially about what took place at this event (eg: the high-Jarl being mentioned yet with no other specifics of how He came to that post)...leaving it to the reader to search deeper into the parts of Earth's history and culture that inspired Norman as he wrote the novels in order to fill in the remaining details. In so doing, this also gives us insight into the lives and culture of the Torvaldslanders themselves.
In the information presented under this topic, we have provided the supporting book quotes wherever possible. For the remainder, there is a very good essay at the following url The Thing Fair providing the basis for what seems to be generally accepted in the Gorean community about The Thing, including the following definition of event itself:
"The Thing is an annual celebration held in Torvaldsland, during which all of the shieldmen of the various Great Jarls travel to the Hall of their particular leader, submit their weaponry for inspection, and formally repledge their oaths of loyalty. The Thing usually occupies a span of from three to five days, and occurs sometime during the middle of the ninth Gorean month (mid-November), varying according to such factors as weather and the current political situation."
Although the main purpose of the Thing was the uniting of peoples and the overseeing of laws, it later became a major cultural event, drawing together entire families and guests from all regions of Gor to discuss common interests, share and learn new skills, and provide a place for craftsmen and merchants to show and sell their wares, including the sale of slaves. There were also contests of skill and strength for which prizes were awarded.
Required Attendance at The Thing
All Free Men of Torvaldsland were required to attend The Thing. The only exception was for those farmers who farmed alone and could not leave their fields unattended. Men would often bring their families and slaves along as well, and the Free of other cities south of Torvaldsland were also invited to attend.
"Most of the men at the thing were free farmers, blond-haired, blue-eyed and proud, men with strong limbs and work-roughened hands; many wore braided hair; many wore talmits of their district; for the thing their holiday best had been donned; many wore heavy woolen jackets, scrubbed with water and bosk urine, which contains ammonia as its cleaning agent; all were armed, usually with an ax or sword; some wore their helmets; others had them, with their shields, slung at their back."
~Marauders of Gor, pg 142
"At the thing, to which each free man must come, unless he work his farm alone and cannot leave it, each man must be present, for the inspection of his Jarl's officer, a helmet, shield and either sword or ax or spear, in good condition. Each man, generally, save he in the direct hire of the Jarl, is responsible for the existence and condition of his own equipment and weapons. A man in direct fee with the Jarl is, in effect, a mercenary; the Jarl himself, from his gold, and stores, where necessary or desirable, arms the man; this expense, of course, is seldom necessary in Torvaldsland; sometimes, however, a man may break a sword or lose an ax in battle, perhaps in the body of a foe, falling from a ship; in such a case the Jarl would make good the loss; he is not responsible for similar losses, however, among free farmers."
~Marauders of Gor, pg 142
"Those farmers who do not attend the thing, being the sole workers on their farms, must, nonetheless, maintain the regulation armament; once annually it is to be presented before a Jarl's officer, who, for this purpose, visits various districts. When the war arrow is carried, of course, all free men are to respond; in such a case the farm may suffer, and his companion and children know great hardship; in leaving his family, the farmer, weapons upon his shoulder, speaks simply to them. “The war arrow has been carried to my house,” he tells them."
~Marauders of Gor, pg 142
"On the wooden dais, draped in purple, set on the contest fields, in heavy, carved chairs, sat Svein Blue Tooth and his woman Bear. Both wore their finery. About them, some on the dais, and some below it, stood his high officers, and his men of law, his counselors, his captains, and the chief men from his scattered farms and holdings; too, much in evidence, were more than four hundred of his men-at-arms. In the crowd, too, in their white robes, were rune-priests."
~Marauders of Gor, pgs 181-182
"We saw, too, may chieftains, and captains, and minor Jarls, in the crowd, each with his retinue. These high men were sumptuously garbed, richly cloaked and helmeted, often with great axes, inlaid with gold. Their cloaks were usually scarlet or purple, long and swirling, and held with golden clasps. They wore them, always, as is common in Torvaldsland, in such a way that the right arm, the sword arm, is free. Their men, too, often wore cloaks, and, about their arms, spiral rings of gold and silver, and, on their wrists, jewel-studded bands."
~Marauders of Gor, pg 142-143
"In the crowd, too, I saw some merchants, though few of them, in their white and gold. I saw, too, four slavers, perfumed, in their robes of blue and yellow silk, come north to buy women. I saw, by the cut of their robes, they were from distant Turia."
~Marauders of Gor, pg 153
"I saw, too, in the crowd, a physician, in green robes, from Ar and a scribe from Cos. These cities are not on good terms but they, civilized men, both in the far north, conversed affably."
~Marauders of Gor, pg 153
"In the crowd, too, much in evidence, were brazen bond-maids; they had been brought to the thing, generally, by captains and Jarls; it is not unusual for men to bring such slaves with them, though they are not permitted near the law courts or the assemblies of deliberation; the voyages to the thing were not, after all, ventures for raiding; they were not enterprises of warfare; there were three reasons for bringing such girls; they were for the pleasure of the men; they served, as display objects, to indicate the wealth of their masters; and they could be bought and sold."
~Marauders of Gor, pg 143
"The Forkbeard had brought with him, too, some bond-maids. They followed us. Their eyes were bright; their steps were eager; they had been long isolated on the farm; rural slave girls, the Forkbeard's wenches, they were fantastically stimulated to see the crowds; they looked upon the thing-fields with pleasure and excitement; even had they been permitted, some of them, to look upon certain of the contests. It is said that such pleasures improve a female slave."
~Marauders of Gor, pg 143
"We saw thralls, too, in the crowd, and rune-priests, with long hair, in white robes, a spiral ring of gold on their left arms, about their waist a bag of omen chips, pieces of wood soaked in the blood of the sacrificial bosk, slain to open the thing; these chips are thrown like dice, sometimes several times, and are then read by the priests; the thing-temple, in which the ring of the temple is kept, is made of wood; nearby, in a grove, hung from poles, were the bodies of six bosk, one of them the ceremonial bosk, six tarsk, and six verr; in past days, it is my understanding, there might have been hung there, in place of the six verr, six thralls; it had been decided, however, a generation ago, by one of the rare meetings of the high council of rune-priests, attended by the high rune-priest of each district, that thralls should no longer be sacrificed; this was not defended, however, on grounds of the advance of civilization, or such, but rather on the grounds that thralls, like urts and tiny, six-toed tharlarion, were not objects worthy of sacrifice"
~Marauders of Gor, pg 152
"The Forkbeard had bought one thrall with him, the young man, Tarsk, who, even now, followed in the retinue of the Forkbeard; it was thought that if the Forkbeard should purchase a crate of sleen fur or a chest of bog iron the young man, on his shoulders, might then bear it back to our tent, pitched among other tents, at the thing."
~Marauders of Gor, page 153
"Peace" of the Thing
Acts of violence were prohibited at The Thing. No man could be captured, killed, or detained for any crime, including outlawry. (Note that this prohibition did not include duels, which are described in a later section). Rune priests helped keep the Peace by overseeing the event and reminding the people that to invite trouble to The Thing was to invite trouble from the gods, who were always watching.
"I carried my short sword. I carried, too, the great bow, unstrung, with quiver of arrows. The Forkbeard, too, and his men, were armed. Blows are not to be struck at the thing, but not even the law of the thing, with all its might, would have the temerity to advise the man of Torvaldsland to arrive or move about unarmed. The man of Torvaldsland never leaves his house unless he is armed; and, within his house, his weapons are always near at hand, usually hung on the wall behind his couch, at least a foot beyond the reach of a bond-maid whose ankle is chained."
~Marauders of Gor, pg 141
“That you have disguised yourself tells us,” said the Blue Tooth, “that you are outlaw.”
Ivar looked at him, as though startled at his perception. “But the peace of the thing is upon you,” said Svein Blue Tooth. “You are safe among us. Do not fear, great Champion. We meet here not to threaten you, but to do you honor. Be not afraid, for the peace of the thing is upon you, as on all men here.”
~Marauders of Gor, pgs 183-184
"The peace of the thing," said the Blue Tooth, "and the peace of my house, for the time of the thing, is upon you. This I have sworn. This I uphold." There was much cheering. The Forkbeard beamed. "I knew it would be so, my Jarl," he said. The high rune-priest lowered the temple ring."
~Marauders of Gor, pg 189
Competitions, Games, and Events
There are 12 contests mentioned in Marauders as being events held at The Thing, including Archery, Swimming, Grappling, Mast Climbing, Spear throwing, Walking the Oar, Jumping the crevice, Bat and ball, Singing, Poetry composition, Rhyming, and Riddle-Guessing. Several of these are described in detail with their supporting quotes (see below).
There was also a separate contest held for slaves, a type of "beauty" contest that involved walking a platform before the crowds.
"Roped together by the waist, on the turf of the thing-fair, we grappled. His body slipped in my hand. I felt my right wrist drawn back, at the side of my head, his two hands closed on it. He grunted. He was strong. He was Ketil, of Blue Tooth's high farm, champion of Torvaldsland. My back began to bend backward; I braced myself as I could, right leg back, bent, left leg forward, bent. The men about cried out. I heard bets taken, speculations exchanged. Then my right wrist, to cries of wonder, began to lift and straighten; my arm was then straight, before my body; I began, inch by inch, to lower it toward the ground; if he did retain his grip, he would, at my feet, be forced to his knees. He released my wrist with a cry of fury. The rope between us, a yard in length, pulled taut. He regarded me, astonished, wary, enraged. I heard hands striking the left shoulders; weapons struck on shields."
~Marauders of Gor, pg 138
"I turned about and saw the Forkbeard. His hair was wet; he was drying his body in a cloak. He was grinning. "Greetings Thorgeir of Ax Glacier", said I. "Greetings, Red Hair," said he. ... "How went the swimming?" I asked him. "The talmit of skin of sea sleen is mine!" he laughed. ... That Thorgeir of Ax Glacier had won the swimming must have seemed strange indeed to those of the thing-fair. Immersion in the waters of the Ax Glacier country, unprotected, will commonly bring about death by shock, within a matter of Ihn."
~Marauders of Gor, pg 139
"Much speculation had coursed among the contest fields as to the true identity of the smooth-shaven Thorgeir. Prior to his winning the swimming he had won talmits for climbing the "mast," a tall pole of needle wood, some fifty feet high, smoothed and peeled; for jumping the "crevice," actually a broad jump, on level land, where marks are made with strings, to the point at which the back heel strikes the earth; walking the "oar," actually, a long pole; and throwing the spear, a real spear I am pleased to say, both for distance and accuracy; counting the distance and the accuracy of the spear events as two events, which they are, he had thus, prior to the swimming, won five talmits. He had done less well in the singing contest, though he had much prided himself on his singing voice; he thought, in that one, the judges had been against him; he did not score highly either in the composition of poetry contest, nor in the rhyming games; "I am not a skald," he explained to me later; he did much better, I might mention, in the riddle guessing; but not well enough to win; he missed the following riddle; "What is black, has eighty legs and eats gold?"; the answer, though it might not seem obvious, was Black Sleen, the ship of Thorgard of Scagnar; the Forkbeard's answer had been Black Shark, the legendary ship of Torvald, reputed discoverer and first Jarl of Torvaldsland; he acknowledged his defeat in this contest, however, gracefully; "I was a fool," he grumbled to me. "I should have known!"
~Marauders of Gor pgs 139-140
"Perhaps the most serious incident of the contests had occurred in one of the games of bat and ball; in this contest there are two men on each side, and the object is to keep the ball out of the hands of the other team; no one man may hold the ball for more than the referee's count of twenty; he may, however, throw it into the air, provided it is thrown over his head, and catch it again himself; the ball may be thrown to the partner, or struck to him with the bat; the bat of course, drives the ball with incredible force; the bats are of heavy wood, rather broad, and the ball, about two inches in diameter, is also of wood, and extremely hard; this is something like a game of "keep away" with two men in the middle. I was pleased that I was not involved in the play. Shortly after the first "knock off," in which the ball is served to the enemy, Gorm, who was Ivar's partner, was struck cold with the ball, it driven from an opponent's bat; this, I gathered, is a common trick; it is very difficult to intercept or protect oneself from a ball struck at one with great speed from a short distance; it looked quite bad for Ivar at this point, until one of his opponents, fortunately, broke his leg, it coming into violent contact with Ivar's bat. This contest was called a draw. Ivar then asked me to be his partner. I declined. "It is all right," said Ivar, "even the bravest of men may decline a contest of bat-and-ball." I acceded to his judgment. There are various forms of ball games enjoyed by the men of Torvaldsland; some use bats, or paddles; in the winter, one such game quite popular, is played, men running and slipping about, on ice; whether there is any remote connection between this game and ice hockey, I do not know; it is, however, ancient in Torvaldsland; Torvald himself, in the sagas, is said to have been skilled at it."
~Marauders of Gor, pgs 140-141
"The target in the shooting was about six inches in width, at a range of about one hundred yards. With the great bow, the peasant bow, this is not difficult work. Many marksmen, warriors, peasants, rencers, could have matched my shooting. It was, of course, quite unusual in Torvaldsland. I put twenty sheaf arrows into the target, until it bristled with wood and the feathers of the Vosk gull."
~Marauders of Gor, pg 167
"Send that one to the platform!" cried out a farmer, indicating Gunnhild.
"To the platform!" roared Ivar Forkbeard. He tore away her kirtle. Soon she, barefoot, was climbing the wooden steps to the platform. This is a wooden walkway, about five feet wide and one hundred yards long. On the walkway, back and forth, smiling, looking one way and then the other, turning about, parade stripped bond-maids. They are not for sale, though many are sold from the platform. The platform is instituted for the pleasure of the free men. It is not unanalogous to the talmit competitions, though no talmit is awarded. There are judges, usually minor Jarls and slavers. No judge, incidentally, is female. No female is regarded as competent to judge a female's beauty; only a man, it is said, can do that.
"Smile, you she-sleen!" roared the Forkbeard. Gunnhild smiled, and walked.
No free woman, of course, would even think of entering such a contest. All who walk on such a platform are slave girls. At last only Gunnhild and the "silk girl," she who had worn the earrings, walked on the platform. And it was Gunnhild who was thrown the pastry, to the delight of the crowds, shouting, pounding their spear blades on their wooden shields.
"Who owns her?" called the chief judge. "I do!" called the Forkbeard. He was given a silver tarn disk as a prize.
~Marauders of Gor, pgs 153-154
Prizes and Awards
"How went the swimming?" I asked him. "The talmit of skin of sea sleen is mine!" he laughed. The talmit is a headband. It is not unusual for the men of Torvaldsland to wear them, though none of Forkbeard's men did. They followed an outlaw. Some talmits have special significance. Special talmits sometimes distinguish officers, and Jarls; or a district's lawmen, in the pay of the Jarl; different districts, too, sometimes have different styles of talmit, varying in their material and design; talmits, too, can be awarded as prizes."
~Marauders of Gor, pg 139
"Ivar Forkbeard, or Thorgeir of Ax Glacier, as we might call him, had won, all told, including the swimming talmit, six talmits. He was much pleased. In the morning talmits would be awarded personally by the hand of Svein Blue Tooth".
~Marauders of Gor, pg 141
"Win Leah, Master!" I heard. I looked upon her, and she looked upon me. She stood on a thick, rounded block; it was about a yard high, and five feet in diameter; she was dark-haired, long-haired; she had a short, luscious body, thick ankles; her hands were on her hips. "Win Leah, Master!" she challenged. She was naked, except for the Torvaldsland collar of black iron on her neck, with its projecting ring, and the heavy chain padlocked about her right ankle; the chain was about a yard long; it secured her, by means of a heavy ring, to the block. She laughed. "Win Leah, Master!" she challenged. She, with the archery talmit, was the prize in the shooting.
~Marauders of Gor, pg 166
"About my forehead were bound two talmits, one which I had won in wrestling, the other in archery"
~Marauders of Gor, pg 181
“This man,” called out Svein Blue Tooth, obviously impressed, “has earned in these contests six talmits. Never in the history of the thing has there been so high a winner.” Svein Blue Tooth was of Torvaldsland himself. He well understood the mightiness of the winner’s exploits. It was rare for one man to win even two talmits. Thousands entered the contests. Only one, in each contest, could achieve the winner’s talmit. “I distinguish myself, and enter into the history of our land,” said the Blue Tooth, “in being the high Jarl to award these talmits in the games. As we honor this man we, in doing this, similarly do honor unto ourselves.” This was cultural in Torvaldsland. One is regarded as being honored when one rightly bestows honor. It is not like one man taking something from another, so much as it is like an exchanging of gifts. To a somewhat lesser extent, it might be mentioned, this is also cultural in the south. Svein Blue Tooth was obviously pleased that it had been in his Jarlship that six talmits had been won at the thing by a single, redoubtable champion.
~Marauders of Gor, pg 182
Dueling
"Let us watch duels," said the Forkbeard. The duel is a device by which many disputes, legal and personal, are settled in Torvaldsland. There are two general sorts, the formal duel and the free duel.
The free duel permits all weapons; there are no restrictions on tactics or field. At the thing, or course, adjoining squares were lined out for these duels. If the combatants wished, however, they might choose another field. Such duels, commonly, are held on wave-struck skerries in Thassa. Two men are left alone; later, at nightfall, a skiff returns, to pick up the survivor.
The formal duel is quite complex, and I shall not describe it in detail. Two men meet, but each is permitted a shield bearer; the combatants strike at one another, and the blows, hopefully, are fended by each's shield bearer; three shields are permitted to each combatant; when these are hacked to pieces or otherwise rendered useless, his shield bearer retires, and he must defend himself with his own weapon alone; swords not over a given length, too, are prescribed. The duel takes place, substantially, on a large, square cloak, ten feet on each side, which is pegged down on the turf; outside this cloak there are two squares, each a foot from the cloak, drawn in the turf. The outer corners of the second of the two drawn squares are marked with hazel wands; there is thus a twelve-foot-square fighting area; no ropes are stretched between the hazel wands. When the first blood touched the cloak the match may, at the agreement of the combatants, or in the direction of one of the two referees, be terminated; a price of three silver tarn disks is then paid to the victor by the loser; the winner commonly then performs a sacrifice; if the winner is rich, and the match of great importance, he may slay a bosk; if he is poor, or the match is not considered a great victory, his sacrifice may be less.
These duels, particularly of the formal variety, are sometimes used disreputably for gain by unscrupulous swordsmen. A man, incredibly enough, may be challenged by such a fellow for his farm, or his companion, or daughter; if the challenge is not accepted, the stake is forfeit; if the challenge is accepted, of course, he who is challenged risks his life among the hazel wands; he may be slain; then, too, of course, the stake, the farm, the companion, the daughter, is surrendered by law to the challenger. The motivation of this custom, I gather, is to enable strong, powerful men to obtain land and attractive women; and to encourage those who possess such to keep themselves in fighting condition. All in all I did not much approve of the custom. Commonly, of course, the formal duel is used for more reputable purposes, such as settling grievances over boundaries or permitting an opportunity where, in a case of insult, satisfaction might be obtained.
~Marauders of Gor, pgs 145-150
"One case interested us in particular. A young man, not more than sixteen, was preparing to defend himself against a large, burly fellow, bearded and richly helmeted. "He is a famous champion," said Ivar, whispering to me, nodding to the large, burly fellow. "He is Bjarni of Thorstein Camp." Thorstein Camp, well to the south, but yet north of Einar's Skerry, was a camp of fighting men, which controlled the countryside about it, for some fifty pasangs, taking tribute from farms. Thorstein of Thorstein's Camp was their Jarl. The camp was of wood, surrounded by a palisade, built on an island in an inlet, called the inlet of Thorstein Camp, formerly known as the inlet of Parsit, because of the rich fishing there.
The stake in this challenge was the young man's sister, a comely, blond lass of fourteen, with braided hair. She was dressed in the full regalia of a free woman of the north. The clothes were not rich, but they were clean, and her best. She wore two brooches; and black shoes. The knife had been removed from the sheath at her belt; she stood straight, but her head was down, her eyes closed; about her neck, knotted, was a rope, it fastened to a stake in the ground near the dueling square. She was not otherwise secured.
"Forfeit the girl," said Bjarni of Thorstein Camp, addressing the boy, "and I will not kill you." "I do not care much for the making of women of Torvaldsland bond," said Ivar. "It seems improper," he whispered to me. "They are of Torvaldsland!"
"Where is the boy's father?" I asked one who stood next to me. "He was slain in an avalanche," said the man. I gathered then the boy was then owner of the farm. He had become, then, the head of his household. It was, accordingly, up to him to defend, as best he could, against such a challenge. "Why do you not challenge a baby?" asked Ivar Forkbeard. Bjarni looked upon him, not pleasantly. "I want the girl for Thorstein Camp," he said. "I have no quarrel with children." "Will she be branded there, and collared?" asked Ivar. "Thorstein Camp," said Bjarni, "needs no free women." "She is of Torvaldsland," said Ivar. "She can be taught to squirm and carry mead as well as my other wench," said Bjarni.
I had no doubt that this was true. Yet the girl was young. I doubted that a girl should be put in a collar before she was fifteen.
I smiled. I went to the young man, who was preparing to step into the area of hazel wands. He was quite a brave lad. Another youngster, about his own age, probably from an adjoining farm, would carry his shield for him. "What is your name, Lad?" I asked the young man preparing to enter the square marked off with the hazel wands. "Hrolf," said he, "of the Inlet of Green Cliffs." I then took both of the boys, by the scruff, and threw them, stumbling, more than twenty feet away to the grass. I stepped on the leather of the cloak. "I'm the champion," said I, "of Hrolf of the Inlet of Green Cliffs." I unsheathed the sword I wore at my belt. "He is mad," said Bjarni.
"Who will bear your shield?" asked one of the referees. "My weapon is my shield," I told him, lifting the sword. "He will not strike me." "What do you expect to do with that paring knife?" asked Bjarni of Thorstein Camp, looking at me, puzzled. He thought me mad.
"Your long sword," I told him, "is doubtless quite useful in thrusting over the bulwarks of ships, fastened together by grappling irons, as mine would not be, but we are not now, my dear Bjarni, engaging in combat over the bulwarks of ships." "I have reach on you!" he cried. "But my blade will protect me," I said. "Moreover, the arc of your stroke is wider than mine, and your blade heavier. You shall shortly discover that I shall be behind your guard." "Lying Sleen!" cried out the man of Thorstein Camp.
The chief referee looked at me. His office was indicated by a golden ring on his arm. To his credit, he had, obviously, not much approved of the former match. "Approve me," I said.
He grinned. "I approve you," said he, "as the champion of Hrolf of the Inlet of Green Cliffs." Then he said to me, "As you are the champion of the challenged, it is your right to strike the first blow." I tapped the shield of Bjarni of Thorstein Camp, it held by another ruffian from his camp, with the point of my sword. "It is struck," I said.
With a cry of rage the shield bearer of Bjarni of Thorstein Camp rushed at me, to thrust me back, stumbling, hopefully to put me off my balance, for the following stroke of his swordsman. I stepped to one side. The shield bearer's charge carried him almost to the hazel wands. Bjarni, sword high, had followed him. I now stood beside Bjarni, the small sword at the side of his neck. He turned white. "Let us try again," I said. Quickly he fled back, and was joined by his shield bearer. In the second charge, though I do not know if it were elegant or not, given the properties of the formal duel, I tripped the shield bearer. One is not supposed to slay the shield bearer but, as far as I knew, tripping, though perhaps not in the best form, was acceptable. I had, at any rate, seen it done in an earlier match. And, as I expected, neither of the referees warned me of an infraction. I gathered, from the swift looks on their faces, that they thought it rather neatly done, though they are supposed to be objective in such matters. The fellow went sprawling. Bjarni, quite wisely, he obviously brighter than his shield bearer, had not followed him so closely this time, but had hung back. Our swords met twice, and then I was under his guard, the point of my sword under his chin. "Shall we try again?" I asked. The shield bearer leaped to his feet. "Let us fight!" he cried. Bjarni of Thorstein Camp looked at me. "No," he said. "Let us not try again." He took the point of his sword and made a cut in his own forearm, and held it out, over the leather. Drops fell to the leather. "My blood," said Bjarni of Thorstein Camp, "is on the leather." He sheathed his sword.
~Marauders of Gor, pgs 145-150
The Thing-Fair
The Thing-Fair is held by the high Jarl of a given territory for all his men to attend, and serves as well as a gathering of Northerners from areas beyond the Jarl's territory. The one and only occurrence of a Thing-Fair the reader happens upon is found in the pages of Marauders of Gor and appears to be set in late spring time (if one uses the clues given about the growth of fall sa-tarna and the access to water for visiting ships).
It is not said whether or not this festival is related to a specific annual event or seasonal time though some of the games and events held at the fair would not be possible in winter time when the waters are frozen. Furthermore, as we are told the ships are put away for the winter months and taken out of the sheds in the spring time, attendance to the fair by as many as is read about would not be likely.
What we do know is that the Thing-Fair is an event that all free men MUST attend unless they are alone, needing to stay on their land to tend to it; that during this fair that they will present their weapons for inspection to one of their Jarl's officers; that there exists a set of rules and laws which pertain to what may or may not happen within the perimeter of the fair and that this law extends over the entire duration of the Thing and seems to supersede other existing laws for that time.
...At the Thing, to which each free man must come, unless he work his farm alone and cannot leave it, each man must present, for the inspection of his Jarl's officer, a helmet, shield and either sword or ax or spear, in good condition. ... Those farmers who do not attend the Thing, being the sole workers on their farms, must, nonetheless, maintain the regulation armament; once annually it is to be presented before a Jarl's officer, who, for this purpose, visits various districts. ...
---Marauders of Gor, 10:142
The general feel of the Thing-Fair may well remind the reader of the fairs at the Sardar in that the Fair is considered to be a peaceful event. Indeed, though the men of Torvalsdland would never consider it acceptable to move about unarmed, use of weapons and bloodshed for other than contests and settlements under what the reader learns is called the 'law of the Thing' are forbidden and will have to wait until after the event.
I carried my short sword. I carried, too, the great bow, unstrung, with its quiver of arrows.
The Forkbeard, too, and his men, were armed. Blows are not to be struck at the Thing, but not even the law of the Thing, with all its might, would have the temerity to advise the man of Torvaldsland to arrive or move about unarmed. ...
---Marauders of Gor, 10:141
"But the peace of the Thing is upon you," said Svein Blue Tooth. "You are safe among us. Do not fear, great Champion. We meet here not to threaten you, but to do you honor. Be not afraid, for the peace of the Thing is upon you, as on all men here."
---Marauders of Gor, 12:183-184
~ The Thing Fair ~
"We saw thralls, too, in the crowd, and rune-priests, with long hair, in white robes, a spiral ring of gold on their left arms, about their waist a bag of omens chips, pieces of wood soaked in the blood of the sacrificial bosk, slain to open the thing; these chips are thrown like dice, sometimes several times, and are then read by the priests; the thing-temple, in which the ring of the temple is kept, is made of wood; nearby, in a grove, hung from poles, were bodies of six verr."
~Marauders of Gor, page 152~
“How went the swimming?” I asked him. “The talmit of skin of sea sleen is mine!” he laughed. The talmit is a headband. It is not unusual for the men of Torvaldsland to wear them, though none of Forkbeard's men did.. They followed an outlaw. Some talmits have special significance. Special talmits sometime distinguish officers, and Jarls; or a district's lawmen, in the pay of the Jarl; the different districts, too, sometimes have different styles of talmit, varying in their material and design; talmits, too, can be awarded as prizes. That Thorgeir of Ax Glacier had won the swimming must have seemed strange indeed to those of the thing-fair. Immersion in the waters of Ax Glacier country, unprotected, will commonly bring about death by shock, within a matter of Ihn. Sometimes I wondered if the Forkbeard might be mad. His sense of humor, I thought, might cost us all our lives. There was probably not one man at the thing-fair who took him truly to be of Ax Glacier."
~Marauders of Gor, page 139~
"Prior to his winning the swimming he had won talmits for climbing the “mast”, a tall pole of needle wood, some fifty feet high, smoothed and peeled: for jumping the “crevice”, actually a broad jump, on level land, where marks are made with strings, to the point at which the back heel strikes the earth; walking the “oar”, actually, a long pole; and throwing the spear, a real spear I am pleased to say, both for distance and accuracy; counting the distance and the accuracy of the spear events as two events which they are, he had thus, prior to the swimming, won five talmits.
He had done less well in the singing contest, though he much prided himself on his singing voice; he thought, in that one, the judges had been against him; he did not score highly either in the composition of poetry contest nor in the rhyming games; “I am not a skald,” he explained to me later; he did much better, I might mention, in the riddle guessing; but not well enough to win; he missed the following riddle; “What is black, has eighty legs and eats gold?”; the answer, though it might not seem obvious, was Black Sleen, the ship of Thorguard of Scagnar; the Forkbeard's answer had been Black Shark, the legendary ship of Torvald, reputed discoverer and first Jarl of Torvaldsland; he acknowledged his defeat in this contest, however, gracefully; “I was a fool.” He grumbled to me. “I should have known!” Though I attempted to console him, he remained much put out with himself, and for more than an Ahn afterward.
In spite of his various losses, he had, even in his own modest opinion, done quite well in the contests. He was in excellent humor.
Perhaps the most serious incident of the contests had occurred in one of the games of bat and ball; in this contest there are two men on each side, and the object is to keep the ball out of the hands of the other team; no one man may hold the ball for more than the referee's count of twenty; he may, however, throw it into the air, provided it is thrown over his head, and catch it again himself; the ball may be thrown to a partner, or struck to him with the bat; the bat, of course, drives the ball with incredible force; the bats are of heavy wood, rather broad, and the ball, about two inches in diameter, is also of wood, and extremely hard; this is something like a game of “keep away” with two men in the middle. I was pleased that I was not involved in the play. Shortly after the first “knock off”, in which the ball is served to the enemy, Gorm, who was Ivar's partner, was struck cold with the ball, it driven from the opponent's bat; this, I gathered, is a common trick; it is very difficult to intercept or protect oneself from a ball struck at one with great speed from a short distance; it looked quite bad for Ivar at this point, until one of his opponents, fortunately, broke his leg, it coming into violent contact with Ivar's bat. This contest was called a draw. Ivar then asked me to be his partner. I declined. “It is all right,” said Ivar, “even the bravest of men may decline a contest of bat-and-ball.” I acceded to his judgment. There are various forms of ball game enjoyed by the men of Torvaldsland; some use bats, or paddles; in the winter, one such game, quite popular, is played, men running and slipping about, on ice; whether there is any remote connection between this game and ice hockey, I do not know; it is, however, ancient in Torvaldsland; Torvald himself, in the sagas, is said to have been skilled at it. Ivar Forkbeard, or Thorgeir of Ax Glacier, as we might call him, had won, all told, counting the swimming talmit, six talmits.
He was much pleased.
In the morning talmits would be awarded personally by the hand of Svein Blur Tooth.
“Let us, this afternoon,” said Ivar Forkbeard, “give ourselves to strolling.”
That seemed to me not a bad idea, unless a better might have been to flee for our lives.
In the morning we might find ourselves chained at the foot of cauldrons of boiling tharlarion oil.
But soon I, following the Forkbeard, together with some of his men, pressed in among the throngs of the thing.
I carried my short sword. I carried, too, the great bow, unstrung, with quiver of arrows.
The Forkbeard, too, and his men, were armed. Blows are not to be struck at the thing, but not even the law of the thing, with all its might, would have the termerity to advise the man of Torvaldsland to arrive or move about unarmed."
~Marauders of Gor, pages 140 & 141~
"Most of the men at the thing were free farmers, blond-haired, blue-eyed and proud, men with strong limbs and work-roughened hands; many wore braided hair; many wore talmits of their district; for the thing their holiday best had been donned; many wore heavy woolen jackets, scrubbed with water and bosk urine, which contains ammonia as it's cleaning agent; all were armed, usually with ax or sword; some wore their helmets; others had them, with their shields, slung at their back. At the thing, to which each free man must come, unless he work his farm alone and cannot leave it, each man must be present, for the inspection of his Jarl's officer, a helmet, shield and either sword or ax or spear, in good condition. Each man, generally, save he in the direct hire of the Jarl, is responsible for the existence and condition of his own equipment and weapons. A man in direct fee with the Jarl is, in effect, a mercenary; the Jarl himself, from his gold, and stores, where necessary or desirable, arms the man; this expense, of course, is seldom necessary in Torvaldsland; sometimes, however, a man may break a sword or lose an ax in battle, perhaps in the body of a foe, falling from a ship; in such a case the Jarl would make good the loss; he is not responsible for similar losses, however, among free farmers. Those farmers who do not attend the thing, being the sole workers on their farms, must, nonetheless, maintain the regulation armament; once annually it is to be presented before a Jarl's officer, who, for this purpose, visits various districts. When the war arrow is carried, of course, all free men are to respond; in such a case the farm may suffer, and his companion and children know great hardship; in leaving his family, the farmer, weapons upon his shoulder, speaks simply to them. “The war arrow has been carried to my house,” he tells them."
~Marauders of Gor, page 142~
"We saw, too, many chieftains, and captains, and minor Jarls, in the crowd, each with his retinue. These high men were sumptuously garbed, richly cloaked and helmeted, often with great axes, inlaid with gold. Their cloaks were usually scarlet or purple, long and swirling, and held with golden clasps. They wore them, always, as is common in Torvaldsland, in such a way that the right arm, the sword arm, is free.
Their men, too, often wore cloaks, and, about their arms, spiral rings of gold and silver, and, on their wrists, jewel-studded bands."
~Marauders of Gor, pages 142 & 143~
"In the crowd, too, much in evidence, were brazen bond-maids; they had been brought to the thing, generally, by captains and Jarls; it is not unusual for men to bring such slaves with them, though they are not permitted near the law courts or the assemblies of deliberation; the voyages to the thing were not, after all, ventures of raiding; they were not enterprises of warfare; there were three reasons for bringing such girls; they were for the pleasure of men; they served, as display objects, to indicate the wealth of their masters; and they could be bought and sold.
The Forkbeard had bought with him, too, some bond-maids. They followed us. Their eyes were bright; their steps were eager; they had been long isolated on the farm; rural slave girls, the Forkbeard's wenches, they were fantastically stimulated to see the crowds; they looked upon the thing-fields with pleasure and excitement; even had they been permitted, some of them, to look upon certain of the contests. It is said that such pleasures improve a female slave."
~Marauders of Gor, page 143~
"The Forkbeard had bought one thrall with him, the young man, Tarsk, who, even now, followed in the retinue of the Forkbeard; it was thought that if the Forkbeard should purchase a crate of sleen fur or a chest of bog iron the young man, on his shoulders, might then bear it back to our tent, pitched among other tents, at the thing."
~Marauders of Gor, page 153~
"In the bond-maid shed there was a rustle of chain, as the girls looked up.
Light filtered into the shed from windows cut high in the wall on our right. The girls at, or knelt or laid on straw along on our right. The shed is some two hundred feet long, about ten feet wide, and eight feet in height."
~Marauders of Gor, page 157~