The Mill That Made the Sea Salty

How did a mill make the sea salty?

In *Skaldskaparmal*, King Frodi of Denmark buys Fenja and Menja and puts the two great, strong women to work. The mill Grotti produces whatever its grinders ask for. At first, they grind out gold, peace and happiness for the king. But he gives them almost no time to sleep.

They may rest only while the cuckoo falls silent, or for as long as it takes to sing a song. At last, they grind out an army to attack the king. That night, the sea king Mysing attacks. Frodi is killed. The age of peace ends, and the new king takes away both the mill and the women.

Mysing orders them to grind salt. At midnight, the women ask whether he has enough, but he tells them to keep grinding. Before long, the ship sinks. Seawater pours into the hole in the millstone, leaving a whirlpool. *Skaldskaparmal* says that this was when the sea became salty.

In *The Song of Grotti*, however, the women turn the mill with all their strength. The poem describes the wooden handle shaking and the heavy stone splitting in two.

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