Mjolnir is, in Norse mythology, Thor’s hammer. It is said to be the most powerful weapon ever created. It is thanks in part to it that Thor became the iconic Norse god and character we know today.
WHAT DOES MJOLNIR LOOK LIKE?
Thor’s hammer, also called “destruction” according to legend, looks like a classic hammer, except that its handle is too short (another joke from his brother). It is made of a head of Asgardian metal called Uru, and a folded handle that makes it easier to grip.
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WHO FORGED MJOLNIR?
Like all magical weapons, it was the dwarves who forged Mjolnir, using very special materials as always. If you don’t know the story of this creation, you’re going to be surprised.
A gift from Loki to make amends
Loki, as usual, wanted to annoy everyone, and it was on Sif, Thor’s wife, that he decided to set his sights; he decided to cut off a lock of her hair. When Thor learned the news, he turned red and threatened to break all his brother’s bones. As you know, you don’t mess with Thor like that, and Loki knew it. That’s why he immediately apologized and offered to go see the dwarves in hopes that they could forge a new head of hair for his wife. Thor agreed.
Over there, it was the sons of Ivaldi he went to see. They were quite efficient, as they forged not only a new head of hair for Sif but also two magical objects:
- Skidbladnir, the best ship of Asgard, which can be folded into a pocket, and always has a favorable wind.
- Gungnir, the deadliest spear ever created.
Loki had therefore largely accomplished his mission and could have returned to Asgard to seek forgiveness, but he preferred to stay close to the dwarves as he was so intrigued by their work. He went to see the brothers Brokkr and Sindri (respectively the spike maker and spark maker) and challenged them to forge magical objects even more impressive than those of the sons of Ivaldi. Loki, sure that this was impossible, even bet his head on their defeat. Of course, the ego of the two brothers took over and they accepted. That’s when the troubles began again.
The god of mischief has struck again
While the two dwarves worked, Loki was bored, so for fun he decided to transform into a fly to annoy the two brothers. The dwarves therefore took two creations out of the furnace too early and were not satisfied:
- Gullinbursti: a boar with golden fur that lit up around him. He could run faster than any horse, swim, and fly.
- Draupnir, a ring from which every nine nights, eight rings of the same weight fall.
Sindri then told Brokkr that for the third object, he absolutely must not be distracted by the flying insect because a third failure would ruin their reputation. Of course, Loki immediately went to sting one of the brothers in the eye, who, because of the blood flowing into his eye, could not see what he was doing. Meanwhile, the second brother was producing unmatched work. He was forging a magical hammer which, according to legend, never missed its target and returned to its owner like a boomerang (now you see where this is going). He named this hammer Mjolnir.
However, the dwarf noticed that the handle was too short, and he found that this made the object unusable. He then blamed the fly, but according to legend, the fly had nothing to do with it. Loki, who had quietly transformed back, seized the other three objects and returned to Asgard without paying the dwarves (with Loki's head, since he had bet it).
The distribution of the objects
Loki arrived before the dwarves in Asgard, he had time to give the lock of hair to Sif, the spear Gungnir and the ring Draupnir to Odin, the ship Skidbladnir and the boar Gullinbursti to Freyr. Finally, he gave Mjolnir to Thor. The gods were very happy and quickly understood that Mjolnir would be an unparalleled help in the upcoming battles. The story does not end there, indeed at that moment the two dwarves (who still had not been paid) arrived at the palace, armed with knives. The gods were so pleased with the dwarves' work that they ordered Loki to pay his due (his head, after all). Under pressure, Loki agreed. The two brothers took pity and decided to "only" sew his mouth shut.
WHAT IS THE WEIGHT OF THOR'S HAMMER?
We all know, Thor's hammer is impossible to lift, only its owner can do it, but then the question arises, how much does it actually weigh? Several theories have been proposed.
The first is that, according to legend, Thor is capable of lifting up to 100 tons (still) so the hammer must necessarily weigh less, but still a very high weight since he is the only one who can lift it
The second theory comes from Marvel, which produced a trilogy about it. According to a presentation card written in 1991, taking into account the materials used and the size of Mjolnir, its weight would be 42.3 pounds, or 20 kilos. This weight seems trivial: anyone could at least move it.
Finally, according to another Norse legend, the forging of the hammer required so much energy that they almost destroyed the universe and that it would weigh the equivalent of a herd of 300 BILLION elephants? That is 1,800 BILLION TONS!
One thing is certain: only a person worthy enough could wield Thor's hammer and possess the thunder powers that come with it. The fact that no one can lift it has nothing to do with its weight, but rather with worthiness. That is why Captain America is able to lift it to help Thor in the Marvel movies.
WHAT ARE THE POWERS OF MJOLNIR?
Mjolnir has many powers, some were already there during its creation, others were created from an enchantment cast by Odin on the hammer. Among the powers created by the dwarves, we find:
- Thor's hammer will always return to his hand, just like a boomerang, no matter where he threw it.
- Mjolnir is almost indestructible; only a super powerful force can destroy it.
- It has unparalleled destructive strength: it was forged to be capable of destroying mountains.
As if that wasn't enough, Odin decided to enchant the hammer to add powers to it:
- As seen earlier, Thor's hammer is impossible to lift unless one is worthy enough. Odin knew that only Thor possessed enough worthiness.
- Mjolnir controls storms, lightning, thunder, wind, and rain. Its owner can therefore use it at will. To do this, Thor must strike the ground twice with his hammer.
- He can control the climate wherever he wants; he can decide to change the weather.
- It allows him to create portals, enabling him to travel from world to world. This is how he traveled to Jotunheim and Midgard.
- Finally, by spinning Mjolnir fast enough, Thor was able to create super powerful force fields capable of destroying a planet.
THEFT OF MJOLNIR
One morning, when Thor woke up, he realized that his hammer was no longer there. Knowing the capabilities of this hammer, it was a disaster. He immediately informed Freyja and Loki. Freyja then gave her feather cloak to Loki. Loki immediately went to Jotunheim, the world of the giants, and saw Thrymr boasting to his friends about having stolen Thor's hammer. When Loki asked him for an explanation, the giant replied that for Thor to get his hammer back, Thrymr had to marry Freyja.
When Loki informed his two friends, Freyja became furious and refused. Heimdall then proposed to Tbor to disguise him and dress Thor as a bride and Loki as a servant. Thor agreed.
The two brothers then went to Jotunheim to set a trap for the giant. He fell for it. During the meal, Thrymr ordered the hammer to be brought, to give it to the new bride. When he had it in hand, he took back his original appearance and hurried to kill the giant and massacre his family. This is how he recovered the powers of the god of thunder.
WHY DOES THOR HAVE AN AXE?
We were asked a lot: in the Marvel trilogy, we see Thor armed with a magical axe, but without his hammer. So we wanted to make a parenthesis on this subject.
The destruction of Mjolnir
Indeed, during the second film, the "villain" Hela destroys Mjolnir into a thousand pieces. Thor could have been satisfied with his godly powers, which are extremely powerful. But to face this threat, he knew very well that it was not enough. So a solution had to be found.
The arrival of the Stormbreaker
Thor, accompanied by his three friends, then went to Nidavellir, the world of the dwarves, so they could reforged a magical weapon for him. Unfortunately, this world had just been destroyed, causing the extinction of the magical forge.
But the stakes were too high, Thor proposed to manually relight the forge. To do this, he had to go restart the heart of the neutron star, while the forge lit up. Thor fainted, as the power of the forge was strong. Eitri hurried to finish the weapon, but it was impossible to find the handle. Groot, his tree friend, decided to sacrifice his arm, which served as the handle for the Stormbreaker.
When the weapon was finished, it restored all of Thor's strength and awakened him. He immediately summoned the Bifrost and went to help the Avengers in their quest.
A more powerful weapon, but less symbolic
His new weapon proved even more powerful than the last, he defeated his enemies one by one and devoured the final boss in one bite. A logical choice would therefore have been to permanently replace Mjolnir with the Stormbreaker. Thor did the opposite.
Indeed, since mjolnir had been enchanted by his father, he found it hard to get rid of it. Moreover, the stormbreaker could be wielded by anyone strong enough, but if they were not worthy. Proof of this, Thanos was able to lift it and use it.
AT RAGNARÖK
Ragnarok is, in Scandinavian mythology, an end of the world that was foretold by a prophecy. This end of the world is caused by a war between the gods and the giants. Many gave their lives there.
During this battle, Thor kills the serpent Jormungand, and dies in turn from its venom; At the renewal of the universe, after the end of the world, it is learned that Thor's sons, Modi and Magni, will inherit Mjolnir.
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