Mjolnir is, in Norse mythology, the hammer of Thor. It is said to be the most powerful weapon ever created. It is thanks to him, among other things, that Thor has become the iconic Norse character and god we know today.
WHAT DOES MJOLNIR ?
Thor's hammer, also called " destruction " according to legend has the appearance of a classic hammer, except that its handle is too short (another of his brother's jokes). It has an Asgardian metal head 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 history of this manufacture, you'll be surprised.
A gift from Loki to make up for it
Loki, as usual, wanted to mess with his world, it was Sif, Thor's wife that he decided to set his sights on, so he decided to cut a lock of her hair. Thor, when he heard the news, turned red and threatened to break all his bones. As you know, you don't go after Thor like that, and Loki knew it. That's why he immediately apologized and offered to go to the dwarves and hope they could forge a new hair for his wife. Thor agreed.
There, it was the sons of Ivaldi that he went to see. The latter were rather efficient, since they not only forged him a new hair for Sif, but also two magical objects :
- Skidbladnir, the best ship in Asgard, which can be stored in a pocket, and always has a fair wind.
- Gungnir, the deadliest spear ever created.
Loki had thus largely accomplished his mission and could have returned to Asgard to make amends, he preferred to stay with the dwarves so intrigued was he by their work. He went to see the brothers Brokkr and Sindri (respectively quilter and sparrow-spinner) 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 egos of the two brothers got the better of them and they accepted. It was at this point that the trouble began again.
The god of mischief has struck again
While the two dwarves were working, Loki was bored, so to amuse himself he decided to transform himself into a fly to go and annoy the two brothers. The dwarves therefore took two creations out of the oven too soon and were therefore not satisfied :
- Gullinbursti : a golden-haired boar that lit up around him. He could run faster than any horse, swim and fly.
- Draupnir, a ring from which every nine nights fall eight rings of the same weight.
Sindri then told Brokkr that for the third item, it was absolutely necessary not to be distracted by the flying insect because a third failure would come to ruin their reputation. Of course Loki immediately went to sting one of the brothers on the eye, who, because of the blood flowing in his eye, could not see what he was doing. Meanwhile, the second brother was producing a work of unparalleled skill. He was forging a magic hammer which, according to legend, never missed its target and returned to its owner like a boomerang (you can see where this is going). He named this hammer Mjolnir.
However, the dwarf noticed that the handle was too short, and he felt that this made the item unusable. He then blamed the fly, but according to legend, the fly had nothing to do with it. Loki, who had quietly changed back, took the other three items and returned to Asgard, without paying the dwarves (with Loki's head, since he had bet it).
The distribution of the items
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 soon realised that Mjolnir would be of unparalleled help in the coming battles. The story doesn't end there, because at this moment the two dwarves (who still hadn't been paid) arrive in the palace, armed with knives. The gods were so pleased with the dwarves' work that they ordered Loki to pay his dues (his head anyway). Under pressure, Loki agreed. The two brothers took pity and decided to " only " sew his mouth shut.
WHAT IS THE WEIGHT OF THOR ?
We all know that Thor's hammer is impossible to lift, only its owner can do it, but then the question arises, exactly how much does it weigh ? Several theories have been put forward.
The first is that, according to legend, Thor is able to lift up to 100 tons (still) the hammer so necessarily do 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 him. According to a presentation card, written in 1991, taking into account the materials used and the size of Mjolnir, his weight would be 42.3 pounds, or 20 kilos. This weight seems derisory anyone could at least move it.
Finally, according to another Norse legend, making the hammer required so much energy that they nearly destroyed the universe and it would weigh the equivalent of a herd of 300 BILLION elephants ? That is 1800 BILLION TONS!
One thing is for sure, only someone worthy enough could carry Thor's hammer, and possess the thunderous powers that go with it. So the fact that no one can lift it has nothing to do with its weight, but rather with dignity. That's why Captain America manages to lift him to Thor's aid in the Marvel movies
WHAT ARE THE POWERS OF MJOLNIR ?
Mjolnir has many powers, some were already there when it was made, the others were created from an enchantment cast by Odin on the hammer. Among the powers created by the dwarves are :
- Thor's hammer will always return to his hand, just like a boomerang, no matter where he throws it.
- Mjolnir is virtually indestructible, only a superpowered force is capable of this.
- It has unrivalled destructive force it was forged to be able to destroy mountains.
As if that wasn't enough, Odin decided to enchant the hammer to add powers :
- As seen earlier, Thor's hammer is impossible to lift unless you are worthy enough. Odin knew that only Thor possessed enough dignity.
- Mjolnir controls storms, lightning, thunder, wind and rain. Its owner can therefore use it as he wishes. To do so, Thor must strike the ground twice with his hammer.
- He can control the weather, where he wants, he can decide to change the weather.
- It allows him to create portals, allowing him to travel from world to world. This is how he used to travel to Jotunheim and Midgard.
- Finally, by spinning Mjolnir fast enough, Thor was able to create super-powerful force fields capable of destroying a planet.
The Flight of MJOLNIR
One morning, when Thor wakes up, he finds that his hammer is gone. Knowing the capabilities of this hammer, this is a disaster. He immediately informs Fryja and Loki. Freyja then gave Loki his feather suit. Loki immediately went to Jotunheim, the world of the giants, and saw Thrymr bragging to his friends about having stolen Thor's hammer. When Loki asked him for an explanation, the giant replied that in order 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 cross-dress him and dress Thor as a groom and Loki as a servant. Thor accepted.
So the two brothers went to Jotunheim to set a trap for the giant. He fell for it. At the meal, Thrymr ordered the hammer to be brought, so that it could be returned to the new bride. When he had it in his hand, he changed back to his original appearance and hurried to kill the giant and his family. This is how he regained the powers of the god of thunder.
WHY DOES THOR HAVE A HATCH?
We've been asked this question a lot in the Marvel trilogy, we see Thor, armed with a magic axe, but without his hammer. So we wanted to make a parenthesis on this subject.
The destruction of Mjolnir
In fact, in the second film, the " villain " Hela destroys Mjolnir in a thousand pieces. Thor could have been satisfied with his god powers, which are extremely powerful. But to face this threat, he knew 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 that they could reforge a magical weapon for him. Unfortunately, that world had just been destroyed, causing the magic forge to become extinct.
But the stakes were too high, Thor offered to reignite the forge manually. To do this, he had to go and reboot the neutron star's core, just long enough for the forge to light up. Thor fainted, but the power of the forge was strong. Eitri hurried to finish the weapon, but he could not find the handle. Groot, his tree friend decided to sacrifice his arm, which served as the handle of the Stormbreaker.
When the weapon was finished, it restored Thor's strength and awakened him. He immediately summoned the Bifrost and set off to help the Avengers in their quest.
A more powerful, but less symbolic weapon
His new weapon proved to be even more powerful than the last one, he took down his enemies one by one and made short work of the final boss. A logical choice, then, would have been to permanently replace Mjolnir with the Stormbreaker. Thor did the opposite.
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In fact, since the mjolnir had been enchanted by his father, he could hardly see himself getting rid of it. Moreover the stormbreaker could be worn by anyone strong enough, but if they were not worthy of it. The proof is that Thanos was able to lift it and use it.
AT THE RAGNARÖK
The Ragnarok is, in Norse mythology, an end of the world that had been announced by a prophecy. This end of the world is caused by a war between the gods and the giants. Many gave their lives in the process.
During this battle, Thor kills the serpent Jormungand, and in turn dies of its venom ; At the renewal of the universe, after the end of the world, it is learned that it will be Thor's sons, Modi and Magni who will inherit Mjolnir.
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