We merge the concept of methane venting tectonics and the old legend about Surt, the giant of fire, living in the underground and having a burning sword. Due to the tumbling and collisions between blocks thrown up in the air by the explosive methane venting forces, ignition is likely to have set the methane on fire; i.e. huge burning columns of tens to hundreds of metres height. Such events occurred in east-central Sweden at about 3000 BP. The Bronze Age people are likely to have understood it as Surt pushing up his sword of fire from the underground. The legends of Surt, the Fenris Wolf, the Midgårds Serpent and the Ragnarök apocalypse, all seem to owe their origins to the violent geodynamic activity along the east-central part of Sweden at about 3000 BP. We may therefore speak about an ancient “Svenonian mythology”, which precedes the Norse mythology of the Edda by about 2000 years.
References
[1]
Mörner, N.-A. (2003). Paleoseismicity of Sweden—A Novel Paradigm. 16th International INQUA Congress, Reno, Nevada, 1-320.
[2]
Mörner, N.-A. (2007). The Fenris Wolf in the Nordic Asa Creed in the Light of Paleoseismics. Geological Society, London, Special Publications, 273, 117-119. https://doi.org/10.1144/GSL.SP.2007.273.01.10
[3]
Mörner, N.-A. (2009). Late Holocene Earthquake Geology in Sweden. Geological Society, London, Special Publications, 316, 179-188. https://doi.org/10.1144/SP316.11
[4]
Mörner, N.-A. (2011). Plaeoseismology: The Application of Multiple Parameters in Four Case Studies in Sweden. Quaternary International, 242, 65-75. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2011.03.054
[5]
Mörner, N.-A. (2013). Patterns in Seismology and Palaeoseismology, and Their Application in Long-Term Hazard Assessments—The Swedish Case in View of Nuclear Waste Management. Pattern Recognition in Physics, 1, 75-89. https://doi.org/10.5194/prp-1-75-2013
[6]
Mörner, N.-A. (2016a). Methane Venting and Methane Venting Tectonics. 13th International Conference on Gas in Marine Sediments (GIMS13), Tromsø, 19-22 September 2016, Abstracts. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/308306076
[7]
Mörner, N.-A. (2016b). Tsunamis in Sweden: Occurrence and Characteristics. In M. Mokhtari (Ed.), Tsunami (Chap. 6, pp. 115-133). London: InTech. https://doi.org/10.5772/63956
[8]
Mörner, N.-A. (2017a). Methane Hydrate in Crystalline Bedrock and Explosive Methane Venting Tectonics. Earth-Science Reviews, 169, 202-212. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.earscirev.2017.05.003
[9]
Mörner, N.-A. (2017b). Methane Hydrate in Crystalline Bedrock and Explosive Methane Venting Tectonics. Earth-Science Reviews, 169, 202-212. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.earscirev.2017.05.003
[10]
Mörner, N.-A. (2020). The Kaali Impact, Coincidental Deformations and Tsunamis, and Ancient Legends. 10th International INQUA Meeting on Paleoseismology, Active Tectonics and Archeoseismology (PATA), Hornitos, Chile, 8-12 November 2020, Extended Abstracts, 1-4. (In press)
[11]
Mörner, N.-A., & Sjöberg, R. (2011). Excursion Guide. The 2nd International Conference on Granite Caves, Sweden, June 2011, Speleo Publication 12, 28 p.
[12]
Mörner, N.-A., & Strandberg, S. (2009). Marviken. Geologiskt baserad namntolkning. Saga och Sed, Kungl. Gustav Adolfs Akademiens Årsbok 2009, 179-184.
[13]
Scott Littleton, C. (1964). The Comparative Indo-European Mythology of George Dumézil. Journal of Folklore Institute, 1, 147-166. https://doi.org/10.2307/3813900
[14]
Simek, R. (2007). Dictionary of Northern Mythology. Woodbridge, England: Boydell & Brewer.
[15]
Sturlasson, S. (1220). Den Prosaiska Eddan (Snorre’s Edda): Codex Upsaliensis, DG 11. Den Poetiska Eddan. Codex Regius, Det Kongl. Bibl. Köpenhavn.