Dwarf Alvis (‘All-Wise’) Who Was Tricked By God Thor And Turned Into Stone

A. Sutherland - AncientPages.com - Dwarves in mythology were wise beings who knew the answers to many questions. In Norse mythology, Alvís ("All-Wise") was a dwarf known to be the smartest among his companions. They all lived in their underground kingdom, Svartalfheim (Nidavellir), never penetrated by the Sun and the light of any kind.

Thor converses with Alvis, while protecting his daughter, Thrud. Image of WG Collingwood. (Public Domain)

The all-knowing dwarf Alvis is one of the Poetic Edda's heroes; from this source, we learn about his attempt to marry Thrud, a daughter of Thor, the mighty thunder god.

Alvis knew almost as much as Kvasir, the gods' gift to humankind. Kvasir - the favorite of gods and humans - was as wise as Mimir, and nobody ever questioned his advice.

"You are not worthy of living with me," Alvis once announced to other inhabitants of the underworld.

"My place is in Asgard, among the gods." Only they can understand my wisdom and make everyone pay tribute to me.

After listening to him, the dwarves shook their heads in surprise.

"Of course, you are very wise, Alvis," said one of them, but you forget about the Sun, which will turn you into stone as soon as you leave Svartalfheim.

But Alvis did not want to listen.

Alvis lived in Svartalfheim  and he couldn't be exposed to the Sun. Credit: Adobe Stock - Vitaly Krivosheev

"I will get to Asgard at night when the Sun does not shine, and in the land of the gods, there are palaces whose roofs will protect me from its rays. And then, I can marry a goddess, and then the Aesir gods will have to admit me to Asgard," he said.

Alvis was not a handsome, beautiful man; he was only very wise but was it enough to succeed?

He believed it was.

Alvis saw his great chance and decided to visit Asgard. He was convinced that the mind was more important than beauty. Soon he approached Bifrost, the bridge that connected Asgard and Midgard, and finally appeared before the mighty god Thor.

'I've come to claim Thrud, my bride - the agreed price for my work and many weapons. Let the gods not break their oath," Alvis said.

"Now it's high time that Thrud graced her new home. I can't wait for my wedding night, and I don't mean to hang around here any longer than I have to."

Thor was not very happy hearing Alvis' words and did not like Alvis' look.

'Who are you?' asked Thor. 'Or should I say, what are you? Why is your nose so pale? Do you sleep in a grave mound and keep corpses company?' You look like a kind of monster. You certainly won't be the one to marry Thrud.'

Thor did not want Alvis to get married to his daughter. So he planned to get rid of the unwanted suitor, but this time without using his powerful Mjolnir. Instead, he forced Alvis into a long question-and-answer game. There were many questions about the earth, the sky, the beer, the sea, the fire, and the wind and how they are called in the nine worlds of the sacred tree, Yggdrasil.

Like many other dwarfs, Alvis wanted to shine with excellent answers. Thor made his tests continue until dawn, and finally, the sunlight fell on the body of Alvis, and he changed into a stone. Unfortunately, the "all-knowing" dwarf forgot that his kind could never face the light of day, but god Thor knew it.

There Alvis stood forever as an enduring example of the gods' power and warning to all other dwarfs (and perhaps not only dwarfs) who would dare to test the gods' power.

Updated on October 18, 2022

Written by – A. Sutherland  - AncientPages.com Senior Staff Writer

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