Cursed Norse Ring Before Tolkien

In Norse myth, long before J. R. R. Tolkien wrote The Lord of the Rings, a cursed ring called Andvaranaut brought doom to its owners. The dwarf Andvari originally owned the ring, but after the god Loki seized his hoard, Andvari laid a curse on Andvaranaut so that anyone who possessed it would suffer misfortune and death. In later Volsung legends, the ring passed through royal hands and repeatedly fulfilled that curse, turning wealth and power into tragedy for every new bearer.

Previous Fact Next Fact