Odin and Brunhild

In Norse mythology, Wotan was a sky god. Brunhild (also spelled Brunhilde, Brynhild, Brynhildr) was a shield maiden and a Valkyrie. She was also the daughter of Wotan. Robert Wagner, in his opera Der Ring des Nibelungen tells the tale, with some variations on the ancient saga. Brunhild disobeyed her father's orders to have her brother Siegmund die and Wotan punishes her by putting her to sleep (in this 1908 illustration by Konrad Dielitz Wotan is taking leave of Brunhild) and saying that she must remain so until a hero awakens her. The hero turns out to be Siegfried. (Photo by: Ivy Close Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)