page_title: Sampo
section_title: In the Kalevala
hierarchical_section_title: Sampo / In the Kalevala
caption_attribution_description: English: Gallen-Kallela The defence of the Sampo
context_page_description: In Finnish mythology, the Sampo or Sammas was a magical artifact of indeterminate type constructed by Ilmarinen that brought riches and good fortune to its holder. When the Sampo was stolen, it is said that Ilmarinen's homeland fell upon hard times and he sent an expedition to retrieve it, but in the ensuing battle it was smashed and lost at sea.
context_section_description: The Sampo is a pivotal element of the plot of the Finnish epic poem Kalevala, compiled in 1835 (and expanded in 1849) by Elias Lönnrot based on earlier Finnish oral tradition.
  In the expanded second version of the poem, the Sampo is forged by Ilmarinen, a legendary smith, as a task set by the matron of Pohjola, Louhi, in return for her daughter's hand.
  "Ilmarinen, worthy brother,
  Thou the only skilful blacksmith,
  Go and see her wondrous beauty,
  See her gold and silver garments,
  See her robed in finest raiment,
  See her sitting on the rainbow,
  Walking on the clouds of purple.
  Forge for her the magic Sampo,
  Forge the lid in many colors,
  Thy reward shall be the virgin,
  Thou shalt win this bride of beauty;
  Go and bring the lovely maiden
  To thy home in Kalevala."
  Ilmarinen works for several days at a mighty forge until finally the Sampo is created:
  On one side the flour is grinding,
  On another salt is making,
  On a third is money forging,
  And the lid is many-colored.
  Well the Sampo grinds when finished,
  To and fro the lid in rocking,
  Grinds one measure at the day-break,
  Grinds a measure fit for eating,
  Grinds a second for the market,
  Grinds a third one for the store-house.
  Later, Louhi steals the Sampo, provoking Ilmarinen and Väinämöinen to enter her stronghold in secret and retrieve it. Louhi, in reply, pursues them and combats Väinämöinen. In the struggle, Louhi is vanquished but the Sampo is destroyed.
caption: The Defense of the Sampo, Akseli Gallen-Kallela, 1896
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