The illumininated manuscript leaf above demonstrates that ideas concerning the Norse gods were still very much intertwined with the names of the days of the week in the popular mind, as the Icelandic Eddas first entered into the public consciousness in the mid-1700s, introducing the mythology of these gods for the first time.

The following artwork forms a hybrid of what would afterward become two distinct trends of inspirations in Norse mythological art. Here the figure of Frigga, wielding sword (left), is inspired by Richard Verstegan's depiction of the Saxon gods that lend their names to the days of the week, in his Restitution of Decayed Intelligence in Antiquities first published in 1605. The other figure on horseback (left), represents Odin on his eight-legged steed Sleipnir, directly inspired by the account given in Snorri's Edda.

Henry Fuseli, a Swiss painter, draughtsman and writer who spent much of his life in Britain. A noted 18th century painter, and leading member of the  English Romantic art movement,  Fuseli (Fussli) created pictures that explored the darker side of the human psyche. Focusing on historical and allegorical works, Fuseli drew much of his inspiration from literary sources, in particular Shakespeare, Milton and Dante. Noted for his masterpiece The Nightmare (1781),  Fuseli favored fantastic and supernatural themes which dominated British tastes from around 1770 to 1830.

 
      

Early in 1779 Fuseli returned to Britain where he found a commission awaiting him from Alderman Boydell, who was then setting up his Shakespeare Gallery. Fuseli painted a number of pieces for Boydell. In 1788 Fuseli married one of his models, Sophia Rawlins, and soon after became an associate of the Royal Academy. In 1790,  he presented Thor Battering the Midgard Serpent as his diploma work. Thor is depicted nude, in Neoclassic style. He faces the furious serpent. Hymir turns away cowering with fear. The omnipresent nature of Odin is indicated by his appearance among the clouds watching the fierce battle. His omnipotence is contrasted with the ominous nature of the Midgard serpent emerging from the waves. The sea is churned with the unudation of its black coils and the waves have merged with the clouds.

This image appears to be based in part on the illustration of Thor in Richard Verstegan's Restitution of Decayed Intelligence in Antiquities, yet it shows knowledge of Snorri's Edda, including Thor's goat-drawn wagon (second step from bottom) and the tale of Loki and his wife Sigyn (foreground).  It is remarkably similar to the Frontispiece for Nils Henrik Sjöborg's  Samlingar för Nordens Fornälskare (1822).