Icelandic horse them. Horses played a significant part in Norse mythology, and several horses played major roles in the Norse myths, among them the eight-footed pacer named Sleipnir, owned by Odin, chief of the Norse gods. Skalm, a mare who is the first Icelandic horse known by name, appeared in the "Book of Settlements" from the 12th century. According to the book, a chieftain named Seal-Thorir founded a settlement at the place where Skalm stopped and lay down with her pack. Horses also play key roles in the Icelandic sagas "Hrafnkel's Saga", "Njal's Saga" and "Grettir's Saga". Although written in the 13th
Sleipnir mentioned in a riddle found in the 13th century legendary saga "Hervarar saga ok Heiðreks", in the 13th-century legendary saga "Völsunga saga" as the ancestor of the horse Grani, and book I of "Gesta Danorum", written in the 12th century by Saxo Grammaticus, contains an episode considered by many scholars to involve Sleipnir. Sleipnir is generally accepted as depicted on two 8th century Gotlandic image stones: the Tjängvide image stone and the Ardre VIII image stone. Scholarly theories have been proposed regarding Sleipnir's potential connection to shamanic practices among the Norse pagans. In modern times, Sleipnir appears in Icelandic folklore