Mjolnir in the Body: A Morphological and Functional Homology Between the Human Diaphragm and Mjolnir
Year: 2026
Type: preprint
Abstract: This paper formulates the hypothesis that the human diaphragm is morphologically and functionally homologous to Mjolnir, the hammer of Thor in Norse mythology. The central tendon (centrum tendineum) corresponds to the hammer head; the two crura correspond to the short handle; the three anatomical openings (hiatus aorticus, hiatus oesophageus, foramen venae cavae) correspond to the characteristic indentations in the Viking amulet tradition. At the functional level, both structures share the role of cosmological boundary instrument: both separate two fundamentally different worlds, operate rhythmically, and determine the transition between order and chaos. A first morphometric analysis is included, along with recommendations for further quantitative research. To the author's knowledge, this hypothesis has not previously been explicitly formulated.
Author: Reitsma, Edwin
Language: English
Subfield: History
Field: Arts and Humanities
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7162212466
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