On the cover of the book named after it.
Naglfar is the ship made from the fingernails and toenails of those who died outside of battle. During Ragnarök, it is foretold that the Jotunn and dishonorable dead will sail it into battle against the gods.
Appearance[]
Naglfar is a Viking longship larger than an aircraft carrier. The main deck is big enough to accommodate the Boston Marathon. Giant shields lined the railings. Fore and aft rose thirty-foot-tall figureheads shaped like snarling wolves. A hundred feet down, braided iron cables moored the ship to a dock. The railng's surface is bumpy and prickly – enameled with white and grey ridges like fish scales or pearl shavings.
Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard[]
The Sword of Summer[]
Loki takes Magnus Chase to the ship and explains its purpose to him. Magnus first assumes that the nails are iron nails, but Loki corrects him by telling him that Naglfar is actually made of finger and toe nails. People used to burn nails but now they don't so it creates the self-building ship.
The Hammer of Thor[]
Helgi informs Magnus and his friends that Loki plans to sail the ship of nails in the middle of summer.
The Ship of the Dead[]
Magnus, Blitzen, Hearthstone, T.J., Mallory, Halfborn, Sam, and Alex sail to the border of Niflheim and Jotunheim to keep the ship from launching and succeed.
Etymology[]
There have been many disputes on whether or not nagi- means "nail", but, instead, is a variant of the Old Norse word nár, which means corpse. [1]