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creature

Svaðilfari

The giant builder's stallion that hauled stone for the wall of Ásgard, until Loki, as a mare, lured him away; the father of Sleipnir.

Loki and Svadilfari by Hardy
Loki and Svadilfari by Hardy, Dorothy Hardy (1909). Wikimedia Commons, public domain.

Svaðilfari is the stallion of the unnamed giant who offered to build the gods a wall around Ásgard in one winter (see The giant builder and the wall of Asgard). The gods agreed that the builder could use his horse, on Loki's advice, and soon regretted it: by night the horse hauled huge rocks, and "the horse did more rough work by half than did the wright" Gylfaginning 42. With three days of winter left the wall was nearly finished.

Threatened by the gods, Loki took the shape of a mare. When she called from a wood, Svaðilfari broke his traces and chased her all night, the work stalled, and Thor killed the builder. Loki later gave birth to an eight-legged foal, Sleipnir Gylfaginning 42. Hyndluljóð gives the same parentage in a single line Hyndluljóð 42. Nothing else is told of the stallion.

In the sources

Quoted from the hosted translations; each line is checked against the text when the site is built. Select a reference to read it in context.

the horse did more rough work by half than did the wright
Gylfaginning 42 The stallion does most of the work on the gods' wall.
a mare bounded forth from a certain wood and whinnied to him
Gylfaginning 42 Loki, as a mare, lures him away and the work stops.
And Sleipnir bore he to Svathilfari
Hyndluljóð 42 The only mention of him in the Poetic Edda.

Myths with Svaðilfari

The giant builder and the wall of Asgard A stranger offers to wall the gods' stronghold in a single winter, for the price of Freyja, the sun and the moon. When he is about to win, Loki saves the gods by turning himself into a mare — and gives birth to Sleipnir.

Related

Sleipnir Odin's grey, eight-legged horse, best of all steeds, foaled by Loki after he lured away the giant builder's stallion Svaðilfari. Loki The giant-born trickster counted among the Æsir: father of Fenrir, the Midgard Serpent and Hel, contriver of Baldr's death, bound until Ragnarök. Asgard Ásgarðr The stronghold of the Æsir, walled against the giants, full of halls such as Valhall and Bilskirnir; Snorri also identifies it, confusingly, with Troy. Thor Þórr The thunder god, strongest of the Æsir: son of Odin and Earth, husband of Sif, and with his hammer Mjöllnir the gods' defender against the giants, until he dies killing the World Serpent.