 Saxo's works were received enthusiastically by the Renaissance era scholars, who were curious about the pre-Christian history and legends.Saxo's portrayals of history have been seen to differ greatly from those of his contemporaries, especially Norwegian and Icelandic, including portrayals of various historical characters as either heroes or villains.There are also differences between Saxo's work and that of the fellow Danish historian Sven Aggesen from the same era.