That's one of my most favoured Viking quotes because it speaks about preparation; over a a thousand years ago when the Vikings were one of the most progressive cultures of the world preparation was a key factor and I believe it is still. It's not just about battle, it's preparing for everything from ship-building at the right time to preparing fields, trade agreements and alliances and everything else it took for a person to eke out a living and to eventually thrive back then, which the Vikings certainly did. I'm a prepared guy, so this quote resonates with me and has done for most of my life; I've benefitted from it greatly.
Some while ago I decided to take a look at a visiting exhibition at the South Australian Museum called the Galloway Hoard from Scotland, a collection of Viking gold and silver (and vary rare organic materials) found in Balmaghie, Kirkcudbrightshire and which dates back to (circa) AD 900. History fascinates me and I find the past a more interesting place than modern times so I was eager to see the hoard for myself.
The common-held belief about Vikings is that they were a brutal and warlike people who conducted devastating raids and began wars in aid of rape and plunder of all sorts, and they were, however that wasn't the full story.
Vikings were farmers, explorers, traders, colonists, sailors, craftsmen and women, family men and women, expert negotiators (not just with sword and axe), ingenious inventors, creative thinkers, deeply spiritual, and so much more. I'm drawn to their culture and beliefs, their methods also, so a chance to get closer to them through the Galloway Hoard was an opportunity I'd never pass up.
In this post I'll add a few images of the hoard, all taken by me, and write a line or two here and there. What I'll not do is do the incredible nature of the items and stories behind them any justice at all; that's something one needs to see and discover for themselves and as for the stories, surmising's and meanings...well, people dedicate their entire lives to studies around the Viking culture and the people so if you're keen get to it.
The Viking cross in the main image above shows quite clearly the skill of Viking craftspeople with its delicate gold inlays used to emphasise certain features and careful cleaning and study also shows Niello (black silver sulphide paste) was inlaid into the carved patterns for additional contrast against the silver. Interestingly, it was discovered with the incredibly fine spiral chain still attached (this is rare) which suggests it may have been recently worn before the heard was buried.
Vikings, ever able to adapt, were often found to renounce their own gods to convert to the teachings of Christ and this piece clearly demonstrates that. This piece, decorated in the late Anglo-Saxon style and depicting symbols of the four evangelists, Saint Matthew, Saint John, Saint Luke and Saint Mark is an indication of a people seeking to fit in - were they all about conquest and plunder it's unlikely they'd do such things considering their military ingenuity and tactics and prowess and ferocity in battle often far-outmatched their opponents'. Clearly they wanted to fit in an assimilating into the cultures they found themselves is was one way they did so. Of course, often their conversion was diversionary and calculated and they secretly held to the old ways and old gods - I don't blame them.
This single piece has brought much puzzlement and its secrets are not fully revealed, but it surely displays the maker's skills.
Below are a selection of arm-rings; I'm sorry but they were difficult to photograph properly due to reflecting lights off the glass cases. Some are complete but many were hacked so I wonder, damaged in battle, or hacked off after battle/death/capture and hacked to distribute the wealth, or hacked by a plough at some later date?
Interestingly, those that were complete were very accurately weighed to standardised weights such as 53.2 grams which exactly two ounces and 79.8 grams which is three ounces; obviously this was by design not accident.
I didn't get a good enough image of it but one has the name of Eggbreht (Egbert) inscribed on it, (common old-English name) however it was inscribed in Anglo-Saxon runes and not Scandinavian. It is thought the name was inscribed by locals and could have been inscribed on it at a later date than at its making.
Here's a cluster of four arm-rings and quite interestingly they were found "bound together" by a smaller arm-ring (on the right). They are very intricate as expected based on what we know of Viking artisans. Why were they bound together? Were they taken from four different defeated foes and bound together for ease of transport or safekeeping? These were found with a small wooden box nestled inside them which contained three gold objects being a ring, ingot and pin in the shape of a bird. Incredibly, the wood of the box was still present which is one of the things that makes this hoard so rare, its carbon-datable.
I couldn't get a decent photo of the gold bird-pin but they had an image on an information board and I snapped it. If you want to see it, ask me in the comments and I'll upload it. Unfortunately the exhibition was lit quite dimly (for obvious reasons) and no flash photography was permitted so the images I have are quite poor really.
Researchers consider the lidded vessel as the heart of the hoard and it draw a lot of excitement. Only the third such to be found in the UK this one was not filled with the usual silver bullion, that was buried outside the vessel. It wasn't empty though and what was inside is unique to any Viking hoard ever found; it's also the only vessel found with its lid intact.
Incredibly, it was found with two layers of textile wrapped around it which is in remarkable condition - see below lower left (an image I took of an image as they don't let the actual sample out of the laboratory.) They feel this vessel itself is from Central-Asia which again suggests how far and wide Vikings roamed and their keenness to trade outside of their own culture.
They have the real vessel locked away (the image above is a model made after 3D x-ray scanning which also allowed researchers to see inside the vessel and scan the exact items within. The outer layer of textile was wool and the second layer was linen. Torn away from items of clothing to warp the 10cm x 10cm vessel or purpose-made for it?
Inside the vessel were many items, twenty-plus, including gold objects, glass, rock crystal and minerals and metalwork of an Anglo-Saxon origin. Some of the items were wrapped in leather, silk or linen or connected by braids of silk. It suggests that this was a highly-valued collection of items and could have been personally owned, important community or religious items...or maybe some well-organised Viking warrior held them as plunder.
I'm mindful of this becoming a really long post so I'll start to wrap up however want to show a few additional items first.
In the collage below are a pair of quatrefoil broaches (cross-shaped). This shape is unique to the Galloway Hoard, never found before, which is interesting in itself. The iconography shows two of the five senses being sight and hearing which could indicate they were commissioned as a pair and those two senses were preferred or as part of a five-broach set and the other three were loas somewhere. Who knows?
Upper left is a disc broach and there's many signs that it's been repaired over the years to ensure its continued use. These are usually found in pairs however it was alone so I suppose it could have been plundered or taken from a foe, or maybe its owner just lost the other? Either way, it was clearly important enough to have repaired so meant something to someone.
Lower left is a cool item, gold beast-head mounts with blue glass eyes. These were found strung together by silk cord to a four-point mount (partially seen in my image) and the beast-heads were the end points, sort of like those little plastic things at the ends of shoe laces. It's thought they could have been used to retain a woman's head veil/covering or possibly on a girdle (belt) as an adornment. I love this one as it shows different aspect of Viking life and attention to detail. Of course, with gold being so valuable, the owner would have been of high standing and wealthy.
The two items to the lower right are decorative bands or straps which are hinged for articulation so probably designed to be worn in places where movement was expected like bracelets or as decorative clothing adornments. They seem quite delicate so perhaps they were made for a child? Inside the vessel some small detached hooks were found indicating that these straps were possibly attached to leather or fabric. Again, in line with the uniqueness of the Galloway Hoard these are not at all common in Anglo-Saxon metalwork so raise new questions.
I paid $50 to enter the exhibition (two adults) which I thought was fair. It takes about 45-60 minutes to move around it, observe and read although I was there for 90 minutes due to watching a couple videos twice and reading and re-reading some of the information.
I found it to be very interesting, my love history wouldn't allow otherwise, and I think many would even without a shared passion for history.
We live in a modern society where information is so easily gained, we're so advanced, and yet people focus on things that don't broaden their experience and knowledge such as video games and what a celebrity in another country might be eating for breakfast or wearing to an event. I believe there's more to be discovered and explored than that, and also believe people's care-factor for anything but the very superficial is rising which is to their, and current and future societies' detriment.
We're all different though, I understand that, and what is important to one may not even rate to another; I just can't help but wonder what people in a thousand years might reveal about our current society though. Having made that point...well, I doubt humanity will be around in a thousand years so it's a moot point.
I find such value in looking into the past and seeking answers although often find more questions too. What I know for certain is that so many answers to current issues and challenges can be found in the past as those who came before us have made the same mistakes we are making today - subsequent generations seem incapable of learning - and should we make the effort to uncover some of those answers we may, just may have a slight chance of creating a future rather than destroying it.
Design and create your ideal life, tomorrow isn't promised - galenkp
[Original and AI free]
Image(s) in this post are my own
Interesting! I was involved in the 1978 and 1979 Wood Quay protests and the famous 'Save Wood Quay' march in September 1978 when 20,000 people protested against the construction of Dublin City Council headquarters right on top of a major archaeological site that was the very core of the Viking settlement of Dublin.
Layer upon layer of urban living from the Viking period and beyond had already been uncovered perfectly preserved due to the rare anaerobic ground conditions. But despite the protests and legal actions, it was all covered over when building went ahead in 1981.
I had a keen interest in history and took it as a major in college but since then I've seen much evidence that history is a 'set of lies agreed upon'.
Yeah, that's typical human behaviour I guess. So much for progress huh?
As for your last, the "lies" comment; history is written by the victor, no doubt. I'm less inclined to allow my love of history to become overly politicised though, I don't want to taint my love of history and who was right if wrong or hard done by doesn't matter.
If you like reading, might I suggest, The Last Duel, by Eric Jager, based on a true event. It was made into a pretty good movie as well and one compliments the other quite nicely. Read the book first. Fascinating reading.
Thanks for the recommendation, but aside from medical articles and research papers, my reading material tends to be a bit more lowbrow; thrillers and police procedurals. You never know though. Perhaps one day I'll be stuck in a foreign airport that has only one english language book for sale. That's how I ended up reading Jilly Cooper's 'Riders.' I'll never forget the pain!
Ah ok, no worries then, we read what we want to and there's no harm in it. Maybe you'll be in that airport someday and the opportunity will present itself.
To say I am fascinated is an understatement when it comes to history. Oftentimes the only thing we know about a people or place in history is what we are told via teachers, textbooks, t.v. and movies. You really never see the bigger picture unless you delve into their lives via exhibitions like this one. Stories we are told are always one sided.
There is such treasure here and not just of the gold, silver, jewel type, but human and societal treasure. You're right when you say answers for today can be found in the past, if only we slow down enough to look for them.
Hello dearest and most legit and world famous Tam! (I'm just working on the premise that flattery will get me everywhere.)
I'm pleased to hear you like history, we can continue being friends; isn't it an engaging process from question to research, more questions and then possibly understanding? I also like dispelling falsehood and misperception (on my own part) as you allude to.
Some of the most engaging and interesting conversations (and relationships) I've had have had an element of a mutual love of history, discovery, curiosity and such other things and the mutual sharing of that moment when understanding occurs or a curiosity is satisfied...well, not quite orgasmic but satisfying nonetheless.
I've had people want to argue with me (argue not debate) that the answers to now and the future can be found in the past and while I don't engage in the argument I strongly disagree. Sure, we are faced/posed with different issues than they were a thousand years ago but most trouble in society and the world is caused by human and humans and human nature (greed, ego, hubris and such things) and humans haven't changed much at all in a thousand years. (Maybe much dumber due to their reliance on automation, AI and so on.
Anyway, all that is for another conversation which would be good to have in person right? (Although, meeting me in person would probably reveal me to be as thick as two short planks of wood so maybe I'll hide behind my keyboard.)
lol @world famous. I sometimes wish I had become an archaeologist so I could bury my nose in the past and get paid for it lol. As it is, I just have to ferret around on my own and am wishing I had so many more decades to devote to the pursuit.
You are so right that humans haven't much changed in a thousand years, not the fabric of humanity anyway. Technology has been a driver for sure and will continue to be so, far into the future, but humans will always be human along with all of our human faults.
So you're saying you're thicker than you are long?? lol, don't mind me, I have medicine head :)
World infamous?
I would have liked to be an archaeologist as well, doing one's hobby for a job seems a good way to like one's job. Alas, life took me in different directions.
Thicker than long...you're cheeky, and a little ribald.
lol
As you explained each of them so nicely, it made me to take a little dive into the viking world...hope to explore and learn about them to relate something either with our civilization or with what you have shown in this post....
Oh that's cool, I'm glad to have inspired you to dig a little deeper!
Precise weights of hacksilver are quite common in archaeological digs and treasure hoards, and the Norse used touchstones to verify purity of gold and silver. They were serious about trade. If memory serves, viking comes from their term for going raiding, but they also explored the rivers and seas around Europe. The Normans descended from vikings. The Vernagian Guard in Byzantium were usually vikings.
You probably know all that already, of course.
The vikings settled not only Iceland, Greenland, and Nova Scotia, according to some dedicated true believers, they made it all the way to Minnesota. I have seen the stone, but I can neither verify nor disprove its authenticity myself. It does, however, come from an era with a lot of fraudulent finds and hoaxes.
Edited for autocorrect typos
I actually watched a documentary partially about the Vikings that, purportedly, made it to what are now the United States of America, (Newfoundland, Canada was also mentioned), I wish I could recall what it was called. What's clear though, is that they travelled far and wide and they influenced many different peoples.
I knew about the stuff in your first paragraph but it's taken time for me to uncover those, and other, things which has been an enjoyable journey. That's the thing about history, in researching one thing many more pop up which is why it's a never-ending thing for me. I don't mind though, it gives me some great ideas on where to travel and what see when I'm there.
I think the Vikings were lateral thinkers who were happy to weigh up something before discounting it or moving on it and that led them to spread range out there and I also think they had the ability to see opportunity, chase it down and pivot if/when required. It would be considered good business strategy these days.
Thanks for commenting.
Hi @galenkp, it's going to be difficult for real history to oust pop culture stereotypes, especially after more than a hundred years of cinema. I also share the opinion that in 1000 years' time there will be no humanity left that can read this text or see Kirk Douglas playing the role of a Viking. We should be able to learn from the past in order to face the present... but I don't think this will happen.
Regarding the photographs, despite the low light, I think they reflect what they have to reflect, that we are dealing with a sophisticated culture. I had the opportunity to see the recreation of a Viking village a few years ago with actors playing different roles and it was clear that in addition to being warriors, the Vikings also cultivated their land, made their own crafts and jewelry, worked the forge, etc. It was quite an entertaining visit.
I sometimes spend time flicking through books I have on Viking culture and tumble into thoughts of what their day to day lives were like, the simple things, and how they must have thought. Not unlike us I guess: What's to eat, what work do I have to do, what does my future hold and how do I prepare for it...
I find it enjoyable.
Good morning @galenkp. I was just going to bed. I guess humanity always faces the same challenges? It's not very clear to me that our solutions are very intelligent.
See you in a bit.
You're very right in saying so.
Enjoy your sleep, see you over the weekend.
👋
I must have been told that Vikings were no more than marauding madmen, because I am very surprised by the intricacy, and beauty, of these objects. They are varied, too. I knew the Vikings traveled far and wide, I don't know why I didn't expect them to also be erudite and artists too. I enjoyed this post. Unexpected! My favorite kind.
It's easy for people to see others (or cultures) portrayed in a certain way and draw incorrect conclusions and with the Vikings it's certainly the case with a lot of people. In fact, it was the common belief generally, but as new evidence and understandings are revealed history needs to be rewritten somewhat more accurately. It's also easy for us to look back and incorrectly "judge" (perceive) people from a thousand years ago in a certain way when we have no real personal concept of exactly what life was like for them I suppose. It's this search for a better understanding that I love about history.
Anyway, I think it's nice that you've unexpectedly enjoyed one of my posts and thanks for taking the time to comment.
Hold up here. It's not that I unexpectedly enjoyed one of your posts, I enjoy most of your posts. It's that the content of this one surprised me.
Lol, yeah I figured that. 😊
Some people see literally no value in history, or simply stay comfortably within the boundaries (aspects) they enjoy, but I'm happy to look a little rather afield. It's really amazing how I'll see, hear or read something and then off I go, down the rabbit hole.
I'm glad you liked this one and maybe you'll take a deeper look into the Viking culture and history and find some more.
Do you have a favourite part/event of history you feel an affinity with?
I hated history in school, perhaps, or so I like to think nowadays, because what we were taught was largely false.
I am intrigued by the times depicted in Arthurian tales. And of the Roman empire. I just yesterday fell for a poem by Catallus of the late Roman empire
Now spring unlocks!
Now the equinox stops its blue rages quiet as pages.
I tell you, Catallus, leave Troy, leave the ground burning,
they did.
Look, we will change everything, all the meanings,
all the clear cities of Asia you and me.
Now the mind, isn't she an avid previous hobo?
Now the feet grow leaves so glad to see whose green baits
awaits.
Oh sweet don't go back the same way
go a new way.
I would love to be able to read poetry from that time in the original Latin
Now you made me think back to what I thought of history back in high school. I'll admit I didn't love it but the more I learned the more I wanted to learn.
Interestingly I did the French Revolution and the First World War and quite enjoyed both...and have spent lengthy periods in the exact places they played out in Europe later as an adult. My battlefield tours of the Western Front (Belgium/France) have been some of the most poignant experiences of my life and France...well, I love that place and it's many historical aspects and stories to follow.
I like that poem, thank you. I did Latin at school but like much of what I learned at school it is lost to me now. Sad really.
I was very pleasantly surprised by this publication, they are wonderful pieces. Although I am more of an Egyptian culture lover, the Viking culture is very rich in history and also in art and here I see it captured. Many details in each of the pieces and one is more beautiful than the others. I loved the bracelets and the story. Yes I would like to see that image of the information panel, please.
My friend sometimes tells me about them and how they adapted to go from northern Europe to the south and how, for example, some stayed in these lands because of the climate. Although they were warriors, they also had that facet of adaptation, something that the human being of today.... Well, I don't know if they will exist in 1000 years, or maybe the most adapted will remain.
A super wonderful publication, I enjoyed it very much, I love art and history. Thank you!
Here's a cropped image of that information plaque. The image at the bottom shows the bird pin I mentioned. It's not going to come up too clearly but you should be able to get the idea.
Wooww ,I can see it. copy the text in the translator, what a beautiful bird-shaped pin. If those bracelets were linked those four people were also linked and strongly so. Everything and the whole show has a lot of symbolism. I loved it!
It's very small and delicate showing once again how careful Viking craftsmen could be.
I love to see that kind of delicacy in the art, wonderful! I met a new side of them.
Wow, that is pretty cool. I definitely understand why you wanted to go and see this. I'd love to see treasure like this. I remember going to one of the museums in New York City and the ancient Egypt displays were amazing. A while ago they brought a couple of the terracotta soldiers to the museum in my hometown and I knew I had to go because when would I ever get the chance to see them again.
It's pretty interesting to me, all this historical stuff like the terracotta soldiers. I saw them when I was a kid and was as fascinated then as I am now. There's so much to learn, uncover and understand.
I totally agree with you. So many things we still don't know as well and may never figure out. I love mysteries like that.
Yep for sure. I spend a lot of my free time delving into history and have amassed a very solid library of books, a room full which I like to call my library, many hundreds of them. I love them all, and now with the interwebs it's even easier to get my head around things as new research comes to light on stuff. Enjoyable.
Impressive!