Folgen
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When one of Peter Gibbonsâ book reviews reads, âA great read full of blood and gore,â you know youâre in for an interesting ride! And so it was that we had a great ride (and time) talking with Peter about his best-selling book series set in the Viking and Saxon worlds: The Saxon Warrior and Viking Blood & Blade Saga.
Peter is not only a prolific writer but a very accomplished one as well, winning the highly coveted Kindle Storyteller Award in 2022 for his book King of War. He lives in Ireland, but was born in the north of England. His love of reading as a kid and growing up in the shadows of Viking settlements helped to spark his interesting career.
We talked with Peter about several things like how he got his start as a writer, when he was fortunte enough to quit his day job to write full time, the intrusion of AI into the writing field, and how the world still needs the creativity and passion that only humans can bring to the table. We also asked him who it is that he sees when he looks at Vikings. His passion for them and their Age was immediately apparent and infectious.
But as we tend to wander on Vikingology, we ended our talk on King Arthur. Go figure.
Thanks so much Peter for such a fun chat!
SlĂĄinte!
You can shop for all of Peterâs books on his website.
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Do you believe in elves or magic spells? In Iceland those things have been part of the traditional folklore for a very long time. To learn about what that meant, and continues to mean, we spoke with experts in Old Norse religion and folk beliefs KĂĄri PĂĄlsson and Giorgia Sottotetti. They worked together on a new book, The GaldrabĂłk: Forbidden Icelandic folk magic with Hyldyr, a small, independent publisher in Washington State that has also published other books on related themes.
This episode was a bit of a spooky one for Terri. As a researcher of Vikings and Iceland herself, coincidentally (or not?) back in 2019 she had seen JarĂ°skinna, the tiny manuscript that we discuss and that is the focus of KĂĄri and Giorgiaâs book (along with the GaldrabĂłk), and always wondered what it meant. As you can see from her photo above, taken in the Ărni MagnĂșsson Institute in ReykjavĂk, it contains strange images and symbols that still defy explanation. Luckily, KĂĄri and Giorgia have transcribed the Icelandic text, but they have yet to crack the code. If you have any experience with Icelandic folkloric magic and potential insight into what the images might mean, they would love to hear from you. You can reach them through their publisher.
The episode was a bit spooky for C. J. too. All he could see in the images and symbols was an alien abduction! But perhaps that was because he was a bit under the weather and could really have used a magic healing spell. Or maybe heâs just spent too much time in the Vikingverse ;)
This was a really interesting and fun chat, not only about the manuscripts, but the beliefs of Nordic peoples that have withstood the test of time, from before and during the Viking Age straight through to the present. And we ended on a recitation of a Fart Rune, so whatâs not to love about that?!
Takk fyrir KĂĄri and Giorgia!
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Fehlende Folgen?
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This time we sat down with Ross Downing to talk about the new book he co-wrote and edited with Kaarina Aitamurto, Germanic and Slavic Paganisms: Security Threats and Resiliency, which through a collection of essays looks at the various ways the Viking past is interpreted and misinterpreted in modern Paganism. Ross has an extensive academic and professional background in the study of religions and Old Norse mythology as well as in investigating right wing extremismâs misuse of them.
In this interview, we talk about the background of modern Paganism and how it is deeply rooted in the romantic nationalism of the 19th century â a time when modern nation states were just being born in Europe, and many of them â including in Scandinavia â looked to the Vikings as the perfect model for how those nations wanted to be viewed: as strong, independent, and courageous folk with an adventurous spirit.
But, as Ross explains, the creation of that history and folklore also resulted in what his books calls âThe Folkish Problem.â Originating in the German word völkisch, folkish refers to a more nativist and exclusive view of what it means to have Germanic heritage. And this âyouâre either one of us, or youâre notâ has become the basis for many right wing extremist movements who also co-opt Paganism and use the Vikings as their ideal.
Rossâ book highlights the problems this has caused and continues to cause in the world, and argues for an inclusive Paganism, or Heathenry, as well as provides tools for how it can work toward a set of beliefs and practices that are less prone to misuse and abuse by those who seek to use Viking history and symbols in dangerous ways. It should be read by anyone interested in the âOld Ways.â
We also discuss the obligation that academics who research Vikings have in helping us understand that past in a way that is grounded in the evidence. As a researcher who has taken his expertise into the world of security and threat assessment, Ross is the very embodiment of the ways that responsible scholarly knowledge of the past can be used to help address some of the most pressing issues of our time.
Thank you Ross for a very thought-provoking conversation!
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We are delighted to welcome back to the show Dr habil. Leszek GardeĆa. Itâs been two years since our last conversation with him, and so we were excited to get a chance to speak with him again and hear about his new book The Vikings in Poland (hardback now available, paperback to be released soon). Leszek is a Polish archaeologist, so this history is personal for him, and this book has been a long time in the making. But thankfully he undertook the task of researching and writing it, for it finally brings to light an often-neglected but very important aspect of the Viking Age.
In addition to his book, we talk about our changing understanding of just what a âVikingâ is (or was) and the art and artifacts that help us to see them a bit more clearly. We also talk about the misuse of history and symbols of the past particularly those connected with the Viking Age. And we cover the migrations and mixes of past peoples that show us a dynamic world that canât easily be reduced to Scandinavian or Slav, Viking or warrior, us or them. As always, the conversation with him is thoughtful and enlightening.
Leszek is a prolific writer. He is skilled at taking the complexities and nuances of the Vikings and bringing reason and clarity â in short, he finds the humans behind the legends. We highly recommend his books for anyone interested in the Viking Age.
DziÄkujÄ Leszek! We look forward to chatting again.
Click the images to buy his books. Vikingology has no affiliate relationship and does not profit from book sales. We provide links simply to support the author.
Interested in our previous chat with Leszek? Weâve got you coveredâŠ
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The search for the Great Viking Army is both literal and figurative. For years, scholars have tried to answer the questions surrounding this supposed âarmyâ â What, exactly, was it? How big was it? Who fought in it? Who commanded it, and what were their goals? In this episode we welcome back friend of the show archaeologist Tom Horne to help us answer these questions and understand the exciting ways our knowledge of the Great Army is changing. If youâve ever wondered what the difference between a Viking raider and a Viking army warrior was, this episode has you covered!
Another crucial question has been, where did the Army go? Turns out it was likely right in Tomâs backyard in central and northern Scotland all along. For evidence, Tom shows us some artifacts at Dunblane Museum and explains what they tell us about the Viking presence in places weâve not known about until now.
To keep up with all the latest updates and finds, check out Tomâs website and Viking blog. We also highly recommend his book A Viking Market Kingdom in Ireland and Britain, which gives context for the trade networks and silver fever that helped to drive the Great Armyâs expansion.
Also follow Tom on his several social media platforms to read more about his work and see lots of really cool images of Viking stuff.
Thanks Tom. We look forward to next time and more epiphanies!
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What comes to your mind when you think of Vikings? If itâs a bunch of hairy thugs in boats with swords and axes coming to steal your things, you are only partially correct. In this chat with Dr. Christian Cooijmans we found out that Viking activity in Francia â which encompassed a large swath of Continental Europe 1,200 years ago â was a much more sophisticated and calculated affair than anyone has previously thought.
Through investigating various sources which document Viking activity across the realm, Chris paints a picture of Vikings as economic actors with a level of business acumen rarely ascribed to them. Rather than random farmers out for an occasional good time, think planning, logistics, risk/reward calculations, and a very adaptable infrastructure, and youâll be on the right track. These are not your grandmotherâs Vikings.
After watching or listening to the episode, read more about it in his book Monarchs and Hydrarchs: The Conceptual Development of Viking Activity Across the Frankish Realm (c. 750 - 940) which is available directly from the publisher here. Use code VIKINGOLOGY for 25% off until January 31, 2025. It will make a perfect holiday gift for that Viking nerd in your life.
We also talked to Chris about his involvement in The Great Viking Survey, which is part of a research project looking into modern perceptions of Vikings on a global scale. Responses will help inform researchers about how the world sees Vikings at this moment in the 21st century. Anyone can participate in the survey which youâll find here on our site by clicking the story below.
Thanks Chris for a fun and illuminating conversation about the changing nature of how we see Vikings. We look forward to chatting again very soon!
SkĂĄl!
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Have you ever thought, like really thought, about what it would be like if you took a time machine to the Viking Age? Where would you get food? How do you make clothes? What do you brush your teeth with, or do you brush them at all? And what on earth do you do without cellphones and the internet?
Our guests today know firsthand the answer to all these questions and more.
This time we had the privilege of sitting down with Kevin Alexandrowicz and Devon Rawlings, both members of JĂĄrnborg Vikings, a chapter in the Northwest Viking Alliance. These are NOT your garden-variety cosplay enthusiasts, but people who are deeply interested in experiencing the past, and learning from it, in an authentic way through living history experimental archaeology â a big fancy phrase meaning they understand the small mundane things that constituted daily life in northern Europe 1,000 years ago.
Things like how to make a wooden spoon, how to forge a needle to sew your clothes with, what itâs like to butcher an animal, and even how women dealt with that time of the month.
But besides learning some cool specialized knowledge or skills, why on earth would anyone really want to experience the Viking Age in this way?? We asked them about that and found ourselves wandering into the more philosophical issue of embracing the past versus escaping the present. It was an interesting and enlightening chat!
ĂanciaĂŸ!
If you live in the Pacific Northwest and youâre interested in finding out more or even maybe joining a group, check out the Northwest Viking Alliance. If you live outside the PNW, they can probably help you find similar groups in your area.
Kevin and Devon are also artists. Please check out their craft on their sites below. Thereâs some really beautiful stuff, and theyâll appreciate the support.
Kevinâs work at Archaic Growth and on Instagram @archaicgrowth.
Devonâs work at Baseborn and on Instagram at @baseborn.co
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This time we are thrilled to welcome Dr. Eleanor Barraclough to the show. We nerded out in a previous episode about her book Beyond the Northlands: Viking Voyages and the Old Norse Sagas, which is a great read we highly recommend, so we were very excited to speak with Eleanor about her new book Embers of the Hands: The Hidden Histories of the Viking Age.
In the new book, she delves into all kinds of evidence, both written and archaeological, to try and find the little bits of âgoldâ from the Viking Age past â you know, those bits that represent the utter humanity that often gets lost in the shuffle.
That search for humanity took us on a wide-ranging chat. We talked about Eleanorâs interest in the SĂĄmi, an often overlooked Nordic culture that both shared and didnât share space with the Vikings. And then true to our style at Vikingology, we wandered into all sorts of oddities like squirrels, whether Vikings would have been vegan, monsters, and turds â all things that defined what it meant to be human in the Arctic North 1,000 years ago, and that we can still relate to today.
We also ponder what we can learn from the Viking Age and whether at least some of it is worth repeating, based on Terriâs recent post.
To read more about all the interesting things sheâs up to, check out Eleanorâs site. And for an intimate and seriously entertaining yet educational way to learn about the Viking Age, for goodness sake buy her books! You wonât regret it.
We had such a fun time! For an extra treat, stay tuned at the very end for a behind-the-scenes look at our pre-show banter.
Thanks Eleanor! We definitely look forward to meeting up again soon.
SkĂĄl!
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Itâs been a minute, but Terri and C.J. are finally back together, so in this episode itâs time for life updates from Vikingology.
First up, Happy Birthday! We were both born on September 18, so shout out to us for recently completing another turn around the sun.
Terri is just back from Iceland, while C.J. is preparing to move to France. We talk about the Viking connection to both places including Terri tricking friend of the show Reynir into helping uncover a stone ship setting (which he didnât mind too much) and finally getting to meet his Hurstwic sidekick William in person, and C.J. proposing a business idea for when he settles in France that also involves a Viking ship.
C.J. shares that heâs putting the finishing touches on the fourth book in his series The Saga of Hasting the Avenger. The newest installment is The Fell Deeds of Fate and will be available soon. Follow him on Amazon or his Substack for updates.
Lastly, we tease some cool upcoming guests that you wonât want to miss. And as always, we laugh a lot. So, thereâs lots going on at Vikingology!
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"Let us burn him house and all," said Mord.
Then they took the vetch-stack and set fire to it, and they who were inside were not aware of it till the whole hall was ablaze over their heads.
Then Flosi and his men made a great pile before each of the doors, and then the women folk who were inside began to weep and to wail.
Njalâs saga, chapters 76 and 128
This time on the podcast we are thrilled to welcome back William Short and Reynir Ăskarson of Hurstwic. They were our very first guests way back in December 2022 when they told us about their experience and expertise in Viking Age weaponry.
This time they are here to tell us all about a Viking battle tactic found in several sagas: burning an enemyâs house. If a certain Talking Heads song is in your head right now, it should be.
But this is not your usual historical discussion. William and Reynir are renowned for their years of mixing research of the written sources such as sagas and law codes with experimental archaeology to try and determine firsthand in real time what aspects of life in the Viking Age were like. So, in early July they didnât just publish an academic paper or write a book about a burn, they actually performed one on a recreated Viking Age house (well, half of one anyway) near EirĂksstaĂ°ir in Iceland.
Take a listen to hear all about what went into planning this experiment, how it was carried out, and some of what they learned from it. You wonât want to miss this one. Itâs about as raw and close to the past as you can get!
You can also check out more about Viking weapons and tactics in their book Men of Terror: A Comprehensive Analysis of Viking Combat
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We are so happy and excited to welcome Professor Clare Downham back to the show. If you didnât catch our first episode with her, you should. We had a great chat about lots of Viking, historical, and philosophical stuff.
But this time we decided to do something a little different and engage in a bit of storytelling. Since Clare is one of the worldâs leading experts on Vikings in Ireland, we asked her to tell us about one of the most important battles in Irish history, The Battle of Clontarf in 1014 â a battle much beloved and remembered by many in Ireland to this day.
With the Irish side being led by national hero King Brian Boru, this battle has everything: Vikings, politics, greed, magical raven banners, scorned ex-wives, religion, beheading, ambition, martyrdom, good vs. evil, and female spirits weaving the grisly fate of it all. Itâs the stuff that legends are made of.
The battle appears in several sources that we discuss in the episode, but arguably the most famous is Cogad GĂĄedel re Gallaib ("The War of the Irish with the Foreigners").
We hope you enjoy this one. Though itâs difficult to tease fact from fiction at times, thereâs one thing we know for sure â someone needs to make this movie, stat!
On another noteâŠ..
If you are in the Aberdeen, Scotland area or would like to travel there, be sure to check out the Scottish Society for Northern Studiesâ big conference from 26-28 June. Clare will be presenting on Thursday, and there are other interesting talks, as well as a side trip to a museum and distillery. Of course. Itâs Scotland! Please do check it out and support their work.
Also, remember to check out Clareâs books if you are interested in medieval Irish history. You wonât be disappointed.
* Viking Kings of Britain and Ireland: The Dynasty of Ăvarr to A.D. 1014
* Medieval Ireland
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For much of the English-speaking world, the âViking Ageâ ostensibly got its start with the infamous raid on Lindisfarne in A.D. 793. But did you know by that time there was already a half century of Viking activity in the East in what is now the Baltic States and all the way south to Ukraine?
And did you also know that they may even have laid the foundation for what is now Russia?
In this episode we wanted to learn a bit more about those eastern Vikings â known there as the Rus, and an elite subset of them known as Varangians who served as âspecial forcesâ soldiers in Constantinople â so, we turned to Icelandic scholar and professor of medieval history Sverrir Jakobsson.
Sverrir has researched and written extensively on the medieval and Viking Age history of Iceland, but he has particular interest in the Rus and Varangians who are the subject of his book The Varangians: In Godâs Holy Fire.
We learned from him who they were, how we know that from surviving sources such as the Annals of St. Bertin, and how they compared to Vikings in the West. Turns out they started out as the ultimate âothersâ seen as terrifying forces of nature and, for some at least, ended up becoming honored members of elite society.
A case in point: Sverrir writes about King Harald III of Norway â nicknamed hardrada, or âhard rulerâ â who embodies this progression from Viking to mercenary to royalty. His article âAraltes: The Evolution of a Varangian Stereotypeâ is well worth the read, as is his book, for anyone interested in the fascinating history of the Scandinavians who helped to shape the East and who are so often overlooked.
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Move over Christopher Columbus. Leif Eriksson got there first.
To celebrate our 30th episode weâve pulled out all the stops! We are finally getting to talk about the Norse in North America during the Viking Age. If youâre into Vikings, you probably know they made contact almost 500 years before any other Europeans, touching down and creating a small settlement in what is now LâAnse aux Meadows, Newfoundland, Canada. So far, itâs the only Norse settlement thatâs ever been found on the continent. And thanks to new science we know it was built in the year 1021 C.E., smack in the Viking Age.
To tell the story, our special guest is Loretta Decker. She works for Parks Canada which has responsibility for maintaining and interpreting the UNESCO World Heritage Site. It was a smallish way station for the Norse at the edge of their world, which Loretta says for them may as well have been âa base camp on the moon.â
But her connection runs deeper than that. It was Lorettaâs grandfather George who owned the land on which the Vikings settled, so her childhood was steeped in Nordic archaeology. We couldnât ask for a better person to give us a front seat at the table (or under the table as she recalls!) of this story.
But before archaeology, hard science, and Loretta could tell the story of this place, the Icelandic sagas were our guides. In particular, The Saga of Erik the Red and The Saga of the Greenlanders (collectively known as the Vinland sagas) have for centuries told of Norse exploits in a land that was new to them, replete with strange landscapes, a one-legged being, and Native Americans whom the Norse called skrĂŠlings. Itâs the fantastical stuff that saga legends are made of.
But at LâAnse aux Meadows at least some of those legends were true.
Thanks Loretta! We know youâre getting ready for your busy summer season, so we appreciate you taking the time. It was a true delight!
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This time on the podcast C. J. and Terri muse about what a TED talk on Vikings might look like. We get philosophical â as we often do â about how people engage with the Viking Age past and history in general, and we try to thread the needle between our tendency to overly romanticize Vikings with our need to acknowledge that some pre-modern ways of life could actually be antidotes to the stresses of our modern existence. Heady stuff.
But just when you think we might be overthinking things, we also laugh a lot and somehow end up talking about the concept of âViking washing,â a new Disney Viking-themed park, and Otto von Bismarck. Go figure.
Take a listen and enjoy the ride! And as always, if you like what we do let us know andâŠ..
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I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and Iâ
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
Robert Frost
For an exciting change of pace we sat down with Ian Stuart Sharpe, the creative mind behind the multifaceted Vikingverse, an alternate world where Viking history plays out, shall we say, a bit differently than in your uni textbook.
From comics and novels to tutorials for learning âmodernâ Old Norse and RPGs, Ianâs Nordic story world brings the Viking Age to life in ways even the Norns could never have fated.
The entire enterprise is based on the âwhat if?â proposition, or what we historians call Counterfactual History. At any given moment each of us is faced with decisions in life and multiple paths we can take. How do we choose which one? What if we can go back in time and take an alternate path? Can we rewrite history and learn from it? These are the questions that Ian applies to the Vikings.
The Viking Age was a time of big change, including leaving behind the Old Ways in favor of becoming Christian. But what if that had never happened? What if Odin and Thor still ruled the day, and the world was still populated with spirits like the alfar and dvergar? This is the world Ian invites us to explore. And if you venture in, you just might find itâs a path worth taking.
Click here to buy any of Ianâs products or access his free content.
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If youâre a fan of the show, youâll remember our fascinating chat last year with Mathias Nordvig. Heâs an expert in Norse mythology, folklore, and the Nordic Story World.
Some people may think that those myths are just cool, fanciful stories about the exploits of gods like Odin and Thor or creatures like dwarfs and giants meant simply to entertain and pass the time on those long Scandinavian winterâs nights. But in this new episode, we dove deep into Mathiasâ research about why that wasnât the case for Viking Age people and why it shouldnât be for us moderns either.
Our conversation stemmed from his new translations of Danish and Norwegian, Icelandic and Swedish rune poems and also arguably the most widely read and studied poem from the Viking Age, Völuspå: The Vision of the Witch, which contains some deeply embedded themes about survival in a harsh yet magical Northern world.
It also recounts some pretty dark stuff about the Nordic worldâs view of the cataclysmic end times event known as Ragnarök. Why did they believe in such a thing? Was it really THE END, or did something come after? Was there a way to forestall it?
The poemâs themes of social discord, the breaking of bonds in families, climate change, environmental disaster, and nervous anticipation of an unknown and yet inevitable future seem eerily similar to where we are in the world today. Are we headed for our own Ragnarök? Can the way they viewed it tell us something about how to cope in a turbulent modern world? Yeah, we went there.
This episode will make you think about the connection between us and the Viking Age in ways youâve probably never thought of before. As Mathias warns, we forget our past and traditions at our peril.
In checking out Mathiasâ new translations, youâll also be supporting small, independent publishing and the artists who helped him bring these works to life. At Vikingology we have no affiliate relationship and do not profit from any sales. We just believe interesting people doing cool important things should be supported :)
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Brothers must battle one another,
become each otherâs slayer,
and sistersâ sons will sever the bonds of kinship.
There will be hardship in the world and much whoredom,
axe-age, sword-age, shields smashed to pieces,
wind-age, wolf-age, until the world falls,
no man will spare another.
Völuspå, stanza 45. Translation by Mathias Nordvig.
This time on the podcast, archaeologist, historian, and friend of the show Davide Zori of Baylor University is back for a third time to share his new book on the history of the Viking Age, Age of Wolf and Wind: Voyages Through the Viking World.
Painstakingly researched over many years and beautifully written, itâs a book about Viking history but just as importantly itâs about how we know what we do about that time which continues to captivate so many of us. Through case studies of the written evidence such as sagas, the material culture from archaeology, and a bit of hard science such as genomics, Davideâs approach to the Viking world is interdisciplinary and at the forefront of where the study of this past is headed. We at Vikingology couldnât be happier to help spread the word. Itâs a must-read for anyone interested in this fascinating history.
The book is published by Oxford University Press, who is offering a 30% discount. Simply order online and use promo code AAFLYG6
OR, if youâd like to sample a free chapter first, you can read Chapter 1/Introduction for free until March 15 by going here.
Hang on to your hats kids! We are on the cusp of learning more than ever before about the Viking Age, and Davideâs book is the perfect place to start.
To hear more from Davide, check out our previous interviews with him:
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So far, 2024 has been exciting for us at Vikingology, and our good fortunes continue with this chat we had with Professor Clare Downham of the University of Liverpool. She is the leading scholar in the world regarding Vikings in Ireland, but as youâll see we talked about much, much more.
From what drove Clare to study medieval Ireland in particular to issues of gender and ethnicity both then and now, we ran the gamut. And when you get three historians together, thereâs bound to be a philosophical twist regarding how we interpret and engage with the past, so we went there too.
But we started in Ireland. Did you know the quintessentially Irish city Dublin was a Viking creation? Vikings are recorded in Ireland in the early years of the Viking Age, so Clare explained why it was an attractive target to them to begin with and what they did when they got there.
We also explored the matter of female Viking warriors, particularly in light of the bombshell discovery that was published in 2017 about a Swedish grave. Finally a true shieldmaiden? Or just a figment of our modern hopes and desires? We asked Clare for her thoughts on the topic and just why it ended up being so controversial.
We then talked about what the Viking Nordic world was actually like, based on the latest science and evidence, versus what some in the modern era wish it was like. Clare set the record straight about the truth of the diverse and multi-ethnic world that was medieval northern Europe during the Viking Age.
There was so much more we wanted to discuss â including lots of questions C.J. has about Viking connections in Ireland and France! â but in the end we had to agree to meet up again to finish the conversation, so stay tuned!
Thanks so much Clare! It was a real privilege and honor. We very much look forward to part two of our chat soon!
Clare is the author of two books on Vikings: Viking Kings of Britain and Ireland: The Dynasty of Ivarr to AD 1014 and Medieval Ireland AD 400-1500, with another on Viking Age Britain and Ireland forthcoming from Penguin Classics. You can also find many of her articles available on her page at Academia.edu.
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This time we had the very great privilege and pleasure of welcoming Dr. Anders Winroth to the show for our first episode on one of the most important game changers in the Viking Age Nordic world â the introduction and acceptance of the Christian faith in Scandinavia. The Vikings would never be the same.
Anders is one of the worldâs foremost scholars on medieval Christianity. He is currently faculty at the University of Oslo after spending several years at Yale University and has published widely about the topic and about Vikings, so we knew he was the right person for the job when we wanted to explore the story around why on earth Vikings â who seemed to be at the top of their game as European menace #1 â would end up settling down and embracing Christianity.
And, itâs not the story you might think.
Scandinavia underwent a lot of change during the roughly 3-1/2 centuries that constitute the Viking Age. They went from traders to raiders and back to traders again, from chieftains to kings, from Nordic to European, and from heathen to Christian. And all of these changes were intertwined.
We asked Anders about how the conversion process played out in various regions of Scandinavia and what it might have taken to convince people who had been pagan for as long as anyone could remember to make that switch. Turns out it depends on whom you would have asked at the time. Chieftain or peasant? That mattered a lot.
But what about a legit Viking warrior? You know, the sword-and-shield badass types we see in modern pop culture? Werenât they having too much fun sailing and pillaging to think about baptism? Wouldnât they prefer the excitement of a good raid to being tamed by Christ? Evidently not, as Anders explains, when one could look at Thor and Jesus and, over time, begin to see the same god.
Another important factor: the perennial Viking question, Whatâs in it for me?
Never underestimate the power of self-interest. It appears that even when it came to the coming of Christianity, the Vikings were the same old opportunists weâve always known them to be.
Tack sÄ mycket, Anders!
You can find Andersâ books about Vikings at all the usual book outlets. We highly recommend you take a look if youâre interested in a good general history about the Viking Age or prefer a deep dive into what it took to make them Christian.
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This time we had the lovely opportunity to sit down with Ellen Marie NĂŠss, an archaeologist and lecturer at the Museum of Cultural History in Oslo, Norway. She is someone very passionate about Viking ships and has worked for many years at Osloâs famous Vikingskipshuset which houses three important ships from the Viking Age: the Tune, Gokstad, and the Oseberg.
Each of these ships has important stories to tell about the Viking Age, and they are in process of getting a new home in which to tell them. If youâve ever had the good fortune to visit them in your travels to Oslo, you will certainly remember the âchurch-likeâ structure they have been housed in for many years, which was built specially for them in the earlier 20th century. The space has provided a quasi-religious experience for thousands of visitors interested in these iconic vessels. If youâve never had the opportunity, you can experience a digital walk-through.
But that building wasnât built to the standards we now know are best for preserving the ships and the many thousands of artifacts found with them, so a new museum is being constructed with a target date of re-opening to the public in 2026. The ships will be able to tell their stories once again in state-of-the-art facilities.
And stories they areâŠ..
The Oseberg ship in particular is the most opulent and significant Viking ship ever found. It was a burial ship created for two women â one of its most intriguing and puzzling aspects â and all of their various grave goods, including animals and possessions that theyâd need in the afterlife. According to Ellen, we donât know who those women were, but we certainly know they were important and they went out in style.
If youâre interested in even more after watching our interview, check out Ellen and other top scholars on Amazon Primeâs series Viking Dead. There are six episodes covering different archaeological finds with fascinating insight into how the Nordic peoples viewed death and their practices surrounding it. In episode 5, âThe Skeletons of the Oseberg,â youâll learn more about this very special ship burial.
As you may have heard us discuss in our interview with SĂžren SindbĂŠk, how we tell the story of the Vikings matters a lot if we want to understand those people on their own terms. At Vikingology we couldnât agree more.
The sagas and other sources about the Viking Age are clear. The Vikings longed to leave a mark in the world and be remembered forever. Thanks to Ellen and her colleagues at the new Museum of the Viking Age, it looks like they will get their wish.
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