So…you think you know all about the Vikings? Those seafaring Scandinavians who raided and settled coastal sites in the British Isles and beyond between the 9th and 11th centuries? You've watched the movies and television shows, have been exposed to the caricatures and stereotypes. But I'll bet there's a lot about the Vikings you don't know.
1)
Vikings Didn't Wear Horned Helmets
Forget all
those Viking warrior costumes you've seen in those movies, television shows,
and pictures seen with the characters wearing those elaborate horned
helmets. Descriptions from the Viking
age don't mention it and the only authentic Viking helmet ever discovered is
horn-free. This concept seems to have
originated with painters in the 19th century, possibly inspired by
ancient Norse and Germanic priests who wore horned helmets for ceremonial
purposes long before the Viking Age.
2) Vikings Were Known For Their Excellent Hygiene
What with all
that boat rowing and decapitating their enemies, the logical assumption would
be that Viking men must have stunk.
However, excavations of Viking sites have revealed tweezers, razors,
combs and ear cleaners made from animal bones and antlers. Vikings also bathed at least once a week,
much more often than other Europeans of that time period.
3) Vikings Used A Unique Liquid To Start Fires
The Vikings
collected a fungus called touchwood from tree bark and boiled it for several
days in urine then pounded it into a substance similar to felt. The sodium nitrate in urine allowed the
material to smolder instead of burn.
This gave the Vikings the availability of taking the fire with them on
the go.
4)
Vikings Buried Their Dead In Boats
The Viking's
boats were very important to them so it was a great honor to be buried in
one. It was believed that the vessels
that served them well in life would see them safely to their final destination.
5) Vikings Were Active In The Slave Trade
Many Vikings
became rich through human trafficking.
They captured and enslaved women and young men while rampaging through
Anglo-Saxon, Celtic and Slavic settlements then sold them in giant slave
markets in Europe and the Middle East.
6) Viking Women Enjoyed Some Basic Rights
Viking girls
married at age 12 and took care of the household while their husbands sailed
off on adventures. However, they had
more freedom than other women of their era.
They could inherit property, request a divorce and reclaim their dowries
if their marriage ended.
7) Viking Men Spent Most Of Their Time Farming
Most Viking
men swung scythes rather than swords.
True, some were callous pirates who only left their boats long enough to
burn villages but most planted crops and raised cattle, goats, pigs and sheep
on their small farms.
8) Vikings Skied For Fun
Scandinavians
developed primitive skis approximately 6000 years ago. By the Viking age, Norsemen regarded skiing
as an efficient way to get around and a popular recreation activity. They even worshiped Ullr, the god of skiing.
9) Viking Men Preferred Being Blond
Brunette
Vikings, usually men, used strong soap with a high lye content to bleach their
hair and in some regions also their beards.
These treatments also helped with a health and hygiene problem—head
lice.
10) Vikings Were Never Part Of A Unified Group
They probably
didn't even call themselves Vikings. The
term simply referred to all Scandinavians who took part in overseas
expeditions. During the Viking Age, the
land that is now Denmark, Norway and Sweden was a patchwork of tribes that
often fought against each other…when they weren't busy creating havoc on
foreign shores.
