MINERS OF THE ROCK

An exciting study of the newly discovered culture in

central Scandinavia. Were they the hardy Dwarven
folk of legend?
Civilization Overview:
The group known to themselves as Nibelungs
4
, were a prosperous and
diligent population of miners and craftsmen who carved a place for themselves
within the harsh Scandinavian wilderness throughout the 9th-11th centuries.
Though mistrustful of other cultures, their secretive and independent ways may
have led to their downfall, as evidence points to a decline in the population's
stability as a result of poor diet, lack of proper eposure to the sun, and a
rampant plague which devastated the population in the late 11th century.
!ecovered historical inscriptions reference the plague as Niflungr, whose
translation may be traced from ancient "orse to the approimate #nglish analog
of $%oblinism.$
&t is believed that after generations of eposure to the harsh elements of
unrefined chloriene, copper and gold, in addition to other natural and toic
gasses present within the society's living spaces, a section of the population
contracted an illness which not only turned the victim's skin green and scaly 'as
in etreme cases of hypochromic anemia
(
), but caused a violent temperament as
well.
Though the initial solution to staunching the spread of the disease was the
abandonment of a prominent settlement within the kingdom territory, based on
the number of skeletal remains clustered near the walled-off entrance, this is
believed to have ultimately brought about its downfall, as the civili*ation was
unable to recover from the losses it sustained.
Location and Society Overview:
- !emote and previously uneplored region of Scandanavia.
- #arliest recovered items date back to early 9th century.
- +ased on findings, this group originated from a set of outcasts who were
looked down upon 'no pun intended) by their former Scandinavian ,iking culture.
The outcasts decided to make their own society, one that would empower the
shortest members of their clan.
4
http://www.sacred-texts.com/neu/tml/tml37.htm
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Cutaneis: a treatise of diseases incident to the skin.
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Dwarven Governent:
-t any one time, the society was ruled by a single .ing who had final say
on all matters/ taes, production 0uotas, appointment and appropriation of
advisors, vassalages and fiefdoms, and even foreign policy relating to trade.
Subinfudation was common among ,assals/ %iven that "obles needed to fall
within a range of height in order to 0ualify for a title of nobility, there were
predictably some who would be taller than others. Thus, taller "obles were less
entitled to land, inheritance, and respect.
Since their leadership was determined by the shortest societal inhabitant
above the age of 11, '11 being chosen by the number of fingers on both hands, a
holy number, as it allows the use of tools for mining and craftsmanship), instead
of by merit or upbringing, leadership was often found to be lacking. - plethora of
accounts detailing blatant ineptitude throughout the strata of leadership have
already been recovered.
2uch more common, in fact, are accounts of .ings being suddenly
deposed. 3ften such reports are accompanied by descriptions of the mysterious
circumstances leading up to and surrounding the event/ .ing .ol ,lug, for
eample, $4umped down a mineshaft$ and $landed on several swords$. -s a
translated passage reads/ $-nd lo, did 5e lie in such a state, and by 5is !oyal
6ommand forbade any and all assistance7$ This occurrence conveniently
followed the enactment of a new kingdom-wide monthly 0uota of 11,111 emerald
spoons. The logic behind the 0uota is unclear at this time, though speculation
indicates a satisfactory reason was likely never given.
-s a result, 8riests, who often lived through the reign of several .ings,
technically held more power than the .ing himself and were allowed to conduct
matters of state with near untouchable impunity.
Dwarven Law: The 6ode of 5ammurocki
9iscovered early in the investigation, this etensive compendium of
societal regulation contains more than ::1 thousand laws, bylaws, rules,
conditions, guidelines, edicts, decrees, ordinances and notices, all meticulously
chiseled into an immense stone pillar near the 9warven palace. Though
purported to have been initially created by an early 9warven .ing by the name of
6ed 5ammurocki 'after receiving divine instruction from none other than their
god, +etelgeuse), the code was later epanded under each subse0uent .ing, as
each desired to leave his own respective mark upon the civili*ation.
6onse0uently, and 0uite predictably, redundancies and contradictions are
common throughout its tet. -s a result, it is believed that the 9warves merely
followed a notion of $common sense$. This is the general theme of various
inscriptions chiseled into the rock foundation immediately surrounding the pillar's
base. ;hile they are in line with traditional ,iking law which strove to make day
to day life livable,
:
they are also believed to be unofficial and therefore graffiti.
5
http://viking.no/e/lie/elaws.htm
!
Social Str!ct!re:
The society followed a strict caste system. -t the age of 11, a civilian was
considered to be an adult within the society and given a 6aste !anking/ The
shorter a person was, the higher up the system they were placed. This was not
affected whatsoever by previous family caste standing. #ven children born to the
tallest parents could someday become a noble, priest, or even .ing.
6aste !anks/
- .ing
- 8riest '%odi)
- "oble '<arl)
- 2erchants = -rtisans = 2iners
- Serfs
!ules relating to females followed in the footsteps of traditional ,iking
culture
>
, and disallowed anyone other than males from becoming .ing. - female
of e0ual height to another male would be given a slightly lower status. 5owever,
females shorter than any male were still owed greater respect, in keeping with
the custom.
&n contrast to this, the worth of males of e0uivalent height to other males
was given a final assessment by measurements of beard length. The longer a
beard, the greater the respect a civilian would have among others of comparable
height.
Reli"ion:
!eligion "ame/ Tinyism
%od's "ame/ 3fficially, the deity is known throughout the kingdom as
+etelgeuse. This is a current source of much controversy, as it was previously
believed that the celestial body of the same name was not before its mention
within the Alfonsine Tables of Spain
?
in the 11th century. @nder the assumption
that the 3rion constellation was known to the 9warves, it follows that they would
choose to place special purpose behind the star oriented at 3rion's $hand$, given
their attribution of divine 0ualities relating to the ability of fingers and hands to
manipulate tools.
%od's Traits and 8ersonality/ -ccording to legend, +etelgeuse is so tiny
that you can't even see him, no matter how hard you look. 5e is also a god of
fickle temperament, with the 9warves' appeals for inspiration, resolution of a
problem, or insight into difficult situations often yielding confusing or cryptic
$responses.$ - primary duty of each %odi was to act as an interpreter on behalf
of the god, for each faithful 9warven civilian who desired to beseech the wisdom
of +eetle4uice, accomplished through a variety of mystical means considered
reliable at the time.
3
http://www.""c.co.uk/histor#/ancient/vikings/women$%1.shtml
!
Journal for the History of Astronomy
3
Military:
"o standing military. 9uring times of crisis, such as the %oblinism plague
of the late 11th century, citi*ens would be conscripted into militias which were led
by local <arls.
The 9warven folk were adept at trapmaking, not only for the purposes of
catching food, but also as a means of city defense. -ccordingly, certain -rtisans
were tasked with the responsibilities of trap creation, supervision and
maintenance. 9efensive traps were often situated near the entrances of cities
and mine shafts, as well as the original .ing's palace, which was notoriously
laden with booby-traps.
3ne account holds that the palace was rigged to such an etent that after
the devices caused harm to several court officials within a short span of years,
their designer was summoned/ an -rtisan by the name of %ogoli Aivsmir,
believed to be the only one capable of reliably returning the palace to a state of
reasonable safety. The palace became Aivsmir's tomb after his subse0uent
demise during this endeavor, and it was immediately abandoned and sealed. -
new royal 0uarters was soon constructed and put to use in its stead.
Note# on S!$#i#tence and %l&'a$et:
Though details are still emerging, evidence suggests the kingdom
subsisted largely on various edible mushrooms and mold, insects, and cave
rodents/ - probable and significant contributing factor to the eventual downturn of
the society.
;rote in $Binear 9$, an offshoot of the runic ,iking alphabet. @nfortunately,
though much has been gleaned from the language which is translatable, no
perfect translation eists.
Ed!cation:
"o evidence of formal education or training eists. -rtisans were
employed as <ourneymen by 2aster 6raftsmen, who would impart their
knowledge of the craft to their charges. "obles and .ings often needed to learn
how to handle situations on the spot simply by dealing with them directly. Serfs
were the $catchall$ class, forced to take on labor for the "oble to whom they were
bound. This included everything from garbage collection to trap testing, tasks
which rarely re0uired any particular skill whatsoever.
Relation#'i& wit' ot'er C!lt!re#:
Bimited trading seems to have occurred as the society was fairly self-
sufficient. -lso, they held a fair degree of enophobia, likely due to their religious
beliefs. 5owever the 9warven effect on other cultures is evident, as in the case
of the namesake origin of +etelgeuse.
This is likely a result of trading which occurred between neighboring
Scandinavian = ,iking tribes as well as 2uslim traders from Spain. Though
9warven society produced a prodigious 0uantity of valuable tradegoods such as
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gemstones and ornate armor and weaponry, these items were highly pri*ed by
any who earned the culture's trust due to their scarcity in the outside world. Crom
the trades, the 9warves often sought items such as furs and hides, timber,
diamonds or other rare gemstones for the area, as well as distilled spirits and
spices.
5
+&+B&3%!-85A
1) &idpath' (an. )*tar +ales , -rion !.) Star Tales Orion 2. ..p.' 7 /a# !%1!. 0e". 1%
1ec. !%1!.
!2 3unit4sch' 5aul 617862. )+he *tar 9atalogue 9ommonl# :ppended to the :lonsine
+a"les). Journal for the History of Astronomy 17 6472: 87;78.
32 BBC News. <<9' 1% =an. !%%1. 0e". 1% 1ec. !%1!.
42 /acken4ie' 1onald :. )*iegried and the .i"elungs.) Teutonic yth and !e"end:
Cha#ter $$$%%& ..p.' !% =une !%%7. 0e". 1% 1ec. !%1!.
52 )+he >ikings and the ?aw.) The 'ikin"s and the !aw. +he >iking .etwork' 1% -ct.
!%1%. 0e". 1% 1ec. !%1!.
62 +urner' 1aniel 617142. (e or)is Cutaneis: a treatise of diseases incident to the skin.
?ondon. pp. 7%-71' 74.
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