Anna Bech Lund Women and Weapons in the Viking Age S2016

20103394 /Agnes S. Arnórsdóttir

Table of content
∼
Abstract…………………………………………………………………………………………………….p. I

Foreword……………………………………………………………………………………………………p. II

Chapter 1: Introduction…………………………………………….……………p. 1
1.1 Thesis questions and goals……………………………………………………… ……….………….…….p.1

1.2 Literature and sources…………………………………………………… ………………..………………p.5

1.3 Terminology………………………………………………………………………….………….……………….p. 6

Chapter 2: Gender and the social biography of things……………. p. 7

2.1 The life of things………………………………………………………………………………..………p. 7

2.2 A theory: What have gender archaeology and feminism e ver done for us? p. 10

2.3 A man’s world? Why textual sources are not enough…………………… ….……p. 12

Chapter 3: Valkyrie symbolism or real women?...........................p. 17

3.1 Appearances of armed women in material and written culture……….…p. 17

3.2 The Valkyrja in language and literature………………………………………….……p. 18

3.3 Gendered memorial and written culture?……………………………… ….……………..p.22

3.4 A valkyrie materializing? – The Gerdrup grave……………………….……………p.27

3.5 Women as jewelry ………………………………………………………..………………………….p.29

3.6 Valkyrie fashion…………………………………………………………………….………………….p. 31

3.7 Female symbolism – a reevaluation?........................................................p.34

Anna Bech Lund Women and Weapons in the Viking Age S2016
20103394 /Agnes S. Arnórsdóttir

3.8 Keys, doors and women…………………………………………………………………………….p. 38

3. 9 Dead (wo)man tell no tales? Ritual weapon graves……………………………….p.42

Chapter 4: The Kaupang weapon graves – expanding the

narrative? ……………………………………………………………….…………….p. 44
4.1 Gendered archaeology?...................... ..........................................................................p.44

4.2 A sword in a children’s grave?……………………………………………….………………….p.45

4.3 Tools, valkyries or female warriors?............... ............................................p. 47

Chapter 5: Women with ships, swords and shields p. 53

5.1 The Oseberg ship burial – challenging a gendered perspective?..........p.53

5.2 Oseberg – power in the absence of keys and weapons?...........................p. 54

5.3 Inside the mound……………………………………………………………………………………..p. 56

5.4 Visions of dreams or records of reality?............ ........................................p. 57

5.5 Approaching the Valkyrja as both male and fe male?............................... p. 62

Chapter 6: Are the times a-changing?…………………….…………...…p. 65

6.1 A new presentation of old history?............................. ..............................................p. 65

6.2Conclusion………………………………………………………………… ………..……………..……………..p. 66

Literature…………………………………………………………….………………..p. 72

Appendix………………………………………………………….……………………p. 76

∼
Abstract

Studier af kvinder indenfor både historie og arkæologi har traditionelt set været et forsømt område,
da begge disse akademiske discipliner har været præget af en androcentrisk tilgang til køn. Særligt
indenfor studier af vikingetiden har områder vedrørende kvinder og børn været negligeret og
traditionelt set tolket udelukkende gennem deres relation til det mandlige køn, hvilket har resulteret
i en meget ensidig tilgang til samt tolkning af arkæologisk materiale. Gennem en kritisk diskussion
af relevant arkæologisk og historisk forskningslitteratur, primært fra sidste del af det 21.
århundrede, sammenholdt med argumenter for og diskussioner af eksempler fra vikingetidens
materielkultur, som sætter kvinder i relation til våben, argumenterer dette speciale for den tilgang til
objekter som er eksemplificeret i den social-antropologiske metode ’social-biografi’. Denne
metode, i samspil med det formulerede princip indenfor feministisk arkæologi om en upartisk
tilgang til arkæologisk materiale og køn, bliver anvendt komparativt på traditionelle fortolkninger af
udvalgte fund, for at undersøge og diskutere udviklingen indenfor tilgangen til arkæologisk
materiale. De arkæologiske fund, der i dette speciale fungerer som primærkilder til vikingetidens
kvinder og deres relationer til våben, består af afbildninger af kvinder med og uden våben fra
Osebergtapetet og fra smykker, samt eksempler på kvindelige våbengrave fra Danmark og Norge og
en enkelt børne-våbengrav fra Norge. Tilsammen udgør dette materiale et stærkt bevis for, at våben
i vikingetiden ikke var objekter forbeholdt mænd, og viser det problematiske i at lave køns-
automatiske tolkninger af grave hvor våben indgår, hvilket traditionelt set har forårsaget en
skævfordeling af hh. det mandlige og kvindelige køn i forbindelse med registreringen af
våbengrave. Kun gennem en kontinuerligt revurderende og kritisk tolkning af den konstant
voksende totale funds-mængde fra vikingetiden, er det muligt at nærme sig en mere præcis
definition af relationen mellem vikingetidens kvinder og våben, som er fri af traditionelle, ensidige
automat-tolkninger af køn og materiel kultur.

| ii
Chapter 1: Introduction
Research question and goals

This thesis argues that the fields of history and archaeology have traditionally perceived and
portrayed the Viking Age as a male dominated period, studied with an androcentric emphasis
on the life and material culture of men while neglecting serious examinations of the life and
material culture of women and children. Approaching women and children as active agents
within the society and culture of the Viking Age is a relatively recent perspective within
academia, and one which seems almost exclusive to gender-orientated studies, echoing the
theory of feminist archaeology.1 Through a historiographical survey of both historical and
archaeological publications exemplifying approaches to, and perceptions of, Viking Age
women in relation to weapons, this thesis aims to problematize and challenge androcentric
patterns within traditional interpretations of Viking women. This should ensure an academic
and fair discussion of the archaeological approaches to material sources pertaining to women
in relation to weapons. The critique of the biased approach of established archaeology,
originally formulated by feminist archaeology, is highly relevant to this thesis. If we can
somehow break with this biased approach to data and with the traditional preconceived
notions of this data, we might discover new and fruitful aspects of past societies. By exploring
the value of material culture as the primary sources to a historic period, this thesis seeks to
demonstrate the relevance and feasibility of the method of social biography as a fruitful
approach to Viking Age material culture.

Objects of Viking Age material culture and female weapon graves are approached as the
primary sources to the relations of Viking Age women and weapons within this thesis and
common for the objects selected are that they depict armed women. To provide context for
female weapon graves, and the perceptions of these within traditional archaeology, a child
weapon grave is included in order to widen the perspective on possible meanings of weapons
in burial contexts of the Viking Age period.

The Oseberg ship burial from Norway is included to provide context for the selected female
weapon graves, and in order to approach an understanding of female power and status in the

1 Gardela, 2013, p. 273 & Engelstad, pp. 217-218

|1
Viking Age. The depiction of both armed and unarmed women on the Oseberg tapestry is a
valuable source, because of its shared features and possible connection to depictions of both
armed and unarmed women in the form of jewelry, examples of which are also included as
primary sources. Throughout this thesis both traditional and revisionist academic discussions
of the period are considered, with a specific focus on the historiographic perception of and
approach to gender, and textual sources relating to the period are included, in order to provide
context for the material primary sources. Since most of the sources for this thesis are in the
form of objects, and as their portrayal of women is of central importance to the discussion, an
appendix has been included at the end of this thesis, where pictures of the relevant objects can
be consulted.

While preparing myself for this thesis I started by reading Women in the Viking Age by Judith
Jesch, published in 1991. The book elegantly guides one through the different categories of
both archaeological and historical textual sources to the life of women in the Viking Age, but
it also left me somewhat skeptical of the feasibility of my chosen topic. Would it even be
possible to investigate the relations between women and weapons, in a historic period
notorious for the absence of reliable and contemporary literary sources? The answer to this
question would, as it happens, be given to me by my very surroundings. While doing
preliminary research for this thesis, in the summer of 2015, I vacationed in the French town
Vaison-la-Romaine, which, as the name implies, is an old Roman city. The town is known for
its spectacular Roman architectonic remains, and it was while I was walking on the roads
among pillars and statues of a past society that I decided on my approach to the topic of this
thesis. Despite being a historian, writing a history thesis, I wanted to get as close as possible
to the subject of my study, placing archaeological finds, fragments composing the material
culture of the Viking Age, as primary sources to the relation between women and weapons
during the Viking Age.

The Medieval Icelandic corpus of Old Norse literature has traditionally been the most popular
and possibly most accessible source for historians studying the Viking Age, particularly when
focusing on women in the Viking Age. For historians this approach seems to make perfect
sense, as the academic field of history relies heavily on textual sources. However, when
focusing on the Viking Age this approach poses a problem: the period is characterized within

|2
archaeology as ‘prehistoric’ precisely because of the fundamental lack of contemporary
literary material. The Icelandic corpus of literature is magnificent and invaluable as a source
to some aspects of the early medieval period, but these, often later transcripts of texts, are not
contemporary with the time period and thus cannot act as immediate and unproblematic
sources to the Viking Age. As mentioned above, this problem, which Jesch stresses several
times in her book especially when focusing on the relations between women and weapons,
made me doubt whether it would be at all possible to write this thesis, without using this
literature as the main sources. I decided on a compromise, by choosing to approach
archaeological material as primary sources while still including relevant written accounts to
contextualize the archaeological finds. Furthermore, I decided to do a survey of relatively
recent academic works within both archaeology and history on Viking Age women and
weapons, to examine the prevailing perceptions and approaches to the period, focusing
especially on gender interpretations. With this mix of archaeological primary sources to
women in connection to weapons, relevant textual sources relating to such women and an
overview of recent academic interpretations of the Viking Age woman, I hope to facilitate as
comprehensive a foundation for my discussion of the relations between Viking Age women
and weapons as possible, within the scope of this thesis.

Having decided on the use of archaeological material as primary sources, I was faced with the
problem of how to approach these, as material objects in this form are generally the concern
of the field of archaeology, not history. Until recently, my acquaintance with the field of
archeology was limited to having attended the seminar ‘Viking Age Scandinavia’ at Aarhus
University during my bachelor’s studies, a seminar which provided me with little insight into
archaeological theory and method in relation to material culture and gender. This problem
was resolved, however, when I encountered the thesis of Norwegian archaeologist Nora
Furan, from 2009. Through case studies she explores the possibilities of approaching Viking
Age weapons from weapon graves, through the method of social biography. Using this
approach on a selection of Norwegian Viking Age weapons, enabled Furan to uncover
possible aspects of meaning inherent in the weapons, providing a better understanding of the
possible relation between these objects and the people buried with them. Social biography is a
quite recent anthropological method, which seeks to uncover and recreate the ‘life of things’
based on the accessible information inherent in an object and its context, thus approaching

|3
objects and their cultural meaning primarily through the objects. This method showed me how
to make sense of material objects in the absence of literary sources, and it encouraged me to
take on the challenge of writing a thesis with the chosen focus.

The emphasis in this thesis on the possibilities of approaching archaeological material relating
to gender was not an approach I sought out originally. During the preliminary research for this
thesis I identified a problem regarding a lacking representation of the relations between
Viking Age women and weapons, especially in regards to the female weapon graves of the
period, which generally seemed to be passed over in silence. Within archaeology, the study
of Viking Age weapons has been dominated by a rather androcentric notion of weapons as
exclusively male objects. This approach has exercised little interest in the possible meanings
of these objects when appearing in association to women and children, despite the known
existence of both child and female weapon graves.2 When researching the traces of armed
women within the material culture, especially the various portrayals in the form of jewelry,
tapestries and the like, the general treatment of these females was to categorize them, without
further explanation or analysis, under the term ‘valkyrie symbolism’, a term which, despite
being seemingly well established and accepted within the field of archaeology, is quite poorly
explained.

Feminist archaeology is introduced in thesis through the article Much More than Gender by
archaeologist Ericka Engelstad from 2007, as the theory within this branch of archaeology
support the arguments of Furan’s critique of the traditional gender specific interpretations of
grave objects within archaeology. Thus the method of social biography in relation to the
theory of feminist archaeology appeared to me, as viable tools to approach the relations
between women and weapons, and to possibly challenge the traditional perception of these as
mere expressions of ‘valkyrie symbolism’.

As a historian, I believe in approaching sources and studies through a critical identification of

possible biases. Therefore, it only seems appropriate to identify the possible biases of this
thesis, before embarking on a critique of others. The bias of this thesis is inherent in the
perspective with which it challenge and criticize the traditional approaches to the study of

2 Furan, 2009, p. 1, p. 71

|4
Viking Age women and their relations to weapons. This thesis very much agrees with Ericka
Engelstad and her perception of feminist archaeology, claiming that all knowledge is situated,
meaning that the very way in which one understands and produces knowledge is situated in
culture and society, as well as in the political concerns and, perhaps especially regarding the
writing of a thesis, in the academic and institutional contexts in which one is raised, both as
human and scholar. In terms of the literature and the material sources included, both those
being challenged and those in agreement with the perspective of this thesis, these all
constitutes selected pieces of evidence deemed relevant to the issues presented and discussed
within this thesis. That is a possible bias, but as I here acknowledge my preposition, the aim is
to exercise reflexivity based on the recognition of the approach of this thesis, as well as the
situation of the subjects of my study.

1.2 Literature and sources

The literature chosen for this thesis has been selected in order to examine both the traditional
approach to gender within Viking Age archaeology and history, as well as studies and
attitudes breaking with the traditional approach. The main body of literature discussed, both in
the form of general historical surveys of the Viking Age exemplified in the writings of
Halsall, Hjardar and Vike, and in the form of archaeological interpretations and discussions of
specific finds, is meant to compose a broad perspective on the relations between women and
weapons. It is also selected because it illustrates how these relations are perceived and argued
in both present and past academic literature. Literary sources to the Viking Age are included
in the form of contemporary accounts of Viking Age culture as explained in Arab sources and
in sections of the Norse literature. This thesis includes a number of Old Norse texts
mentioning the relations between women and weapons in order to broaden the discussion and
problematize the interpretation of female weapon graves and ‘valkyrie symbolism’. The
relatively contemporary literary sources to the Viking Age society included, counting Grágás,
Hákonámál, Saxo Grammaticus and Ibn Fadlan, are approached with caution, and their
possibilities and limits as sources to the Viking Age culture are examined in different sections
of this thesis.

1.3 Terminology

|5
In order to avoid possible automatic perceptions and misinterpretations of certain terms which
could obstruct a broader understanding of a historic period, a cultural phenomenon or objects,
there are some words which need explicit explanation.

As this thesis concerns the study of women and objects of the Viking Age it seems
appropriate to define the specific time period, as this is not generally agreed upon among
scholars. In this thesis, the Viking Age in considered to be the period spanning from ca.
750AD to 1100AD. However, within the discussions of this thesis, it is taken into account that
some scholars perceive the period to last strictly from 793AD to 1066AD, crediting specific
events as constituting the beginning and ending of the period. Among non-Scandinavian
scholars the Viking Age is often considered to comprise either the very end of Germanic Iron
Age or the very early Middle Ages, and as such, the Viking Age is not considered to be an
individual historic period. One should be cautious of viewpoints perceiving the Viking Age as
a period of general cohesion and community within the areas comprising modern-day
Denmark, Norway and Sweden, as well as in the eastern and western Viking settlements. The
eastern parts of the Viking territory covered modern-day Finland, the Baltic region and the
western parts of Russia centralized along the rivers Dnepr and Volga, whereas the western
parts were composed of the islands from Britain and Ireland to Iceland and Greenland, and
Newfoundland in modern-day Canada. The term ‘Viking’ itself is somewhat misleading,
because it suggests an overall unity within these territories and settlements, which is
inappropriate. As the listing of Viking territories implies, there were great geographical
distances between these territories, as well as great topographical diversity. One must,
therefore, be aware of the great distances between the borders of what is considered the
Viking territory. Additionally there was a considerable degree of political fragmentation
within these territories, due to decentralized power held by somewhat local chieftains and
kings. That being said, an underlying unity in the form of the shared Germanic roots of the
Scandinavian people as well as the Old Norse religion did prevail within the Viking Age
territories, although this was also heavily challenged and to some extent replaced by
Christianity during this ca. 350 year period.

There is considerable dispute within academia on what defines ‘a Viking’, as this term seems
to be used both in reference to persons of ethnic Scandinavian origin and to ‘sea warriors’,
reflecting the Old Norse meaning of the word. In this thesis, the term ‘Viking’ and ‘Viking

|6
Age woman’ is meant to encompass persons living in the areas characterized as Viking
territories or Viking settlements and thus within the Viking culture. As indicated by the DNA
profiles of the females buried in the Oseberg grave examined in chapter 5, there is reason to
believe that people living in Viking Age territories and settlements were of mixed ethnic
origin, likely due to the extensive contact established through trade routes, slave import and
expeditions of pillage. Consequently, the term ‘Viking’ when used in this thesis should not be
perceived as an ethnic term, despite it being spelled with a capital V.3

When discussing objects found in connection with graves, the descriptive term ‘grave object’
will be utilized, instead of ‘grave goods’ or ‘grave gift’ or other such descriptors. The reason
for this is to avoid preconceived notions of these objects as gifts or goods or as personal
belongings, as this would cause an automatic conclusion of the meaning of their presence in
graves.4

Chapter 2: Gender and the social

biography of things
2.1 A method: The life of things

As mentioned in the introduction, the archaeologist Nora Furan’s thesis has been of great
inspiration to this thesis, because of its exemplification of the method of social biography in
relation to Viking Age weapons. In her thesis Furan demonstrates this method through case
studies of selected Viking Age weapons found in graves. She includes the social biography of
a battle axe from the Kaupang grave IXb, a ‘single grave’ which due to the presence of a set
of oval brooches, has been interpreted as one of relatively few female weapon graves. She
also includes a social biography of a sword from the Kaupang grave K/XXa which due to the
small size of its coffin, has been interpreted as a child weapon grave. Her use of method,
particularly on these two finds, inspired and encouraged me to examine the relations between
women and weapons during the Viking Age, by tracing relevant objects of material culture
and approaching these as primary sources. Furan’s case study of Viking Age weapons and her

3 Graham-Cambell, 2013, pp. 6-8

4 Appadurai p. 11 & Furan p. 3

|7
practical use of theory on these objects, illustrates an original perspective on the information
inherent in Viking Age weapons.

Approaching an object through its biography is a method inspired by the writings of

anthropologists Igor Kopytoff and Arjun Appadurai. According to Furan this approach makes
it possible to reach a deeper understanding of the meaning and symbolism embedded in an
object. She argues that burial customs, rituals and grave objects, to name a few, are multi-
symbolic and that some of their many different layers of meaning can be accessed through the
method of social biography. She identifies a problem within archaeology of making gender
automatic interpretations of objects, arguing that archaeologists have a tendency to interpret
grave objects primarily through the gender of the buried instead of also approaching objects
regardless of the gender of their companion. The social biography of an object allows one to
interpret its meaning as a grave object based on facts provided by the object itself, instead of
instantly rejecting possible interpretations based on the gender of the buried. It is the notion of
this thesis, that jumping to gender automatic assumptions limits and obstructs possible
interpretations and examinations of objects. A gender automatic approach, therefore, most
probably limit our understanding of the past. Furan’s focus on and acknowledgement of
objects as important sources of information to past societies is also shared and emphasized by
the theory and approach of feminist archaeology, introduced in the following section.5

The claim of this thesis is not that gender is irrelevant when interpreting grave objects from
the Viking Age, as in this perspective gender is highly relevant. The claim is that gender
automatic interpretations may cause one to overlook and reject important information, which
could have been acquired if the objects had been approached individually as well as through
the context in which it is found. When approaching an object through its biography one asks
the same questions as one would if interviewing a human. One can subtract information from
an object by considering both the ‘find context’, traces of its original cultural origin embedded
in e.g. the fabrication and design of the object, as well as traces of use, indicating the function
of an object within the cultural setting of which it is found. Thus the social biography of
things focus on the creation, origin, ownership(s), career and on the life story of the object, as

5 Furan, 2009, pp. 2-3

|8
well as its “death”, marking the point when the object exits the circulation of materials by
becoming, for instance, a grave object.6

When examining the meaning of an object one considers the biographical possibilities
inherent in its status, historical period and culture, and how these possibilities were realized.
The status of an object is determined by its value as a commodity, i.e. whether it was
luxurious and rare or an average and common object in its contemporary time, which is
determined by comparing it to the known finds within its category.

According to Kopytoff the biography of things possess the possibility to “make salient what
might otherwise remain obscure”. In cases where an object is culturally different from the
setting in which it is found and therefore probably adopted trough import into the material
culture of a society, one must consider how the object might have been used and culturally
redefined. One example of this is the Frisian trefoil sword belt buckles, which after having
been imported or looted by Scandinavian Vikings were transformed into brooches worn by
Viking women, thus undergoing a rather radical transformation and cultural redefinition.7

When archaeologists draw on gender automatic assumptions in their interpretation of objects,

these assumptions poses a problem to cultural anthropology, since these automatic
assumptions often does not consider the historical circulation of things, which can only be
uncovered by following the object, its forms, uses and trajectory, which according to
Appadurai all together comprise the meaning of an object. As such the study of objects
composing the material culture of a historical period calls for a more interdisciplinary
approach, bringing together methods and approaches from both archaeology and cultural
anthropology which in combination may prove useful to each other and help facilitate a more
extensive and thorough understanding of material culture.8

2.2 A theory: What have gender archaeology and feminism ever done for us?

According to Ericka Engelstad, Professor in Archaeology at The Arctic University of

Norway, the answer to this question is ‘a lot!’. In her article Much More than Gender from
2007 she argues that much ‘gender archaeology’ makes little active use of ‘feminist

6 Kopytoff, 1986, p. 66 & Appadurai, 1986, p. 5

7 Kopytoff, 1986, pp. 66-67 & http://www.ostfynsmuseer.dk/afdelinger/landskab-
arkaeologi/samling/arkaeologisk-julekalender-2014/14-december-trefliget-spaende/
8 Appadurai, 1986, p. 5.

|9
archaeology’ in matters of theory and critique, due to a general negativity towards feminist
approaches to archaeology. The reasons for including feminist archaeology in this thesis, is
that its theory is highly relevant to the socio-biographical approach to material culture within
archaeology. At its introduction in the 1970s feminist archaeology stated a critique of
traditional archaeology, claiming it was centered on and dominated by men and masculine
interests, which feminist archaeology sought to change. Since its early days the main concern
for feminism in archaeology has been to include women and gender in our understanding of
the past, thus breaking with the traditional and dominating androcentric approach to history.
The main challenge for feminist archaeology was, and according to Englestad it still is, to
enable people to envision women and children as present and active agents of the past. The
final chapter of this thesis identifies very recent changes in the attitude towards the
presentation of the Viking Age exemplified in a more deliberately balanced consideration of
the male and female gender communicated through objects of material culture.9

In general, feminist scholarship does not seek to advocate a monolithic emphasis on women at
the expense of men. To the contrary, it demands an equal consideration of the male and
female gender as active agents in our perception of the past, and of other forms of difference
like race, ethnicity, class, sexuality, age etc. Despite its reevaluation of the traditional
archaeological approach, which seemingly would ensure a more inclusive and equal
representation of and approach to gender within archaeology, archaeologist Kelly Hays-Gilpin
detects a resistance towards feminist archaeology. In an article from 2000 she states that the
resistance at that time seemed to be rooted in a reluctance to acknowledge the presence of
gender-discrimination within the general archaeological approach to and interpretation of the
past, and how in 2000 it was still difficult to practice feminist archaeology, as the field in
general rewarded androcentrism. Engelstad argues that the main challenge for feminist
archaeology is its reputation for being political, whereas paradoxically the term ‘gender
archaeology’ is perceived as more comfortable and neutral to many archaeologists, despite it
actually agreeing with and practicing feminist archaeology.10

The controversial aspects of adding women and children to our interpretation of past societies
might seem difficult to comprehend. Yet as this thesis seeks to highlight, the traditional
androcentric approach within archaeology is still very much in practice, especially in relation

9 Engelstad, 2007, pp. 217-218

10 Engelstad, 2007, p. 218

| 10
to Viking Age studies, hindering the possibilities and acceptance of a feminist approach. It is
almost tragicomic how the negative label of feminist archaeology as being ‘politic’ in a way is
self-inflicted. Due to great difficulty in matters of publishing feminist analysis of gender in
established scientific journals in the 1970s and 1980s, and due to the emphasis on empirical
studies, rather than on critical, analytical and theoretical approaches within Scandinavian
archaeology, the journal Kvinner i arkæologi i Norge/K.A.N. (Women in Archaeology in
Norway) was established in 1985. The journal was heavily influenced by the feminist
movement in Norway and provided a forum for the empowerment of feminist archaeology.
The main purpose of K.A.N. was to provide feminist archaeologist with a mouthpiece and its
main agenda was to ensure a ‘peopling’ of the past. As archaeologist Liv Dommasnes
expressed it in the very first issue, the intention was to encourage “research on people in the
past, as far as possible based on these people’s own premises”.11

A lot of the relatively recent work inspired by feminist archaeology has been labeled ‘gender
archaeology’, due to its focus on gender, despite much of its critique of traditional
archaeology being based on traditional feminist theory and critique. According to Engelstad
‘gender archaeology’ has become a soft subgenre within mainstream archaeology, lacking the
confrontational approach of feminist archaeology, as explained in the remarks of Professor in
Archaeology at the University of Reading, Roberta Gilchrist: “[A] priority of any ‘feminist
archaeology’ must be to criticize interpretations which characterize historically produced
social roles as timeless and biologically determined. By exploding the hierarchal myths of
powerful/public = male, domestic/private = female, the study of gender relations will focus
archaeological enquiry on new areas of social conflict and analysis”.12 I find that this quote
quite brilliantly sums up the basic critique of this thesis towards the traditional interpretation
of the sources to females in relation to weapons, exemplified in the following chapters.

According to Engelstad the advantages of the approach of feminist archaeology are embedded
in the feminist interest in, and notion of the importance of, all aspects of archaeology, and
thus in its extensive perspective on past societies. Because of this approach, feminist
archaeology opens and even generates possibilities for enriching and transforming
archaeology, as this approach is anything but narrow. Feminist archaeology requires
archaeologists to critically and reflexively take responsibility for the way they practice

11 Ibid. 2007, pp. 219-220

12 Gilchrist, 1988, p. 27 & Engelstad, 2007, pp. 222-223, p. 227

| 11
archaeology, and as stated by Dommasnes in the above, to research people of past societies on
their own premises instead of through gender automatic presumptions embedded in
androcentric archaeology. 13

One might consider rephrasing the question asked in the section heading to: “what could
feminist archaeology do for us?” which, on a basis of the discussions of this thesis, I will
return to in the final chapter. Through a historiographical survey this thesis aim to
problematize and challenge current patterns of interpretations of Viking women, hoping to
ensure an academic and fair discussion of the archaeological approaches to the material
sources to women in relation to weapons, as presented in the following chapters. Therefore
the critical challenge of established archaeology as formulated by feminist archaeology is
highly relevant to this thesis. If we can in some way break with a biased approach to data we
might also break with the traditional ways of perceiving data and thus discover new and
fruitful aspects of past societies.

2.3 A man’s world? Why textual sources are not enough

This section examines the challenges of modern scholarly portrayal of gender in relation to
military history of the Viking Age and the early Middle Ages as it is presented in the
relatively recent and quite extensive survey publications of Guy Halsall and of Kim Hjarder
and Vegard Vike. These publications are included in order to illustrate how leading present
day scholars within the field approach and perceive the Viking Age woman in relation to
weapons and military activities. In addition, these publications demonstrate the challenges
posed to such studies by the few available textual sources.

In his book Warfare and Society in the Barbarian West 450-900, first published in 2003, the
English Historian Guy Halsall, Professor in Medieval European History at the University of
York, explains the main problems concerning the study of warfare and society in the early
medieval period. Apart from the shortage of contemporary textual accounts, which in itself
complicates the interpretation of archaeological material and objects (as demonstrated in the
following chapters) the difference in mentality makes up an even greater obstacle, according
to Halsall. When studying the few contemporary textual accounts of the early medieval
society, for example, it quickly becomes evident, that what interests the scholars of today, did

13 Engelstad, 2007, pp. 230-231

| 12
not necessarily interest the writers of the 8th or 9th century. Therefore a lot of information
remains unavailable, especially concerning the everyday lives of early medieval men and
women, as well as their role in connection to military history. This is an expression of priority
within the genre of historical writing of the early medieval period, where the authors were not
expected, nor commissioned, in the case of most Scandinavian heroic poetry, to discuss and
portray the details of warfare or everyday life.14

As Halsall states, this unfortunately leaves us with very little and at best quite doubtful
literary sources concerning warfare and society in the early medieval period and hence also to
the Viking Age society. This forces historians, anthropologists and archaeologists to approach
most archaeological material through estimations and interpretations based on details and
facts derived mainly from contemporary grave contexts and later medieval textual accounts.
This allows for quite a lot of scarcely documented speculations to interfere with our
perception of life during the Viking Age and consequently it is the very limitations of our
imagination which determines the scope of our interpretation and understanding of the Viking
Age society, exemplified in the following chapters.

Halsall does not engage in a discussion or reflection on the topic of women engaged in
organized warfare, probably because the sources to back such a discussion, apart from the
Danish chronicler Saxo Grammaticus, are very scarce and dubious, if not nonexistent. In the
epilogue of his book, Halsall states that one cannot successfully search for and achieve an
understanding of warfare in the early medieval period through written accounts. This is
especially the case if searching for such facts as the size of an army, weapons or battle tactics.
According to Halsall, trying to understand the warfare at this time involves a quite complex
engagement with the mentalities of the periods, which manifest itself in, and can only be
accessed through, many and quite diverse forms of evidence.15 This supports the argument
made in the very beginning of this thesis, that the key to understanding all spheres of Viking
Age society as completely and truly as possible calls for a diverse range of interdisciplinary
approaches and sources. Moreover, accessing the mentality of a past society is perhaps the
most difficult of spheres to examine.

14 Halsall, 2003, pp. 4-6

15 Halsall, 2003, p. 230

| 13
Like Halsall’s book, the historical survey Vikinger i Krig (vikings at war) from 2011 by
Associate Professor in History, Kim Hjardar, and conservator at the Museum of Cultural
History, Vegard Vike, both Norwegian and employed at the University of Oslo, focus on the
military organization during the Viking Age, but unlike Halsall they actually attempt to
approach a definition of the role of women within Viking Age society. Hjardar and Vike, like
Furan, stress how the Viking Age society was generally militarized, causing military action
and civil life to be closely intertwined. The local king or chieftain for example, was both the
ruler and the military leader of the society. Hjardar and Vike state that all free men had the
right to bear arms and that the women too held an active position within this militarized
society. The functions ascribed to the Viking Age women by Hjardar and Vike were those of
initiating conflicts, instigating acts of revenge or war in order to restore the honor and
reputation of the family, an interpretation which is probably inspired by stories of the later
saga literature. Furthermore Hjardar and Vike state that women would participate at the scene
of a battle, yelling encouragements while also ridiculing warriors fleeing the battlefield,
which seems quite like the description of valkyries, which I will return to later. The
preservation of memory and erection of memorial stones commemorating dead relatives and
the practice of medicine are also deeds ascribed to women by Hjarder and Vike, although they
fail to disclose any specific source references to back their statements. On the topic of women
and weapons they contribute with an interesting statement, as they claim that it was the
responsibility of the mother to facilitate the necessary training of her sons in the use of
weapons, as the chances of their father being either dead or away on an expedition of raiding
or trade was highly likely. They include the 922AD account of the Arabian tradesman Ibn
Rustah, who visited the eastern Viking territories and described how, when a boy child was
born, it was the custom for its father to present the child with a sword, saying something to
the effect of “I will leave you no property, you will only have what you yourself take using
this, your sword”.16

Perhaps this custom was local to the Volga area, or perhaps the child weapon grave K/XX
from Kaupang, which will be discussed later, is actually a testimony to this custom and
mentality having been of a more general sort, actively practiced in various parts of the Viking
territories. Continuing on the subject of women and weapons, Hjardar and Vike ask the
question whether female warriors belong to the Norse mythology exclusively or if they held a

16 Hjardar & Vike, 2014, p. 33 & Fadlan, 2012, p. 126

| 14
place in their contemporary reality. Hjardar and Vike often write of the ‘traditional pattern of
gender roles’ and describe how some women appeared to have actively chosen to abandon
these, which was seemingly accepted by the society. However Hjardar and Vike never further
elaborate on what these roles were or which sources describe this. Generally, there are some
problems and precautions to consider, when assessing descriptions of female warriors in
written sources. Firstly there is no mention of female warriors on any of the known rune
stones dating to the Viking Age, which Hjardar and Vike suggest reflects how female warriors
would have been a minority within warrior groups of the Viking Age, wherefore the mention
of a female warrior on a monument becomes unlikely. Also there is no mention of fighting
Viking women in either the Frankish, Angel-Saxon or Irish annals or chronicles of that time,
although as Hjardar and Vike state, the idea of fighting women was not strange to these
societies, as it figures in numerous mythologies known at the time, as will be examined and
explained in a later chapter.17

Regarding textual sources that mention female warriors, there is a gap stretching from just
before the Viking Age until the Middle Ages, leaving scholars with a problem. Numerous
sources, such as Strabo, Pluthark, Dio Cassius and Tacitus all dating to the period 100BC-
100AD, mention female warriors within the North and East European tribes, but as Hjardar
and Vike rightly state, this does not prove that all women automatically participated in battles
nor that they would normally bear weapons. According to Hjardar and Vike the Roman source
Tacitus dating to ca. 100AD describes a ritual in relation to marriage, where Saxon men
would present their bride with gifts, including weapons, and the bride in return would also
present the groom with weapons. This does not confirm that women at this time actively
fought in battles, but like the Kaupang weapon graves examined later, this confirms Furan’s
assertion that both men and women may have had a meaningful relation to weapons in a
militarized society. Hjardar and Vike conclude that Tacitus’ account possibly reflects that
defending the home and family was a responsibility shared by men and women, and how in
the time before the Viking Age, violent conflicts were also a part of everyday life. Women in
relation to weapons are mentioned not just by Roman sources, the Byzantine historian
Johannes Skylitzes describes in his work from the 1100s AD how female warriors
participated in the battle between the Prince Svjatoslav of Kiev and a Byzantine army in
Bulgaria in 971AD. Again we are faced with the problem of credibility, as this source is

17 Hjardar & Vike, 2014, p. 103

| 15
written at least 129 years after the events it describes, and as Hjardar and Vike stress, this
source does not prove the existence of actual female warriors enrolled in the army, as the
women described could just as well be females accompanying men in the nomadic Kiev army,
trying to defend themselves in the unavoidable situation of a battle.18

Apart from Skylitzes, who does not write of Viking women, all the writers mentioned in the
above belong to the migration period prior to the Viking age, whereas later sources such as
Skylitzes, mentioning female warriors belong to the Middle Ages. Some of these later sources
claim to write of events of the Viking Age or migration period, but all are written several
hundred years past the events they seek to describe, which makes them difficult sources to
assess. Hjardar and Vike question whether these sources, both the Roman and the Norse,
prove the existence of female warriors in the tribes of the Northern European and
Scandinavian territories, having stretched through the Viking Age, or whether they reflect a
misunderstanding, legends of mythology or perhaps even the fantasy of the writers. Hjardar
and Vike approach the female weapon of the Viking Age graves with caution, since this
material is associated with much uncertainty, given how it has been handled and interpreted
by archaeologists over the years. There might quite possibly be more female weapon graves
from the Viking Age as the majority of these currently are near impossible to determine
gender wise. These factors of uncertainty surrounding the archaeological material makes it
quite difficult to establish any general conclusions, wherefore Hjardar and Vike, like Furan,
conclude that female weapon graves from the Viking Age at the very least prove how women
and weapons were interrelated. The graves do not, however, prove that these women fought as
professional warriors. As Hjardar and Vike point out, further academic research on this topic
might enlighten the relation between women and weapons further. They do not, however,
dismiss the possibility that some females from the elite of Viking Age society, could actually
have chosen to be warriors.19

Due to a lack of explicit source references, I perceive Hjardar and Vike’s statements as
interpretations of the relation between women and weapons during the Viking Age. Hjardar
and Vike certainly display a quite positive attitude to women having possibly had a
meaningful relation to weapons and as such they are consistent with Furan’s arguments.

18 Hjardar & Vike, 2014, pp. 104-105

19 Ibid. pp. 107-108

| 16
Halsall, however, takes a much more traditional approach, by not actually including women in
his considerations.

Chapter 3: Valkyrie symbolism or real women?

3.1 Appearances of armed women in material and written cult ure

When studying the interpretations of the archaeological material presented and discussed in
the following chapters of this thesis, it becomes apparent that some archaeologists tend to
label finds connecting women with weapons as an expression of ‘valkyrie symbolism’. It
seems that, within archeology, the valkyrie category covers almost everything, from female
weapon graves to figurines or pendants depicting both armed and unarmed women. This
makes one wonder if, over time, the label ‘valkyrie’ may simply have become a comfortable
categorical term for traditional archaeology to place certain findings in because these finds are
difficult to decipher. This perception of finds which relates women to weapons could be
argued to hinder an interpretation of these finds based on their own premises which might
challenge the traditional interpretations of gender in Viking Age society. One is left with the
impression, that the valkyrie interpretation is a temporary solution which allows
archaeologists to say ‘something’ about these finds. This approach, however, seems to hinder
interpretations which might challenge the current view on the women of the Viking Age.

In the following, I will discuss a number of examples of traditional archaeological

interpretations of finds that include women and weapons, as well as recent reinterpretations of
findings within the ‘valkyrie category’. The objective is to evaluate the validity of these
interpretations and to assess the relevance and importance of a reevaluation of the traditional
approaches within archaeology. Before presenting the archaeological material I will introduce
and discuss a linguistic perspective on the meaning and root of the valkyrie in a Norse/Anglo-
Saxon context as presented in the doctoral thesis of Dr. Philip A. Purser.

3.2 The Valkyrja in language and literature

In Norse religion the valkyrja (valkyrie) is closely linked to the god Odin, who is regarded as
king of the gods within the pantheon of Norse gods and goddesses.20 Valkyrja was seen as
Odin’s assistants, directing the course of battles and bringing the fallen warriors to Valhal,

20 Price, 2013, p. 166, 174

| 17
where they would also cater to the resurrected warriors.21 The very meaning of the word
valkyrja has its linguistic roots in the Old Norse words ‘valr’ meaning ‘the slain’ and ‘kjósa’
meaning ‘to choose’. Combined ‘valkyrja’ thus means ‘chooser of the slain’.22

Late Professor of medieval literature at the University of West Georgia Dr. Philip A. Purser
noted in his doctoral thesis ‘Her Syndan Wælcyrian: Illuminating the Form and Function of
the Valkyrie-Figure in the Literature, Mythology, and Social Consciousness of Anglo-Saxon
England’ from 2013, that the appearance of the valkyrie within both Norse literature and
material culture can be perceived as ambiguous. The valkyrie is either portrayed as a
malevolent being, appearing with shield, helmet and weapons, directing battles and choosing
who will live and die, or she is the image of a beautiful and feminine servant, with long hair,
tied in a knot, wearing long dresses. Most scholars agree that the latter image most fits the
present day perception of the Viking woman. Perhaps this is why female weapon graves are
so often considered to hold a merely symbolic meaning, despite, as will be discussed later in
this chapter, the dual depiction of women being very clear within the Viking Age material
culture.

As a source to the malevolent appearance of valkyries, Purser points to verse 11 in the text
Hákonarmál, concerning the Norwegian King Hákon Aðalsteinafóstri, also known as King
Hákon the Good, who died in 960AD. The text is written by the skald Eyvind Skáldaspillir
presumably short after the death of Hákon, possibly as early as 961AD.23 Loosely translated
into English through a comparison of a Danish translation made in 1817 by Finn Magnussen
and a Norwegian translation by P. A. Munch from 1859 (both translated from the original
text) it reads “The King heard what the Valkyries said, mounted on their horses, cautious they
were, wearing helmets they sat with sheltering shields by their side.”24 This description of the
valkyrie is very similar to the depiction of armed women in pendants and figurines from the
Viking Age. This will be discussed later in this chapter, as it points to a link between
depiction of females in material culture and the mythological valkyrie.

21 Henriksen & Petersen, 2013, p. 7

22 Self, 2014, p. 147
23 Purser, 3013, p. 2 & https://snl.no/H%C3%A5kon_1_Adalsteinsfostre
24 http://heimskringla.no/wiki/Haakonsmaal &

http://heimskringla.no/wiki/Hakon_den_Godes_Mindesang

| 18
But how does this mythological figure translate into reality? In the following section a double
grave from Gerdrup, Denmark, from around 800AD, containing a woman with a spear is
presented. She has been perceived by archaeologists both as an expression of valkyrie
symbolism and as a female priest, a ‘vølva’, equipped with a spear presumably as a symbol of
wisdom, linking her to Odin, and not as a female warrior.

Valkyries are mentioned frequently in the Old Norse skaldic and eddic poetry, transcribed
from traditional oral narratives between the 9th and 14th centuries. However, there are
presumably also a number of mentions of valkyries in Anglo-Saxon texts composed during
the late Viking Age. The Anglo-Saxon word ‘wælcyrge’ has since the 1800s been considered
an Anglicized version of the Norse ‘valkyrja’ among English linguistic scholars. According to
Purser this word is mentioned within the Anglo-Saxon corpus a total of 12 times from the 10th
to the late 11th century.25 One of these mentions is in The Proclamation of 1020, a text also
known as Cnut’s Manifesto, which is a political treatise written for or by the Danish King
Cnut the Great to his English subjects. This treatise proclaims in verse 15:

“For it is as the bishops say, that it is very much with God to be amended if one breaks an
oath or a pledge. Further, they declare that we ought, with all our might and all our main,
seek and love and honor God, who is mild, and all of us must avoid unrighteousness, the
deeds of kin-slayers, manslayers and murderers and perjurers and witches and wælcyrians
and adulterers and incests.”26 Wælcyrians are in this Anglo-Saxon text considered one
among a number of sinners responsible for angering God who thus punished the Anglo-Saxon
people by sending the heathen Viking invasions upon their lands.

Purser investigates what might be the origin of the Old Norse valkyrie, and his suggestion is
based on archaeological material in the form of three engravings on two altar stones from the
Housesteads Fort part of Hadrians Wall, dating to ca. 122AD. The three short engravings of
text, archaeologically cataloged as RIB 01593, RIB 01594, and RIB 0159527, are interesting
because they praise two named ‘Alaisagae’ who were female war-deities of the Roman
mythology. Alongside these engravings is a depiction of a female figure, wearing a long and
flowing dress, appearing to hold her right hand lifted in triumph while holding a knife or

25 Purser, 2013, p. 3, p. 173

26 Ibid. p. 3
27 http://romaninscriptionsofbritain.org/inscriptions/1594

| 19
dagger in her left hand28. It has been suggested by scholars that the Alaisagae praised in the
three inscriptions along with the depiction of an armed female, could be quite close the point
of origin from which the later conception of the Norse valkyrja has evolved.29

According to the folklorist Alexander H. Krappe the worship of the Alaisagae was brought to
England by Celto-Germanic soldiers who inscribed the text and picture onto the altar stones at
Housesteads Fort, preserving the memory of these war-deities. Krappe states that the Norse
valkyrie figure must have evolved from the beliefs of these Celto-Germanic soldiers, as the
Celto-Germanic culture spread throughout the north. Krappe’s statement is backed by John
Lindow, Professor in Scandinavian Medieval Studies at Berkeley University, California. He
claims that much of Norse mythology, as well as Norse literary culture, derive from Celtic
and Germanic Britain, which is the reason these female figures are found in both Old Norse
and Celto-Irish Culture. Thus it has long been maintained, that the Scandinavian valkyrja has
developed from the Celto-Germanic Alaisagae, while the Anglo-Saxon wælcyrian is an
Anglicized version of the Norse valkyrja. This conclusion is doubtful as there is a
significantly large gap in history between the evidence of these female figures.30

The timespan between the two texts presented above that mention valkyries and wælcyrians
respectively is a maximum of some 59 years, presuming that the Hákonamál was written in
the year following the death of King Hákon. It is interesting, though perhaps not surprising,
how the portrayals of the valkyries and the wælcyrians differ. The skald Eyvind Skáldaspillir
mentions ‘Odin’, ‘the Asír’ and ‘the gods’ several times throughout Hákonamál, wherefore
there is strong indications that this poem was composed to a heathen king, for a heathen and
non-Christian audience and within a heathen narrative tradition.31

On this basis, one could argue, that if the wælcyrian was indeed an Anglicized version of the
Norse valkyrie, descending from the Celto-Germanic war-goddesses the Alaisagae, then it
seems as if Christian perceptions of the heathen valkyrie figure took a somewhat hostile form.
This is not at all surprising, but it is interesting that two texts, separated in time by
presumably no more than 59 years, are so different in their description of a figure, presumed
to be the same. The reason for this difference in attitude towards valkyries is most likely to be

28 See appendix, fig. 1.1

29 Purser, 2013, pp. 5-7
30 Ibid. pp. 7- 8
31 http://heimskringla.no/wiki/Hakon_den_Godes_Mindesang

| 20
found in the Christian view of heathen beliefs, but perhaps also in the Medieval Christian
image of the ideal woman which I will return to later. Purser mentions how Christian monks
in the early 11th century presented the valkyrie and her features as a war-woman in a rather
negative way, coinciding with the contemporary writings of Wulfstan, an Anglo-Saxon
Archbishop and adviser to King Cnut the Great, who presented the wælcyrge as a literal figure
of malevolence to be feared and hated by Christian people.32 To the Anglo-Saxon homiletic
writers of the time, the wælcyrge was also, perhaps not surprisingly, associated with
witchcraft as well as unholy healing arts, making her a spiritually corruptive figure. 33 The
ability to heal is strongly associated with the Old Norse valkyrie, reflecting her affiliation with
Odin, just as her wise counsel, as mentioned in the Hákonamál,34 is a quality more related to
Odin than to any other god in the Norse pantheon. The ability to heal is by Hjardar and Vike
also attributed to the women of the Viking Age, although their lack of references makes it
difficult to elaborate any further on a possible connection.35

Purser takes a quite reassessing stand when concluding, that within the Anglo-Saxon corpus
there is actually no proof whatsoever, of a connection between the Anglo-Saxon wælcyrge
and the Norse valkyrie as ‘chooser of the slain’. According to Purser, the link between the two
has emerged due to desperate scholars searching to define the scarcely described wælcyrge,
and thus having looked to the more extensive corpus of Norse literature in the lack of Anglo-
Saxon sources. Scholar Brian Branston has called this link “[…]the remarkable agreement
between Old English and Old Norse”36 and Purser labels this ‘agreement’ between the myth
and folklore of the two cultures as fundamentally reductive and incorrect. He concludes that if
ever there has been any influence from one to the other, the influence must have gone from
the wælcyrge to the valkyrie. He rests this conclusion on the fact that the literary evidence for
a benevolent wælcyrge antedates the benevolent Norse valkyrie by at least two centuries.37

What can be inferred from the above is that the Norse valkyrie, as a figure of both
benevolence and malevolence, might be rooted in the much earlier Celto-Germanic culture. A
contemporary Northern European variation of her is to be found within both Anglo-Saxon and

32 http://global.britannica.com/biography/Wulfstan & Purser, pp. 16-18

33 Purser, 2013, p. 19
34 http://heimskringla.no/wiki/Hakon_den_Godes_Mindesang
35 Hjardar and Vike, 2014, p. 33
36 Purser, 2013, p. 173
37 Ibid. pp. 173-174

| 21
Irish folklore, suggesting how the image of armed women within mythology and superstition
was a somewhat common concept. What is even more interesting is that in a want of sources
and elaboration on the wælcyrge, Old English scholars have grasped for a link between
Anglo-Saxon folklore and Norse mythology and thus constructed an agreement between the
two, which is seemingly incorrect when examining the premises of the two figures.

3.3 Gendered memorial and written culture?

As mentioned earlier the use of textual sources in the study of the Viking Age is made
difficult by the distance in time between the writer and the events described, or because the
textual sources only exists in the form of later transcriptions, affecting the credibility of the
source. Two of the perhaps most well-known sources on Scandinavian society during the
early medieval period are those of the Danish chronicler Saxo Grammaticus living between
ca. 1150-1220 and the Icelandic corpus, including the law codex Grágás originally committed
to writing between 1117-18, and preserved in two revised and extended copies, dating to the
late 13th century.38 Neither of these sources are unproblematic sources on the context of the
Viking Age given their relatively late dating, and they must be approached with great
consideration. I will nonetheless argue that they hold relevance in reflecting the mentality of
their contemporaries, especially in regards to Grágás being a law codex, and as such having
had the function of providing a solution to, and regulation of, relevant issues within the
Icelandic society in the 12th century. However, one could argue that the transferability of the
mentality and societal issues reflected in Grágás is limited, given that this is an Icelandic text
concerning laws local to Iceland. What was a problem in Iceland was not necessarily a
problem elsewhere in Scandinavia, especially given the relative isolation of the island
stemming from its geographical location and accessibility. This poses a considerable
challenge to the transferability of the conclusions drawn from Grágás.

Translated to English from a Danish translation of Grágás from 1870 by Vilhjálmur Finsen, it
reads in the 3rd section of chapter 254: “If a woman dress in male clothing or cut her hair or
bear weapons in order to appear different to others the punishment is deportation; it is a case
which should be trialed within the village, and five neighboring farmers should be summoned

38 Horn eds., 1985, introduction, p. v & Dennis et. al, 2006, foreword, p. vi

| 22
to the thing (to testify); any person can charge. The same rules apply to men dressing like
women”39.

Since this section outlaws cross-dressing for both men and women and as such seeks to
regulate a behavioral issue, it seems reasonable to assume that this behavior was occurring to
a degree where it was perceived as a problem within the Icelandic society. It seems as if the
central issue is the concealment of one’s identity under a ‘false’ gender and the fact that this
behavior is diverges from normal dress behavior. It is only considered illegal for women to
cut their hair short and to bear arms, suggesting how this was accepted behavior for Icelandic
men, which is interesting in terms of understanding what the general perception of appropriate
relations between women and weapons were in Iceland in the time between 1117AD-
1300AD. As mentioned by Hjardar and Vike the Viking Age society was a militarized one,
where the norm was for all free men to bear weapons, a notion which the above section of
Grágás seemingly supports.40

As already stated, mentioning of this type of behavior within the law codex context of Grágás
seems to reflect that some women in Iceland, in unknown circumstances, practiced this type
of behavior, perhaps in order to appear different, as the quotation describes. Cross-dressing
seems to be the central crime, although we don’t know with certainty if armed women in
general were outlawed in Iceland, or if the rules were to some degree flexible to the
circumstances. Regardless, this section in Grágás could at the earliest have been written some
51 years after 1066, which is generally considered as the end of the Viking Age, although
some scholars stretch the period to 1100. This is a time interval which can be argued to be
both small and great, perhaps especially in matters of the emergence or fading of cultural
norms and traditions. There is a possibility, however, that Grágás in general reflects a
mentality originating in the time before or during the Viking Age, where armed and perhaps
even fighting women were considered normal within militarized societies. As such Grágás
could be argued to reflect a change in mentality which was possibly caused by an increase in
Christian influences, where the relation between women and weapons seems to decrease as
the image of the ideal woman changed in order to fit Christian female ideals, which I will
explain in the following.

39 http://heimskringla.no/wiki/Om_Ord,_hvorfor_fuld_personlig_Bod_betales#254
40 Hjardar & Vike, 2014, p. 33

| 23
As discussed by Hjardar and Vike in the section A man’s world? Why textual sources are not
enough, and as stated by Halsall, it is very difficult to access and examine the mentality of
past societies in the absence of contemporary textual accounts.41 The outlawing of armed
women in Grágás supports both the perception of female weapon graves as an expression of
women having actively used and owned weapons during the Viking Age as well as the
interpretation of female weapon graves as expressing valkyrie symbolism, as the relation
between women and weapons is not specified.

When consulting the writings of Saxo Grammaticus in the manuscripts composing The
Danish Chronicle Gesta Danorum (The History of the Danes), appearances of identified
females fighting are numerous. As mentioned earlier, the oldest original known pages of
Gesta Danorum dates to ca 1200 in the form of the Angers fragment, but in total the writings
of Saxo comprises 16 books all written in Latin in the time between 1180-1220AD, known
today in the form of a transcript from 1514.42 Saxo is a difficult source to use, as most
medieval accounts are, as his credibility is much disputed. In the short version of the Danish
historian N. H. Holmqvist-Larsen’s history thesis from 1981 titled Møer, Skjoldmøer og
Krigere (Maids, Shield Maidens and Warriors), Gesta Danorum is described as a work
describing the history of the Danish kings and bishops, beginning in pre-Christian times and
ending in the time of Saxo and his contemporaries. The tales of the pre-Christian kings have
been characterized as legends, due to the absence of known sources. Despite Gesta Danourum
being generally a history of men, there is, interestingly, a strong representation of remarkable
women in the books that concern the pre-Christian times. The portrayal of women decreases
after the 10th book, mentioning mainly unimportant and quite passive queens. Holqvist-Larsen
notes this change, and how half of the population suddenly seems unimportant to Saxo and to
the history he seeks to communicate. Holmqvist-Larsen ascribes this sudden change in the
portrayal of female characters to the strengthening of Christianity in Denmark, which Saxo
describes as tightening its grip around the Danish people, thus shoving women into the
background of history. Holmqvist-Larsen compares this ‘decline in women’ with the English
chronicles, where the same pattern is detected by English historian Betty Bandel. She notes
that after the 1066 Norman victory at the battle of Hastings, which in a Scandinavian context
is marking the very end of the Viking Age, ushering the Norman dominance within England,

41 Halsall, 2003, p. 230

42 Horn eds.,1985, introduction, p. v & Holmqvist-Larsen, 1983, p. 21

| 24
women seem to disappear from the English corpus of chronicles and annals, only thereafter to
be mentioned in relation to men. As Bandel notes, this change in attitude cannot be ascribed
to the introduction and strengthening of Christianity, which had occurred much earlier in
England than in Scandinavia. Instead she ascribes this change to a general change in both
society and ideology caused by the Norman conquests which introduced a new type of public
sphere. This ‘new public’ and its new ideology affected the idea of the ideal woman and in
some aspects limited the social options and general possibilities for women in England. The
introduction of courtly love within the contemporary medieval literature and the ensuing new
view on women, had an influence on the way women were perceived within the society.
Bandel and Holmqvist-Larsen agree that, on the whole, conditions for women changed in a
negative direction, compared to the notion and portrayals of the ideal woman apparent in pre-
1066 sources and legends concerning that time.43

Holmqvist-Larsen stresses that Saxo most probably draws upon available sources concerning
his immediate past, and that his description of the ancient history of Denmark draws upon a
mix of legends, myths and tales having been available to him in the form of poems, prose
literature and oral tradition. This is one reason to exercise great caution when using Saxo as a
historic source. However, as Holmqvist-Larsen and Bandel state, Saxo illustrates, though
perhaps not intentionally, a contemporary change in mentality concerning women which is
striking. As such, Saxo mirrors the mentality of his time, which in the case of women and
weapons is quite interesting, especially if one views Saxo, as having included the legends of
fighting women based on a perception of these tales being true. Holqvist-Larsen does not
doubt that Saxo perceived and approached the legends, myths and tales composing his version
of the ancient history of Denmark, as history.44

The fighting women mentioned in book 2, 4, 7, 8 and 9 have by some scholars been
approached as tales of shield maidens, although Saxo himself did not use this term in Gesta
Danorum. The term was most probably known to him, as it figures in other contemporary
written accounts, but as Holqvist-Larsen states, it is difficult to determine where the fighting
women in Gesta Danorum originate from. He attributes them partly to tales of legend and
partly to having been introduced to Saxo through the Old Norse Icelandic sources, but he
remains skeptical toward an interpretation of these fighting women as having been real. He

43 Holmqvist-Larsen, 1983, pp. 24-26 & Bandel, 1955, p. 113

44 Ibid. pp. 26-28

| 25
refers to other historians who, based on Irish sources, have tried to “save the shield maidens
from the neglect and dismiss of critical research”45, but states that the absence of written
sources relegates these women to legend. Comparisons have been made between the women
mentioned by Saxo and Celtic folk lore, just as these female characters have been attributed to
tales of the mythological valkyries and thus as being an expression of these. Another
interpretation of the appearance of fighting women in Gesta Danorum has by scholars been
attributed to the possibility of Saxo having been acquainted with the antique Greek tales of
Amazon warriors. This is much in line with the argument of Purser, who traces the Anglo-
Saxon notion of fighting females to Celto-Germanic folk lore.46

Saxo differs from Grágás in many ways, but an interesting similarity between the two sources
is, that they both, though in very different ways, refer to fighting women, and portray these
females as having held a place in their contemporary time. Fighting women were not
portrayed by Saxo as nonsense, but included in his History of the Danes because he most
probably considered them part of the Danish history. The outlawing of armed women in
Grágás, proves that armed females, possibly as early as 1117, posed a problem in Iceland that
was great enough to be legislated against. Quite possibly there is a connection between this
attitude towards armed women and the changes of the perception of women within Christian
societies as noted by Bandel and Holmqvist-Larsen. This incongruence is exemplified by the
paradox of the incidents of female weapon graves and depictions of armed women of the
Viking Age, and the legislation against armed women in the immediate years following this
period.

The following chapter on the Gerdrup grave introduces a Danish female weapon grave dating
to the Viking Age, and discusses the interpretation of this grave as an expression of ‘valkyrie
symbolism’. As stated in the introduction, the aim of this thesis is to get as close as possible to
the subject of this study being the archaeological evidence of females in relation to weapons
within both burial and general material culture of the period. Furthermore, the archaeological
interpretations and the underlying assumptions of these interpretations are of equal interest, as
they exemplify the prevailing academic approaches to women in relation to weapons within
contemporary archaeology, as reflected in the portrayal of Viking Age women in the writings
of scholars such as Hjardar and Vike and Halsall.

45 Ibid. p. 41
46 Purser, 2013, pp. 16-18

| 26
3.4 A valkyrie materializing? – The Gerdrup grave

A gender automatic approach to archeological material has for long been apparent within
archaeology, as illustrated in the article Women for Peace? by archaeologist and curator at
Roskilde Viking Ship Museum, Tom Christensen and Pia Bennike, archaeologist and lecturer
at the University of Copenhagen. In the article they consider the possible interpretations of a
dual inhumation grave from Gerdrup in Denmark, dated to ca. 800AD47.

The Gerdrup grave contained the skeletal remains of both a female and a male. The reason it
is of interest to this thesis, is that the grave objects and the very composition of the bodies,
qualifies it as a female weapon grave. In their article, Christensen and Bennike stress that this
grave poses a challenge to the traditional archaeological approach to gender and objects of the
Viking Age. Historically all graves containing weapons but lacking sufficient skeletal
material to make it possible to determine the gender of the buried have automatically been
interpreted as male graves. This is a seemingly logical conclusion due to the small amount of
female weapon graves, but it also proves a methodological tradition within the field of
archaeology which often seems to overrule and obstruct possible and logical
(re)interpretations of graves, displaying a traditional androcentric interpretation, as stated by
Engelstad in the section What have gender archaeology and feminism ever done for us?48

The male skeleton in the Gerdrup grave has due to its pose been interpreted as a slave. His
ankles seemed to have been tied together, his knees were pointing outwards in a very
unnatural position and his neck was twisted in a way which had dislocated several of his
cervical vertebras. Some 50 centimeters beside the male skeleton to the left was a female
skeleton, placed in a much more natural position, lying on her back with her arms down her
side and bearing no trace of a violent death. What is unusual about her is the two great pieces
of rock placed on top of her body, and that a spearhead measuring about 40cm, was placed
along her right side, pointing towards her feet. Christensen and Bennike state that the custom
of placing stones on top of a buried body is probably to be taken quite literally and suggests
that whoever buried her wished her to stay buried, and perhaps keep her from returning in a
ghost like fashion. Fragments of the wooden spear shaft was found in connection to the
spearhead, but as Christensen notes, the normal length of spears in the Viking Age was some

47 See appendix, fig. 1.2

48 Christensen & Bennike, 1983, p. 9 & Engelstad, 2007, p. 217

| 27
2-3 meters or even longer, meaning that the spear was almost certainly broken in order to
make it fit into the grave, next to the woman. Linking the spear to the male, therefore, would
be farfetched as the placing of the spear next to the woman appears quite intentional. The
grave objects appearing to belong to the woman count a knife, a needle case and the
spearhead. The only grave object identified as belonging to the male was a small, simple iron
knife placed on his chest. This composition suggests that perhaps the male was a slave
following the woman into her grave, which would again suggests that this woman enjoyed a
certain level of respect, while the stones seem to indicate that the people burying her, did not
wish to see her again.49 One could argue that this interpretation is incongruous, but when
considering the religious practices and traditions of the time, which are discussed in the
chapter Women with ships, swords and shields, it can actually be considered both possible and
perhaps even reasonable. The reason why the female has been perceived by archaeologists as
the central and most important of the two buried, is due to the level of attention she was given
by the people burying her, reflected in the placing of large pieces of rocks and the number of
objects accompanying her.

Whether the woman owned the spear and actively used it is impossible to determine,
especially without metallographic analyses of the spearhead, but the appearance of a spear
alongside a female skeleton is a composition known from other female graves, and it warrants
drawing a parallel to both the Oseberg tapestries and the appearance of small figurines and
pendants depicting armed women, examined in the following sections. Christensen and
Bennike suggest a parallel between female weapon graves in general and the mythological
valkyrie creature, but they also suggest the possibility of these graves as having belonged to
shield maidens or female warriors, as portrayed by Saxo. They conclude, however, that a
spear in a female grave most likely expresses a warrior symbolism and that actual shield
maidens seem too fantastic to be regarded as realistic possibilities50. They make no
comparison between the Gerdrup grave and other female weapon graves from the period,
which is unfortunate given the great diversity of these graves, as exemplified in the following
chapter on the Kaupang weapon graves.

The following section examines a selection of figurines and pendants depicting armed
females, which are relevant to this thesis as they constitute a category of objects within the

49 Christensen & Bennike, 1983, p. 9-11

50 Ibid. pp. 10-11

| 28
material culture of the Viking Age displaying women in direct relation to weapons. These
pieces of jewelry are in a category labeled as ‘valkyrie jewelry’ which covers both armed and
unarmed women, reflecting the notion of the valkyrie explained by Purser, as being either
serving or violent. The appearance of women as valkyrie jewelry is examined in connection to
the females portrayed on the Oseberg tapestry and the fashion detectable in female graves,
with the goal of identifying differences and similarities in dress style. This comparison is
done in order to facilitate a discussion of the possibility of this archaeological material as
being in some way connected. The similarities between the depiction of women on jewelry,
on the Oseberg tapestry and the actual fashion of Viking Age women is especially interesting,
as these appear to be quite consistent in matters of hairstyle and clothing. The aim is to
approach a settlement on whether the idea of female warriors is most related to the Viking
Age fantasy or if these women actually existed in their contemporary reality.

3.5 Women as jewelry

During the past three decades a number of small figurines, pendants and brooches have
appeared in both Scandinavia and England, owing to the great increase in use of metal
detectors by hobby archaeologists. Generally these female depictions have been categorized
as expressions of valkyries. These pieces of jewelry have not been found in connection to
identified graves, which makes it difficult, if not impossible, to determine the gender of their
previous owners. This category of jewelry comprises a number of small three dimensional
figurines and two dimensional pendants and brooches depicting women, made from either
silver or bronze. They differ in appearance; some are armed wearing helmets and are mounted
on horseback as described in the Hákonámál51, some carry objects resembling drinking
vessels, some carry long staffs and others have no accessories at all.52

In order to avoid confusion, this thesis will use the term valkyrie jewelry when discussing
these objects, which should not, however, be seen as an uncritical approach to the label
‘valkyrie’, as will be expounded in the following. This term is chosen because the terms
female jewelry or Viking iconography are simply too broad and too easy to misunderstand.

Professor in Archaeology at the Uppsala University, Anne-Sofie Gräslund states that jewelry
depicting valkyries should be seen as an expression of the worship of Odin, and not as

51 http://heimskringla.no/wiki/Hakon_den_Godes_Mindesang
52 Henriksen & Petersen, 2013, p. 3-8

| 29
worship of the valkyries themselves. This type of jewelry was most probably worn to gain
protection from the god or gods associated with the figurine or pendant. In this perspective the
valkyrie jewelry should be seen as good-luck charms like the Thor’s hammer pendant, which
was extensively used, during the Viking Age.53

Her conclusion is quite categorical in the way she construes the valkyrie jewelry as an
expression of Odin, especially considering the discovery of an Odin figurine54, found during
an excavation in 2009 at Lejre, in Denmark, dating to the 900s. The figurine from Lejre is
unique in the way it depicts Odin, sitting on a throne, with two ravens by his shoulders, as
specifically described and depicted in early medieval sources like the Prose Edda by the
Icelandic chronicler Snorri Sturluson. It is the first and so far the only indisputable depiction
of Odin, suggesting that the depiction of him was not a strange concept to Viking Age people.
The find does not eliminate the possibility, that wearing valkyrie jewelry was a way of
praising Odin, but it shows that in at least one instance, an actual Odin figurine was made.
One could argue that the relatively large number of valkyrie jewelry depicting armed women
suggest this as a more common or perhaps specific motif in matters of a battle-related worship
of Odin.55

It is interesting that the very same motif has been found in Denmark at both Tissø56 and
Odense57 as well as in England58, depicting a woman in a long dress wearing a helmet and
shield, offering a drinking vessel to a woman mounted on a horse carrying both a spear and a
sword. Henriksen argues that this motif and its meaning must have been easily recognized
and understood by people in the Viking Age, due to the spread of similar motifs, and that this
supports the notion that jewelry depicting armed women may have reflected one of several
expressions of the cult of Odin, and as such may have been an image as recognizable as
Thor’s hammer.59

53 Gräslund, 2012, pp. 254-255

54 See appendix, fig. 1.3
55 http://jyllands-posten.dk/kultur/historie/ECE4396467/Sensationelt+fund+af+Odin-figur/ &

http://heimskringla.no/wiki/Snorres_Edda
56 See appendix, fig. 1.4
57 See appendix, fig. 1.5
58 See appendix, fig. 1.6
59 Henriksen & Petersen, 2013, p. 8 & http://natmus.dk/historisk-viden/danmark/oldtid-indtil-aar-

1050/vikingetiden-800-1050/tro-og-magi-doed-og-ritual/den-gamle-tro/

| 30
It is interesting that figurines, pendants and brooches depicting women of various appearances
and compositions have been characterized as being valkyries. This categorization does
however corroborate Purser’s notion of the double-sided appearance of the valkyrie, as both
armed and serving. The physical appearance of these objects is interesting in connection to the
female weapon graves, because they show that armed women were also a motif in jewelry. As
apparent in the case of the Oseberg tapestry examined in the following chapter, these images
have also been relevant within other types of handicraft. The next section investigates whether
the traditional archaeological interpretation of the various forms in which armed women were
portrayed can be challenged by new approaches. It also investigates whether approaching
female weapon graves within the context of the portrayal of armed women in the
contemporary material culture of the period, can prove fruitful when trying to reach an
understanding of the relation between woman and weapons in the Viking Age.

3.6 Valkyrie fashion

The latest finding of an armed valkyrie figurine was discovered in Denmark in December
2012 in a field near Hårby on Fyn60. The three-dimensional 3,4cm tall female is made from
gold-plated silver, and is holding a sword and a shield while wearing a long dress and long
hair tied in a knot on the back of her head. Dating the figurine has proved difficult, as the
hairstyle of the figurine is known from picture stones on Gotland, Sweden, dating to the early
700sAD, while the ornamentation on the back of her dress shows similarity with that on a
large brooch from Hornelund, Denmark, which has been dated to the late 900sAD. The
production technique and material has therefore been considered important clues for dating
the figurine, and places it around year 800AD, in the early years of the Viking Age, and thus
contemporary with the Gerdrup grave.61

The dress and hairstyle of the Hårby figurine shows great similarity to other Danish valkyrie
pendants and brooches, like the Vrejlev62 and Ladby63 pendants and the Tissø brooch which
depict armed women, but there are also similarities to the findings from Birka, Kinsta, Tuna
and Grödinge64 in Sweden, to mention a few, although these female figurines appear

60 See appendix, fig. 1.7

61 Henriksen & Petersen, 2013, p. 6-8, & http://natmus.dk/historisk-viden/danmark/oldtid-indtil-aar-
1050/vikingetiden-800-1050/vikingernes-soelvskatte/skattefund-fra-hornelund/
62 See appendix, fig. 1.8
63 See appendix, fig. 1.9
64 See appendix, fig. 1.10

| 31
unarmed. There is an interesting similarity in the style of dress of these different pieces of
valkyrie jewelry, and the contemporary fashion of the Viking Age Woman, as explained in
the following.

Henriksen notes that there seems to be a linguistic connection between the word ‘valkyrie’
and the Norwegian word ‘valknut’ referring to the type of knots in the hairstyle and
ornamentation on some of their dresses, as portrayed on the valkyrie jewelry. The word
valknut translates to ‘val knot’ and covers what is also known as triquetras or loop knots. This
type of loop knot begin to appear in late Germanic Iron Age, when the earliest recognizable
motifs of Norse gods also appear, and Henriksen suggests, that the valknuts might have been
seen as a protective symbol in both Iron Age and during the Viking Age. Further Henriksen
suggests a connection between the valknuts and Odin, given the appearance of these knots on
both valkyrie jewelry and in connection to what has been interpreted as valkyries on the
Oseberg tapestries.65

It is an interesting observation and one could argue that it supports the perception of the
depicted women bearing the sign of valknuts in hair or on their cloth as a proof of them being
valkyries, although this might be farfetched. All of the dresses depicted on the valkyrie
jewelry described above resemble that of a long pleated dress, covered by a shorter overdress
– possibly an apron dress as was the typical fashion in the Viking Age - which is then again
covered by a shawl or cape. The length of the dress is emphasized by making it fall as a trail
down the back, almost covering the feet on most of the here mentioned jewelry. There is
archaeological evidence that seemingly proves the existence of the fashion of pleated dresses
in the Viking Age. One example is the remains of a dress found in the grave ACQ at Køstrup,
Denmark, dated to the 10th century. The textile fragments in this grave indicate that the
woolen apron dress was pleated on the upper front part covering the chest, but as
Archaeologists Charlotte Rimstad notes in her master thesis from 1998, several possible
interpretations have been given, with one also indicating that the pleating was on the side of
the dress.66

65Henriksen & Petersen, 2013, p. 9 & Christensen & Bennike, 1983, p. 11

66Rimstad, 2013, p. 18-19 & http://natmus.dk/historisk-viden/danmark/oldtid-indtil-aar-
1050/vikingetiden-800-1050/mennesket/smykker-og-toej/

| 32
The practical advantage of pleating would be the increase in the width of the dress, making it
fall more or less like the dresses depicted on the valkyrie jewelry. Several examples of
fragments of pleated dresses, in addition to the one from Denmark, have been found in
Norway, Birka in Sweden and in the Viking settlements in Pskov in present day Russia. This
could indicate that pleated dresses were a common type of fashion during the Viking Age,
perhaps limited to certain groups in society. It does make sense, therefore, that the people
making the valkyrie jewelry, would look for inspiration amongst the women in their society.
There is no indication, that the Køstrup grave is that of a vølva, or female priest and it is
difficult to say whether this fashion should be particularly associated with women serving
Odin, or if it is simply an expression of a popular dress style, as is the way the Danish
National Museum interprets the valkyrie jewelry. 67

In the chapter on the Oseberg ship burial, the similarities between the fashion displayed on the
valkyrie jewelry is compared to that displayed on the tapestries of the Oseberg grave in order
to contextualize this portrayal of women. The practical function of the Hårby figurine is
disputed, as this, apart from the Odin figurine from Lejre, is the only find of a three
dimensional figurine within the jewelry category. The bottom of her dress forms a hallow
hole, enabling her to stand, but she could also have been attached to the end of a fitted
wooden, bone or antler pin and thus having been used as a pin for either hair or to hold a
cloak. Traces of a tear in the lower part of the hole between her neck and hair suggests that
this figurine was not used as a hanging pendant, and that there might have been a decorative
silver ring put through the hole, perhaps attaching the figurine to a safety chain or something
like that, preventing the owner from losing it. It is an interesting thought to consider the
possible meanings of men wearing these little women, for example as charms of protection or
the like. Arguably this could make sense in a warrior context, in terms of ensuring that in a
battle, one would be noted by the valkyries. This is mere speculations, though.

In order to demonstrate the importance of continuous critique of established perceptions

within an academic discipline like archaeology, where the amount of source material in the
form of archaeological findings is constantly expanding, a reinterpretation of the meaning of
keys in the Viking Age is included in the following section.

67Rasmussen and Lønborg, 1993, p. 176, p. 179 & Geijer, 1979, p. 7 & http://natmus.dk/historisk-
viden/danmark/oldtid-indtil-aar-1050/vikingetiden-800-1050/mennesket/smykker-og-toej/

| 33
3.7 Female symbols – a reevaluation?

From time to time something as controversial as a reevaluation of a traditional interpretation

becomes relevant or even urgent in order to obtain an updated approach to new results and
finds. Archaeologist and museum curator at Museum Nordsjælland in Denmark, Pernille
Pantmann, uses this argument in her article Hvem var Vikingetidens nøglebærer? (Who was
the key bearers of the Viking Age?) from 2011, when addressing the need for a
reinterpretation of the meaning of keys and their relation to Viking Age women.

Pantmann notes how the traditional interpretation of keys has long been unchallenged despite
a huge amount of new evidence seemingly contradicting the way archeologists have
understood these objects traditionally. In her article Pantmann disputes the traditional
interpretation of Viking Age keys and how these objects have been perceived by
archaeologists as a symbol of feminine virtue and domestic power. She states, that at an
uncertain point in modern time this interpretation, which is rooted in later Medieval literature,
describing how the wife would be in charge of the keys of the home as part of the household,
has been transferred onto the Viking Age society. This in combination with the appearance of
keys within female graves dating to the Viking Age has developed into the prevailing notion
of Viking Age keys. Pantmann explains this development as a perfect example of traditional
archaeologist method, considering it a legitimate approach, to look to the later Medieval
literature for explanations of Viking Age phenomenons, percieving the origin of Medieval
conduct and traditions as a refinement of Viking Age culture. Pantmann states that due to the
expansion in the use of metal detectors in recent years, and the number of keys appearing as
stray finds which this has brought about, the occurrence of keys within newly discovered,
high status female Viking Age graves has not been near proportionate. Thus it can be
concluded, that the general use and meaning of keys was probably much more widespread
than previously assumed, given the increased numbers of keys recently found outside grave
contexts.68

A second point of critique is aimed at the archaeological notion that keys are most often found
in the female graves belonging to the richest of Viking Age women. This notion has no
credibility when looking to the actual data of the current number of ‘high class’ female
graves. Pantmann explains this misconception as a reflection of how the first female graves

68 Pantmann, 2013, p. 59

| 34
containing keys, due to their grave objects, appeared rich in comparison to the contemporary
amount of female graves. Since these graves were exposed widely within research literature at
the time when these were excavated, it resulted in the construction of a narrative of keys as a
symbol of upper class female domestic power.69

This outdated narrative has supported an interpretation which does not agree with the actual
extent and context of keys in female graves. Pantmann points to the fact, that recent years’
excavations have uncovered female graves where the only objects, aside from very basic iron
knifes, have been keys, thus contradicting the notion of keys as an object reserved for the
‘high class’ Viking Age woman. The current amount of archaeological finds suggest that keys
placed close to the body of the buried, have been found in almost all types of graves except
the richest, such as the Oseberg and Gokstad ship burials in Norway and the Hørning grave in
Denmark. Another common misconception within archeology is that keys together with
shrines form a pair of grave objects excusive to the richest of Viking Age graves, but this
Pantmann also rejects due to a lack of agreement with the archaeological finds. Shrines are a
type of object generally found in the richest of graves, but not always in the company of a
key. As already mentioned, keys have been found in all types of graves, most of them without
a shrine, while graves containing a shrine and a key which doesn’t fit, have also been found.
Pantmann states that a study of all known female Viking Age graves, excavated before 2011,
proved that only about 5% contained a key. The graves containing keys vary in matters of
composition, objects and wealth and only have the occurrence of a key in common, which
was placed differently within the graves.

This strongly supports her conclusion, being that keys as grave objects in female Viking Age
graves were more of a rarity than a normality, and that there are apparently no immediate
similarities between these ‘key graves’. Adding to this deconstruction of the traditional
narrative of keys is the findings of non-functioning keys within Viking age graves, meaning
keys made from materials other than metal. Examples of this have also been found outside the
context of graves, in Ribe, Denmark, in the form of a leather key and the striking of a key
motif on weaving weights made from clay. This suggests that perhaps the keys held a certain

69 Ibid. p. 59

| 35
meaning to the people of the Viking Age which, like the Danish Tissø valkyrie motif was
perhaps quite general and therefore easy to decode.70

Therefore a reevaluation of the traditional interpretation of keys, based on the biography and
occurrence of keys within the archaeological material, is urgent. Pantmann suggest that based
on the archaeological facts, keys as grave objects should be perceived as tokens instead of
symbols of domestic power and female virtue. Pantmann looks to the Roman Empire when
analyzing a possible interpretation of keys, as these objects was introduced to Scandinavia via
the Romans. In Roman culture, as in Greek, Egyptian, and most recently Christian culture, the
key is a complex symbol, incorporating both the practical possibility of opening and locking
shrines and doors etc., but also as a metaphor for life, and death, wisdom and prophecy. A
person being in possession of a key could therefore be interpreted as the person being chosen
for a task, for a position or as possessing spiritual wisdom.71

Pantmann stresses that it is not impossible that some of the women buried with keys fit the
stereotypical interpretation. She does suggest, however, that in order to understand the
meaning of keys, as they appear in the context of archaeological finds and in connection to the
Viking Age woman, one must abandon the perception of the key-bearing woman as being a
wealthy and domestically empowered woman. In order to fully reevaluate the meaning of
keys one must free oneself from the preconceptions that characterize the traditional
understanding of keys, and be open to a much broader understanding of the different kinds of
uses and meanings associated with keys, both as tools and tokens. Pantmann stresses the need
to approach the Viking Age as a period where society comprised both rich and poor people, as
well as numerous currently unidentified groups in between these two poles. On top of this, the
keys and their occurrence in immensely diverse grave contexts, suggests that some subgroups
composing of e.g. wise or spiritually important people, might have stretched across the
socioeconomic boundaries of Viking Age society. Pantmann concludes that women buried
with keys might be said to reflect such a group or minority within the Viking Age society, and
that the keys could reflect the power of wisdom, rather than household and domestic status.72

70 Pantmann, 2013, pp. 59-60

71 Ibid. p. 60
72 Pantmann, 2013, p. 62 & Pantmann, 2011, p. 75

| 36
In the extended version of Pantemann’s article, called The Symbolism of Keys in Female
Graves on Zealand during the Viking Age, originally published in Boye: The Iron Age on
Zealand – Status and Perspectives from 2011, Pantmann argues that the traditional perception
of keys is a classic example of an archaeological misinterpretation. She adds that these
misinterpretations occur especially in connection to gender research, as is the notion of
Engelstad. The much needed reevaluation of the meaning of keys in a Viking Age context
reflects a more general need for a reevaluation of the perception of the pattern of gender roles
in the Viking Age. As Engelstad claims this could be facilitated through the critique and
theory of feminist archaeology. Unfortunately, as Pantman states, this field of archaeological
research has, until recently, been approached in a very traditional and androcentric manner.
This approach has according to Pantmann hindered current academic research from
challenging the traditional perceptions of gender and gender predictors.73

A rather iconic piece of Viking Age jewelry which is currently debated amongst
archaeologists as it seemingly calls for reinterpretation is the Thor’s hammer pendant. In the
1992 comparative study of the occurrence of iron neck-rings with Thor’s hammers found in
Eastern Europe, by archaeologist Galina L. Novikova, she presents a critical survey of the
Soviet literature mentioning these rings as well as a detailed analysis of the Eastern European
finds in comparison to the Scandinavian finds. Her conclusion then was that this type of
jewelry is more common in female graves than in male graves, and that within the Rus Viking
territories these female graves are most probably those of Scandinavian women, having
moved to the Rus areas. As the Thor’s hammer is often found in grave context, this raises the
question, if this type of jewelry was particularly associated with the burial rites. Furthermore,
Novikovas study suggests how the Thor’s hammer was more primarily a female charm,
although Thor’s hammers have been found in male graves. Thor’s hammer pendants have
apart from the Rus region and Sweden also been found in both Denmark, Norway, the Baltic
region, north Germany, Iceland and Poland, making it one of the most widely spread objects
of Viking Age material culture.74 It shall be interesting to see the results of future studies, as
the stereotyped image of a Viking within the public imagination is often that of a man
wearing a large Thor’s hammer pendant around his neck, as will be discussed in the final
chapter of this thesis.

73 Pantmann, 2011, p. 75 & Engelstad, 2007, pp. 217-218

74 Novikova, 1992, p. 73, p. 87 & Nordeide, 2006, p.220

| 37
Pantmann’s observations and conclusions support Engelstad’s notion, that within the field of
Viking Age studies, and especially in the sub-genre of gender archaeology, one must
constantly consult the most recently discovered archaeological material, and critically assess
its meaning in connection to traditional and established interpretations. There is an apparent
need for a general and updated reinterpretation of the Viking Age, especially in matters of
gender and material symbols, as has been exemplified in this section by the relevant and valid
reinterpretation of the meaning of keys. In the final section of this thesis a current exhibition
on Viking Age material culture is discussed in order to exemplify an updated presentation of
the Viking Age in a gender perspective.

The following section discusses the meaning of doors in the context of Viking Age burials. I
include this in order to contextualize and challenge the notions of Pantmann and to provide an
insight into the rituals concerning graves and burials which is relevant in connection to the
women discussed in the chapters on the Oseberg grave and the Kaupang weapon graves.

3.8 Keys, doors and women

Ph.D. in Archaeology at the University of Oslo, Marianne Hem Eriksen, discusses in her
article Doors to the dead. The power of doorways and thresholds in Viking Age Scandinavia
from 2013, how doors were used in mortuary practice and ritual behavior during the Viking
Ages and even earlier. Some of her points are interesting in relation to the discoveries and
assertions presented by Pantmann in the previous section. Eriksen claims that the ritualized
door had three functions: Firstly, it created connections between the dead and the living,
secondly, it constituted boundaries and thresholds that could possibly be controlled and
thirdly it formed a ‘between-space’ expressing liminality, and possibly also deviance from
what is perceived as traditional, normal, burial practice in this period.75

Eriksen explains that the power of the door was utilized by Viking Age communities in order
to make contact with the dead, both materially and metaphorically, as doors were perceived as
somewhat universal expressions of social transformation, boundaries and liminality. She
states that doors could create an access point between the world of the living and the world of
the dead, perhaps allowing the living to approach the dead. In connection to the use of keys in
the Viking Age, and especially in connection to the occurrence of keys as grave objects, one

75 Eriksen, 2013, p. 187

| 38
might suggest that a connection between the meanings of the door could relate to the presence
of keys in graves. Should the keys, which according to Pantmann have been found in various
types of female graves76, be interpreted as a reference to, or an imitation of, the ritualized
door? If that is the case, the key, like the ritualized door, is to be perceived within a mortuary
context as one of multiple ritual strategies in a society with diverse cultic traditions rooted in
practice rather than in dogma.77

In her article, Eriksen focuses on the ritualized meaning of doors in relation to both
longhouses and burials. In the context of burial customs and rituals, Eriksen refers to the
eyewitness account of the Arabic diplomat Ibn Fadlan, concerning a ship burial of a Viking
chieftain on the River Volga in 922AD, describing the practice of lifting a slave girl up, in
front of a freestanding doorframe three times. The girl was intended to be killed in order for
her to follow her master on his journey, and Fadlan describes that the first time the girl is
lifted over the doorframe she saw her father and mother, the second time she saw all her dead
relatives in the realm of the dead and the third and final time, she saw her master calling out
for her to join him.78 Thus the door in a mortuary context could be interpreted as having been
perceived to enable communication between the living and the dead, composing the final
stage of the funerary rites. In this description the doorframe is a central object in the ritual,
closely associated with divination.79

The Poetic Edda, comprising the oldest copies of Icelandic manuscripts, dating to the 13th and
14th centuries, contains two textual sources that refer to the importance of doors as a media
facilitating communication between the living and the dead. The text Baldrs draumar
(Balders dream) describes how Odin, the father of Balder, rides to the death realm of Hel to
seek advice from a dead vølva, a sorceress he intends to wake, using galdr (sorcery), in order
to ask the fate of his son. It is described that the vølva is buried to the east of the doors of Hel.
The second Eddaic poem that Eriksen refers to is Grógaldr, which is a difficult source to use,
as the earliest copy is from Svipdagsmál, dating to the 17th century. Because Grógaldr is
written in eddic metre and expresses pre-Christian mentality, such as the practice of galdr and

76 Pantmann, 2013, p. 62
77 Eriksen, 2013, p. 187
78 Fadlan, 2012, p. 52
79 Eriksen, 2013, pp. 191-192

| 39
necromancy while also mentioning the vølvas, it is reasonable to assume that the poem
originated much earlier than the Svipdagsmál.80

In Grógaldr it is described how a son wakes his sorceress mother from her grave, by calling
out to her ‘from the door of the dead’. Using galdr the son is able to wake his mother from
behind the door, allowing the mother to stand in the doorway while advising her son. Both
texts mention a dead woman with the power and insight of a vølva, buried behind doors and
woken by men using galdr, in order for the living to obtain the insight of the dead women.
Stressing the respective roles of women and men in these two texts, and in connection to the
accounts of Ibn Fadlan, the meaning and perception of keys becomes relevant. Are these
objects to be perceived as a symbol of (female) insight and prophetic power, held by the
buried and exercised during their lifetime? Or were the keys perhaps given as a way for the
dead to open the doors of Hel? Eriksen also mention how important it seemingly was for the
Viking Age people, that the dead would cross the portal to the death realm properly, in order
to avoid the reappearance of the dead as a draugr. ‘Draugr’ are described in the Medieval
Icelandic literature, as walking corpses threatening the world of the living, wherefore the
construction of liklúker, or ‘cadaver doors’, in houses are mentioned in e.g. Eyrbyggja saga
and Egils saga. Likluker have been found in some of the oldest preserved wooden houses in
Scandinavia, proving how this practice was a reality. The liklúke is a hole or hatch cut into the
wall of a house in the event of a person dying while inside the house. The dead person is then
meant to exit the house through the liklúke, instead of through the front door, after which the
liklúke is then again sealed off. This practice is according to the textual sources meant to
confuse the dead and keep him or her from reentering the house as a draugr, haunting the
living. This practice emphasizes the perceived importance of controlling the entrance to a
house. It also seems to draw parallels to the Gerdrup grave, and the practice of placing heavy
stones on top of the dead before burying them, which is a practice also known from other
Viking Age burials.81

As Eriksen concludes, doors are capable of both allowing and denying access to the spaces
which they guard, and perhaps the ritualized doors of the Viking Age were used to do both,
supporting the idea of a seemingly ambivalent attitude toward the dead. No keys were found
in the Gerdrup grave, perhaps supporting the notion that the people burying the woman did

80 Ibid. 2013, pp. 192-193

81 Eriksen, 2013, pp. 193-194

| 40
not wish for her to reappear. In this context, perhaps keys were given not (only) as a symbol
of insight and power, or in order to open the doors of Hel, but perhaps they represented the
living wishing the dead would reappear? As such keys might have been placed in graves in
order to communicate with the dead and perhaps continue to have access to the wisdom they
possessed. Perhaps keys were given to the dead in order for this person to be able to reenter
the house of the living. This is consistent with the argument that doors were perceived as a
between-space or sphere where ancestors were approachable. In this perspective the key could
be understood as a symbol of access to the ‘between-space’ connecting the world of the living
with that of the dead.82

These are mere reflections on possible connections within the practical and ritual life of the
Viking Age people, which might be more entangled than one would think or even be able to
deduct from archaeological material. As stated by Halsall, the mentality of past people is one
of the most difficult spheres to access in the absence of contemporary textual accounts,
wherefore speculations often dominate the discussions on matters like this. Eriksen describes
how the presence of doorframes in connection to burials might often be overlooked or simply
ignored during an excavation, despite the occurrence doorframes not being unusual, as the
postholes of the doorframes would probably not be a part of a clear constructional context. It
is conceivable, therefore, that the practice of erecting doorframes or portals in connection to
graves might be more widespread or perhaps even normal, than has previously been
acknowledged. This reflects a similar problem faced when analyzing and interpreting weapon
graves. As Assistant Professor at the Institute of Archaeology at Rzeszów University, Poland,
Leszek Gardela states, the lack of skeletal material, or the absence of detailed anthropological
studies of the remaining skeletal material, has probably caused a misrepresentation of
especially the female gender, in particular in connection to weapon graves. The same problem
is present in connections to the weapons found in grave contexts, as the lack of
metallographic studies leaves potential information undiscovered, quite potentially preventing
a more full and detailed knowledge of the Viking Age. This reflects the argument of Furan,
regarding the absence of consideration for the biography of grave objects.83

The preliminary archaeological study by Laszek Gardela from 2013, titled ‘Warrior-women’
in Viking Age Scandinavia? is quite a controversial contribution to the current debate on

82 Eriksen, 2013, pp. 195-199

83 Gardela, 2013, p. 306, Furan, 2009, pp. 2-3 & Halsall, 2003, p. 230 & Eriksen, 2003, p. 200

| 41
Viking Age women. As apparent in the title of his publication, Gardela seeks to approach the
existence of warrior-women on the basis of archaeological evidence, composing primarily of
a selection of female weapon graves. This is done by approaching the meaning which
weapons as female grave goods might have held in past societies. In order to contextualize the
weapon graves he briefly includes examples of valkyrie jewelry, and textual sources. Like this
thesis, Gardela too questions the applicability of textual sources, and focus his study on the
material, archaeological sources, although, as he states, only from a very limited area.
According to the weapon graves included in Gardelas study he concludes that axes are the
most common weapon in female weapon graves, which he sees as a somewhat problematic
object to approach, given its double function as both tool and weapon. He makes the
important statement that graves are not necessarily mirrors of life and like this thesis he
reaches the conclusion that the female weapon graves are important indicators of women
having had a relation to weapons. The question remains what relation exactly, and as Gardela
states, it is too early in the stages of his studies to answer the question raised in the title of his
article. Like this thesis Gardela stress the importance and relevance of including
archaeological objects, textual sources and anthropological studies of the skeletons in female
weapon graves, as evidence in archaeological studies of Viking Age women. He also suggests
the consideration of cross-cultural comparisons to e.g. the Anglo-Saxon world, which is
attempted in this thesis by the inclusion of the studies of Purser. Like Furan, Gardela stress
the importance of metallographic studies of the weapons found in weapon graves as this
would most certainly contribute to our understanding of these, and especially their social
biography. Gardela states that the studies of women in relation to weapons are still too few
and sketchy for any conclusion to be made on the actual existence of Viking warrior-women
which future studies can prove either a textual myth or reality.84

3.9 Dead (wo)man tell no tales? Ritual weapon graves

Viking Age evidence suggests a burial practice where thrusting weapons like axes and spears,
into the ground next to the dead. This type of weapon graves may reflect a wish to try to
prevent the dead from reappearing and thus this type of grave is seen as a parallel to the
Gerdrup grave. It is a practice mentioned by Eriksen, but more thoroughly described by
Gardela in his attempt to approach the somewhat controversial notion of female warriors in

84 Gardela, 2013, pp. 273-274, pp. 306-307

| 42
the Viking Age, by discussing why, where, and how weapons were placed in female graves.
Gardela stresses that traditional historiography and archaeology has perceived the Viking Age
society as having been dominated by men, having caused a misrepresentation and neglect of
women in studies because the female gender has been perceived as less important. It is
Gardela’s claim that the misrepresentation of gender has ultimately resulted in the neglecting
and misrepresentation of material objects, such as weapons, found in connection to women,
causing these objects to be misinterpreted.85

Gardela mentions the double inhumation grave Bj. 834 from Birka, Sweden, as an example of
a grave, where spears have been thrust into the grave. Here a man and a woman were buried
together with impressive and precious objects, such as fine clothing, weapons and horses. It
has never before been suggested that the weapons should be associated with any other than
the male, but Gardela argues that the female might have a claim to at least the iron staffs
found in the grave, as these are almost exclusively found in female graves associated with
vølvas. In the grave was also a spear, seemingly having been thrust into the grave, as it was
found embedded in the ground, an act which according Gardela could also be understood as a
reference to Odin. The custom of thrusting weapons into graves is known from Viking Age
graves elsewhere in Europe, and Gardela mentions the grave mound A24 at Dalstorp Lake in
Sweden as another example. This is a cremation grave dated to 900AD containing the remains
of a female, scattered under the surface of a much older burial mound. What is unusual about
this grave is the discovery of about 10 knives amongst the grave objects and five twisted spear
heads driven vertically into the layer of her remains. Gardela suggests how it seems as if these
spears had a purpose in the grave, which was quite unlike that of normal grave objects or
gifts. The spears seemed to be a religious symbol or apotropaic ritual, intended to practically
and symbolically nail or hold the woman in the grave. The same practice has been observed in
the female cremation grave 59:3 from Klinta on Öland, Sweden, where an iron axe and an
iron staff were driven vertically into the soil of the grave. Gardela links this practice to that of
the placing of stones on the dead like in the Gerdrup grave, a custom he attributes to a fear of
the dead returning. Thus these female graves could be argued to reflect a materialization of
the fear of draugr-like creatures, as mentioned by Eriksen.86

85 Gardela, 2013, p. 273

86 Ibid. pp. 292-294 and Eriksen, 2013, pp. 193-194

| 43
It is interesting that all the examples of graves reflecting the practice of preventing the buried
from reappearing among the living, predominantly seems to contain the body of females. It is
also interesting that weapons in grave contexts seemingly differ in meaning and intention,
wherefore female weapon graves are, quite possibly, of diverse meaning, which the following
chapter on the Kaupang weapon graves will help consolidate. In connection to the
reinterpretations of keys, this might support Eriksen’s notion of the Viking Age people having
had a quite differing attitude towards their dead. Where keys might symbolize a token of
access, the placing of stones and vertically thrusted weapons within graves suggests a more
hostile attitude towards the dead.87

Chapter 4: The Kaupang weapon graves –

expanding the narrative?
4.1 Gendered archaeology?

The many Viking Age graves excavated at the Kaupang settlement and burial site in East
Norway provide proof of a great and quite diverse range of burial customs and practices in
connecting to the placing of weapons as grave objects. Among the 237 excavated graves 79
contained weapons buried not just alongside men, but also with women and children. As such
the diversity of Kaupang weapon graves has expanded and challenged the traditional
perception and narrative of the typical Viking Age weapon grave. The Kaupang burial sites
seem to have been in use from around 800AD to 950AD. Most of the graves at Kaupang have
not been sex-attributed, partly due to the site having been worked on since as early as 1842.
This makes it nearly impossible to determine whether more of the graves among the estimated
total of the approximately 700 graves at the Kaupang site, might actually be female weapon
graves. Norwegian Archaeologist and Director at the Varanger Museum in Norway, Frans-
Arne Stylegar, argue that the actual number of graves is possibly closer to 1000. Of the 700
estimated graves, 407 are documented burials, while only 204 of the excavated 237 graves
contain grave finds such as bone fragments and objects. Of the 79 weapon graves only 55
could be dated while an even smaller number has been sex-attributed.88

87 Eriksen, 2013, p. 195

88 Stylegar, 2007, pp. 65-77, 83-84

| 44
As mentioned in the introduction of this thesis and in the section The life of things, Norwegian
Archaeologist Nora Furan included a child and female weapon grave from the Kaupang burial
site in her thesis from 2011 on the biography of weapons. This chapter includes her discussion
and analysis of the social biography of these two weapon graves, in order to contextualize the
Gerdrup grave and the perception of weapons in grave contexts. These graves act as evidence
suggesting how both women and children could have had a meaningful relation to weapons,
as members of a militarized society. These two graves are also included in order to illustrate
the approach of socio-biography in relation to objects, and to demonstrate the qualities and
importance of this approach. As mentioned earlier, consideration of the social biography of
things is consistent with the approach inherent in feminist archaeology as presented by
Engelstad.

4.2 A sword in a children’s grave?

The grave K/XX from the Bikjholberget burial ground at Kaupang differs from most other
weapon graves because it contains the remains of a young child buried with a quite valuable
sword. Based on the small size of the casket being some 70x80cm, the child has been
estimated to have died around the age of 3. The sword, therefore, has been interpreted as
being a gift for the child, given that it could not actually have been used by the dead. In matter
of social biography this sword is quite interesting because it has undergone multiple
alterations during its ‘lifetime’, furthermore, making the weapon difficult to date. At some
point the sword has been taken apart and then reassembled from various parts which differ in
style, material, time period and geographical origin. The dating of the sword is disputed
among archaeologists, but a relatively analysis of the sword by Stylegar, in his article The
Kaupang Cemeteries Revisited from 2007, places the sword within the time span of 800-
850AD.89

The Sword has been characterized as a rather magnificent object, due to its ornamentation and
the level of craftsmanship it displays. Furan discusses the impact and intention of the
alterations and the technical skills they represent, and she concludes that the most important
aspect of this sword is that the beautifications applied most probably influenced its ‘career’.
The alterations probably upgraded its value, which most likely had an influenced on the type
of owner having bought or been given this weapon. Stylegar has placed the sword in the

89 Ibid. 2007, pp. 126-127 & Furan, 2009, p. 37

| 45
typological classification of ‘Mannheim’90 swords, meaning that it was most probably
produced on Frankish territory around 800AD. Its origin, plus the fact that only a few
examples of Mannheim swords has been found in Norway, makes Furan reach the conclusion
that the sword has travelled over a great geographical distance before being buried at
Kaupang. At the time it was buried the sword was missing the last 10cm of its blade, which
excludes it as a fully functional weapon, and since only a small iron knife was found in
addition to the sword, the grave is considered to be below average in terms of value and
status, in comparison to the remaining Kaupang burials. Furan stresses that the sword, despite
its defect, could have been of great socio-cultural value, overruling its uselessness as a
weapon. As the sword is of a type quite uncommon in Norway there is reason to believe, that
it would have been a remarkable weapon at the Kaupang settlement. The blade was made
from Damascus steel and the technique used to produce the blade had left a very decorative
pattern, covering the blade while also affecting the ability of the sword, making it a top
fighting weapon. Hence, there is the clear possibility that the sword was originally intended –
and maybe even used – in battle by a skilled warrior, which according to Furan, would have
made the sword valuable despite its defect. It may even have been considered an heirloom or
treasure. The placing of this type of sword in the grave of a young child could, thus, be
interpreted as an act of honor and devotion toward the dead, given that the sword can be
excluded as having been of use to the dead. As stated in the section A man’s world? Why
textual sources are not enough Hjardar and Vike mention that there may have been a tradition
in the Viking settlements along the Volga river, where the father of a newborn son would
present the child with a sword symbolizing quite literally the future of the child, in that only
the aggressive use of a sword would provide the boy with fortune and property. As the
reliability of the Arab source that describes this tradition is quite disputed, there is great
uncertainty about the actuality or prevalence of such a tradition outside the Volga area. It
does, however, provide a possible explanation for placing this within a children’s grave,
although the gender of the child is unknown. According to the research of this thesis, child
weapon graves from the Viking Age are quite rare, making the Kaupang grave K/XX a unique
type of weapon grave.91

90 See the typological overview by Petersen, 1919, p. V

91 Furan, 2009, pp. 37-41& Stylegar, 2007, pp. 126-127 & Hjardar and Vike, 2014, p. 33

| 46
The child weapon grave is interesting because it expands the possible meanings of weapon
graves further beyond what the occurrences of female weapon graves have done. It also
challenges the traditional perception of Viking Age weapon graves, particularly those
containing swords, as being graves of male warriors. It is interesting to consider what
meaning this child weapon grave holds, and if it is similar or different to other known child
weapon graves. It proves that being buried with a weapon during the Viking Age does not
make the buried a warrior. This means that there is a fair chance that weapon graves do not
necessarily reflect the burial of warriors, which should affect our approach to both male,
female and non sex-attributed weapon graves. Furthermore the Kaupang child weapon grave
K/XX underscores the importance of examining and considering the social biography of both
objects as well as skeletal remains, in order to obtain as much knowledge of the buried as
possible. Resisting the temptation of jumping to gender automatic, or in the case of weapon
graves, object automatic conclusions can provide revolutionary new information of the Viking
Age culture and burial practice. Had not the remains of the coffin of the child in grave K/XX
been preserved, it seems likely how this grave would have been interpreted as a male weapon
grave, adding to a misrepresentation of the actual age-span of people buried with weapons.

4.3 Tools, valkyries or female warriors?

According to Stylegar, the number of identified female weapon graves at the Kaupang site is
currently 13 out of a total of 41 datable female graves. Nine of these contained axe heads and
oval brooches, two had spears in their graves and two were presumably buried with shields, as
metal shield bosses were located in these graves. One could argue that the axes have a double
function as both tool and weapon, but the spears and shield bosses do not seemingly possess
such double function and are instead solely categorized as assault and defense weapons.
Stylegar mentions the possibility of valkyrie symbolism especially in connection to the spears
and shields, a conclusion which Furan challenges and categorizes as a gender automatic
interpretation.92

Furan’s reflections on gender automatic approaches to weapon graves and her critique of the
notion that female weapon graves express either a valkyrie symbolism or are simply objects
with the double function of both tool and weapon is exemplified in the examination of the
grave IXb. This grave is considered a fairly rich female grave, containing a pair of oval

92 Stylegar, 2007, pp. 83-84 & Furan 2009, pp. 44-45

| 47
brooches, due to which the grave has been marked as belonging to a female. Oval brooches
are considered a very gender specific object, as they are thought to have been a central part of
the dress style of Viking Age women between 900 and 1000AD, having the quite practical
function of holding the apron dress together. One could argue that the use of oval brooches as
an indicator of gender within archaeology is just as unfortunate as the perception of weapons
as male indicators. Given that weapons of all sorts have been found in both male and female
graves, and given that a sword has been found in a children’s grave, weapons are definitively
unreliable grave objects for determining the gender of a buried person. There is no evidence,
however, suggesting that men would have worn oval brooches, and in grave context these
have, in cases where the gender could be determined on the basis of the skeletal remains, only
been found in connection to females in either single or double graves.

The axe examined by Furan is of the type ‘Petersen type K’93 which is categorized as a
weapon axe and not a tool, although one cannot dismiss it having had a dual function. The axe
is dated to the period 900-1000AD by Stylegar and is of Norse origin. Therefore, it could
possibly have been produced close to Kaupang, unlike the sword in grave K/XX. Furan
argues that as the primary function of the type K axe was as a weapon, this must have been a
central part of its meaning within the Kaupang society. People would quite possibly have
known that this was a weapon and not a regular working tool. Based on the find rapport it is
difficult to discern whether the axe should be perceived as a personal belonging of the dead
woman. This is always difficult to determine, but the fact that the excavation rapport doesn’t
mention the placing of this weapon, makes it even more difficult. Adding to this uncertainty is
the finding of yet another type K axe close to this grave. This axe could be argued to have
also been amongst the grave objects of the dead woman in grave IXb, but it is difficult to
conclude with any certainty, and I will therefore consider the grave as a single axe grave.94

Furan argues that the axe must not be interpreted based on the gender of the dead being a
female. Archaeologists like the late Birgit Heyerdahl-Larsen, argue that the gender of the dead
changes the meaning of the axe from a weapon to a tool, which Furan dismisses as a class
example of traditional gender automatic approach. In this case Heyerdahl-Larsen’s
preconceived notions overshadow the interpretation of the social biography of the axe, as it is
apparently beyond her imagination for a Viking Age woman to have been buried with a

93 Se the typological overview in Petersen, 1919, p. V

94 Furan, 2009, pp. 43-44 & Stylegar, 2007, p. 121

| 48
weapon, even though 13 of 41 female graves at the Kaupang site seemingly support a relation
between women and weapons. Interpreting the axe in grave IXb as a working tool seems
rather biased. It exemplifies how a gender automatic approach to objects can block out
information embedded in these sources, making the accessibility of facts difficult and
hindering possible and necessary reevaluations of established perceptions of past societies.95

To contextualize the issues caused by gender automatic approaches to archaeological

material, Furan includes the excavation of a female weapon grave from Hedmark in Norway.
This grave is remarkable because of the large number of weapons present in the grave,
namely a sword, an axe, a spear and a shield boss, buried with the female of about 18 of 19
years. The grave was excavated in 1900 and the conclusion reached then was that this was the
grave of a shield maiden, which seems fairly logical given the appearance of a young women
and the large number of weapons in the grave. This seems to exemplify an approach to
archaeological finds that considers the premises of the objects, in this case as being weapons,
and skeletal remains within a grave as a more valid indicator than preconceived notions of
markers of gender. In 1984 archaeologist Per Hernæs and Professor of Anatomy Per Holck
published a reinterpretation of the grave, aiming to disprove the original interpretation of the
weapons as the possessions of the buried female. Instead of examining the weapons and the
information these objects might have been capable of revealing, like whether they had been
used in battle or not, Holck and Hernæs focused on the fact, that the buried was a female and
they therefore dismissed the possibility of her having been a warrior or even having owned
the weapons herself. Their conclusion was that she must have been a human offering, because
she would apparently not have been physically capable of having been a warrior. There is
cause for some skepticism regarding this conclusion, as, according to Furan, the
documentation of the grave is quite inadequate both as regards the skeletal remains and,
particularly, as regards the very poor analysis of the weapons. Furan argues that Holck and
Hernæs, in their determination to dismiss this female as a warrior, ultimately conclude that
because she is a woman, she could not have owned the weapons placed in her grave, and on
this basis they decide that the most logical conclusion is that she was a human offering. Furan
argues that had this grave belonged to a man deemed incapable of fighting, it might have been
perceived in a more positive manner. In such an instance one could easily imagine an
interpretation similar to that of the child weapon grave from Kaupang, where the defect sword

95 Furan, 2009, p. 44

| 49
was perceived as a valuable heirloom placed in the grave of a 3-year old as a possible sign of
affection, and not because the child was considered an offering. 96

The Hedmark weapon grave, registered as ‘C 22541 a-g’ is described as a large grave mound,
containing the remains of a female placed on her back with the weapons close to her body and
a horse by her feet. The sword is described as a ‘Petersen type M’97, which is a fairly common
type of Viking sword, the axe as a battle axe of the type G, and the spearhead as long and
narrow, possibly a type K. None of the weapons were particularly decorated, and they all date
to around 950AD. As apparently none of the weapons have been under any further
metallographic analysis or examination it is difficult to acquire further knowledge of their
social biography. Hernæs ascribes great importance to the description of the physique of the
buried woman, which has been examined by Holck. He estimates the maximum height of the
woman to have been some 155cm and her maximum weight to some 40kg wherefore he
determine her age to have been 18-19 years by the time of her death. Based on this estimate,
Hernæs categorically refuses the possibility of the woman having actively used the weapons
herself. The estimate by Holck is based on the skeletal remains of the woman, counting her
fragmented skull with teeth, broken fragments of her thighbones, shinbones, upper arms,
some vertebras, shoulder bone and some ribs. Hernæs writes that none of the bones were in a
condition fit for thorough examination wherefore they could not be measured accurately, thus
adding to the uncertainty of his conclusion.98

Hernæs concludes his article by stating that based on the estimates by Holck, the woman was
probably incapable of having actively used the weapons present in her grave. Instead he
interprets her as the mistress of a wealthy local farmer who died away from home, and
concludes that the Hedmark woman must have been buried inside the relatively large grave
mound with his weapons and his horse, as a human offering. It is interesting how Hernæs
seeks to explain the identity and burial of the woman through the identity of a man. He states
that to interpret her as a human offering seems much more likely than the thought of her
having owned the weapons and perhaps also been able to use them. However, when
examining the position of the woman in the grave, lying on her back, with a horse at her feet
and the weapons close to her body, next to her, she seems very unlike other human offerings.

96 Furan, 2009, pp. 44-45 & Stylegar, 2007, p. 84

97 See the typological overview in Petersen, 1919, p. V
98 Hernæs & Holck, 1984, p. 37

| 50
When comparing her to the skeletons in the Gerdrup grave, where the male skeleton has been
interpreted as a slave that was killed in order to follow the woman into the grave, there are
great differences to consider. The Gerdrup man was positioned very awkwardly, lying on his
back with his knees pointing outwards in an unnatural position, having seemingly been tied
by the ankles and with his neck twisted in a most awkward direction, causing the dislocation
of several of his cervical vertebras. The woman in the Gerdrup grave was placed on her back,
with her arms by her side, in a seemingly peaceful and quite common burial position, which
seems to be in strong contrast to the male skeleton of the Gerdrup grave.99

One could also argue, that had the farmer been away from home on some sort of expedition
he would most certainly have brought his weapons with him, as well as his horse, considering
that the Viking Age was a heavily militarized and violent society and given that all free men,
especially of a status like the wealthy Hedmark farmer, were probably expected to carry their
weapons with them100

Based on the position of the woman in the Hedmark grave nothing actively suggests that she
was an offering, and had the grave proven to belong to a male skeleton, it would be very
similar to other weapon grave mounds of the Viking Age. The basis of Holcks estimate also
raises some questions, as the skeletal remains according to him were in a condition which
made it impossible to measure. This means that we can acquire very little information from
the bone fragments, resulting in considerable uncertainty about her actual physical strength,
musculature and other facts which could have either supported Holcks estimate or
contradicted it. Hernæs argues that female weapon graves should be considered a rarity that
differs strongly from the conventional Viking Age burials where, as he writes, “weapons are
for the man and jewelry are for the women”.101 Therefore, he argues, one should look for
another interpretation of the Hedmark grave. Like archaeologist Heyerdahl-Larsen, Hernæs
exercises a very traditional, androcentric approach to archaeology exemplified in the above
quotation. His interpretation of the objects in the grave is solely based on the gender and
presumed physique of the skeleton, he completely ignores the social biography of the grave
objects, which could have revealed relevant information if examined further.

99 Christensen & Bennike, 1983, p. 9

100 Hjardar & Vike, 2014, p. 33
101 Hernæs & Holck, 1984, p. 36

| 51
He attempts to argue that the length of the sword handle, estimated to some 9,21cm, would
have been too long for a woman’s hand, but this seems very difficult to establish given the
uncertainties regarding her actual physique and the dimensions of the sword. Like others,
Hernæs seeks to explain the identity of the female through her possible relations to a man, and
as such he tries to interpret and perceive the female through the male gender, which as Furan
and Engelstad argue, is not the most suitable way of approaching the actuality of the Viking
Age society. This is the exact approach Pantmann stresses as obstructing archaeological
research, perpetuating the traditional gender perspective within Archaeology.102

Again it seems as if gender is overruling when it comes to analyzing and interpreting the
meaning of archaeological material and objects from the Viking Age. When a man is buried
with weapons, such speculation is apparently unnecessary purely due to his gender. If a
woman is found buried with weapons, it is argued that she must have been either a human
offering or an expression of valkyrie symbolism, even in cases where the collection of
weapons is so extensive and complete as is the case of the Hedmark grave. It is a shame that
there is no accessible metallographic analysis of the weapons of this grave and of the
remaining female weapon graves at Kaupang, since this could contribute greatly to their
biography.103

It is a fact that we currently know very little about the relations between women and weapons
during the Viking Age. It seems biased however, to categorically dismiss the possibility that
the Hedmark woman actually owned the weapons in her grave or at the very least was given
them at the burial, as a sign of status or affection. Like the axe in the Kaupang grave IXb, the
many weapons in the Hedmark grave were placed deliberately next to the dead woman, which
reflects a conscious and deliberate action. As Furan states, the actual function of the weapons
is very hard to determine. They could have been used in a battle or worn by the dead women
as a precaution in the case of a conflict or something else entirely. The possibility that the
weapons belonged to the women, however, is equally as conceivable as the possibility that the
weapons were a symbolic present given at the burial. There is currently no evidence that
demonstrates that Viking Age women did not have a meaningful relation to weapons or that
they were unable to use them. In fact, based on the graves included in this thesis one could
argue quite the contrary. As the Viking Age society was a violent one, it seems unlikely that

102 Hernæs & Holck, 1984, p. 36, Furan, 2009, p. 44 & Pantmann, 2013, p. 62
103 Furan, 2009, p. 44

| 52
women were unfamiliar with, or incapable of using weapons at least at a very basic level in
matters of defense.

The graves examined in this chapter, proves how weapons intended for battle have been
placed in the graves of not only men, but also in graves of women and in the grave of a child.
The conclusion, therefore, must be, that Viking Age weapons of aggression were in relation to
both adults and children of both male and female gender, at the very least in a funerary
context.104

The following chapter discusses the Oseberg ship burial from the Oslo Fjord in Norway,
which is relevant to this thesis, as it is a double female grave. This magnificent Viking Age
grave is one of the most extensive in terms of grave objects and displays exclusive
craftsmanship as well as exotic imported foreign objects. The Oseberg grave contains
fragments of a tapestry depicting both armed and unarmed women and these fragments are
unique because they are pieces of contemporary Viking Age imagery, which, like the rune
stones of Gotland, allow us to approach the Viking Age through contemporary images. An
important question is how we should approach and interpret this tapestry. Are the females on
the tapestry fragments to be perceived as visions of dreams or as records of reality? The
reason for including the Oseberg grave in this thesis, and for devoting a whole chapter to it, is
to provide a final contextualization, comparison and discussion of the contemporary portrayal
of armed women within the material culture of the Viking Age.

Chapter 5: Women with ships, swords and

shields
5.1 The Oseberg ship burial - challenging a gendered perspective?

Pantmann touches upon the traditional gender perspective within Archeology in her
conclusion and contends that the approach to gender has generally been to interpret the
Viking Age woman through the Viking Age man. As mentioned several times, this is the bias
which Engelstad wishes to break from, when advocating the advantages of replacing the
traditional archaeological approach to gender and objects with feminist archaeology. Both
Pantmann and Engelstad note the remarkable differential treatment exercised when

104 Furan, 2009, pp. 45-46

| 53
interpreting women versus interpreting men within archaeology, and how this approach has in
time become a matter of course within academic research. This gendered perspective is
overruling information apparent in the graves as well as the biography of the grave objects,
thus hindering and obstructing interpretations that differ from the stereotyped perspectives
inherent in the tradition.105

As mentioned in the section on feminist archaeology, archaeology research has traditionally

focused on the man and his roles in the Viking Age society, while the role(s) of the Viking
Age women have been defined based on the man. This approach stands in contrast to the
impression one gets when consulting the burials of the Viking Age. A relatively large number
of excavated rich Viking graves appear to contain females, buried in quite extravagant
compositions, with an immense and versatile amount of luxury items. The following section
will include an analysis and discussion of the Oseberg ship burial and how this extravagant
grave contributes to a reevaluation of the traditional perceptions of the Viking Age woman.
The analysis and discussion incorporates the arguments of Pantmann as well as the method of
the biography of objects and the critique of feminist archaeology. Another reason for
including the Oseberg grave is to exemplify a very peaceful and yet physical demonstration of
power in the form of a grave mound.

5.2 Oseberg: power in the absence of keys and weapons ?

As mentioned by Pantmann, some of the most extravagant burials of the Viking Age period
appear to be burials of women and the most impressive ship burial belonging to the Viking
Age is the Oseberg grave, dated to around 850AD. The burial was surrounded by a grave
mound, which by the time of its construction measured some 40 meters in diameter with a
height of 6,5 meters. The excavation in 1904 revealed a collection of grave objects
exceedingly precious in both material and execution, but perhaps the most surprising
discovery was that both of the buried were women. Despite the extensive amount of well-
preserved grave objects, the identity of the skeletons remains unknown. The lack of
information concerning the identity of the two Oseberg women has, naturally, sparked a great
deal of discussion, and numerous theories have been proposed since before the excavation in
1904. The skeletal remains were anthropologically examined during the interwar years, and
when the remains were reburied in 1948 some pieces were secretly held back at the University

105 Pantmann, 2013, p. 62 & Pantemann, 2011, p. 75 & Egelstad, 2007, pp. 217-218

| 54
of Oslo. In 2006 the Panum Institute in Copenhagen managed to create a DNA profile of the
youngest of the women, based on her bone fragments, placing her in the haplogroup U7. This
haplogroup is common in modern day Iranians but nearly absent amongst modern day
Europeans, suggesting that her relatives could have come from the area around the Black Sea.
106

Unfortunately, it has not yet been possible to obtain a DNA analysis from the skeletal remains
of the older woman, as these are too damaged and too contaminated by foreign DNA after
having been exposed to it for more than 100 years. Holck states that a publication from 1916
on the Oseberg mound by A.W. Brøgger, mentions that a local legend supposedly suggests
that the older woman was the Queen Åsa, grandmother to the Norwegian king Harald
Hårfager (Fairhair). This theory seeks its validation in the name ’Oseberg’ and its linguistic
origin, which may have been ‘Åsas berg’ meaning the mound or hill of Åsa.107

The speculations are many. Some information concerning their age at the time of death has
been accessed through scientific examinations and analysis of the bone and teeth fragments.
The examinations of the teeth of the younger woman indicate that she was perhaps not as
young as previously thought, as the examinations determines her age to have been around 50-
55 years at the time of her death, which is placed sometime between 680-900AD. The age of
the older woman has been determined to around 60-70 years or possibly even older, which
means that she had exceeded the average life expectancy of that period to a remarkable
degree. The same testing proved that both women were nourished by a terrestrial diet, which
Holck suggest as an argument in favor of the theory that both women were of prominent
status. Dendrochronological analysis of the timber from the grave chamber has determined the
year of cutting to 834AD, while the building of the ship has been dated to 820AD.108 The
death of the women, according to The Museum of Cultural History in Oslo, has been
determined to have occurred the same year as the building of the grave chamber in 834AD.109

Due to a looting of the Oseberg mound, which Holck states occurred sometime between the
burial and the beginning of the 11th century, the mound was left partly open, which may have
allowed animals to enter the mound and disturb the skeletal remains, given that the skeletons

106 Pantmann, 2013, p. 62 & Ingstad, 2006, p. 209

107 Holck, 2006, p. 185, p. 194
108 http://www.vikingeskibsmuseet.dk/en/professions/boatyard/building-projects/the-oseberg-ship/
109 http://www.khm.uio.no/english/visit-us/viking-ship-museum/exhibitions/oseberg/

| 55
were mixed and spread around outside the grave chamber, in a small passage within the
mound. It is also possible that this was done by the robbers in their attempt to steal valuables,
which is most probably the reason why no jewelry, nor any weapons for that matter, has been
found inside the mound. Holck notes that the robbers seemingly knew exactly how and where
to enter the mound in order to acquire the valuables, which could suggest that the looting
occurred in the time immediately after the burial and that this was well planned. Another
motive for looting the mound and disturbing the buried could have been to dishonor the
buried and their kin. 110

The impressive size of the burial mound indicates that the persons inside were probably of
great importance, given that people went through the trouble and cost of building the Oseberg
grave mound. Constructing such mounds is a very visible way of commemorating a person,
and is thought to express more than just the direct practical function of a burial. According to
senior researcher and museum curator at the Danish National Museum, Archaeologist Anne
Pedersen, the burial mound is to be perceived as an expression of visible, nonviolent power
and a claim to the territory by the kin of the buried. In her article Ancient Mounds for New
Graves published in Anders Andrén et al. Old Norse Religion in Long-term Perspectives from
2004, Pedersen states that because the Viking Age society was generally an oral society,
ceremonies and visual expressions were essential as forms of communication and as
documentation or commemoration of events. In this view, the creation of a grave mound can
be seen as the creation of a form of record of power to be recalled and transferred orally.111

5.3 Inside the mound

The Oseberg ship burial comprised a very beautiful medium sized Viking Age ship, one cart
and three sledges, all of which are beautifully carved, reflecting the aesthetics and high level
of craftsmanship prevailing in the Viking Age. Also included was an ordinary working
sledge, some 15 horses with embellished harnesses, 4 dogs and two oxen, the latter having
been slaughtered and prepared as food supply, along with storage vessels containing flour,
crops and other food items. A tent, a chair and three beds, also beautifully carved, were
present along with various cooking utensils, as was a selection of tools such as spindle

110 Holck, 2006, pp. 190-205

111 Pedersen in Andrén, 2006, p. 351

| 56
whorls, looms and a weave for brick weaving, all resembling activities of domestic
occupation, and containing unfinished projects. 112

Among the numerous objects found in the Oseberg grave is one of the most varied and
extensive amounts of textile fragments and tools for textile production ever discovered within
one single Viking Age grave. This collection comprises fragmented weaved tapestries
depicting humans, animals and ornamentation, pattern-weaved wool and linen blankets, brick-
weaved bands with silk, gold and silver threads, numerous fragments of different textiles
originating from the clothes of the two women, as well as textile from the sail of the ship and
from the tent. The perhaps most exotic textiles are the silk fragments and silk embroideries
which originate from the Byzantine Empire, emphasizing the wealth and status of the buried
women, and evidencing the well-established international connections of trade in the Viking
Age.113

5.4 Visions of dreams or records of reality?

Norwegian archaeologist Anne Stine Ingstad highlights the tapestry as the most interesting
textile of the Oseberg grave. The tapestry comprises of scenes with a variety of motifs,
organized in horizontal rows over one another. Appearing on the tapestry are various
examples of different types of females, some wearing long dresses and spears, others with
helmets and swords, making theses tapestries of great relevance as primary sources to
understanding and examining the representation of women in the Viking Age.114

It is impossible to tell with certainty whether the scenes on the tapestry resemble the physical
reality or the imaginary world of the Viking Age people who made this. Maybe it’s a
combination of the two. What is possible is to compare the female appearances on the tapestry
with the fashion known from contemporary grave material and from valkyrie jewelry. Ingstad
refers to the valkyrie figurine from Tuna115, Sweden, when reflecting on the textile fragments
of the Oseberg grave, that presumably composed the dresses of the buried, as she too sees a
parallel between the fashion expressed on the valkyrie jewelry, and the fashion found in
Viking Age graves. Ingstad argues that the tapestry was probably a part of the bedroom
decorations, and not a part of the bed textiles, based on the location in which they were found,

112 Ingstad 1992, p. 211 & Liestøl, 1958, p. 2, p.32

113 Ingstad, 1992, p. 176 and Hougen, 2006, p. 15
114 Ingstad, 1992, pp. 176-185
115 See appendix, fig. 1.10

| 57
having seemingly fallen from the walls onto the floor of the bed chamber. In this view
tapestry must have composed a sort of textile gallery, decorating the room.116

The weaved tapestries are thoroughly examined in the 4th volume of the extensive publication
on the Oseberg ship burial titled Osebergfunnet, published by the Museum of Cultural History
at the Oslo University in 2006. Norwegian archaeologist Bjørn Hougen proclaims the tapestry
to be the most important of all the textiles of the Oseberg grave, because it is the first and
earliest well-preserved example of a large-scale weaved tapestry depicting humans. Therefore
it is a very important source to both Viking Age art and culture.117 A later example of this
type of tapestry is the relatively well-preserved Bayeux tapestry, depicting the battle of
Hastings in 1066, which as an art form presumably descends from the Viking Age culture and
tradition or perhaps even earlier. Since the Bayeux tapestry was made in order to
commemorate a historic event, there is at least the possibility that the Oseberg tapestry, apart
from being decorative, share this purpose.

The first of the tapestry fragments examined by Hougen in Osebergfunnet IV, are the
fragments no. 1118 and no. 2119, depicting a procession scene, appearing to have been about
19,5cm wide and 30cm long. The procession in the scene is moving from right to left and
depicts a man riding a horse, three horse-drawn carts accompanied by various males and
females walking alongside the carts, and two horses which appear to have also drawn carts or
sledges, though parts of the tapestry is missing. In between the people are birds and different
ornamental patterns, and the six horses are depicted as quite large in scale compared to the
humans. Interestingly all the Oseberg horses are depicted with their tails tied in valknots,
similar to the hairstyle apparent on the valkyrie jewelry.120

According to the drawing of M. Storm, which is based on the original tapestries, there appear
to be eleven women walking in the procession scene and two women sitting on a cart. The
walking women appear in all parts of the tapestry posing in the same way: in profile and
seemingly walking ceremoniously, with straight backs in an erect posture, concealed arms,
heads held high and what seems to be a brooch or buckle fastening their overdress or shawl

116 Ingstad, 1992, pp. 209-210

117 Hougen, 2006 p. 15
118 See appendix fig. 1.11
119 See appendix fig. 1.11
120 Hougen, 2006, fig. 1-5, p. 20

| 58
across their chests. The fashion of their dresses are all the same, appearing as a long dress,
presumably with a train stretching out behind them, perhaps in order to emphasize their
movement from right to left. They also seem to be wearing a shorter dress or coat on top of
the long dress, concealing their arms, and some of them seem also to be wearing a shawl,
covering their shoulders and upper bodies. In terms of hairstyle there is no difference between
the women and it is difficult to determine if they are meant to be wearing their hair it in a
large bun on the back of their heads tied in a valknot, or if it is tucked underneath the
overdress. The third option is that it is concealed under a hood, appearing to be a part of either
the overdress or shawl. The two women sitting on a cart in the lower left part of the tapestry
appear to be wearing a long underdress and a shawl-like garment covering their arms like the
walking women.121

Two of the walking women carry what resembles a spear in front of them pointing upwards,
and between two other women appears what seems to be a quite large arrow pointing
downwards. All across the tapestry there seem to be spears scattered in between persons, and
most of the 13 men walking seem to be carrying spears like the two women, and sword
scabbards and shields, while one man is carrying a drawn sword. All of the 11 women
walking appear to wear an overdress or coat that falls in a way very similar to that of the
Hårby valkyrie figurine122, described in an earlier chapter. On the Oseberg tapestry, as well as
the Hårby valkyrie, the shorter overdress or coat seems to be cut or tailored in a way that
makes it end in the shape of triangle on the left side of the woman. One could argue that this
helps emphasize the trail of the underdress, which might be the reason for this style, but the
fashion shown on the Hårby valkyrie suggests otherwise.123

As regards the train, this is a fashion or feature, also apparent on many of the Scandinavian
valkyrie figurines and pendants, such as the valkyrie jewelry found in Vrejlev, Tissø and
Ladby in Denmark and in Birka, Kinsta, Tuna and Grödinge in Sweden 124. Since the Hårby
figurine is 3-dimensional, which makes it unique in connection to other known examples of
valkyrie jewelry, it clearly shows that the overdress is cut diagonally, making it fall into a
triangle on the left side of the valkyrie, and covering her left leg while exposing the

121 Hougen, 2006, fig. 1-5, pp. 20-23

122 See appendix, picture fig. 1.7
123 Hougen.2006, 22-23
124 Bau,1981, p. 15 & See appendix fig. 1.10

| 59
underdress and right leg. The dating of the Hårby valkyrie figurine places it at approximately
800AD while the Oseberg grave has been dated to about 834AD. This makes the time span
between the two dress styles a maximum of some 34 years, presuming that the tapestry was
made shortly before the time of the burial, or perhaps even closer to 800AD. Depending on
the perspective, this time span could arguably be perceived as either great or small. What can
be determined, however, is that there is a striking resemblance between the fashion of the
women on the Oseberg tapestries and the valkyrie figurines and pendants.

Hougen notes that the two women appearing on the cart seem to be seated on box-shaped
chairs similar to an actual chair found in the Oseberg grave. He has no doubt that the two
persons on the cart are female, based on their clothes, although he notes that their dresses fall
differently from what is shown on the walking women. This he attributes to the sitting
position of the women on the cart. Hougen emphasizes the woman in the front of the cart, as
she is wearing some sort of brooch or buckle on the upper part of her chest, perhaps in order
to close her coat or shawl. He notes that the details regarding this woman resemble those of
the women walking, while the female sitting behind her seems to lack accessories and details.

On fragment no. 16125 Hougen notes a depiction of 8 women armed with swords and shields,
walking in line. On the same fragment 4 other women appear with animal heads resembling
pigs, and armed with a mix of shields and spears. All the women wear dresses similar to that
of the women on fragment no. 1 and 2, also composed of a long train dress covered with a
shorter overdress or coat, falling in a triangular shape on their left sides. One of the women
appears to be wearing a ceremonial helmet, and is depicted with her upper body twisted so
that she is facing the beholder, while her lower body is shown from the side, like the rest of
the people on the tapestry. This is interesting, because this posture underline the silhouette of
her helmet, suggesting that this woman and her outfit is in some way special and perhaps a
recognizable image, to the contemporary beholder. The same idea has been proposed by
Christensen and Bennike concerning the Tissø valkyrie motif126, showing what has been
interpreted as an unidentified scene from a tale unknown today. Like the Tissø valkyrie motif
and its two doppelgangers from Odense in Denmark and England, there is a striking similarity
between the ceremonial helmet depicted on the Oseberg tapestry and the one appearing on a

125 See appendix fig. 1.11

126 See appendix fig. 1.4

| 60
bronze die from Torslunda on Öland127, Sweden, dated to around 600AD as both figures are
helmeted, shown en face, holding some kind of sticks or spears in their hands. 128

Hougen refers to the relatively contemporary Swedish valkyrie figures mentioned in this
section, when trying to explain the similarity in the dress fashion of the women. He argues
that the similarity in dress style of the females apparent on the Oseberg tapestries, and their
resemblance to valkyrie jewelry and depictions elsewhere, is a reflection of reality. It is clear
when examining the Oseberg tapestries that the male dress style is much more varied than that
of the women portrayed on the tapestries. This is consistent with the observations made by
Archaeologist Agnes Geijer, on her extensive studies of the textile finds from the Birka
settlement and burial ground in Sweden, which in the case of women are very similar to the
dress style depicted on the Oseberg tapestry. Furthermore Geijer’s studies of the Birka
material also reveal that the dress style of men seems to vary much more than that of
women.129

This observation is interesting, because it makes one consider the possibility of the Oseberg
tapestry as a depiction of real life events, like the scenes on the Bayeux tapestry. Returning to
the procession scene on fragments no. 1 and 2 and particularly the depiction of horse-drawn
carts and the two women sitting in one of these, there might be a link to the occurrence of
carts, sledges, horses and harnesses amongst the many grave objects in the Oseberg grave.
Perhaps the two women riding a cart on the Oseberg tapestry is a depiction of the women who
were buried within the bedchamber of the ship, making the procession scene, fighting scenes,
etc. a portrayal of either real life events, or perhaps reflecting the contemporary conception of
the afterlife of the two women and their use of the grave objects. This is mere speculations,
but considering the striking and general parallels between the dress styles, certain characters
and especially the appearance of armed women on both the Oseberg tapestry, valkyrie jewelry
and in contemporary female weapon graves, one must consider the possible connections
between these females. Are they all a reflection of mythology and imagination or did armed
women hold a place or meaning in Viking Age society, and being banned in later times as
evident in the laws of Grágás? Hougen refers to the armed females on fragment no. 16 as
‘shield maidens’, either because he doesn’t distinguish between these and valkyries, or

127 See appendix fig. 1.12

128 Speidel, 2004, p. 28 & Hougen, 2006, p. 93 & Christensen & Bennike, 1983, Women for Peace?, p. 11
129 Hougen, 2006, pp. 91-92

| 61
because he wants to suggest the possibility that these women perhaps did not belong in
mythology but in reality.

Returning to Anne Pedersen’s definition of grave mounds as important visual expressions for
documenting and recording power, as well as commemorating dead family members in an
oral culture, the Oseberg burial mound places the dead women in a prominent position in the
landscape. In this view the burial mound also holds the function of communicating the status
of the buried, as well as the status of their families, and thus serves as a legitimization of their
claim to and control of the area, its resources and the people inhabiting this part of the land.
Hence, the function of the Oseberg burial mound can be perceived as twofold, in the sense
that it acts as a visual manifestation of power and status intended to serve as remembrance to
the living, while the burial inside the mound also makes it a ceremonial scene, as the burial of
the dead within pagan practice is an obvious occasion for religious expression.130

In the final section of this thesis, before reaching the overall conclusion, I include a discussion
of a rather recent approach to the valkyrie in a gender perspective. The article is possibly too
controversial, but nonetheless the ideas suggested are worth including in the discussion and
final considerations of this thesis, as they add a new perspective. The article arguably
exemplifies aspects of feminist archaeology at its most radical, as the argument of the article
concerns the possibility of multiple genders.131

5.5 Approaching the valkyrie as both male and fe male

In an article from 2014, Kathleen M. Self, Associated Professor of Religious Studies at St.
Lawrence University, New York, suggests that perhaps one should approach the valkyrie as a
third gender creature, being a hybrid of both masculine and feminine attributes. While
exercising masculine power, these creatures are at the same timed marked as feminine,
incorporating and exercising deeds perceived as respectively male and female. This
perspective is perhaps best exemplified through the women depicted on valkyrie jewelry,
where armed women, are simultaneously displaying both female markers such as long,

130 Pedersen in Andrén, 2006, pp. 351-352

131 Engelstad, 2007, p. 223

| 62
knotted hair and long dresses, and masculine markers such as weapons and horses, making the
women portrayed a binary of masculine and feminine.132

According to Self, the people living during the Viking Age had much more complicated
notions of gender, than is the general perception of archaeologists, in the sense that the
boundaries between what was perceived as masculine and feminine was much less rigid then,
than now. She argues that Viking Age women could take on masculine characteristics and
receive approval within society, although identified and well-documented examples of this are
quite limited. Self emphasizes body codes, particularly clothing, as the dominant marker of
gender during the Viking Age for distinguishing male from female. In connection to the
depiction of armed women, it is only due to the explicit demonstration of hair and dress style
that we are able to identify the sex of the persons depictured on valkyrie jewelry, supporting
Self’s claim of clothing as a gender code. One could argue, that the explicit expression of
gender apparent in valkyrie jewelry and as seen on the Oseberg tapestry, was made to
emphasize the depiction of females in a somewhat masculine setting.133

She refers to the Icelandic saga literature when stating that the representation of valkyries and
shield maidens in these narratives, prove that Viking Age people were capable of envisioning
possibilities for gender, other than the two forms of feminine and masculine. She also argues
that the shield maidens mentioned in the Eddic literature, could only transform gender in one
direction, namely from masculine to feminine through marriage, thus making these women
give up fighting and instead submerge to their husbands dominance. Through this
transformation, these women could be said to move from the category of armed women,
materializing in some of the pieces of valkyrie jewelry, as the serving women portrayed on
the unarmed pieces of valkyrie jewelry.134

Self states that it is no coincidence that the valkyries are so often mentioned in the saga
literature as carrying spears as weapons, since this underline their link to Odin. When
reflecting on the appearance of spears within female Viking Age graves, such as the Gerdrup
Grave, which presumably lack all other evidence of arms or warrior-like accessories, it is
interesting to return to the reevaluation of the meaning of keys, presented by Pantmann, as

132 Self, 2014, pp. 143-144

133 Self, 2014, p. 145
134 Self, 2014, p. 147

| 63
discussed in an earlier chapter. As possible symbols of insight or wisdom, presumably
stretching across socio-economic boundaries of Viking Age society, the key might just be one
of several symbols. Perhaps the spear, through its strong association with Odin, was used to
symbolize or manifest wisdom. It is striking how female graves containing spears in general
are so unlike male weapon graves in the way that the female spear graves are often reatively
poor in matters of warlike accessories, compared to those of males. As mentioned in the text
Hákonamál from the 10th century, cited in an earlier section, the valkyries not only chose the
slain, they also conferred with kings, advising them, thus exercising their wisdom and
interfering in earthly matters.

The argument for approaching the valkyrie and the shield maiden as a third gender hybrid of
the male and female genders is based solely on references to the Old Norse corpus. For
reasons previously mentioned, these sources are of doubtful quality as sources to the physical
reality and imaginary world of the people living in Scandinavia during the Viking Age.
Although historical evidence backs the existence of some of the men and women mentioned
in the literature, Self does not consult nor does she reflect on the relevant archaeological
evidence relating to either valkyries or shield maidens. As such she is only interesting to this
thesis due to the originality of her idea, and how it translates when compared to the
archaeological evidence. In connection to the depiction of women on the Oseberg tapestry,
there is little evidence suggesting the idea of armed women as a third gender. Despite being
armed, the dress style of these women heavily stresses their feminine appearance and as such
their feminine gender. On top of this, the striking resemblance between the women on the
Oseberg tapestries, the valkyrie jewelry, the textile fragments of female graves and the
accessories apparent in contemporary female weapon graves indicates that armed women
were present in both art and reality. Self’s idea is certainly original and it suggests a quite
original approach to, and interpretation of, armed females within the Old Norse literature.
However, when adding up the different types of evidence to women in relation to weapons, as
included in this thesis, this evidence does not really support her perception of the valkyrie.
Self does however exercise a rather experimental and untraditional approach to Viking studies
much in line with feminist archaeology, and considering the journal in which her article
appears, being Feminist Formations, this is probably not a coincidence.

| 64
Chapter 6: Are the times a-changing?
6.1 A new presentation of old history?

It seems as if a break with the general misconceptions of the Viking Age, facilitated
continuously both by the entertainment business since the time of Wagners opera Die Ring,
whose costume designer in 1876 created the myth of the horned Viking helmes, and as put
forward by the unchallenged studies of historians and archaeologists, has finally reached the
presentation of the Viking Age by some museums. In an article by Niel Genzlinger in the
New York Times from February 4th 2016, titled ’Vikings’, Here to Set the Record Straight the
opening of the new exhibition ‘Vikings’ is reviewed and the motives behind its
confrontational approach to what is publically perceived as the Viking Age is explained. The
museums behind the exhibition, counting among others the Swedish History Museum, has as
their goal to correct general, public misperceptions and expand the public knowledge of the
Viking Age. Especially the perception of ‘a Viking’ as being a man is challenged through by
including objects having belonged to women, stressing how females composed at least half of
the population in the Viking territories. Genzlinger argues that the most interesting part of the
exhibition is the way it places the Viking Age in an international setting, including finds
proving the great networks of trade and pillage, and the large area of contact both in- and
outside the Viking territories and settlements. The article also mentions how, among others,
the current TV series Vikings, produced by the History Channel, has caused a renewed interest
in the Viking Age, both inside and outside of Scandinavia. For these reasons it is highly
relevant and important for museums to facilitate a confrontational presentation of the Viking
Age, expanding the public knowledge of the period, as well as challenging tenacious
misperceptions, and in some way take advantage of the current public interest, in order to
communicate this historic period.135

A confrontational approach to knowledge, as exemplified in the Vikings exhibition, is exactly

what this thesis argues to be of crucial importance when interpreting the objects constituting
the material culture of the Viking Age. This archaeological material ultimately composes the
primary sources to almost all aspects of the Viking Age culture, including the gender roles

135http://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/05/arts/design/vikings-here-to-set-the-record-
straight.html?mwrsm=Email&_r=0

| 65
and norms, wherefore it is relevant also for historians to consider it. It is true when studying
the weapon graves of the period that a considerably smaller number of female weapon graves
have been detected, compared to the total number of identified male weapon graves. As
demonstrated in this thesis, a lot of uncertainties are present when determining of the gender
of a buried person, especially when this is done on the basis of objects. Because of this, a
considerable degree of misrepresentation of male and female weapon graves must be
acknowledged. As this thesis argues, objects are unreliable as markers of gender, especially
when in the form of weapons, as these objects occur in both male, female, adult and child
graves, and as these seemingly held quite a complex meaning within the Viking Age culture.
There is reason to believe, that the total number of female weapon graves does not exceed and
most probably does not even come close to the total number of male weapon graves of the
Viking Age period, but since both female, and in the case of the Kaupang grave, also child
weapon graves exists, their relations to weapons must be considered, when interpreting the
meaning of weapons in Viking culture culture. One could hope that the challenge of the
public perceptions of the Viking Age, as exemplified by the attitude of the recent exhibition in
New York, and especially concerning gender and culture, will prepare the ground for a more
updated perception of the period, perhaps resulting in more confrontational academic studies.
This would help establish a more open and revising attitude towards new archaeological
discoveries as well as reinterpretations of old finds, challenging the tenacious, yet
contemporary truths and myths within both the public and academic spheres of our society.

Conclusion

What is presented in thesis is not new knowledge, given that all of the included sources have
been known for years. It is the perspective on these finds, and the acknowledgement of their
value to both archaeological and historical studies of the Viking Age, which is breaking with
the traditional academic presentation of gender and material culture. As mentioned, this
perspective on archaeological material is also detected in the recent studies of Gardela and
Pantemann. The central obstacle for studying the relations between women and weapons,
within Viking Age material culture and grave culture, is the very way this topic has been
approached traditionally within both history and archaeology. The lack of in-depth studies and
publications which considers and approach women as active agents within the Viking Age
society, on an equal basis of the Viking men, makes such study further complicated. Based on
the evidence presented in this thesis, it seems reasonable to contend that one should be careful

| 66
of perceiving the culture of the Viking Age as simple, and especially the objects of the Viking
Age culture, as gender-specific. Like the complex and various uses of keys and doors,
weapons too seem to have been objects of multiple and complex meanings and purposes,
especially considering the prominence of these within the contexts of graves. The relation
between women and weapons was perhaps not one of general professional military character,
but the existence of weapons within both male, female, adult and child graves strongly
suggests that not only men had meaningful relations to weapons, and thus possibly also to the
practical use of these objects.

As stated in the introduction, the aim of this thesis was to get as close as possible to the
subject of this study, through the traditional academic approaches to women, and namely to
females in relation to weapons, as these occur in the contemporary material culture of the
Viking Age period. The traditional archaeological interpretations of this material, and the
underlying arguments of these interpretations, have been of equal interest as they highlight the
prevailing academic approaches within contemporary archaeology.

As the prevailing perception of Viking Age women and their position within the society,
being communicated in the writings of scholars such as Hjardar, Vike and Halsall, exemplify
a way of communicating this historic period, which is lacking the inclusion of the primary
sources to this historic period, being the archaeological material. It is the conclusion of this
thesis, that shis approach to the Viking Age causes a reproduction of unchallenged
interpretations of the period, which is in disagreement with the archaeological material.
Perhaps this inexpedient approach is a consequence of the somewhat naïve notion that the
academic sources, on which these writers base their accounts, are free of the influence of
academic tradition, bias and unchallenged misconceptions of the period. Particularly the lack
of explicit references within the work of Hjardar and Vike is problematic, as it allows them to
communicate indisputable ‘truths’, concerning the Viking Age society, without consideration
for an updated interpretation of the actual primary sources. Thus historians and even
archaeologists are simply passing on temporary and even outdated interpretations of the
period, on the basis of biased academic methods and theories, neglecting the study of e.g.
women and children. This being said, and as stated in the introduction, all knowledge is
situated according to the biases, privileges and the position of the scholar producing the
knowledge, which is also the case of this thesis. Therefore it is an academic obligation to

| 67
explain one’s situation instead of attempting to win an argument or prove a thesis by failing to
acknowledge, or perhaps simply ignore evidence which interferes and obstructs one’s initial
argumentation. In the perspective of this thesis, as has been presented in the above, the
method and theory of social biography and feminist archaeology, due to their
acknowledgement of the equal importance of both males, females, adults and children as
active agents within past societies, and their complex and meaningful relations to the objects
constituting their material culture, has been presented as a, for the present, obvious
perspective and approach.

The method of social biography and the theory of feminist archaeology facilitate a perspective
on the relations between women and weapons, which enables a critique and challenge of the
traditional approaches to this subject. On the basis of the selected evidence presented in this
thesis, the contention of the thesis is, that the relation between women and weapons during
the Viking Age were both complex and meaningful, integrated into the society of the Viking
Age on a much higher level, than has traditionally been acknowledged by scholars such as
Hjardar, Vike and Halsall. As stated by Price, the depiction of armed women on jewelry and
tapestry, traditionally perceived as valkyries, are just as likely to portray actual female
warriors as to reflect mythological valkyries. The lack of contemporary textual sources to
armed women, stretching from the decades before 750AD to just after 1100AD, thus covering
the Viking Age, makes it that more relevant and important to thoroughly examine the
archaeological material of this period, as this is our only direct sources to the relations
between women and weapons. The studies of Viking Age women, conducted by Judith Jesch
in the book Women in the Viking Age in 1991, conclude that the gender of ’a Viking’ within
public imagination has been irredeemably perceived as male, which is also the motivation
behind the quite recent Vikings exhibition in New York. When the general perception of the
Viking Age is rooted in a historical myth, perceiving the active agents of the society primarily
as male, the idea of a ‘Viking woman’, as an active agent within that society, therefore is
impossible. 25 years ago, when Jesch wrote her multidisciplinary survey, she detected an
expand within academic interest in Scandinavian culture, slowly challenging the prevailing
historical myth of the masculine Viking Age, as these studies suggested a culture and society,
composing of not only wild and raiding men, but also of women, family structures, children

| 68
and refined culture, originating within Scandinavia, and spreading from here to the Viking
settlements as these expanded.136

Some things has changed during the 25 years which have passed since Jesch wrote her book,
being the first scholar to present the Viking woman on the basis of a broad selection of
sources, counting both archaeological material and textual sources, proving the active
presence of females within almost all spheres of Viking Age society known to us. Since then,
and as ‘gender archaeology’ has become gradually more popular partly on the expense of
feminist archaeology, the increased interest in studies of Viking Age culture, as evident in the
writings of scholars such as e.g. Price, Pantmann, Gardela etc. has expanded the perception of
the Viking Age women. This expand was according to Jesch made possible largely due to the
vast expansion of available archaeological material, but also, as stated by Engelstad, because
of the change in attitude towards tenacious outdated perceptions, catering for historical myths.
A result of the confronting approach of feminist archaeology has been the transferring of
some of its theoretical points to other branches of archaeology, and as such feminist
archaeology has affected the approach to archaeological material. Archaeological studies such
as that of Gardela on the possible presence of actual warrior-women in Viking Age
Scandinavia, quite well illustrates how attitudes within Viking studies has changed since
Jesch. In the years between Jeschs’ publication in 1991 and Gardelas’ preliminary draft from
2013, it seems as if women’s history has developed from the radical notion of the existence of
Viking women, to approaching the possibility of an actual female warrior culture within
Viking Age Scandinavia, thus placing the Viking women in a previously male-exclusive
setting. Approaching the same sources as Jesch, although with the advantage of increased
archaeological material, Gardela exemplifies the same approach to Viking women as Jesch
did some 22 years earlier. Due to the method of social biography and the theory of feminist
archaeology, this thesis much agree with the 1991 conclusion of Jesch, stressing how one
should not romanticize the lives of women in the Viking Age. Women were in general treated
‘as women’, as Jesch puts it, although the relationship between the genders are difficult to
approach through the available sources. It is noted in the Arab accounts concerning the Viking
Age society, how especially women were captured and enslaved and treated violently. But, as
the Viking society was a complex one, it is difficult to determine whether this is a reflection
of the general attitude towards women, or if it is an expression of the normal interaction

136 Jesch, 1991, pp. 1-3

| 69
between free men and female slaves, composing two very different groups within the Viking
Age society.

In regards to female weapon graves, and as stated multiple times in this thesis, these proves
how weapons were not entirely male objects or tools, and given the somewhat great
possibility of male relatives having placed these weapons in the graves of females, these
objects are thus placed in a meaningful relation to women. Being objects weapons encapsulate
the very nature of a militarized society, as they are the tools used both in defence and
aggression, protecting and attacking societies.

On the note of Jesch, the question of what we should do as historians, anthropologists and
archaeologists remains. Are we to create myths of past (and present societies for that matter)
which affect the public imagination of societies, until the accumulation of overwhelming and
incriminating evidence, contradicting the myths we have constructed, is forcing us to
reevaluate and discard our perceptions of past societies? And thereby creating new myths
which replace the old? It is true, that there are detectable and tenacious (mis)conceptions of
the genders within Viking Age society, as this thesis has identified in the works of both past
and present scholars of Viking studies. The aim if this thesis has been to exemplify how the
increase of archaeological material combined with interdisciplinary open-mindedness and a
confronting approach to past myths, enables scholars to eliminate myths, or perhaps at the
very least, shortening their life. Identifying and acknowledging limitations and biases, while
emphasize the importance of a continuous, challenging reevaluations of the increasing amount
of archaeological material in a multidisciplinary perspective, has on a very small scale, and
with much too little emphasis on the possibilities of anthropological method and theory, been
the attempted in this thesis.

It is a fact that we currently know very little of the actual relations between women and
weapons during the Viking Age, but it seems biased to categorically dismiss the possibility
that women, like the one buried at Hedmark in Norway, actually owned the weapons present
in the grave, and at the very least, that these was given as a sign of status or affection. Like the
axe in the Kaupang grave IXb, the many weapons in the Hedmark grave were placed
deliberately next to a dead woman. Thus these weapons reflect a conscious and deliberate
action, and, as Furan states, the actual function of the weapons is very hard to determine, as
they could have been used in an action of battle or worn by the dead women as a precaution in

| 70
the case of a conflict. Ultimately the possibility of weapons having belonged to women buried
in weapon graves is just as possible, as the weapons having been a symbolic present given at
the burial. There is currently no evidence suggesting that Viking Age women did not have a
meaningful relation to weapons, and, as this thesis argues, the contrary seems more likely. On
the basis of the graves examined in this thesis, proving the placing of weapons intended for
battle in the graves of not only men, but also in graves of women and in the grave of a child,
the final conclusion must be, that Viking Age weapons were in relation to both adults and
children, males and females, at the very least in a funerary context, despite the biased
perception and neglect of Viking women within both past and recent Viking studies.

As a final remark, I wish to stress how it would have been exceedingly interesting to include
more elaborate chapters concerning the recent results within the studies of gender in funerary
contexts, in the Old Norse literature and within memory and material culture of the Viking
Age, as well as more female weapon graves. Further consideration of Viking religion in an
Anglo-Saxon context, and the notion of fighting females in contemporary European cultures
would also have contributed to a more comprehensive discussion, both of the relations
between Viking Age women and weapons, as well as of the current attitudes and approaches
to gender within such studies. This would, however, have exceeded the scope of this thesis
and it would most probably have resulted in a much too extensive amount of material to
consider and relate, although the possibility for further studies is much present and relevant.

| 71
Literature and sources
Printed books
Dennis, Andrew, et. al. eds.: Laws of Early Iceland: Grágás 1 (Winnipeg: University of
Manitoba Press, 2006)

Fadlan, Ibn: Ibn Fadlan and the Land of Darkness: Arab Travellers in the Far North
(London: Penguin Classics, 2012)

Graham-Campbell, James: Viking Art (London: Thames & Hudson Ltd., 2006)

Halsall, Guy: Warfare and Society in the Barbarian West 450-900 (New York: Routledge,
2003)

Hjardar, Kim & Vike, Vegard: Vikinger i krig (Aarhus: Turbine Forlaget, 2014)

Holmqvist-Larsen, N. H.: Møer, skjoldmøer og krigere (Copenhagen: Museum

Tusculanums Forlag, 1983)

Horn, F. Winkel ed.: Saxo Grammaticus - Danmarks Krønike (Copenhagen: Peter

Asschenfeldt’s Stjernebøger A/S, 1985)

Jesch, Judith: Women in the Viking Age (Woodbridge: Boydell Press, 1991)

Liestøl, Aslak eds.: Osebergfunnet (Oslo: Universitetets Oldsaksamling, 1958)

Mills, Nigel: Saxon & Viking Artefacts (Witham: Greenlight Publishing, 2001)

Petersen, Jan: De Norske Vikingesverd (Kristiania: Videnskapsselskapets Skrifter, 1919)

Speidel, Michael P.: Ancient Germanic Warriors (New York: Routledge, 2004)

Williams, Gareth et. al. ed.: Viking (London: The British Museum Press, 2013)

Journal articles
Bandel, B. (1955) The English Chroniclers’ Attitude Toward Women, Journal of the
History of Ideas, 16 (1), 113-118

Bau, F. (1981) Seler og slæb i vikingetid, KUML, 13-47

Christensen, T. & Bennike, P. (1983) Kvinder for fred?, SKALK, 3, 9-11

Engelstad, E. (2007) Much More than Gender, Journal of Archaeological Method and
Theory, 14 (3) 217-234

Eriksen, M. H. (2013) Doors to the dead. The power of doorways and thresholds in
Viking Age Scandinavia, Archaeological Dialogues, 20 (2), 187-214

| 72
Gardela, L. (2013) ‘Warrior-women’ in Viking Age Scandinavia? A preliminary
archaeological study, Analecta Archaeologica Ressoviensia, Funerary Archaeology, 8, 273-
314

Geijer, A. (1979) The Textile finds from Birka, Acta Archaeologica, 50, 209-222

Gilchrist, R. (1988) The spatial archaeology of gender domains: a case study of medieval
English nunneries, Archaeological Review from Cambridge, 7 (1), 21-28

Henriksen, M. B. & Petersen, P. V. (2013) Valkyriefund, SKALK, 2, 3-10

Hernæs, P. & Holck, P. (1984) C22541 a-g. Et gammelt funn tolkes på ny, Nicolay
Arkeologisk Tidsskrift, 43, 31-39

Holck, P, (2006) The Oseberg Ship Burial, Norway: new thoughts on the skeletons from
the grave mound, European Journal of Archaeology, 9 (2-3) 185-210

Novikova, G. L. (1992) Iron neck-rings with Thor’s hammers found in Eastern Europe,
Forn Vännen Journal if Swedish Antiquarian Research, 1992, pp. 73-89
Rasmussen, L. & Lønborg, B. (1993) Dragtrester i grav ACQ, Køstrup, Fynske Minder,
175-182

Self, K. M. (2014) The Valkyrie’s Gender: Old Norse Shield-Maidens and Valkyries as a
Third Gender, Feminist Formations, 26 (1), 143-172

Articles published in anthologies

Appadurai, A. (1986) Introduction: Commodities and the politics of value. In A.
Appadurai (Ed.), The social life of things. Commodities in cultural perspective. (pp. 3-63).
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Gräslund, A. (2012) The Material Culture of Old Norse Religion. In S. Brink (et. al. ed.),
The Viking World. (pp. 249-256). Wiltshire: Routhledge.

Hougen, B. (2006) Kapittel 1: Billedvev. In A. E. Christensen (Ed.) Osebergfunnet IV

Tekstilerne (pp.15-140) Oslo: Universitetets Oldsaksamling.

Ingstad, A. S. (2006) Kapittel 5: Brukstekstilene. In A. E. Christensen (Ed.) Osebergfunnet

IV Tekstilerne (pp. 185-276) Oslo: Universitetets Oldsaksamling.

Ingstad, A. S. (1992) Hva har tekstilene vært brukt til? In A. E. Christensen (Ed.)
Osebergdronningens Grav (pp. 176-257) Oslo: Chr. Schiebsteds Forlag, oslo

Kopytoff, I. (1986) The cultural biography of things: commoditization as process. In A.

Appadurai (Ed.) The social life of things. Commodities in cultural perspective. (pp. 64-91)
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press

| 73
Nordeide, S. W. (2006) Thor’s hammer in Norway. A symbol of reaction against the
Christian cross? In A. Andrén (Ed.) Old Norse religion in long-term perspectives. (pp. 218-
223) Lund: Nordic Academic Press

Pantmann, P. (2011) The symbolism of keys in female graves on Zealand during the
Viking Age. In L. Boye (Ed.) The Iron Age on Zealand. Status and Perspectives (pp. 75-80),
Copenhagen: det Kongelige Nordiske Oldskriftselskab

Pantmann, P. (2013) Hvem var vikingetidens nøglebærer? In H. Lyngstrøm (Ed.)

Vikingetid i Danmark, (pp. 59-62), Copenhagen: SAXO-instituttet ved Københavns
Universitet

Pedersen, A. (2006) Ancient mounds for new graves. In A. Andrén (Ed.) Old Norse
religion in long-term perspectives (pp. 346-353), Lund: Nordic Academic Press

Price, N. (2013) Krigerens vej. In G. Williams (Ed.) Viking, (pp.116-119), London: The
British Museum Press

Price, N. (2013) Tro og Ritual. In G. Williams (Ed.) Viking, (pp. 164-195), London: The
British Museum Press

Rimstad, C. (2013) Danske vikinger med egen tøjstil? In H. Lyngstrøm (Ed.) Vikingetid i
Danmark (pp. 39-41), Copenhagen: SAXO-instituttet ved Københavns Universitet

Stylegar, F. (2007) The Kaupang Cementeries Revisited. In K. Helle (Ed.) Kaupang in

Skiringssal, Oslo: Kaupang Excarvation Project Publication Series, vol. 1, Norske Oldfunn
XXII

Other
Furan, N. P. F. (2009) Våpnenes biografier – en fruktbar tilnærmning til våpengraver i
vikingetid?, Master Thesis, Department of Archaeology, University of Oslo

Purser, P. A. (2013) Her Syndan Wælcurian: Illuminating the Form and Function of the
Valkyrie-Figure in the Literature, Mythology, and Social Consciousness of Anglo-Saxon
England. (A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the
degree of Doctor of Philosophy), College of arts and Sciences, Georgia State University

Web pages
Museums:

www.natmus.dk (The Danish National Museum)

www.vikingeskibsmuseet.dk (The Viking ship Museum in Roskilde, Denmark)

www.ostfynsmuseer.dk (The Museum of Eastern Fuen, Denmark)

| 74
www.vikingemuseetladby.dk (The Ladby Viking Museum, Denmark)

www.khm.uio.no (The Oslo University Museum of Cultural History, Norway)

Online sources
www.heimskringla.no (online collection of Old Norse literature and sources)

www.snl.no (Norwegian Encyclopedia)

www.global.britannica.com (Encyclopedia Britannica)

www.denstoredanske.dk (Great Danish Encyclopedia)

www.jyllands-posten.dk (the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten)

www.nytimes.com (The American newspaper the New York Times)

www.dr.dk (The Danish Broadcasting Cooperation)

| 75
Appendix
Fig. 1.1: The presumed engraving of an Alaisiagae from Hadrian’s Wall, ca.
122AD. Purser writes: “[The image] clearly illustrates the raised -relief carving
of a female-warrior figure, holding in her left hand, point -downward, a short
sword or battle-knife, amid the folds of her regal raiment.” 137

137 Purser, 2013, p. 7

| 76
Fig 1.2: The composition of skeletons and objects in the Gerdrup grave, Denmark,
ca. 800AD 138

Fig. 1.3: The Odin figurine from Lejre, Denmark, ca. 900AD. Described by Price
as probably depicturing Odin in female clothing, sitting on his throne with his
two ravens by his side. An alternative explanation to the female appearance of
the figurine, is according to Price that it might depicture a vølva. 139

138 Christensen and Bennike, 1983,p. 9

139 Williams, 2013, p. 174

| 77
Fig. 1.4: The Tissø “valkyrie” brooch, Denmark, ca. 850AD, depicturing a women on a
horse, carrying a spear and a sword, with her hair in a valknut, in the company of a female in a
long dress, wearing a helmet and a shield.140

Fig. 1.5: The Odense valkyrie, Denmark, ca. 850AD, showing great similarity with both the
Tissø and the Winterton valkyrie motifs.141

Fig. 1.6: The Winterton valkyrie motif, England, ca. 850AD, example of the same motif as
the Tissø valkyrie motifs, although in a very poor condition.142

140 Henriksen and Petersen, 2013, p. 8

141 https://www.dr.dk/nyheder/regionale/fyn/i-dag-blev-odense-100-aar-aeldre
142 Mills, 2010, item V120

| 78
Fig. 1.7: The Hårby valkyrie figurine, Denmark, ca. 800AD, depicturing a woman in a long
dress, her hair tied in a valknut, carrying a sword and a shield.143

Fig. 1.8: The Vrejlev “valyrie” pendant, Denmark, ca. 850AD, depicturing a woman in a
long dress, wearing a helmet, a sword and a shield. 144

143 Henriksen and Petersen, 2013, p. 7 & http://museum.odense.dk/det-sker/det-

sker/nyheder/2013/valkyrien-fra-haarby
144 Henriksen and Petersen, 2013, p. 9

| 79
Fig. 1.9: The Ladby valkyrie pendant, Denmark, ca. 850, similar to the Vrejlev valkyrie, but
also to finds from both Vendsyssel and Ribe, Denmark and Wickham Market, Suffolk in
England.145

Fig. 1.10: Valkyrie pendants from, in the order from left to right, Birka, Kinsta, Tune &
Grødinge, Sweden, ca. 800-900AD, exemplifying unarmed women pendants, also in the
valkyrie category.146

145http://www.vikingemuseetladby.dk/om-museet/nyheder/doedsgudinde-fundet-taet-ved-
ladbykongens-grav/
146http://denstoredanske.dk/Danmarks_Oldtid/Yngre_Jernalder/Konger,_h%C3%B8vdinge,_krigere_og_t

r%C3%A6lle_800-1050_e.Kr/Kvinderne

| 80
Fig. 1.11: The Oseberg tapestry, Norway, ca. 850AD, fragments 1 and 2, reconstruction,
drawing with watercolor by M. Storm, depicturing the processional scene. The two females
on the wagon are in the lower left corner, over them are both men, women and horses. The
dress style of the women shows great similarity to that of the valkyrie jewelry. 147

Fig.1.12: Fragment 16 of the Oseberg tapestry, drawing by M. Storm, 1939. According to

Hougen, this fragment depictures, in the upper right corner, 8 women wearing the
characteristic long dresses and shawls, while carrying both shields and swords. In the right
side of the fragment are shown four women, all with animal heads, carrying shields and
spears. 148

147 Hougen, 2006, p. 26

148 Hougen, 2006, pp. 35-37

| 81
Fig. 1.12: Bronze die from Torslunda on Øland, Sweden, ca. 800-900AD.149

149 Speidel, 2004, p. 32

| 82