Viking[]
Rule number one - no horned helmets !
Early Medieval Scandinavians were not just raiders although Viking is used as shorthand
for their culture. They were great traders, sailing down the Volga to Byzantium and along
the coast of Europe to the Mediterranean. Alongside this they explored westwards to found
colonies in Iceland and Greenland as well as visiting North West America. Scandinavians
occupied parts of the UK, Ireland and France. The Norman aristocracy were descened from
a Norseman called Rollo. The Orkney and Shetland Islands were Scandinavian until well into
the medieval period. The Byzantines employed Scandinavian mercenaries and formed a special
section of the Imperial Guard known as the Varangian Guard from the 10th century.
They traded fur, amber, whalebone, walrus and narwhal ivory, which were luxury goods in other
parts of Europe and the Byzantine Empire. In return they brought back exotic goods such as
Byzantine, Persian and oriental silks, glassware and precious metals as well as wheat, salt, wine
wool and honey. And possibly orange and white coloured cats according to Neil Todd ( Cats and Commerce 1977 (Nov) Scientific American, 101-7).
Far from being the rough and dirty warriors of popular imagination, the early Scandinavians were noted for cleanliness and washing themselves and their linen more often than other Europeans at the time.
Models and Textures[]
So far only male clothes for this period.
Viking Pack for Michael
This is a reasonably accurate set including the baggy trousers. Well there are some add-on horns for anyone wanting comedy Vikings. This is for M1 and never updated.
Norse Villager Expansion
Texture sets for the Viking Pack with equipment for a shepherd, a skald (bard), a blacksmith and a beserker warrior
Realms Art M4 Viking Hersir
A Viking warrior set for M4 by Tony Meszaros at Cornucopia3D. It differs from the M1 set as it does not have the baggy trousers. Evidence for such trousers comes from later periods than the main Scandinavian expansion so we do not know whether they were worn earlier and narrower leggings are possible.
Drakkar
Viking long boat - basic model with sail, oars and shields.
"Some pictures of Viking warships show the ships sailing with shields tied over the oarports. This is wrong – the shields would only have been tied like this when the ships were in port. The shields were essential for protection in battle and Vikings would not want to risk dropping them overboard." [National Maritime Museum London website]
Jormungandr
Texture set for Drakkar model based on Norse designs
Another Viking ship for Poser, this one with animated oars. It does have the shields attached to the sides (see above). By Digimation and Vanishing Point at Renerosity. There is a Vue version at the same store.
Small Viking house (Vue)
Small house of wood and turf based on archaeological evidence. By Steve Paul at Cornucopia3D
Viking hall (Vue)
Long hall based on archaeological evidence. By Steve Paul at Cornucopia3D
Stave Church (Vue)
Stave Church by Helmut Schaub at Cornucopia3D. This is from a period later than the main Scandanavian expansion, after the people had adopted Christianity. The model is based on the beautiful church at Borgund in Lærdal, Norway. There is a replica of the church in Rapid City, South Dakota, USA.
General Links[]
[| Wikipedia article on Vikings]
[| BBC History pages on Vikings ]
[| The Viking Answer Lady] - very good site with information on daily life and clothes
[| Swedish Historical Museum exibition]
[| York (UK) excavations] - The Viking city of Jorvik
[| Dublin and Ireland] Excavations and remains
[| Viking Art Styles] - chronology of the main styles of art. How to tell your Jellinge from your Ringerike.
Clothing and Pattern Links[]
[| Viking Clothing Resource] - huge amount of information. Some can be found below as particular topics
[| Reconstructing the Costume of the Viking Age]
[| Personal Display - Showing power and status]
[| Shoes] with drawings and construction
[| Trousers] (Pattern)
[| Tunic] (Pattern)
[| The Viking Apron-Dress] (Pattern)
[| Danish 10th century Apron-Dress](Pattern)
[| Hair and caps] includes making a female cap
[| Finds from York] - Sock, knife and jewellery
[| Bone and antler items] - Viking boneworking
These are in Swedish but Google translate helps out there :-) Some of the reconstruction
details have been questioned.
Fabrics[]
[| Nålebinding] (stitches)
[| Embroidery] stitches and designs
[| Spinning] mostly spindle whorls
[| 10th century linen] scan of cloth and how to make the weave
Buildings[]
[| Hedeby/Haithabu reconstructions] in German
Reconstructions of buildings and harbour from important Viking period city
[| Jarlshof site, Shetland]
Remains of buildings from Shetland settlement
[| Danish buildings]
Photos of reconstructed Viking age buildings in Denmark and at Hedeby
Books and Articles[]
Elizabeth Wincott Heckett 2003 Viking Age Headcoverings From Dublin
Lilli Fransen 2010 Medieval Garments Reconstructed: Norse Clothing Patterns - these are mostly later garments based on excavated material from Greenland
Historical Closet