Archaeology Magazine - July/August 1981 - 66

ARCHAEOLOGY
Vikings! A ten-part series written and
narrated by Magnus Magnusson. Coproduced by BBC -TV and KTCA-TV, St.
Paul IMinneapolis. Made possible by a
grant from Lutheran Brotherhood, a National Fraternal Benefit Society. Each
half -hour film is available in video-cassette only from PBS Video, 475 L'Enfant
Plaza SW, Washington , DC 20024. The
entire series may be purchased for
$1,195, individual cassettes for $175.
Each can be rented at $55 per week.
This is a fascinating series. Written and
narrated by Magnus Magnusson, one of
the leading translators of Icelandic sagas and a veteran exponant of the joys of
archaeology on BBC television, this
series weaves together the multiple
strands of archaeology, history, folklore
and experimental reconstruction to
create a vibrant tapestry of Viking life
and times. In ten half-hour episodes virtually every aspect of Viking history,
technology and culture is examined.
Historical narrative and contemporary
accounts of the Vikings are illuminated
by interpretive drawings, modern reenactments, evocative landscapes, excavation views and closeups of some of the
finest examples of Viking art: all in a
manner which brings Scandinavian life
of the ninth through eleventh centuries
after Christ dramatically alive.
The first episode, Hammer of the
North, examines the origins of the fearsome Viking myth, that romantic image
of the brave, self-reliant warrior laughing in the face of death, which has persisted up to the present day. Readings
from Icelandic sagas and poetry are juxtaposed with scenes in which members
of modern reenactment societies hack
away at one another dressed in full Viking regalia - certainly dramatic, if
somewhat reminiscent of Hollywood
"B" movies. Magnusson goes on to demonstrate that the Vikings were not limited to warfare as a means of expression,
and he characterizes the Viking age as
an outpouring not of violence, but
rather of energy. Energy which was
manifested in many ways: raiding, colonization, trade, exploration, artistry
and craftsmanship - in particular shipbuilding. Viking ships were works of art
as well as functional means of transport. These points are illustrated by excellent scenes of Viking ship replicas in
full sail, as well as tantalizing glimpses
of modern artisans working with Viking tools and techniques.
KATE GORDON is a special researchassistant for The Vikingsexhibitionat theMinneapolisInstitute ofArts. A Ph.D. candidate
in MediaevalArchaeologyat UniversityCollege,London, Gordon has excavatedin England, Norwayand Scotland.
64

Archaeology

WHS
Ships form the focal point of the second episode, Bolt from the Blue. Here
Magnusson presents the ship as the
catalyst which made possible the sudden raids characteristic of the opening
years of the Viking period. Lineal descendants of Viking ships are still being
built and used in the Faeroe and Shetland Islands and in parts of Norway,
and this episode contains some splendid
footage of these ships underway. There
are also some excellent scenes of the
construction of Odin's Raven, a Viking
ship replica built at a Norwegian shipyard using traditional tools and techniques. It is interesting to see timbers
being shaped with the axe and adze and
joined with the wooden pegs known as
trenails.

Memorialstonedating to the tenth to
eleventhcenturiesfound in Lillbjärs,
Sweden.Height, 86 centimeters.
Ships dominated Viking culture in
death as well as in life, and this episode
also examines the magnificent ships
preserved in burial mounds at Gokstad
and Oseberg. The Oseberg ship is believed by many to be the funeral vessel
of Queen Asa, grandmother of Harald
Finehair, the first king to unify Norway. We are shown the site of Kaupang,
where recent excavations have uncovered a marketplace and rich merchants'
graves. It was the wealth derived from
commerce which provided the Norwegian kings with the economic basis for
their power, and this point is brought
out very well.
The excavations at the Danish commercial center of Hedeby, now in West
Germany, are documented in the third
episode, From the Fury of the Northmen.
These excavations have revealed evidence for a wide variety of industries,
illustrated in a fascinating sequence by
John Anstee, an English blacksmith

who demonstrates the Viking method of
forging axes. This episode also discusses
the brutal and successful Danish raids
on France, as well as the results of recent excavations on a series of circular
fortified sites scattered throughout
Denmark and at Jelling, the royal Danish burial site.
In Sweden, wealth and power were
concentrated in the Mälar region,
northwest of Stockholm. In the fourth
episode, Halfdan Was Here, Magnusson
gives an account of the excavations at
Birka, one of the earliest towns in
Scandinavia, and at Gamia Uppsala, a
major pagan religious center and royal
burial site. An eleventh-century account of the temple and sacrifices at
Gamia Uppsala is read by a professional
actor, as are other quotations from contemporary sources throughout the entire series. Also quoted in this episode is
the by-now famous Arab account of a
Viking funeral on the Volga. It is amusing to note that Magnusson has chosen
to edit out various items of cultural interest while retaining some of the more
prurient details. Perhaps of greater interest in this episode is the presentation
by a Russian archaeologist of the offical
Soviet view that the Viking impact on
Slavic Russia was insignificant, despite
a fair body of evidence which suggests
the contrary - a reminder that scientific research is not always immune to
political expedience.
In the fifth episode, England at Bay,
attention shifts westward to the activities of the great Viking army in England and to the Viking settlements in
the north and west of that country.
Much attention is paid to the excavations at York, the commercial and industrial capital of Viking England. Coppergate, in particular, has produced a
wealth of interesting finds and Magnusson obligingly plays a set of wooden pan
pipes which were found there. The second half of this episode is devoted to the
achievements of King Alfred the Great
and his extensive patronage of the arts
and learning.

Silver armlet fromBryungs,Sweden
dating to the tenth to eleventhcenturies.
Diameter,9 centimeters.

Archaeology Magazine - July/August 1981

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Archaeology Magazine - July/August 1981