„Þorbjǫrn the Skald Carved the Runes“
On the creation of a runestone While browsing through academic publications, I accidentally came across an article that really interested me. Its title is „With Chisel or Pick Hammer : How were Runes carved?“ (Med mejsler eller pikhammer : Hvorledes blev runer ristet?) and was written by Danish archaeologist Ole Thirup Kastholm Hansen in collaboration […]
The use of chevron and herringbone twills in Europe, 700-1200 AD
Definition of the terms The weaves that will described in this work fall into two categories and are derived from the twill weave, which is the only weave that has a diagonal pattern (Hoffmann 1964: 183-4; Jørgensen 1986: Fig. 3). The first category is the so-called chevron or pointed twill, which is created by reversing […]
Yelmos escandinavos del siglo X
En este artículo, echaremos un vistazo a las evidencias de yelmos usados en Escandinavia durante el siglo X. Imágenes de réplicas modernas también serán mostradas. Yelmos de antifaz: Gnëzdovo Gjermundbu Tjele Kyiv Yelmos Nasales: Middleton Prague Tipo desconocido: Lokrume Birka Yelmos rusos en Escandinavia: Birka Conclusión Bibliografía Yelmos de Antifaz Gnëzdovo Objeto, contexto Una cabeza […]
The Helmet from Kyiv, Ukraine
I would like to present this article about a yet undocumented find of a helmet from the Viking age, which is a fragment from Kyiv. This object, currently deposited in the National Museum of the History of Ukraine under inventory label ДРА 1065, has eluded researchers’ attention for a long time and for that reason […]
Rethinking the wallet from Gokstad
The wallet from the rich grave of Gokstad, Norway (early 10th century), is one of the most frequently reconstructed objects of the Early Middle Ages and is sold by many dozens of manufacturers around the world. However, its proposed reconstruction repeatedly attracts the attention of reenactors due to its ambiguity. In this article, we will […]
The Wallet from Iholm, Denmark
In March 2020, I was notified of an interesting find of a wallet from 11th century Denmark, which has not been paid much attention. This brief article will provide basic information on the entire find and the reconstruction attempts. Circumstances of the find and its content On a Sunday in 1853, an unnamed brick factory […]
Inspiration #1, A Woman From Birka
This article will start a series of articles that will focus on concrete costumes. The aim of this series is to inspire reenactent audience. We will start with my Belarusian acquaintance Julia Kovalevskaja, who was the first to provide her photos and description of her costume. Julia’s costume represents a rich woman from Birka in […]
The Viking Rangle
Steve Mijatovic This article is to discuss this reasonably common yet rarely recreated Viking Age item. So what exactly is a rangle? A rangle is a type of sliding rattle consisting of a large metal ring which has other smaller rings attached to it, it often has a socket or hasp by which a handle can […]
Gokstad belt recreations
Dear reader, welcome back on this site that is dedicated to research and reenactment! This time, we will examine belt components from Gokstad mound, Southern Norway. Being covered with 50×43 meters big mound and consisting of a richly furnished ship, the grave is one of the most well-known Scandinavian burials (more here and here). The […]
The helmet from Tjele
I am very grateful to Mogens Larsen for his help. In 1850, an extraordinary find was discovered by a young farmer in the forest called Lindum Storskov, near Tjele, Denmark. The find consisted of a set of blacksmith equipment – two anvils, five hammers, three tongs, sheet metal shears, two files, a wedge, two nail headers, […]
“The man from Voll”
After a month of hard work, I would like to present my article named “The man from Voll : An example of a well-preserved Norwegian male grave“. In this short article, I provided a summary of the rich and well-preserved content of the 10th century inhumation mound from Voll, Overhalla municipality, Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. The work is supplemented […]
Viking Age crampons
For my entire reenactment career, I have encountered the problem of slippery shoe soles. Some reenactors solve the problem with rubber soles or metal hobnails, but these are not period solutions. Leather soles are extremely slippery on the wet or frozen surfaces, especially when they are a bit used and scuffed, which means the problem has […]
Theories on Norse Padded Armour
Translated by Greg Rice from the Czech original. At the request of many reenactors, who are interested in early medieval warfare, my colleagues Roman Král, Jan Zajíc, Jan Bělina, et al. and I decided to write an article that would provide a comprehensive commentary on the use of padding under armor and fabric armor in […]
O Elmo de Gjermundbu
Esta é uma tradução autorizada de um artigo publicado por Tomáš Vlasatý, colega historiador e recriacionista histórico da República Tcheca, mentor do projeto Forlǫg e membro do grupo Marobud. Você pode apoiar o autor através de seu perfil no site Patreon. Em 30 de março de 1943, a Universidade de Oldsaksamling, em Oslo, obteve informações de que um fazendeiro chamado Lars […]
The helmet from Lokrume, Gotland
Since I am deeply interested in Viking Age helmets, I realized there is no comprehensive article about the helmet from Lokrume. That’s why I decided to translate my Czech article, “Přilba z Lokrume“. I believe this might help to reenactors looking for new kind of helmet evidence. The first information about the fragment from Lokrume, […]
Petersen Type O sword replica
Bringing a thousand years old sword to life In this article, I would like to present the work of my friend and colleague, craftsman Jan Zbránek from Marobud group. With my cooperation, he made an excellent blunt version of the Petersen type O sword from Dukstad (B 1103). The start The whole project started […]
Interview with Rolf F. Warming
A few notes on Viking Age Shields Rolf Fabricius Warming is Danish archaeologist, whose studies have preeminently been on the subject of combat and conflict in the past, ranging from Mesolithic violence to organized state formation in the early modern period. He holds an MA degree in Maritime Archaeology and is currently finalizing his dissertation project […]
Two-handed axes
Introduction For all my reenactment career (ca. 10 years), I encounter so-called Dane axes, two-handed axes used in second lines on the battlefields. These weapons are very popular and terrifying and the same time. What the most problematic part of fighting with this kind of weapon is the fact that modern warriors tend to implement […]
Archaeology of Viking Age Faroe Islands
I have to privilege to present you the article of Czech archeologist, linguist, re-enactor and my friend Ľubomír Novák. This article is an English translation of his two previous articles on Faroese archaeology: Archeologie bez nálezů: nejstarší minulost Faerských ostrovů and Archeologie (skoro) bez nálezů: doba vikinská na Faerských ostrovech. Archaeology of Viking Age Faroe Islands «Maðr er nefndr […]
Lamellar Armours of the Viking Age
This article is a translation of my Czech article Lamelové zbroje ze Snäckgärde?. The article was well accepted and was later translated to Spanish (“Armadura lamellar en la Escandinavia vikinga), German (Lamellenrüstungen der Wikingerzeit), Polish (Pancerze lamelkowe w Skandynawii), Hungarian (Lamellás vértek Skandináviában), Russian (Ламеллярные доспехи эпохи викингов), Italian (Armature Lamellari di epoca vichinga in […]
The sword from Sarskoe Gorodishche
ANALYSIS Sarskoe Gorodishche (Hillfort on the bank of the Sara River) is one of the few settlements on the territory of ancient Russia, where a large amount of Scandinavian material culture occured. Both quality and quantity bears witness of not only trade contacts, but also of direct Scandinavian presence on the site. The most representative collection of Scandinavian objects […]
Scabbard Chapes From Viking Age Norway
I would like to present my catalogue of scabbard chapes used in Viking Age Norway. The catalogue is based on Grieg’s, Paulsen’s and Androshchuk’s lists and an unpublished detector find. The catalogue is not complete and is supplemeted by a map, a graph and tables. Please, let me know if you find what I missed. Thank you. […]
