The Nordic Design of the Iron Age

The Nordic Design of the Iron Age
Introduction Jewellery as Form of Personal Expression
Hoards from the Roman Iron Age – Early Viking Age Coinage
Hoards from the Early Viking Period Hoards from the Medieval Period and Later
Hoards from the Late Viking Period Silver on the Gotlandic Farms
The Dragon’s Gold Treasures on the Sea Floor
The Objects Tell a Story More Recent Treasure Tales
 

The chief element in almost all Nordic metalwork art from the period 400–1100 A.D. is the strongly stylised animal ornamentation. The repetition of a certain style down several centuries can hardly be a coincidence. The animal ornamentation must have had an obvious and pregnant meaning in Iron Age society.

  The origin of the Nordic animal ornamentation has not been established. During the Iron Age different variations of animal ornamentation occurred, spread over a large geographical area between the Steppe in the east of Central Asia, the British Isles in the west, the Nordic countries in the north, and Central Europe in the south.

  
     

Quite obviously, contacts between the various tribes have been of significance to the development of the handicraft, and the craftsmen in the different areas have been inspired and influenced by each other’s artistic expression. Any attempt at localising one single common place of origin for the various styles would be very difficult, and almost certainly futile.

  Animal ornamentation existed in the Nordic society from the Roman Iron Age to the Viking Age. There was an obvious need to express oneself and assimilate this design within the Nordic regions, irrespective of contact with outside cultural groups.

  The earliest animal ornamentation in the Nordic regions can be found on mounts and costume brooches from the 5th century. They consist of simple, small animal depictions, alongside various geometrical figures. During the ensuing centuries up to the 12th century, the animal motif was subjected to a long series of exciting changes, from relatively simple animal silhouettes to all the more elaborate, surface-filling patterns.

 Horselike, birdlike, humanlike and dragonlike creatures sweep across the surfaces. In most cases it is more or less impossible to determine the species of the animals that appear in the animal ornamentation. We must presume that the artist rarely intended to depict any particular species, preferring to keep the distinction between man and beast, as well as between one animal or another indefinite. Common for all animal ornamentation during this period is the choice of motif – the animal – and the high level of abstraction.

  The arts and crafts within the Nordic regions also exhibit local variations. On Gotland, for example, there is a pronounced design, e.g. the E-bracteates from the Migration Period, as well as the animal-head shaped brooches and the fish-head shaped pendants from the Viking Age.

 
     

"... NEVER HAVE I SEEN PEOPLE OF MORE PERFECT PHYSIQUE. THEY ARE AS TALL AS DATE PALMS AND WITH A RUDDY COMPLEXION ... THEIR MEN WEAR A GARMENT DRAPED OVER ONE HALF OF THEIR BODIES, LEAVING ONE HAND FREE. EACH MAN CARRIES AN AXE, A SWORD AND A KNIFE. THEY NEVER PART FROM THESE ITEMS. THEIR SWORDS ARE BROAD AND WITH FRANKISH PATTERNS. EACH ONE BEARS FROM HIS FINGER TO HIS NECK GREEN TREES, PICTURES AND THE LIKE (probably referring to tatooing. Auth.rem.)

... EACH WOMAN CARRIES ON HER BOSOM A SMALL CONTAINER OF IRON, SILVER, COPPER OR GOLD, DEPENDING ON HER HUSBAND’S WEALTH. ATTACHED TO THE CONTAINER IS A RING CARRYING HER KNIFE ... ROUND HER NECK SHE WEARS GOLD OR SILVER RINGS, SINCE A MAN HAS A NECKLACE MADE FOR HIS WIFE WHEN HE HAS AMASSED 10 000 DIRHAMS. WHEN HE OWNS 20 000 DIRHAMS HE HAS TWO NECKLACES MADE, AND SO ON EVERY TIME HE ACQUIRES A FURTHER 10 000 DIRHAMS ..."