The Wild Hunt (https://wildhunt.org/tag/vikings)
A new study uses skeletal trauma, grave goods, runestones, and infrastructure to argue that Viking Age Denmark and Norway had markedly different relationships to interpersonal violence.
Over the past week, Democrats have giddily celebrated the ascension of Kamala Harris to the top of the ticket. That’s great, but it doesn’t deal with the issue of elderly leaders in this nation of ours. Maybe the tale of Egil Skallagrimsson, the Viking poet who lived to old age, has something to teach us here.
A new exhibition at Denmark’s National Museum uses the figure of the völva, a female oracle and sorcerer, to explore how pre-Christian Scandinavians thought of time, religion, and destiny.
Sprocket Wagner reviews “Vikings: Warriors of the North Sea,” on exhibit at Pittsburgh’s Carnegie Science Museum until September 4th.
I read accounts of the Old Way in its day with love and longing. I am profoundly moved when I read the sayings of Odin, whether by myself, in communion with the kindred, or discussing them with college students. I see the lore as touchstones for righteous living, guidelines for right action, and comfort in the darkness. We can deeply care about all of this without pretending that we can go back and do like they did.