Viking standard from Heggen church
Date:
First half of eleventh century
Location or Findspot (Modern-Day Country):
Norway
Dimensions:
ca. 19 × 28 cm,
0.3 cm thick
Description:
This gilded copper standard, once fixed to a Viking-era ship, was later reinstalled on the spire of a church at Heggen, Norway. (Such objects are typically called "weathervanes," but that has nothing to do with their original function.) The small holes along the edge were used to attach streamers. The engraved and punched decoration is in the Ringerike style. On one side are two four-legged creatures with long manes or tufts (lions?) and stylized plants; on the other, a large bird (eagle?) attacked by a serpent is surrounded by a row of palmettes and arches. Perched on the upper edge is a stylized lion, cast of brass and gilded, with the same spiral design on the haunches seen on the engraved lions.
Graffiti in several stave churches show the standards in use, with streamers flying, and a wooden tally stick found in Bryggen (the medieval harbor of Bergen, Norway) depicts forty-eight Viking longships, some with carved prows and others with standards attached. A runic inscription on the back of the stick says "Here sails the brave master of the waves."
The standards displayed status, if not specific identity; they implicitly compare the ship and its men to powerful animals. Great beasts and serpents were common in Ringerike-style works and resonated with Norse mythology. After Scandinavia was Christianized in the eleventh century, the symbolism of a lion-like Christ battling evil serpents made the standards appropriate spolia for churches.
Graffiti in several stave churches show the standards in use, with streamers flying, and a wooden tally stick found in Bryggen (the medieval harbor of Bergen, Norway) depicts forty-eight Viking longships, some with carved prows and others with standards attached. A runic inscription on the back of the stick says "Here sails the brave master of the waves."
The standards displayed status, if not specific identity; they implicitly compare the ship and its men to powerful animals. Great beasts and serpents were common in Ringerike-style works and resonated with Norse mythology. After Scandinavia was Christianized in the eleventh century, the symbolism of a lion-like Christ battling evil serpents made the standards appropriate spolia for churches.
Relevant Textbook Chapter(s):
6
Repository and Online Resources:
• Zoom in on the Bergen tally stick here.
• Characteristics of the Ringerike style are listed here.
• The standard is in the Museum of Cultural History, Oslo. Explore their Viking Age exhibition here.
Image Credits:
Wikimedia Commons, Wolfmann.
