A replica stave church with a viking statue in front
Viking statue in front of replica stave church (photo by Michael Gray)
Interior gallery space in the stave church at Epcot
Today's vikingism: the replica of the 12th-century Gol Stave Church, built at the Norwegian pavilion of Epcot Center in Walt Disney World, Florida.
A sign for the galley shed of Uyeasound (est. 1911), featuring a stylised rendering of a viking ship (based on Gotlandic picture stone examples).
A sign for the galley shed in Scalloway, featuring a viking ship with red and white sails.
Today's vikingism: the Up Helly Aa galley sheds of Shetland. Found in communities across the islands, they act as centres of operations for 'squads' as they prepare for local celebrations of the fire festival, including the construction of a galley that is set aflame as part of the festivities.
A sign for the galley shed of Uyeasound (est. 1911), featuring a stylised rendering of a viking ship (based on Gotlandic picture stone examples).
A sign for the galley shed in Scalloway, featuring a viking ship with red and white sails.
Today's vikingism: the Up Helly Aa galley sheds of Shetland. Found in communities across the islands, they act as centres of operations for 'squads' as they prepare for local celebrations of the fire festival, including the construction of a galley that is set aflame as part of the festivities.
A detailed pen drawing of a scene from a saga, featuring two men looking out from a viking ship in rough seas, with other ships in the distance.
Today's vikingism: a pen drawing of a scene from Snorri's Saga of St. Olaf, depicting the titular figure's first voyage with his foster-father Hrani.
Halfdan Egedius (1899). Oslo, Nasjonalmuseet, NG.K&H.B.06256.
A detailed pen drawing of a scene from a saga, featuring two men looking out from a viking ship in rough seas, with other ships in the distance.
Today's vikingism: a pen drawing of a scene from Snorri's Saga of St. Olaf, depicting the titular figure's first voyage with his foster-father Hrani.
Halfdan Egedius (1899). Oslo, Nasjonalmuseet, NG.K&H.B.06256.
Looking forward to visiting @vikingvalley.bsky.social in a few weeks' time, and to talk about some of the many ways we (mis)remember the viking past in our everyday present.
Speaking of exhibitions, we're thrilled to also be contributing to the upcoming 'Vikingmania!', developed by our friends at the Museum of Danish America - more details soon!
"The exhibit is dedicated to explaining why the Vikings are still so cool."
I feel a summer road trip to Elk Horn may be called for.
Speaking of exhibitions, we're thrilled to also be contributing to the upcoming 'Vikingmania!', developed by our friends at the Museum of Danish America - more details soon!
An extract from Paul C. Sinding's 1858 volume 'History of Scandinavia', which reads: 'The history, therefore, of Scandinavia, through the first eight centuries after Christ, until King Gorm the Old, is properly and correctly called 'the Fabulous Age'
Petition to once again - properly and correctly - refer to late Scandinavian prehistory as 'the Fabulous Age'.
We're excited to go and see 'Vikings and Wales: Past & Present' at the Norwegian Church Arts Centre in Cardiff next month. Some of the findings from our Great Viking Survey have helped shape the exhibition and will also be on display!
#medievalism at its finest 👌
Three characters from the 'Vikings' TV series, wearing a variety of impractical-looking dark leather outfits with various gridded elements, arbitrary straps, and decorative panelling.
Three dark leather lawn chairs made of interwoven leather and gridded panelling.
One of our survey respondents characterised present-day popular viking outfits as 'lawn chair armour', and there is frankly no better description out there.
The Tune ship in its steel rig, suspended from a rail, about to enter the new building of the Museum of the Viking Age. Photo: Museum of the Viking Age, University of Oslo
Interior shot of the steel rig containing the Tune ship Photo: Museum of the Viking Age, University of Oslo
The Tune ship in its steel rig, suspended from a rail, slowly making its way towards the new museum building. Photo: Museum of the Viking Age, University of Oslo
Following the earlier Oseberg and Gokstad ship relocations, the Tune ship, snug in its steel rig, has started its journey into the new Museum of the Viking Age (@uio.no) today. Over the course of three days, it will travel a total of 130 metres at a top speed of c. 24 cm per minute.
A short white text formatted like an inspirational quote against a black background. The text reads 'A Viking is an occupation like being a zookeeper but obviously totally different in every way'. It is attributed as 'anonymous, from the Great Viking Survey (2025)'.
Some Friday wisdom from our Great Viking Survey dataset:
A model of the iconic Viking Cinema will be built on 9-10 Feb at the Big Largs LEGO Build, in Largs Library.
Learn about the architecture and construction of this Art Deco building, with plans, drawings, and images
Free but booking required: ow.ly/Tb6s50Y64Bo
Today's vikingism: the former Viking Cinema in Largs, Scotland, which first opened in 1939. Awash in art-deco viking decor, complete with viking ship out front, it could host up to 1,300 viewers. The cinema closed in 1973, with the building demolished a decade later.
The Japanese cover for an issue of Yowamushi Rollo, featuring the title character hugging a sheep aboard a viking ship.
Pages from Yowamushi Rollo #1, featuring Paris under attack by vikings in 885. The defenders are anxiously swapping rumours of a viking named Rollo, known for his exceptional brutality.
Pages from Yowamushi Rollo #1, featuring the titular character telling fellow vikings to be careful and act with moderation.
Today's vikingism: the 2024 seinen manga 弱虫ロロ (Yowamushi Rollo aka 'Weakling Rollo'), reimaging the foundational Scandinavian ruler of the Duchy of Normandy as a soft-natured, cowardly figure.
Tomorrow - livestream of a #Viking evening at the Rijksmuseum van Oudheden in Leiden, with talks in Dutch but then at 20:00 UK time in English! rijksmuseum-van-oudheden.webinargeek.com/vikingverhal...
Various badges for the teams (e.g. surface sampler, imaging, biology, meteorology) of NASA's 1975 Viking Mars mission, featuring a wide range of cartoon vikings with horned helmets.
Today's vikingism: the various team badges for NASA's 1976 Viking Mars lander missions. 🚀🌕
Various badges for the teams (e.g. surface sampler, imaging, biology, meteorology) of NASA's 1975 Viking Mars mission, featuring a wide range of cartoon vikings with horned helmets.
Today's vikingism: the various team badges for NASA's 1976 Viking Mars lander missions. 🚀🌕
Today's vikingism: illustrations from Edmond Neukomm's 'Les dompteurs de la mer' (1897, published in English as 'Tamers of the Sea'), offering an archaic and heavily romanticised imagining of the viking presence in North America.
A (presumably) fiberglass sculpture of a stereotypical viking - including bushy red beard and horned helmer - holding a mug of beer next to his face.
Today's vikingism: this colourful sculpture of an especially jolly cartoon viking, outside a bar in Santiago's Bellavista neighbourhood, Chile.
This afternoon! Come along, or tune in online, to hear about a deeply peculiar late medieval imagining of a local viking past!
This Thor's day, as we're working our way through the vast ocean of data produced by the Great Viking Survey, we can already share that the number of variant spellings so far encountered for the word 'Mjölnir' is 58.
A bronze statue of two figures, a woman and a man, on a concrete plinth in a snow-covered field overlooking a cityscape (with a distant mountain in the background). An abstract bronze representation of a viking ship is seen at the base of the plinth.
A bronze statue of two figures, a woman and a man, on a concrete plinth in a snow-covered field overlooking a cityscape (with a distant mountain in the background). An abstract bronze representation of a viking ship is seen at the base of the plinth.
Today's vikingism: the statue Landnemar ('Settlers'), overlooking the city of Akureyri, Iceland. Sculpted by Jónas Jakobsson (1956), it represents Thorunn hyrna and her husband Helgi magri, who, according to Landnámabók, were the first to settle the area during the late ninth century.
A bronze statue of two figures, a woman and a man, on a concrete plinth in a snow-covered field overlooking a cityscape (with a distant mountain in the background). An abstract bronze representation of a viking ship is seen at the base of the plinth.
A bronze statue of two figures, a woman and a man, on a concrete plinth in a snow-covered field overlooking a cityscape (with a distant mountain in the background). An abstract bronze representation of a viking ship is seen at the base of the plinth.
Today's vikingism: the statue Landnemar ('Settlers'), overlooking the city of Akureyri, Iceland. Sculpted by Jónas Jakobsson (1956), it represents Thorunn hyrna and her husband Helgi magri, who, according to Landnámabók, were the first to settle the area during the late ninth century.
📹 George Alexis Pantos
The Gokstad viking ship in a protective metal case, with supports and rigging in place, before being lifted up for transport along a suspension rail into the new museum.
The Gokstad viking ship in a protective metal case, with supports and rigging in place, before being lifted up for transport along a suspension rail into the new museum.
In the wake of its older sibling last month, the 23-meter Gokstad Ship will also be making its 94-meter journey into the new Viking Ship museum today!
www.vikingtidsmuseet.no/english/relo...
A 60m-long Viking-Age wooden hall reconstruction in Lejre, in green surroundings
A 60m-long Viking-Age wooden hall reconstruction in Lejre, in green surroundings
A decorated internal archway in the Viking-Age wooden hall reconstruction in Lejre
The main internal space in the Viking-Age wooden hall reconstruction in Lejre, with various furnishing surrounding a central firepit.
Checking out the Viking-Age hall reconstruction in Lejre, Denmark
