Altar frontal illustrated with scenes from Óláfs saga helga, written in 1320-30 about the Norwegian King St. Olaf, (1015 to 1028). The altar resides in the replica stave church in Heimaey, which was a gift from the Norwegian state. It was erected…
The replica stave church in Heimaey was a gift from the Norwegian state. It was erected in the year 2000 to commemorate 1000 years of Christianity in Iceland. The information board describes the church as a detailed replica of the Holtdalen Stave…
Modern representations of the high seat pillars or idols of the Norse gods cast into Goðafoss waterfall by Lawspeaker Þorgeir Ljósvetningagoði following the conversion of Iceland. These statues seemingly represent Thor and Iðunn, and are located…
Goðafoss ('Waterfall of the Gods') is a prominent landmark in Iceland, and also an important site in the Viking Age history of Iceland, most well-known as the place where Lawspeaker Þorgeir Ljósvetningagoði, responsible for the decision to adopt…
This is a photo of the logo from a map produced by Tórshavar Havn (and shared with Tórshavn Municipality) depicting Mjǫllnir - the hammer owned by Thor. This references the fact that Tórshavn in the Føroyar was named after the Norse god (lit.…
Discovered in Öland, Köping in Sweden and dating to the Viking Age. It depicts a female figure in elaborate dress holding a cup or horn, and may represent a Valkyrie. For more images of this item, see…
A cast of the Crucifixion Stone found on the Calf of Man in 1773 in he Sound Café & Visitor Centre. The original is held in the Manx Museum, Douglas. The stone has been dated to the Viking Age, most likely the 11th century. The portion of the stone…
Description taken from display in the Undercroft at York Minster: "The York Gospels was probably made by Anglo-Saxon monks at Canterbury around 1020 and brought to York by Archbishop Wulfstan. It is the only book from before the Norman Conquest to…
This street sign in Lerwick refers to the tenth-century Norwegian Saint Sunniva (ON Sunnifa), who is associated with Selja on the West Coast of Norway, and according to legend fled from Ireland and was persecuted by the pagan Jarl Hákon…
Description
Goðafoss ('Waterfall of the Gods') is a prominent landmark in Iceland, and also an important site in the Viking Age history of Iceland, most well-known as the place where Lawspeaker Þorgeir Ljósvetningagoði, responsible for the…
Goðafoss ('Waterfall of the Gods') is a prominent landmark in Iceland, and also an important site in the Viking Age history of Iceland, most well-known as the place where Lawspeaker Þorgeir Ljósvetningagoði, responsible for the decision to adopt…
Goðafoss is a prominent landmark in Iceland, and also an important site in the Viking Age history of Iceland, most well-known as the place where Lawspeaker Þorgeir Ljósvetningagoði, responsible for the decision to adopt Christianity at the…
The Icelandic horse is a breed of horse from Iceland that developed from horses taken to Iceland by the original Viking settlers. It is small, often pony-sized, but very hardy.
Pagan Scandinavians ate horse meat as part of their religious…
St Magnus Church, founded at the site of the killing of Saint Magnus Erlendsson, Earl of Orkney by an axe-blow to the head in ca. 1116 at the orders of his cousin Hákon Pálsson. This episode, referred to in Orkneyinga saga, is possibly corroborated…
This fantastic publication covers everything from politics and belief in Viking Age Denmark, to experimental archaeology and the journey of the Sea Stallion. It also includes two chapters on the use of Viking branding in the past and in Denmark today…
Pre-Christian Religions of the North is an international project to document the mythology and religious practices of early Scandinavia and Germanic Europe. The Sources Database brings together resources related to the project.