According to a new analysis, the 1,000-year-old “King” work of Viking board games is one of the few portrayals of the Viking era rulers.
“This person portrays a king in the late 10th century,” Peter Penz, an archaeologist at the National Museum of Danish, told Live Science. This work dates to the reign of Harald Bluetooth (around 958-986 AD), one of the most famous Viking Kings. And it was discovered within his territory, including southern Norway and parts of Sweden.
But it’s from the right time and place, but Penz is careful not to insist that it portrays Harald Bluetooth himself. “I’m not saying this is Harald’s portrait,” he emailed.
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Harald was the son of the early Danish king Gorm “old” and, for an unknown reason, was called “Bluetooth” because he may have had discolored teeth. His nickname is now used in networking standards that integrate a variety of digital devices, just as he unites parts of Scandinavia during his reign.
One of the figure’s most notable features is its complex hairstyle. There are waves on the side where the ears are visible, and the middle part is trimmed shortly behind the hair. It also has a large mustache, a sideburn and a long woven goat beard, according to a museum statement.
Most art during the Vikings era (AD 793-1066) featured intricate designs based on fantastical animals like dragons, and the numbers were one of the few depictions of humans at the time, Penz said.
“He is very detailed and he is very expressive and shows a mischievous or malicious expression,” Pentz said.
Related: Chieftain’s Viking Age Burial with “Giant Powers” Found in Denmark – and he may have served Harald Bluetooth
Forgotten figurine
The figurine is just over 1 inch (3 cm) tall and is carved from walrus ivory.
It was one of the first objects cataloged by the museum in 1798 after being discovered during excavations in the Viken area of southern Norway, a few miles west of Oslo. However, it was placed in storage and forgotten until more than 200 years later, Penz rediscovered it.
“When I met him a few years ago in one of our storage rooms, I was really surprised. He was just sitting there and looking at me in person, and I had never seen such a viking before,” Penz said in a statement.
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Before refugeing from the 12th century to actual chess (which may have come from India or Iran), Penz decided it was the work of the “king” of the hnefatafl game, popular in northern Europe.
Several button-shaped game pieces made of bone were also found during excavations, Penz said. (The “board” was not found, but it is possible that the Hnefatafl board was carved into the stone.)
Fashionable hair
The figurine is severely damaged, but its facial features and strange haircuts are still clearly visible. Penz suggested that such hairstyles must have been fashionable among the elite during the Viking era.
“It’s exceptional that we have such a vivid portrayal of the Viking,” he said in a statement. “This is a miniature bust and is as close as you can reach the Viking portrait.”
The term “Viking” is the exonym (meaning something like “pirate”) that was first used in the English language to describe the Scandinavian Raiders along the coast.
However, as only Scandinavians, including farmers, traders and artisans, should not be considered Vikings, as only Scandinavians who lived near their own coasts could be engaged in such raids in the summer, archaeologist Neil Price wrote in his book The History of Children’s History (Basic Book, 2020).
Scandinavian culture appears to have diverged from Germanic culture as early as the fourth century, but archaeologists believe that the “Viking Age” began with the attack on Lindisfarne in England in 793, and ended the Viking army’s defeat at Stanford Bridge in England in 1066.
Viking Quiz: How much do you know about these Seabone Raiders, Traders and Explorers?
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