Harald Hardrada

“A lot of the Vikings are mixed individuals” with ancestry from both Southern Europe and Scandinavia, for example, or even a mix of Sami (Indigenous Scandinavian) and European ancestry. A mass grave of around 50 headless Vikings from a site in Dorset, UK.

The Rus Invasion of Scandinavia is a military operation led by Prince Oleg of Kiev along with his ally Ivar the Boneless to capture Scandinavia and most especially Norway.

A human life was the most valuable sacrifice that the Vikings could make to the gods. We know from written sources that Odin – the king of the gods – demanded human sacrifices.

Valhalla, Old Norse Valhöll, in Norse mythology, the hall of slain warriors, who live there blissfully under the leadership of the god Odin. Thus they will live until the Ragnarök (Doomsday), when they will march out the 540 doors of the palace to fight at the side of Odin against the giants.

Most Viking Age drinking horns were probably from domestic cattle, holding rather less than half a litre. The significantly larger aurochs horns of the Sutton Hoo burial would have been the exception.

In the Viking Age a number of different types of weapons were used: swords, axes, bows and arrows, lances and spears. The Vikings also used various aids to protect themselves in combat: shields, helmets and chain mail. The weapons that Vikings possessed depended on their economic capacity.

around 15 knots

They’d take the sail down and lay it across the ship to make a tent to sleep under. Or, they’d pitch woollen tents onshore. If the crew was far out to sea they’d sleep on deck under blankets made from animal skin. Food would have been dried or salted meat or fish.

the Myklebust ship

Viking ships often had Dragon heads mounted on the bow to scare off sea monsters.

three weeks