The researchers looked at 61 fragments of glass panes found at 6 various sites. 5 of the sites were in southern Scandinavia, and one was in northern Germany. The samples originated from the farms of Viking noblemen, temples, and early urban environments.
” Several fragments of glass windows found on essential Viking Age sites in South Scandinavia, made us wonder if it was simply a mere coincidence that they existed. And it wasnt, they can be dated to the Vikings Age and probably need to have been in usage in that period also”, says conservator Torben Sode, from the National Museum of Denmark. Sode was the one who first observed the unique material.
Formerly, it was believed that this glass came from the late Middle Ages. But chemical isotope analyses show that the glass pieces came from well before the 12th century– predating the churches and castles of the Middle Ages where archaeologists believed the glass came from.
Browsing the glass.
The Romans were the first recognized users of glass for windows, making use of an innovation likely first developed in Roman Egypt. But after the fall of the Roman Empire, glass windows ended up being largely unused for centuries.
” This is yet another shift away from the image of unsophisticated barbaric Vikings swinging their swords around. In truth, we are discussing a cultivated Viking elite with royal power that equated to that, for example, of Charlemagne, king of the Franks. This is something that is typically omitted in the simplified Hollywood portraits of Vikings,” says the National Museums senior researcher Mads Dengsø Jessen.
A piece of Window Glass piece from the Viking Age. Image: John Fhær Engedal Nissen, the National Museum of Denmark.
The glass chemistry indicates that the standard materials didnt come from Scandinavia. Its extremely unlikely that the Vikings themselves made the glass. They simply utilized it.
Archaeologists kept finding glass window pieces at Viking websites. They believed it was a coincidence and the glass came from a later time. However new research recommends that Vikings were utilizing glass panes from the year 800 down to 1100.
Advanced Viking windows.
Some Viking buildings most likely used glass Image produced by AI.
Window Glass pieces discovered at Viking sites. Image credits: National Museum of Denmark.
In some parts of Europe, glass was undoubtedly utilized at the time of the Vikings. However in Denmark, using glass windowpanes wasnt extensively documented until centuries after the age of the Vikings. This recommends that Vikings might have been ahead of their time and far more sophisticated than usually thought about.
Vikings were not the barbaric, fundamental brutes theyre typically portrayed as. They robbed and sold servants. In addition to all this, they also had some pretty cool windows
The glass most likely originated from a bit to the south. In truth, the glass appears to be comparable to the glass utilized in Anglo-Saxon culture. This is most likely not a coincidence, as Mads Dengsø Jessen explains:
” We know that well-known Vikings, such as Harald Klak, went to the south, where the Vikings had a political network and close trade links. So, of course, they recognized with glass panes from the structures of societys upper echelons there. It is therefore likewise most likely that the Vikings likewise had actually glazed windows– a truth now validated by current research study.”
In fact, theres another possibility: that Vikings actually looted and robbed the windows of abbeys.
Raiding or trading?
Still, the awareness that Vikings had access to glass windowpanes reveals a new dimension of their culture and technological elegance. Far from the marauding crowds depicted in pop culture, these findings suggest a society that valued trade, innovation, and possibly even visual appeals.
“It is likewise affordable to presume that they related to the presence of glass windows as something wonderful and special that could let sunlight in and illuminate the room, while staying out cold, wind and rain”, highlights Torben Sode.
Brand-new research recommends that Vikings were using glass panes from the year 800 down to 1100.
The glass would have been booked for the upper tiers of Viking society and for spiritual usage. In other words, the iconic hall structures of the Vikings may have had glass windows.
The more likely alternative is that the Vikings acquired the glass through trade.
This would not have actually been the clear transparent glass were utilized to today. It would be a number of more centuries before the of type of windows that look like modern-day ones would appear.
The archaeologists say that its possible that the Vikings ransacked the glass, however its not very likely. The glass was discovered at different Viking sites. However, the chemical signatures suggest that the glass panes stem from different parts of Europe and the Near East. This would be quite a coincidence, to raid all this glass from different places, numerous times, and bring it to a number of spots back home.
In some parts of Europe, glass was certainly utilized at the time of the Vikings. In Denmark, the use of glass windowpanes wasnt extensively documented until centuries after the age of the Vikings. The glass appears to be similar to the glass used in Anglo-Saxon culture. The archaeologists state that its possible that the Vikings ransacked the glass, but its not extremely likely.