[Note: this article is translated from Danish so it's possible there may be translation errors.]

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New Viking find: Gold earring found as the only one in Scandinavia

December 5, 2021



Unique gold jewelery from the 11th century has never been seen before in the Nordic countries and was possibly donated personally by the emperor of Byzantium to a Viking in his bodyguard. The jewelry originates from Byzantium or Egypt and is made with the same technique as the Dagmark cross. On Monday, it will be exhibited in the National Museum's Viking exhibition 'Togtet'.

The metal detector beeps very faintly when 54-year-old Frants Fugl Vestergaard leads it over a field near Bøvling in West Jutland. The sound is so faint that many without hesitation would go on, but not Frants. For 10 years he has been looking for danefæ - even several times in the field in question.

Frants scrapes a little into the ground and crushes a lump of earth in his hand. A small, beautiful earring with enamel peeks out.

" Hey, it looks like gold, " he thinks as his brain tries to hijack what's in his hand.

" 'Stop it,' I think, and then time stands still for me, ". says Frants Fugl Vestergaard, who reaches the find to his partner, who goes a little further ahead. Even he walks just a little round about himself to get some air before turning around to look at the find again.

“I get very humbled and wondered why I should find that piece and then even in West Jutland, where there is so much between the finds. It's like getting a text from the past. You always yearn to find something beautiful, a top find, and then you suddenly have it in your hands. It is completely inconceivable, ” he says.

Unique worldwide

The find is a beautiful and quite unusual gold earring from the 1000s, assesses Peter Pentz, who is a museum inspector at the National Museum.

"It is completely unique to us, we only know of 10-12 other specimens in the whole world, and we have never found one in Scandinavia before," says Peter Pentz, adding that the Vikings have brought home thousands of silver coins from their travels, but almost never art jewelry.

The earring consists of a crescent-shaped gold plate inserted in a frame made of gold threads adorned with small gold balls and gold ribbons. The crescent-shaped plate is covered with an enamel, which is created by a special technique where you break and powder glass, and then melt it with metal so that it becomes opaque. The motif of the enamel is two stylized birds around a tree or a plant, which symbolizes the tree of life.

This type of jewelry is known especially from Muslim Egypt and Syria and from Byzantium and Russia. The jewelry found is most similar to the Arabic examples, which originated in Egypt.

Same type as Dagmarkorset

In terms of style and craftsmanship, it is made as the Dagmark Cross. These are the only two pieces of art of this type we have in Denmark. They both date from the Viking Age or the earliest Middle Ages and are prestigious jewelery, which probably has not been traded, but was typically donated by kings and emperors.

That explains why the Dagmark cross was found in a queen's grave. In contrast, the new gold find has been found in a field in Bøvling without known Viking sites nearby. How it ended up there is therefore a bit of a mystery.

"We had expected to find such a fine and invaluable piece of jewelery like this together with a large gold treasure or in a royal tomb and not on a random field in Bøvling," says Peter Pentz in astonishment.

Such jewelery is most often found in the finest tombs, for example in Knud the Saint's tomb in Odense, in which textiles and pillows from Byzantium were found in the 10th century - otherwise with the same motif; two birds about a plant or tree.

A personal gift from the Emperor of Byzantium?

One explanation may be that many Vikings went into war service for the Byzantine emperor, who had a bodyguard consisting of warriors from Scandinavia. We know from the Icelandic sagas that the mercenaries came home from the East with silk and weapons, and it is also said that the emperor occasionally donated fine gifts to his bodyguard. So it is conceivable that the earring was given personally by the emperor to a trusted Viking in the bodyguard. And then it must have been lost under unknown circumstances in Denmark, ” says Peter Pentz.

One possibility is also that a pilgrim has brought home the jewelry. It could, for example, be King Erik Ejegod, who traveled to Jerusalem with his wife Bodil. The king himself died on the journey.

The earring was probably originally part of a pair, but we have not been able to find a similar earring in the area.

Can be seen in Viking exhibition

At Holstebro Museum, there is enthusiasm and praise for the detector driver, who has shown "great care" with the object, explains archaeologist and museum inspector Astrid Toftdal Jensen.

"The find confirms that West Jutland has always had strong connections around the world," she says, adding that she hopes the earring can be lent to the museum at a later date so that it can be seen in the area where it was found.

On Monday, the earring will be placed in a secured display case at the National Museum, where it is part of the current Viking exhibition "The Cruise," which focuses on the Vikings' travels to the Middle East. Here, guests can study it closely together with the Vikings' other treasures.

It is a fine company to be in, says Frants Fugl Vestergaard, who with the find himself is written into the history books:

"I am proud and happy to have found it, also in relation to local history, because it shows that we up here from the outskirts can also suffer - even 1000 years ago, where there must have been some in this area who had an influence and status. I will probably never finish thinking about that. ”

The National Museum in Copenhagen Ny Vestergade 10
The Prince's Palace
DK-1471 København K
+45 3313 4411

Edited: to insert missing italics.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Modern Day Savage,

MDS,

I don't know what news article rabbit hole you've found, but it's not the worst.

That earring may actually belong to my ex mother in law. She got it new.

quote:

Originally posted by OttoSig:

MDS,

I don't know what news article rabbit hole you've found, but it's not the worst

I tend towards being the curious type...lotsa stuff interests me, and I do more reading than typing. As I mentioned in a recently locked thread, if I could find someone to pay me to post on the forum my post count would skyrocket in both adding info in existing threads and starting new ones, and members' heads would spin on the variety of topics I'd start.

I literally have a folder on my laptop desktop of news and information to post on the forum, when time allows.. but there are only so many hours in a day and only so much time for the forum.

Truth be told, I really have more pressing things that I should be working on... but I like it here and I'm often a victim of my own natural curiosity.

At the risk of bringing shame and disgrace on myself, I'll share one of my personal secrets. I listen to a lot of talk radio, and one of the programs I sometimes catch is Coast to Coast.

Maybe %80-85 of the time it's paranormal stuff, energy vampires, Bigfoot, UFOs, conspiracy theories, we hate Big Pharma and Monsanto, herbal/ organic/ diet natural remedies etc.. which mostly don't interest me and the program gets turned off... BUT, maybe %10-15 of the time they actually bring on interesting experts in a number of fields. Engineers, astronauts, geo-political analysts, national security analysts, historians, musicians, actors, producers... and they often cover fascinating stories that mostly are little known.

Several years ago, I learned from one CtC program that a serial killer from over one hundred years ago committed a couple of his murders in a home not far from where I live. I guess I shouldn't be surprised, but I thought Jack the Ripper was a lone serial killer from the 19th and earlier 20th centuries, but apparently not.

Coast to Coast serves as a news aggregator for unusual stories around the world, and many (not all) of the stories I've posted recently, I first learned about from either the radio program or their website, and then went to the source material to research further.

For example, tonight's radio program Rise and Fall of a narcotraffiker includes interviews with author Jesse Fink. The first hour of the show covered the author's book on the rock band AC/DC and the mysteries/ conspiracies surrounding lead singer Bon Scott's death, and the origins of some of their hit songs. In the second hour, the same author wrote a book about Luis Antonio Navia, a high level narco-trafficker who spent 25 years moving drugs for major South American drug cartels, before being arrested, so he tells his stories about being an international drug dealer and the business of dealing drugs. In the third hour of the program they interview the DEA agent who busted him along with Navia. How often do you hear both the criminal and the arresting officer interviewed together? I find these types of stories fascinating.

I'm a big history buff, thus stories like that of this earring.

Sometimes truth is stranger than fiction.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Modern Day Savage,

The hoops imply that more existed than what was found. Textiles? Beads? It would also have been interesting to know how large it was.

Thank you for posting , it was very interesting.

“My father was a Varangian Guard” kinda stuff right there. Very, very damned cool.

An amazing story. Thank you.

Very interesting. Seems that area should be searched carefully.

Cool! Thanks for posting that.

I've started reading a book called Viking Heart by Arthur Herman.
In it he writes about hordes of silver coins, mostly from Muslim lands, that have been found in Scandinavia, particularly in what is now Sweden.

quote:

More than eighty-four thousand silver coins from Muslim lands have been found in what is now Sweden. Gotland itself grew so affluent that the Swedish king could charge every household an annual tax of twelve grams of silver without missing a beat. Even after taxes, the Gotlanders hardly knew what to do with their wealth. The most satisfactory solution was to bury it, a real convenience for the archaeologist and the historian. Not all, but perhaps the majority, of this wealth came from means other than trade. This included payments of tribute from local rulers around the Baltic Sea to Viking mercenaries serving in their endless wars; they became known to the locals as Varangians (just as the Baltic itself became known as the Varangian Sea). Some coins were simply stolen during raids, as plunder. In the early stages of the Norse intrusion into the Slavic hinterland, we don’t find much evidence of Swedish or Scandinavian goods being imported into Russia in enough volume to account for this heady flow of Arab silver into Scandinavia.

Herman, Arthur. The Viking Heart: How Scandinavians Conquered the World (p. 65). HMH Books. Kindle Edition.

So while this earring is lovely and unique, it's definitely not unusual to find artifacts from the eastern Mediterranean in diggings in Scandinavia.

quote:

Originally posted by sjtill:
I've started reading a book called Viking Heart by Arthur Herman.
In it he writes about hordes of silver coins, mostly from Muslim lands, that have been found in Scandinavia, particularly in what is now Sweden.

quote:

More than eighty-four thousand silver coins from Muslim lands have been found in what is now Sweden. Gotland itself grew so affluent that the Swedish king could charge every household an annual tax of twelve grams of silver without missing a beat. Even after taxes, the Gotlanders hardly knew what to do with their wealth. The most satisfactory solution was to bury it, a real convenience for the archaeologist and the historian. Not all, but perhaps the majority, of this wealth came from means other than trade. This included payments of tribute from local rulers around the Baltic Sea to Viking mercenaries serving in their endless wars; they became known to the locals as Varangians (just as the Baltic itself became known as the Varangian Sea). Some coins were simply stolen during raids, as plunder. In the early stages of the Norse intrusion into the Slavic hinterland, we don’t find much evidence of Swedish or Scandinavian goods being imported into Russia in enough volume to account for this heady flow of Arab silver into Scandinavia.

Herman, Arthur. The Viking Heart: How Scandinavians Conquered the World (p. 65). HMH Books. Kindle Edition.

So while this earring is lovely and unique, it's definitely not unusual to find artifacts from the eastern Mediterranean in diggings in Scandinavia.

A study of Viking swords indicates that often the steel (and minimally the production processes) came from Persia. Not unusual to think that they were doing trade.

quote:

Originally posted by Modern Day Savage:"...The sound is so faint that many without hesitation would go on, but not Frants. For 10 years he has been looking for danefæ - even several times in the field in question.
...

It's called, Radar Love...

quote:

Originally posted by SIGnified:
. Not unusual to think that they were doing trade.

hmmmm, trade? Pillaging maybe

quote:

Originally posted by old rugged cross:

quote:

Originally posted by SIGnified:
. Not unusual to think that they were doing trade.

hmmmm, trade? Pillaging maybe

Ha!

Maybe, but it was a long, long ways for pillaging!

I am about as Viking-looking as it comes. Long bones, blonde, bearded and Nordic-Irish roots. Most importantly, part of the 3% on this earth that can drink milk!

Top pocket find Mate

quote:

Originally posted by sjtill:
So while this earring is lovely and unique, it's definitely not unusual to find artifacts from the eastern Mediterranean in diggings in Scandinavia.

quote:

Originally posted by SIGnified:
A study of Viking swords indicates that often the steel (and minimally the production processes) came from Persia. Not unusual to think that they were doing trade.

My knowledge of Viking history is fairly limited, and this story caught my eye because I wasn't aware that the Vikings' travels took them as far as the Middle East, so thanks for adding those details to the discussion! Learned something new today.

Those fellas with the horns on their heads really got around.

quote:

Originally posted by sigmonkey:

quote:

Originally posted by Modern Day Savage:"...The sound is so faint that many without hesitation would go on, but not Frants. For 10 years he has been looking for danefæ - even several times in the field in question.
...

It's called, Radar Love...

Aha! Made a silent bet with myself that someone would make the connection and that reference... and I bet that it most likely would be one of two forum members who posted it.. so thanks for staying true to form and coming through.



https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ckM51xoTC2U

I can't resist low hanging fruit.

quote:

Originally posted by SIGnified:

quote:

Originally posted by sjtill:
I've started reading a book called Viking Heart by Arthur Herman.
In it he writes about hordes of silver coins, mostly from Muslim lands, that have been found in Scandinavia, particularly in what is now Sweden.

quote:

More than eighty-four thousand silver coins from Muslim lands have been found in what is now Sweden. Gotland itself grew so affluent that the Swedish king could charge every household an annual tax of twelve grams of silver without missing a beat. Even after taxes, the Gotlanders hardly knew what to do with their wealth. The most satisfactory solution was to bury it, a real convenience for the archaeologist and the historian. Not all, but perhaps the majority, of this wealth came from means other than trade. This included payments of tribute from local rulers around the Baltic Sea to Viking mercenaries serving in their endless wars; they became known to the locals as Varangians (just as the Baltic itself became known as the Varangian Sea). Some coins were simply stolen during raids, as plunder. In the early stages of the Norse intrusion into the Slavic hinterland, we don’t find much evidence of Swedish or Scandinavian goods being imported into Russia in enough volume to account for this heady flow of Arab silver into Scandinavia.

Herman, Arthur. The Viking Heart: How Scandinavians Conquered the World (p. 65). HMH Books. Kindle Edition.

So while this earring is lovely and unique, it's definitely not unusual to find artifacts from the eastern Mediterranean in diggings in Scandinavia.

A study of Viking swords indicates that often the steel (and minimally the production processes) came from Persia. Not unusual to think that they were doing trade.

Absolutely trade networks existed and had existed for millennia.

Scandinavia was the major source of amber for the Mediterranean and Near East going back since before the Bronze Age. The import of tin (which is essential for making bronze) was also largely controlled by people in northern Europe during the Bronze Age, with the only real sources of tin being southern England and northern central Europe (with some mines also in Spain).

During the Viking age, the Volga and Dnieper rivers were a major trade highway which connected Scandinavia to the Muslim world. Although tin and amber were still important in this time, the major trade goods to the Muslim world became furs, hides, ivory and whale products.

The supposition that this artifact came from one of the Varangian Guard sounds very plausible, but the trade networks between northern Europe/Scandinavia and the Mediterranean and the Near East were very, very long established.