Written by When we think of the Viking Age, we think of raiders and traders. The modern English noun Viking has its roots in a word for a sea voyage. Rarely do we think of the Viking Age crafts men who created the sails for those sea voyages. When w do, we typically do not think of industry. But that is what has been unearthed in Jutland, Denmark.
Archeologists with the Moesgaard Museum are studying 100,000-square-meter with over 80 workshops used to process flax into linen. The site dates to between 600 and 950 CE. Spindle whorls, weight looms, and other evidence of large scale textile production was found on a 10 month dig.They also found silver coins, pearls, beads, pottery, a pair of scissors, a knife and a key. They also discovered silver coins, pearls, beads, pottery, a pair of scissors, a knife and a key.
“We have a clear focus on textile production, which makes this settlement different from other kinds of settlements of this period.” – Archaeologist Liv Stidsing Reher-Langberg
- Associated Press – Archaeologists find huge Viking textile production site in Denmark
- Smithsonian Magazine – Were Vikings Really ‘Uncivilized’ Barbarians? Large Textile-Production Site Discovered in Denmark Challenges That Stereotype