Written by It is rare rare that textiles survive a 1,000 year plus stay in the earth. But when the right conditions exist, it can happen. Archeologists in Denmark have discovered Viking Age fabric preserved by metal salts shared by two oval women’s broaches.
The broaches were discovered in a burial site located in Varde. The Danish city was once a Viking market town. Excavations determined the location was a community burial site. In addition to the broaches, typical grave goods like jewelry, beads, tools, and knives were found. It was customary to bury live goods with the dead.
What was not common was the preservation of fabric. Pieces were preserved via a chance combination of the soil chemistry, moisture content, and the metal used to create the broaches. The fabric samples clung to the back of the broaches.
We see Viking clothing in popular works of fiction like the Netflix show Vikings. Historical reenactors often put great efforts into their costuming. But these efforts are often best guesses because actual clothing does not typically survive from the Viking Age until today. If value were based on scarcity, Viking Age fabric would be valued higher than gold, silver, weapons or tools.
- Smithsonian Magazine – Archaeologists in Denmark Discover Rare Fragments of 1,300-Year-Old Clothing Preserved Inside a Viking Age Grave
- Popular Mechanics – Archaeologists Found Two Pieces of Jewelry That Could Bring a Lost Woman Back to Life
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