The Road
Not all roads lead to Rome. Though some, like highway 9 near the village of Langeid in the Setesdal Valley of southern Norway, lead back in time. A routine infrastructure project connected to the highway revealed a viking era cultural treasure few could have ever imagined.
The Discovery
An archaeology team from the University of Oslo was quickly called in and--as the layers of earth were removed, like pages in a book--Viking burial sites spanning centuries were uncovered. Among them was one grave quite unlike any other that had been previously discovered. Numerous examples of wealth and wide-spread trade activity were present in this particular exhumation. Chief amongst them were a uniquely mounted "Dane Axe" and an elaborate sword. The axe used a piece of fine brass as a washer between the haft and head. While the sword had a late Æ (pronounced "ash") type hilt inlaid with gold, silver, and copper as well as inscriptions including a previously unknown conglomeration of Christian "Christograms" and Norse Pagan symbols. Truly, this was a sword fit for a king.
The Mystery
Its origins, meaning, and the role of its owner remain a mystery, but the hilt type is that of a later style prevalent in the first half of the 11th century towards the end of what we would today consider the "Viking Age." The sword was likely made by either Scandinavian or Saxon smiths around the time of King Knut the Great's North Sea Empire. Was the owner of this sword a man of wealth and influence? Was he a member of King Knut's court? Given the value and symbolism of this stunning sword from the Setesdal Valley, and King Knut's role in the Christianization of the Baltic, there is a possibility. In the end it seems, in some ways, that even this road at the edge of Europe may yet indeed lead back to the influence of Rome.
The Recreation
Windlass Steelcrafts, with painstaking attention to detail, has faithfully reproduced both weapons. The results being as much works of art as tools of war, worthy of wear and heir for any modern warrior.
