![]() ![]() Memory & the AfterlifeĪs in other cultures, a good name after death was considered most important. The best way to placate the spirit of a dead family member or friend, however – in as much as possible – was fond remembrance. Pieces of straw or open scissors were laid on the dead person's chest in the form of a cross to give peace to the soul and prevent its return.īird images, representing Odin's ravens Huginn and Muninn ('thought' and 'memory'), were carved on tombs as a sign of respect and so was the image of Odin's knot (the valknut ) which symbolized his power to bind and loose, related to his authority over life and death. 10th-12th centuries CE), Christ's cross were also frequently used to ward off spirits as were images of the same carved on door posts or small wooden statues above or just inside the door. Talismans such as Odin's head, Thor's hammer, and, after the rise of Christianity (c. Knocking three times may also have been linked to the Christian trinity. Ghosts were thought to become active in autumn and gain strength throughout winter and especially around Christmas. A single knock was interpreted as the presence of a spirit and, if one opened the door, one either went insane or was never seen again. Since it was believed the reanimated dead could only enter a house through the same opening it had gone out, after the dead person was carried out feet first and brought to the cemetery, the corpse-door was sealed up again.Īfter darkness fell year-round, and especially so shortly after a funeral, it was common practice in Viking Age society to knock three times outside someone's home when visiting. The most labor-intensive safeguard was the corpse-door: an opening built into a home which was then bricked up and, after a death, broken open to carry the corpse out. Even if every other aspect of the burial was done perfectly, the spirit of the deceased might still take exception to being deprived of its favorite sword or hammer. Even though keeping a certain object would be understandable to those who continued breathing and eating, it might not be so to the dead. Scholars come to this conclusion based on excavated graves of wealthy people which, they feel, should have had more objects placed in them. It is thought that, at times when a family was not doing so well financially, a particularly valuable lamp, weapon, or tool which could not easily be replaced, was kept back by the living (a hammer, for example, which a family could not afford to lose). Still, burial sites of seemingly well-off individuals have been excavated which show few grave goods. Even a wealthy family might not have buried a ship but would still have provided adequate grave goods. Burying people in ships (such as the famous Oseberg Ship grave mound in Norway) seems to have been a luxury reserved for the wealthy since ships were so expensive. Burial became more commonplace during the Viking Age but cremation on a pyre (the famous image of the Viking funeral) was still practiced. 6th century BCE) although there is evidence of burial with grave goods. (39)Ĭremation was the preferred method of disposing of bodies in pre- Iron Age Scandinavia (c. Grave goods were important to ensuring this status archaeological studies of burial sites have contributed greatly to what we know about the Vikings and their way of life. A suitable funeral ensured that the spirit did not remain to haunt the living and would have its rightful status in the next life. ![]() The Vikings believed that proper funeral rites were essential if the deceased soul were to move on to the afterlife.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |