The Mystery of Maine’s Viking Penny

Atlas Obscura ^ | DECEMBER 21, 2017 | BY SARAH LASKOW

[Eurotwit]

Interesting and possibly spoilerish to future seasons of History Channel's Vikings.

[BenLurkin]

Isn’t this the final season?

[null and void]

[Lurkina.n.Learnin]

Ping

[dsc]

“At the same time the coin shows up, for instance, archery first appears in the region.”

I don’t believe that.

[null and void]

Based on other coins in the article, what is shown on the reverse: "an animal-like figure in a rather barbarous design," with a curved throat and hair like a horse’s mane, the 'throat' looks a lot more like the curved planks of a Viking long boat, and the 'mane' more like oars.

[Ciexyz]

Here’s hoping more evidence is dug up.

[Dusty Road]

I’d really like to see the points/arrowheads they found, that would give us a pretty good idea of the age.

[blam]

Possible Second Viking Site Discovered In North America

[Snickering Hound]

[stockpirate]

An Englishman from Wales reached here well before Columbus, sailed up the Mississippi River. DAR has a plaque noting the event.

[stubernx98]

I was involved in doing a documentary about the Vikings coming to America. A farmer found a carved Rune Stone in the late 1800’s in Wisconsin dated from 1362. It is on Maxtanic Films on you tube. “1362 Enigma” Rune was the language of Norway at that time, and we had forsenic scientists study and verified. They were looking for the folks who disappeared from Greenland.

[Architect of Avalon]

It looks like it has a ship on one side and a Celtic cross on the other side.

[TChad]

The cross is similar to the one on this coin, an 11th century "Hiberno-Norse Silver Penny of Ireland."

Click image for source page.

I love the internet.

[billorites]

Vikings featured prominently in my day dreams around age 12-13.

[null and void]

It is a wondrous place...

[vladimir998]

“I don’t believe that.”

Good call.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23776050

[Big Red Badger]

I see what You mean.

[afraidfortherepublic]

Fascinating!

[Eurotwit]

It has already been renewed for a season 6.

And, we do know that they planned originally just to tell Ragnar’s story, but that Hirst (the creator) dreamed of telling the entire viking age story culminating with them coming ashore in America.