Archaeologists found that the Vikings constructed this boat-shaped structure out of rocks. Inside the structure the Vikings burned animal bones at a high temperature. (Image credit: Kevin Smith)
Posted on 05/03/2021 11:24:06 AM PDT by SunkenCiv
The cave is located by a volcano that erupted almost 1,100 years ago...
Archaeological work shows that after the lava cooled, the Vikings entered the cave and constructed a boat-shaped structure made out of rocks. Within this structure, the Vikings would have burned animal bones, including those of sheep, goat, cattle, horses and pigs, at high temperatures as a sacrifice...
Near the structure, archaeologists discovered 63 beads, three of which came from Iraq, said Kevin Smith, deputy director and chief curator of the Haffenreffer Museum of Anthropology at Brown University, who leads the team excavating the cave. The team also found remains of orpiment, a mineral from eastern Turkey, near the stone structure. This mineral was used at the time to decorate objects, but very few examples have been found in Scandinavia...
Historical records indicate that the Vikings associated the cave with Surtr, a giant in Norse mythology who would ultimately cause the series of events known as Ragnarök. According to Viking mythology, "the world would end when Surtr, an elemental being present at the world's creation, would kill the last of the gods in the battle of Ragnarök and then engulf the world in flames," the team wrote in the paper...
People in Iceland converted to Christianity around 1,000 years ago, and shortly after they stopped depositing objects in the cave. The last objects placed in the boat-shaped stone structure included a "set of scale weights with one in the form of a Christian cross," the team wrote.
However, even when the Icelandic people adopted Christianity, they still associated the cave with the end of the world. One Icelandic tradition considers the cave to be "the place where Satan would emerge on Judgment Day," the team wrote.
(Excerpt) Read more at livescience.com ...
Archaeologists found that the Vikings constructed this boat-shaped structure out of rocks. Inside the structure the Vikings burned animal bones at a high temperature. (Image credit: Kevin Smith)
Sorry, forgot to adjust the picture width.
RagnaROCKS?......................
Folklore and oral histories are facinating.
I don’t think it’s seaworthy...
‘Face
;o]
It was their... Bay of Pigs moment! :)
LOL!
Did you spend much time trying to find that?
*snort*
:o])
The name of the cave is surtshellir. It’s in an isolated location in the eastern part of Iceland, but doesn’t look all that far from Rekyavik. It’s open to the public.
LOL!
Thanks!
;^) Means "twilight of the gods", and inspired Nietzsche's book title, "Twilight of the Idols". Rather than prophecy, it probably refers to catastrophic events of the distant past, surviving as folklore.
The problem in construction the concrete ships was to stop kids and pets from trying to leave hand- and footprints all over them.
They are, although their value as guides to life can be a bit sketchy. Like, in this case, rituals and Middle Eastern trade goods or not, don't live on a volcano.
And the adults leaving Little hearts with initials and an arrow... with the date they did it...
‘Face
;oP
Obviously not the same guy, but similar!
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