scholarly journals The Warrior and the Cat: A Re-Evaluation of the Roles of Domestic Cats in Viking Age Scandinavia

2019 ◽  
Vol 27 (27) ◽  
pp. 213-245
Author(s):  
Matthias Toplak
Keyword(s):  
Domestic Cat ◽  
Old Norse ◽  
Viking Age ◽  
Domestic Cats ◽  
Historical Sources ◽  
Archaeological Evidence ◽  
Old Irish ◽  
Literary Sources ◽  
Law Texts

The role of cats in Viking Age society is little investigated and has been dominated by uncritical adoptions of medieval mythology. Based on literary sources, the domestic cat is often linked to cultic spheres of female sorcery. Yet the archaeological evidence indicates an ambivalent situation. Cat bones from many trading centres show cut marks from skinning and highlight the value of cat fur. In contrast, the occurrence of cats in male burials points rather to a function as exotic and prestigious pets. The influence of Old Norse mythology on the traditional interpretation of cats as cultic companions therefore needs critical reconsideration. For this, a broad range of literary and historical sources – from Old Norse literature to Old Irish law texts – will be analysed and confronted with the archaeological evidence for domestic cats in Viking Age Scandinavia. The results will be discussed on a broader theoretical approach, involving concepts such as agency, and embedded in current research on human-animal-relations in order to achieve a more nuanced perspective on the roles and functions of cats in day-to-day reality as well as in the burial context.

scholarly journals Prevalence of Cytauxzoon felis Infection-Carriers in Eastern Kansas Domestic Cats

Pathogens ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (10) ◽  
pp. 854 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yvonne M. Wikander ◽  
Tippawan Anantatat ◽  
Qing Kang ◽  
Kathryn E. Reif
Keyword(s):  
Mitochondrial Gene ◽  
Seasonal Fluctuation ◽  
Mitigation Strategies ◽  
Domestic Cat ◽  
Infection Prevalence ◽  
Domestic Cats ◽  
Cytauxzoon Felis ◽  
Tick Transmission ◽  
Quantitative Pcr Assay

Cytauxzoon felis is a hemoprotozoal tick-transmitted pathogen of felids. Felids that survive acute disease often remain infected and serve as reservoirs for subsequent tick transmission to other susceptible felines. States adjacent to Kansas have identified C. felis-domestic cat carriers while statewide awareness and concern of cytauxzoonosis have increased. The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of C. felis-carriers in the eastern Kansas domestic cat population using a sensitive quantitative PCR assay targeting the C. felis Cox3 mitochondrial gene. An overall C. felis infection prevalence of 25.8% was determined for asymptomatic domestic cats in eastern Kansas. Significantly more C. felis-carrier cats were identified in spring and fall, suggesting a seasonal fluctuation of survivors. Additionally, a greater percentage of feral and owned cats were positive for C. felis compared to rescue/rescinded cats. This study demonstrates that C. felis-domestic cat carriers are common among cats that spend at least a portion of time outdoors in eastern Kansas, and that more cats likely survive cytauxzoonosis than expected. Understanding the role of domestic cat carriers of C. felis is essential in developing cytauxzoonosis mitigation strategies, including recommending year-round use of acaricide products for all cats that spend any time outdoors.

scholarly journals Women, War and Words: a Verbal Archaeology of Shield-maidens

Viking ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 84 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Judith Jesch
Keyword(s):  
Old Norse ◽  
Viking Age ◽  
Close Attention ◽  
Male Role ◽  
Textual Evidence ◽  
Textual Representations ◽  
Participation Of Women ◽  
Probable Origin ◽  
Women In War

Scholarly discussions of the question of the participation of women in war in the Viking Age have based their arguments on a variety of evidence, including both archaeology and texts. However, even those scholars who make substantial use of the textual evidence have not paid sufficiently close attention to (a) the vocabulary used in the representations (whether historical or fictional) of women acting in the supposed male role of warrior and (b) the literary-historical contexts in which the texts were produced, including potential relationships between texts. To further these discussions, this paper proposes a method which might be called the ‘stratigraphy of texts’ to demonstrate how a careful sifting of the cumulative textual evidence can enrich discussion about this important question. With close attention to the vocabulary used by the texts, and by considering the date, genre and sources of, and – importantly – the relationships between, texts in Old Norse, the discussion will demonstrate what can and what cannot be deduced from these textual representations of female warriors in the Viking Age. The paper will focus on tracing the development of the Old Norse concept of the skjaldmær, ‘shield-maiden’, through a variety of texts in which this term occurs, and also suggest a probable origin for the concept. There will also be a brief consideration of the term ‘valkyrie’ (ON valkyrja).

Connectedness with things. Animated objects of Viking Age Scandinavia and early medieval Europe

2017 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 89-108 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julie Lund
Keyword(s):  
Material Culture ◽  
Small Group ◽  
Old Norse ◽  
Viking Age ◽  
Early Medieval ◽  
The Social ◽  
Medieval Europe ◽  
Carolingian Empire ◽  
Medieval Christianity

AbstractThis article examines a small group of artefacts of the Viking Age that may have been perceived as animated objects. These specific weapons and pieces of jewellery appear in narratives in the Old Norse sources as named, as having a will of their own, as possessing personhood. In archaeological contexts the same types of artefact are handled categorically differently than the rest of the material culture. Further, the possible links between these perspectives and the role of animated objects in early medieval Christianity of the Carolingian Empire are examined through studies of the reopening of Reihengräber and the phenomenon offurta sacra. By linking studies of the social biographies of objects with studies of animism, the article aims to identify aspects of Viking Age ontology and its similarities to Carolingian Christianity.

scholarly journals The Role of Rulers in the Winding Up of the Old Norse Religion

Numen ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 68 (2-3) ◽  
pp. 272-297
Author(s):  
Olof Sundqvist
Keyword(s):  
Active Role ◽  
Old Norse ◽  
Special Focus ◽  
Viking Age ◽  
Indigenous Religion ◽  
Common Opinion ◽  
Medieval Christianity ◽  
Christian Society ◽  
As If

Abstract It is a common opinion in research that the Scandinavians changed religion during the second half of the Viking Age, that is, ca. 950–1050/1100 CE. During this period, Christianity replaced the Old Norse religion. When describing this transition in recent studies, the concept “Christianization” is often applied. To a large extent this historiography focuses on the outcome of the encounter, namely the description of early Medieval Christianity and the new Christian society. The purpose and aims of the present study are to concentrate more exclusively on the Old Norse religion during this period of change and to analyze the questions of how and why it disappeared. A special focus is placed on the native kings. These kings played a most active role in winding up the indigenous tradition that previously formed their lives. It seems as if they used some deliberate methods during this process. When designing their strategies they focused on the religious leadership as well as the ritual system. These seem to have been the aspects of the indigenous religion of which they had direct control, and at the same time, were central for the modus operandi of the old religion. Most of all, it seems as if these Christian kings were pragmatists. Since they could not affect the traditional worldview and prevent people from telling the mythical narratives about the old gods, they turned to such aims that they were able to achieve.

Thralls in Old Norse Poetry and Sagas

2021 ◽  
pp. 85-104
Author(s):  
Stefan Brink
Keyword(s):  
Thirteenth Century ◽  
Old Norse ◽  
Viking Age ◽  
Literary Sources ◽  
Qualitative Characteristics

Thralls occur frequently in Old Norse sagas. According to these literary sources, the picture one gets is of an Icelandic Viking-Age society where slaves were common. Very often the thrall was used as a tool in a saga narrative, for example, as an executor in some feud. What is evident, when reading the sagas, thralls are used as a literary “spice”, to contrast the free. Therefore, it is hazardous to look for qualitative characteristics concerning thralls and their circumstances in society from the Icelandic sagas. What we find is instead the thirteenth-century authors’ impression of Viking-Age slavery.

scholarly journals Ferd og frakt over fjell og vidde

2019 ◽  
pp. 7-23
Author(s):  
Kjetil Loftsgarden
Keyword(s):  
Coastal Areas ◽  
Archaeological Sites ◽  
Viking Age ◽  
Place Names ◽  
Historical Sources ◽  
Economic Networks ◽  
Historical Significance ◽  
Surplus Production ◽  
Burial Mounds ◽  
Law Texts

This study demonstrates how routes over mountain plateaus and passes connected farms, hamlets and regions. The routes enabled wide social and economic networks and were a prerequisite for regional surplus production in the Norwegian inland areas from the Viking Age.Iron, furs, skins and antlers were among the important commodities for farmers in the mountain and valley regions. These resources were exchanged for goods from the coastal areas, and it is likely that the purpose for much of the traffic over the mountains was trade. Medieval law texts and later historical sources indicate that the bulk of the traffic over mountains took place during the summer. The commodities were transported on packhorses or by foot.Using archaeological sites and findings, as well as place-names and historical sources, I have mapped the main mountain trails in South Norway. The historical significance of these communication routes are indicated by large burial sites, some consisting of hundreds of burial mounds, at the foot of several mountain crossings. These sites are testament to the great importance and value of communication and transportation across mountains passes – and its control – well before the extensive regional surplus production from the last half the Viking Age.

London Smellwalk Around 1450

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Holly Dugan
Keyword(s):  
Social Knowledge ◽  
Historical Sources ◽  
Social Scientists ◽  
Archaeological Evidence ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
The Past ◽  
Shared Space ◽  
Literary Sources ◽  
Sensory Maps

This chapter examines the smell of medieval cities and its role in shaping individual, collective, and social knowledge about navigating these realms. To breathe in medieval cities was a communal affair; men and women inhaled all aspects of this crowded, shared space, including the smell of its many animal and human inhabitants, its industries, and their collective detritus. Using literary and historical sources to create a medieval urban odour descriptor wheel, I argue that the smell of medieval cities was both more pungent and pleasurable than we usually assume; this wheel will hopefully help readers orient themselves towards new understandings about the vitality of smell in the past as well as in the present. Literary sources might usefully be combined with archaeological evidence and recent tools developed by urban geographers and computational social scientists that seek to translate visceral experiences into sensory maps of shared urban realms.

scholarly journals Domestic cat’s internal carotid artery in ontogenesis

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
H Ziemak ◽  
H Frackowiak ◽  
M Zdun
Keyword(s):  
Carotid Artery ◽  
Internal Carotid Artery ◽  
Internal Carotid ◽  
Cerebral Arteries ◽  
Domestic Cat ◽  
Domestic Cats ◽  
Precise Description ◽  
Adult Cats ◽  
The Brain

The aim of the study was to trace the presence of the internal carotid artery in the system of cerebral arteries of the domestic cat and to determine the role of this artery in supplying blood to the brain in ontogenesis. The available publications provide ambiguous or even contradictory information. The authors of some studies claim that there is no extracranial segment in the domestic cat’s internal carotid artery. Other authors reported the internal carotid artery in the arterial pattern of the encephalon base. The study was conducted on sixty-one domestic cats: fifteen foetuses, sixteen juvenile cats, and thirty adult cats were analysed. The internal carotid artery – a vessel with a relatively large lumen – was fully preserved in all the foetuses and most of the juvenile animals. This artery was not complete with regard to the adults and some juvenile individuals, because it had lost the extracranial segment as a result of the obliteration process. A precise description of this area is not only of biological, but also of clinical, significance. The knowledge of the anatomical structure of cerebral vessels is particularly important to correctly interpret images obtained during diagnostic tests and to conduct surgical procedures correctly.

scholarly journals Odins viden - dens funktion og betydning

2004 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jens Peter Schjødt
Keyword(s):  
The Other ◽  
Old Norse ◽  
Viking Age ◽  
Other Hand ◽  
The World ◽  
Norse Mythology ◽  
The Many ◽  
Intellectual Power

it is the purpose of this article to discuss how to interpret Odin's wisdom. Many scholars have argued over the last ten years that Odin's wisdom should be compared to the abilities of the shaman as this figure is known from many circumpolar religions and that Odin should accordingly be viewed as a prototypical shaman. There are, however, some arguments against this theoy. First and foremost, it is obvious that Odin has certain functions in old Norse mythology that do not fit in with the "shamanic" interpretation. If we take a closer view of the role of Odin, it is obvious that he is not primarily linked to the magicians but rather to warriors and kings. This is due to the fact that shamans are normally practicing in societies very different from those of Scandinavia during the Viking age. The results of two analyses of mythical cores, that of Mimer, primarily known from the Eddas, and that of Hadding, known from Saxo's Gesta Danorum, show that a religious phenomenon explaining more adequately the many roles of Odin is  that of initiation. The Mimer myth shows how Odin acquires intellectual power by confronting an object (the head of Mimer) which has been in the under world where is has been given numious poser. This myth is compared to the phenomenon of initiation and it is maintained that the myth, containing death and intellectual rebirth, must be seen as parallel in its structure as well as its symbolism to the initiation rituals which we see all over the world. Odin has thus gained knowledge as all initiates do during their initiation. On the other hand, the Hadding myth shows us Odin in a different role which is known equally well in the context of the mythology, namely that as an initator giving advice and skills to the young hero of the myth. Here we find the same symbolism as that of the initiation.Eventually, it is concluded that even if many of Odin's skills may be compared to those of the shaman, the phenomenon of initiation is able to account for the whole spectrum of functions that can be seen in Odin. Odin, then, must be seen first and foremost as the god of initiation.

scholarly journals Magical Music in Old Norse Literature

1996 ◽  
Vol 16 ◽  
pp. 229-240
Author(s):  
Britt-Mari Näsström
Keyword(s):  
Bronze Age ◽  
Daily Life ◽  
Human Mind ◽  
Old Norse ◽  
Viking Age ◽  
Old Norse Literature ◽  
The Future ◽  
The Bronze Age

No society ever existed without performing music, and most cultures display many variants of music. Music also played and still plays an important part in different religious rites. From the days of yore, music has been intimately connected with the cult, whether it is performed as epic or lyric expressions. The Old Norse society was no exception to this statement and early finds from as far back as the Bronze Age reveal that different instrument were used in daily life. The most conspicuous specimens from this time are the bronze lures, which probably are depicted on the rock-carvings. All these examples emphasise the character of music in Old Norse literature as connected with the magic aspect of religion, and particularly with divination. This does not mean that all music in the Viking Age was performed with a magic purpose, but what has survived in the sources is the conspicuous role of music as something that affected the human mind to the extent that it was experienced as a magic feeling, even able to reveal the future.

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