Pocket Museum: Vikings

A unique collection of significant objects and works of art from across the Viking world

Pocket Museum: Vikings brings together 200 of the most remarkable artifacts that are held in museum collections around the world. Although the popular image of the Vikings is one of wild, violent raiders, the objects in this book reveal a more complex society composed of pioneering explorers and master metalworkers who established a far-reaching trade network.

From the vast Oseberg Viking ship to a tiny valkyrie pendant, and from simple wooden panpipes to the unparalleled collection of silver items in the Spillings Hoard, each object provides an important insight into this most fascinating of cultures. Equally significant are the less familiar fragments of everyday life: a brooch, a woollen sock, even a loaf of bread. This juxtaposition of the elite and the everyday makes this volume unique in its field.

Contents List

Introduction • 1. The Early Viking Age • 2. The Middle Viking Age – Towns, Trade and the Tenth Century • 3. The Late Viking Age: Conquest, Colony and Conversion

About the Author

Steve Ashby is Senior Lecturer at the University of York. He is a medieval archaeologist specializing in the archaeology of portable material culture, and recently recorded two series of documentaries in support of the History Channel’s popular drama, Vikings.

Alison Leonard completed a PhD in Archaeology at the University of York before going on to teach medieval history and Viking Age archaeology at the University of Cambridge.