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Thor's hammer amulet

How a Viking Amulet Solved the Mystery of Thor's Hammer

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In 2014, archaeologists solved a long-running mystery through the discovery of a 10th century Viking artifact resembling Thor’s Hammer. Before then, they were only working with a hunch about the 1,000-plus ancient amulets that had been found across Northern Europe.

The Prominence of Mjölnir Amulets

The relics, known as the Mjölnir (Mjöllnir) amulets, appear to depict hammers, which historians have linked to the Norse god Thor. However, this could not be concluded with certainty for a very long time as their shapes are not conclusive and none of them contained inscriptions revealing their identity.

But things changed in 2014, when one amulet was found with a clear indication describing what the pendant is trying to depict. That artifact was found in Købelev, on the Danish island of Lolland. It was the first of its kind to be discovered with an inscription.

The runic text reads “Hmar x is”, which translates to “this is a hammer”. Cast in bronze, and likely plated with silver, tin, and gold, the 1,100-year-old pendant shows that Thor’s myth deeply influenced Viking jewelry.

The rune-inscribed Mjöllnir amulet

The rare rune-inscribed Mjöllnir amulet. Credit: National Museum of Denmark.

“This is the only hammer-shaped pendant with a runic inscription. And it tells us that (the pendants) in fact depict hammers,” Henrik Schilling, a spokesperson at the National Museum of Denmark, said about the find.

Featuring an interlacing decoration on one side of the hammer head and the short runic inscription on the other, the Mjölnir amulet discovered in 2014 is believed to have been made by a local craftsmen. Fragments of silver needles and a mold for making pendants indicate that the jewelry was produced in a silversmith’s workshop on Lolland island.

Another example of a rare Thor’s hammer amulet was found in 2018 in the breath-taking Þjórsárdalur valley in the south of Iceland. That artifact is special because it is the first known example of a stone amulet in the shape of Thor’s hammer. That Mjölnir amulet also has a slightly different style than others and archaeologists believe that it shows the influence the emergence of Christianity had over some Norse cults.

The stone Thor’s hammer amulet. (Fornleifastofnun Íslands)

Thor’s Hammer was Once a Symbol of Pagan Defiance

According to Norse mythology, Thor is a hammer-wielding god associated with thunder, lightning, storms, oak trees, strength, the protection of mankind, and also hallowing, healing, and fertility. Thor is a prominent god throughout the recorded history of the Germanic peoples.

He has accompanied people from the Roman occupation of the regions of Germania, to the tribal expansions of the Migration Period, to his high popularity during the Viking Age, when, in the face of the process of the Christianization of Scandinavia, the Mjölnir amulets were worn in defiance. Norse pagan personal names containing the name of Thor also bear witness to his popularity.

Etching by Hugo Hamilton, depicting the Archbishop of Hamburg-Bremen Ansgar the preaching Christianity to the ‘heathen’ Swedes. (Public Domain)

Amulets in the shape of Thor’s hammer were also believed to protect their owners and they were extremely popular. These type of amulets were also often buried with Viking warriors. For example, such have been found in a mass grave of members of the Great Heathen Army that invaded England in the 9th century AD.

Beliefs about Thor’s Hammer

The name of Thor’s hammer, Mjölnir, means “lightning”. This is a clear reference to one of the ancient Norse god’s powers. In fact, people once believed that Thor’s hammering caused thunder and lightning during storms . Mjölnir also allegedly had the power to level mountains.

Thor’s hammer was a magical weapon and it always returned to the deity after he threw it, like a boomerang. It was certainly with the god as he battled his enemies and defeated monsters, but it also served him in other ways. For example, one popular story including Thor using Mjölnir in Snorri Sturluson’s Prose Edda says that a hungry Thor killed and ate his goats, then hallowed their bones with his magical hammer to bring them back to life again. Thor’s hammer was very useful tool indeed!

Another story tells of Thor being dressed as a bride when he pretended to agree to marry a giant because a group of giants had stolen Mjölnir. He knew that the hammer would be used in the marriage ceremony and stole it back then promptly used it against his enemies.

It is believed that the ancient Norsemen did actually use relics in the shape of Thor’s hammer in rituals to consecrate marriages, births, and funerals. The beating of drums using items that symbolized their favored god’s hammer also took place to protect communities from evil spirits.

With the prominence of Thor’s hammer in Norse myth and the great symbolism it held, it makes sense that amulets shaped like Mjölnir were so popular.

Top Image: Thor's silver Hammer (Mjolnir) pendant on a chain. Source: Olga Makukha /Adobe Stock

By Joanna Gillan

Updated on July 16, 2020.

 

Comments

Well it’s funny. you got oral traditions, even written sagas telling you exactly what it is but stubborn archeologist aren’t satisfied until it’s written on the object itself telling you what it is. duh.

 

This theory of mine I admit may be reaching a bit and may label me a kook. None the less here I go.
When I saw the movie Thor, I noticed that when a picture of Muelnur was shown in an old book, it was depicted with the hammer standing upon its Handle with the hammer on top. I thought it odd since one would assume it would be the other way around. Anyone who had ever used a sledge hammer , most of the time , you set
the hammer down with the handle facing up.
I then noticed the swirls decorated up onto the hammer and upon more research found it was quite common for the hammer to me depicted in such a way.
Now here is where I'm going to go out on a limb and theorize that the shape of the ancient amulets were depicting something the people of the age actually saw. When standing the hammer with the handle on the bottom, combined with the swirls convexing on the top, I feel it shows a strong resemblance to an atomic bomb. Mushroom shaped with swirls curling on top.
Able to destroy mountains, to return to Thor so he can send it back to Earth time and time again.
Thanks for listening. But seriously, look at it and tell me it doesn't look at least a little like a mushroom cloud.
May the force be with you
I

Luc - I find your eagerness to suggest someone is not true of opinion hard to swallow when you suggest they look at another's work, the Oden/Dan connection is closer to the truth than you would seem to understand, all peoples stem from the middle east and not all were arabic/herbrew by race - The Aryan gene the Afrikan Gene - The arabic Gene and the east asian gene are the Four pillars of man. Seek the truth within yourself and look less at the books and workings of others. if you are pure of heart and intent the truth will seek you out you need only focus inward.

Now that is a Fine-Thread you are trying to weave here, there where No Hebrews in Northern Europe .. like ever, the migration was East to West not South-North, at least not on a massive scale.

I recommend looking up Michael Tsarion and his "Irish Origins on Civilization" for a good reference on this subject.

Thor was just a human being. In ancient times, heroes were deified: mini gods. In this case, Thor was a general or maybe minister of war. Oden was another. I chose Oden in this communique because it's really easy understand. We English speaking people have been mispronouncing almost everything in history. Oden would be easier to understand if it were pronounced O'Dan. The Hebrew language mixes and matches all their vowels, and quite often the vowels are eliminated completely. He was a hero who led his Israelite people across NW Europe. Check out central Europe and all the towns and rivers that have dan, don, dn, etc. Eg: Danube, Dneper, Dneister. The Bible said that the tribe of Dan would leave 'signs' where ever they travelled. Cheers.

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Joanna

Joanna Gillan is a Co-Owner, Editor and Writer of Ancient Origins. 

Joanna completed a Bachelor of Science (Psychology) degree in Australia and published research in the field of Educational Psychology. She has a rich and varied career, ranging from teaching... Read More

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