A treasure trove of 5 gold foil pieces, the size of fingernails, have been found near the roadside in southeast Norway, dated to 1,400 years ago. Described as not getting “more spectacular than this...
During the excavation of Viking burials in Tystberga, Sweden, archaeologists made a surprising discovery that both astonished and amused them. Among the ancient graves and residential structures, the...
One of the most important elements of Norse mythology was the Bifrost. The Bifrost was the legendary shimmering rainbow bridge to Asgard, responsible for connecting the world of the gods with the...
Tracking the migration of humans isn’t easy , but genetics is helping us uncover new information at breathtaking speed. We know that our species originated in Africa and likely reached Europe from...
Scholars have long been baffled by the coded runic message of the ‘Rök Runestone’ but a new interpretation claims it spells out a chilling Armageddon prophecy. One of the world's most famous Norse...
Researchers from the University of Copenhagen have succeeded in extracting a complete human genome from a thousands-of-years old “chewing gum”. According to the researchers, it is a new untapped...
The skeletal remains of five bodies excavated in Ireland suggest Vikings brought leprosy to the Emerald Isle. Leprosy , also known as Hansen's disease , is a chronic infectious disease that is caused...
The first humans who settled in Scandinavia more than 10,000 years ago left their DNA behind in ancient chewing gums, which are masticated lumps made from birch bark pitch. This is shown in a new...
Before surnames became commonplace, a method was needed to differentiate between two or more people with the same name. Many surnames in the English language today are a result of this - John Smith,...
Vikings are pretty trendy of late. Marvel’s Thor films, for example, gave Viking mythology the Hollywood treatment and plonked its characters in contemporary America. There have been multiple Viking...
Turf houses are a distinctive type of dwelling found in Iceland with origins dating back to the 9 th century AD, which are attributed to the country’s Nordic settlers. The development of turf houses...
The Ismantorp fortress on Öland, has been described as one of the most interesting prehistoric defensive structures and one of the most remarkable ringforts in Sweden. Not the largest of the forts,...
Heimdall is a god in the Norse pantheon, most well-known for his task to announce the coming of Ragnarok by sounding his horn, which will be heard across all worlds. He is one of the better-known...
In Scandinavian folklore, there are numerous races of beings, the best-known of which (apart from human beings) are the gods and the jötnar, their nemesis. In rather simplistic terms, these may be...
BY THORNEWS Scandinavian findings and a mass grave in Dorset, England, proves that some Viking males filed grooves into their front teeth and most likely filled them with pigment. Researchers are...
Further evidence that the Vikings weren’t just beer-swilling, raping, and pillaging savages comes out of Denmark with the discovery of two grape seeds that may indicate the Norsemen didn’t just drink...
Blenda is a heroine found in Swedish myths and legends. It is unclear as to exactly when she lived, but according to the legends, her heroic deeds took place during the time when Alle was the King of...
Harald “Blåtand” Gormsson was a King of Denmark and Norway who lived during the 10th century AD. He was responsible for the unification of Denmark. Following this feat, Harald set his sights beyond...
Odin, the high god of Norse mythology, rode his eight-legged horse Sleipnir through the nine worlds dispensing ecstasy to all those who invoked him. Now an image of a man with a horse depicted on a...
New research has found that ancient Scandinavians drank alcohol made from a combination of barley, honey, cranberries, herbs and grape wine. Dogfish Head Craft Brewery have now recreated the Nordic...
A new study which will be published in the new issues of the Journal of Archaeological Science has revealed that a set of Viking graves uncovered in Norway in the early 1980s contained the remains of...