Drinking Horn / Terminal
This object is the gilt bronze terminal of a drinking horn, shaped as a cone ending in a ball.1 Housed at the National Museums Scotland, this terminal was found as part of a burial on the Orkney Islands off of Scotland.2 Also found in the burial were several other metal objects, including fragments of an iron knife and an iron sickle-blade. This grave was one of several excavated at Links of Pierowall, Westray, Orkney, and this drinking-horn terminal has been dated between 850-950 C.E.
It is decorated with lines, dots, and other geometric designs, which, when viewed from the angle in the image, look like a face.3 Decorating objects with animals was not uncommon for Norse goods and other examples have been found of objects terminating in animal faces.4
This drinking-horn terminal is significant because of its location and origin.
As Scandinavians reclaimed their "viking heritage" in the 1700's and 1800's, drinking horns were often used as a symbol of the romantic Norse past.5 However, this drinking horn terminal is, unlike the deceptive horned helmet, definitely part of real Scandinavian history. But the question remains, if it was Norse, what was it doing all the way in Scotland?
There is actually significant evidence that the residents of the Orkneys at the beginning of the viking age (the Picts) were overrun by the invaders. Because of the geography of the area (the Orkneys are the first land in between Scandinavia and Western Europe and provided a natural stopping point for Norse voyagers), the Norse actually formed significant settlements there earlier than in other parts of Europe. The context of this drinking horn could clearly indicate this settling. This burial (one of many in the area) with significant grave goods indicates that Norse people didn't just pass through raiding, but created lives outside of Scandinavia.
It is decorated with lines, dots, and other geometric designs, which, when viewed from the angle in the image, look like a face.3 Decorating objects with animals was not uncommon for Norse goods and other examples have been found of objects terminating in animal faces.4
This drinking-horn terminal is significant because of its location and origin.
As Scandinavians reclaimed their "viking heritage" in the 1700's and 1800's, drinking horns were often used as a symbol of the romantic Norse past.5 However, this drinking horn terminal is, unlike the deceptive horned helmet, definitely part of real Scandinavian history. But the question remains, if it was Norse, what was it doing all the way in Scotland?
There is actually significant evidence that the residents of the Orkneys at the beginning of the viking age (the Picts) were overrun by the invaders. Because of the geography of the area (the Orkneys are the first land in between Scandinavia and Western Europe and provided a natural stopping point for Norse voyagers), the Norse actually formed significant settlements there earlier than in other parts of Europe. The context of this drinking horn could clearly indicate this settling. This burial (one of many in the area) with significant grave goods indicates that Norse people didn't just pass through raiding, but created lives outside of Scandinavia.
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