The Viking World: A History in ObjectsMain MenuGallery viewA galleryTag Cloudtag cloud pageThemesA path of thematic categoriesAuthor IndexExplore the collection by authorWorks CitedReferencesAdam Bigelow3afa9c7ecebf516bba6609664b1b12f79c54bf77Caitlin Donahue61b7e986e7c71d400e5c803912ed83c0cf65252fCaroline Harvey1783f21a5882b5b4d3d0b6c174d058052a5ff7eaEdward Hershewee701ef220480b51ca728fc9c719bc094cf813655Martin Hoffmana1fd203afd9a84ee8db567e188cf6ed1d269386eTyler Hruby23493f763b312110686cfafc62578fd0ab5f3833Brittany N. Johnsonc1c1763339f8fa953e3c907c6bb8a3bad0c28b2cCarlos Lua Pineda0a28cc23b0aa00b4f24a9e205aeb57fbdb07ff01Moira McConnell710633400590ea38533ea3412c01fc5056288180Clara McCurdy9aec76477d0b55f9c685c47330d6786ec98182e1Elise McIlhaneyef48481634ff342c8b43c9d56f678b2d3562fb69Cameron Meikle669a5682bfbfd603130a26e25628f24eb07e6295Alexander Christopher Newkirk019c2f5b38c043507251d1789e2fdf47e61c3b7fBenja Reilly816c23aa0d444213fb2d1ef33555a15617e08228Oliver Statenc625ae8c3926f5e1a4268bc91d6a6f4cdb1e7fb6Liam Sullivanaa3a1dccb90c7fe4646b61c4af594abbb0c5574aRead Wilder31bf4715220144a665996f2e6cae80a1a8611eadAliza Yazdanicd49f227d88c72331226ddf574bf56c37308cd10Austin Masonf6137011c68eb792c6e14634815583b15e707dea
Weathered Bone Die
12017-05-28T14:08:52-07:00Brittany N. Johnsonc1c1763339f8fa953e3c907c6bb8a3bad0c28b2c164561a weathered bone die with markings still visibleplain2017-05-28T14:08:52-07:00Brittany N. Johnsonc1c1763339f8fa953e3c907c6bb8a3bad0c28b2c
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12017-05-28T14:14:32-07:00Weathered Bone Die6object pageplain2017-09-17T15:09:29-07:00Dice are important to our understanding of Scandinavian life because it implies the existence of something that was previously unavailable for large portions of the viking world – leisure time. Dice, as well as other game pieces, indicate that an increasing amount of people had segments of time they could devote to learning and playing a variety of games that required various accoutrements, as well as crafting these pieces. Leisure time would probably have been reserved for the coldest months of winter when people were unable to farm and less likely to leave their homes for hunting.[1]
The concentric rings that denote face value are a design also found on other examples of viking-age dice.[2] The die itself is made of bone – a common material for many viking age objects, or at least a material that survived well. It’s possible that dice and another gaming materials could have been made from wood or other mediums that did not survive as well. This particular die was likely lost accidentally or thrown out after splintering or cracking. This die was found on Öland, one of the largest Swedish islands, but the context of its finding is unknown.
Although a small find, this die points to a culture that was far more complex than pillaging and swilling mead. The game piece implies time and labor leftover after survival to create activities of leisure, and the fact that leisure exists reveals to us that viking life was, sometimes at least, peaceful.