Medieval History
A sensational find at the bottom of an ancient rubbish heap in Greenland suggests that Vikings grew barley on the island 1,000 years ago.
The Vikings are both famous and notorious for their like of beer and mead, and archaeologists have discussed for years whether Eric the Red (ca. 950-1010) and his followers had to make do without the golden drink when they settled in Greenland around the year 1,000.
The Greenland climate was mild when they landed, but was it warm enough for growing corn?
Researchers from the National Museum in Copenhagen say the answer to the question is ?yes?. In a unique find, they uncovered very small pieces of charred grains of barley in a Viking rubbish heap on Greenland.
The find is final proof that the first Vikings to live in Greenland did grow barley ? the most important ingredient in brewing beer, making a form of porridge or baking bread, traditionally seen as staple foods in the Vikings? nutritional diet.
?Archaeologists have always believed that the Vikings tried to cultivate the soil on their farms in fertile southern Greenland,? says Peter Steen Henriksen, who holds an MSc in agriculture. ?But this hasn?t been proved until now.?
Click here to read this article from ScienceNordic
Click here to see our feature on Vikings in Greenland
- Bornais Finds Shed Light On Iron Age And Viking Life
Powerful figures from the late Iron Age through to the end of the Vikings were drawn to a sandy plain on South Uist, according to archaeologists. Bornais, on the west side of the island, has the remains of a large farmstead and a major Norse settlement....
- Vikings Not Alone When They Crossed The North Atlantic ? Mice Hitched A Ride Too
New research has revealed that when the Vikings sailed across the North Atlantic to places like Iceland, Greenland and Newfoundland, they brought with them the common house mouse. An international team of researchers from the UK, USA, Iceland, Denmark...
- The Vikings: Victims And Victors
It's ironic that we remember the Vikings best for one small failure -- their frozen far-north Greenland colony. We should instead be praising the Vikings for struggling through the cold and stormy Dark Ages, for designing those fabulous dragon ships,...
- Climate Helped Drive Vikings From Greenland
The end of the Norse settlements on Greenland likely will remain shrouded in mystery. While there is scant written evidence of the colony?s demise in the 14th and early 15th centuries, archaeological remains can fill some of the blanks, but not all. What...
- Medieval News
Knights Templar to Seek Traces of Order's Members in Bulgaria Hot on the trail of Genghis Khan Silver Medieval Brooch City?s medieval walls to be lit up Fant Kongsgården på Borre Proof of Liverpool's Viking past Ancient Greenland mystery has...
Medieval History
Vikings grew barley in Greenland
The Vikings are both famous and notorious for their like of beer and mead, and archaeologists have discussed for years whether Eric the Red (ca. 950-1010) and his followers had to make do without the golden drink when they settled in Greenland around the year 1,000.
The Greenland climate was mild when they landed, but was it warm enough for growing corn?
Researchers from the National Museum in Copenhagen say the answer to the question is ?yes?. In a unique find, they uncovered very small pieces of charred grains of barley in a Viking rubbish heap on Greenland.
The find is final proof that the first Vikings to live in Greenland did grow barley ? the most important ingredient in brewing beer, making a form of porridge or baking bread, traditionally seen as staple foods in the Vikings? nutritional diet.
?Archaeologists have always believed that the Vikings tried to cultivate the soil on their farms in fertile southern Greenland,? says Peter Steen Henriksen, who holds an MSc in agriculture. ?But this hasn?t been proved until now.?
Click here to read this article from ScienceNordic
Click here to see our feature on Vikings in Greenland
Peter Steen Henriksen Nordboernes agerbrug i groenland
View more presentations from Association of Danish Museums / Organisationen Danske Museer
- Bornais Finds Shed Light On Iron Age And Viking Life
Powerful figures from the late Iron Age through to the end of the Vikings were drawn to a sandy plain on South Uist, according to archaeologists. Bornais, on the west side of the island, has the remains of a large farmstead and a major Norse settlement....
- Vikings Not Alone When They Crossed The North Atlantic ? Mice Hitched A Ride Too
New research has revealed that when the Vikings sailed across the North Atlantic to places like Iceland, Greenland and Newfoundland, they brought with them the common house mouse. An international team of researchers from the UK, USA, Iceland, Denmark...
- The Vikings: Victims And Victors
It's ironic that we remember the Vikings best for one small failure -- their frozen far-north Greenland colony. We should instead be praising the Vikings for struggling through the cold and stormy Dark Ages, for designing those fabulous dragon ships,...
- Climate Helped Drive Vikings From Greenland
The end of the Norse settlements on Greenland likely will remain shrouded in mystery. While there is scant written evidence of the colony?s demise in the 14th and early 15th centuries, archaeological remains can fill some of the blanks, but not all. What...
- Medieval News
Knights Templar to Seek Traces of Order's Members in Bulgaria Hot on the trail of Genghis Khan Silver Medieval Brooch City?s medieval walls to be lit up Fant Kongsgården på Borre Proof of Liverpool's Viking past Ancient Greenland mystery has...