Fur & Feathers

Fur & Feathers

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This article's completion rating is 1 out of 5. Article planned for future work. No real progress to date.

We have a few good literary sources describing the kinds of furs traded during the Viking Age.

• The Voyage of Ohthere from King Alfred's Orosius. Othere was from Halgoland and traded via Hedeby to London. He described the tribute paid to him by the Finlanders as:
  

"Everyone pays according to his substance; the wealthiest many amongst them pays only the skins of fifteen martens, five reindeer skins, one bear's skin, ten bushels of feathers, a cloak of bear's or otter's skin, two ship-ropes (each sixty ells long), one made of whale's and the other of seal's skin." [HAKLUYT 1893:p.178]

Owen-Crocker describes the Finlanders tribute as "bear or otter skin cyrtles" [OWEN-CROCKER 1998:p36]

• Al-Mukaddasi, Shams Al-Deen Abu Abdallah. 985AD "fur of steppe foxes, martens, foxes, beavers, spotted hares and goats" HOWARD-JOHNSTON 1998:p.69]

A few archeological sites have turned up a number of finds of fur.

• Birka, Sweden: 90 fragments of fur and 100 feathers [HAGG 1986:p.52] were found. Geijer reports of the following types of fur being found: Squirrel (grave 507), Marten (grave 557), Beaver (graves 539, 619, 956, 968). These pieces for fur were probably used as decoration on womens clothing. [GEIJER 1983: p.133] [HAGG 1986: p. 65]
  

Bear

Art
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Literature

• The Voyage of Ohthere: a cloak of bear's or otter's skin

Archaeology
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Discussion
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Beaver

Art
--
Literature

• The Voyage of Ohthere
• Al-Mukaddasi

Archaeology

• Birka, Sweden: Beaver (graves 539, 619, 956, 968)

Discussion
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Boar

Art
--
Literature
--
Archaeology

• Birka, Sweden: The boar bristles found in grave 739 were probably from a brush. [GEIJER 1983: p.133]

Discussion
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Goats

Art
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Literature

• Al-Mukaddasi

Archaeology
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Discussion
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Martin

Art
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Literature

• The Voyage of Ohthere
• Al-Mukaddasi
• Doomsday book. 1086AD. Mentions martin skins being imported into Chester [OWEN-CROCKER 1998:p36]

Archaeology

• Birka, Sweden: Marten (grave 557)

Discussion
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Otter

Art
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Literature

• The Voyage of Ohthere

Archaeology
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Discussion
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Reindeer

Art
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Literature

• The Voyage of Ohthere

Archaeology
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Discussion
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Art
--
Literature

• The Voyage of Ohthere from King Alfred's Orosius. Othere was from Halgoland and traded via Hedeby to London. He described the tribute paid to him by the Finlanders as:
  

"Everyone pays according to his substance; the wealthiest many amongst them pays only the skins of fifteen martens, five reindeer skins, one bear's skin, ten bushels of feathers, a cloak of bear's or otter's skin, two ship-ropes (each sixty ells long), one made of whale's and the other of seal's skin." [HAKLUYT 1893:p.178]

Owen-Crocker describes the Finlanders tribute as "bear or otter skin cyrtles" [OWEN-CROCKER 1998:p36]

• Doomsday book. 1086AD. Mentions martin skins being imported into Chester [OWEN-CROCKER 1998:p36]
• Al-Mukaddasi, Shams Al-Deen Abu Abdallah. 985AD "fur of steppe foxes, martens, foxes, beavers, spotted hares and goats" HOWARD-JOHNSTON 1998:p.69]

Archaeology

• Birka, Sweden: Geijer reports of the following types of fur being found: Squirrel (grave 507), Marten (grave 557), Beaver (graves 539, 619, 956, 968). These pieces for fur were probably used as decoration on womens clothing. [GEIJER 1983: p.133] [HAGG 1986: p. 65]
  

Unspun sheeps fleece, probably from a sheepskin blanket, was found in two further graves (731, 942)

The boar bristles found in grave 739 were probably from a brush. [GEIJER 1983: p.133]

Discussion
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Feathers

Art
--
Literature
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Archaeology

• Birka, Sweden: Feathers or downs were found in 2 graves (597 duck, 825) [GEIJER 1938: p.133]

Discussion
--

References

<nocite> GEIJER1938 HAGG1986 HAKLUYT1893 </nocite> <biblio force=false>#Template:Bib</biblio>