Experts believe that it was originally crafted in Byzantium or Egypt, and that it potentially proves that Vikings had notable connections to the Mediterranean area.
The find is currently part of an exhibition in Denmark National Museum’s Viking exhibition “Togtet” (Eng. The Cruise), which is dedicated to Viking travels to the Middle East.
Likely part of a pair
The earing is likely part of a pair, but researchers have not yet made any similar discoveries of another earing in the area.
“It is completely unique to us, we only know of 10 to 12 other specimens in the whole world, and we have never found one in Scandinavia before,” Peter Pentz, an inspector at the National Museum Denmark, said, according to the Daily Mail.
“We had expected to find such a fine and invaluable piece of jewelry like this together with a large gold treasure or in a royal tomb and not on a random field in Bøvling.”
The earring is currently being cleaned by experts. Photo: Nationalmuseet / Facebook
Special style
The find includes a crescent-shaped gold plate inserted in a frame made of gold threads and decorated with small gold balls and ribbons.
Its crescent-shaped plate is covered with enamel, and its decoration includes two stylized birds around a tree or a plant, which could symbolize the tree of life.
Jewelry of this type was popular in Muslim Egypt, Syria, Byzantium, and Russia.
According to experts, in terms of style, it’s similar to the famed Dagmark cross – an old Byzantine relic, the Viking Herald reports.
Both the earring and the cross are believed to date from the Viking Age or the earliest Middle Ages. Furthermore, researchers believe they weren’t traded – they were likely donated by important figures.
A gift to a Viking warrior?
The earring itself was found in a field near Bøvling in West Jutland. One possible explanation for how the piece of jewelry got there is related to the fact that that many Viking warriors went into war service for the Byzantine emperor, who is known to have had a bodyguard consisting of Scandinavian warriors.
Several Icelandic sagas show that Viking mercenaries returned to their home countries with precious materials and weapons. Furthermore, it is believed that the emperor bestowed valuable gifts to his bodyguard from time to time.
So, such earrings could have been a personal gift by the emperor to a trusted Viking warrior in the bodyguard.
Astrid Toftdal Jensen, an inspector at Holstebro Museum, believes the discovery of the earing confirms that West Jutland has had strong connections around the world.
Source: #Norway Today
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