Viking Blood

Viking Blood: Premodern Scandinavia and Thereafter

What did blood mean to the vikings, and what work did (and does) it do?
It is perhaps no surprise that blood was a powerful medium in Viking Age and Medieval Scandinavia. Blood has remarkable physical properties—its colors, temperatures, smells, tastes, and consistencies are unique and strange—and a deep connection to human and animal life and death.

This lecture follows blood’s paths in epic and praise poetry, sagas, learned literature, and art from the Scandinavian Middle Ages. By the 15th century, blood had begun its grim career as a signifier of a distinction among people, that of race. The lecture will conclude by touching on its role in 20th century racist and antifeminist ideas about medieval Scandinavia, and in our own ideas of “the Viking.”