Vikings were fierce raiders and skilled explorers, trading fur, timber, metal goods and slaves captured during raids. Viking trading towns, such as Hedeby in Denmark, served as trade crossroads. Traders from as far as Baghdad visited, exchanging goods like wine, bronze, iron and glassware. Vikings also traded slaves, primarily Slavic people captured in raids, for Arabic silver and gold. This extensive trade influenced many European languages, where the word for ‘slave’ originates from ‘Slav’.
SOURCE2 A modern artist’s reconstruction of a Danish trading centre
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A Longhouses had an earth floor and a thatch or turf roof. Animals and food stores were kept at one end in winter. Wealthy families may have had a table, storage chests, stools, oil lamps and wall tapestries. B Women spun wool from sheep and goats into cloth on wooden looms. Vegetable juices and minerals were used to dye the cloth. C Meat and fish were preserved by being smoked or pickled in salt. Bread, made from ground grain, was baked in clay ovens. D Iron weapons and tools were made and repaired in the blacksmith’s barn. Sometimes steel (made by adding carbon to molten iron) was welded onto weapons such as axes to make them stronger. E At the markets, merchants might trade silks from China and glassware from Italy for farm produce or artefacts. Artefacts might include combs (made from deer antlers), skates and musical instruments (made from animal bones), cups (made from cow horns), silver jewellery and tapestries. F When not working, many Vikings passed the time wrestling, swimming, skiing, playing a board game called hnefnatafl (abit like chess), and listening to the sagas told by storytellers. G The Vikings were experts at building both warships and trading vessels. H Men wore a woollen undershirt and leggings under a belted tunic or coat. Like women, they wore woollen or fur hats, woollen socks and soft leather shoes or boots. Women wore a long linen shift under a woollen tunic, clipped at the shoulders by two brooches. I To keep clean, Vikings visited the sauna every few days. They sat in a small, enclosed shelter and threw cold water on very hot stones. The steam opened the pores of the skin, helped by slaps from small birch or pine tree branches. Once hot and sweaty, people dived into a nearby source of ice-cold water.
186 Jacaranda Humanities Alive 8 Victorian Curriculum Third Edition
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