Well-dressed in the Viking Age

Well-dressed Vikings – what did they look like?

Most people today have an idea of what the Vikings looked like. But we actually know very little about what the Vikings wore and how they dressed.

Over time, archaeologists have found several textile and fur remains, but few complete garments. The knowledge we have is therefore limited and mainly relates to preserved archaeological finds from graves belonging to the upper classes of Viking society.

But how did Vikings from different social classes actually dress?

A team of researchers is now trying to find out. They are doing this by examining preserved textile remains, but also by examining images and written sources about Viking clothing styles.

Based on the new knowledge, they will reconstruct a man’s and a woman’s costume and compile a costume catalog that presents the latest suggestions for different clothing in the Viking Age.

Textile remains from Hvilehøjgraven. Photo: The National Museum of Denmark (CR).

The Vikings of Sagnlandet are updated

The project ‘Well-dressed in the Viking Age’ is led by senior researcher Ulla Mannering from the National Museum of Denmark in collaboration with Sagnlandet Lejre and the Center for Textile Research at the University of Copenhagen.

The project will benefit Sagnlandet Lejre’s living interpretation, as in the future it will be possible to give visitors a more nuanced insight into the Viking Age wardrobe as it might have looked about 1000 years ago.

The research project is funded by a grant of DKK 5.5 million from the Velux Foundation.

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