Viking Portrait Revealed: Depicted as a Exuberant "Beard Stroker"
In a groundbreaking study published in the journal Medieval Archaeology, curator Peter Pentz has analysed a recently rediscovered gaming piece that offers insights into the significance of facial hair and gestures in the Viking era.
The gaming piece, which dates back to the second half of the 10th century CE, was originally discovered in a burial mound of a Viking warrior in Norway in 1796. It remained unnoticed in the collections of the Danish National Museum for several centuries until it was rediscovered by curator Peter Pentz.
The gaming piece, which is a possible king piece from the ancient chess-like game of hnefatafl, is the subject of the study. The figure in the gaming piece sports a center parting, sideburns, a well-groomed moustache that twists upwards above the mouth, a trimmed goatee, and a single braided plait for a beard. This is the first time a figure of a male Viking with his hair visible from all angles has been seen.
Pentz suggests that the figure may be a miniature bust and possibly the first portrait of a Viking. He also proposes that the gesture of beard stroking in the Viking realm may have been a demonstration of kingly power and male vigor.
Intriguingly, Pentz suggests that the image of a king masturbating, as depicted in the gaming piece, was not considered grotesque in Viking times. However, the study interprets the beard-stroking figurines as potential symbols of royal power rather than as masturbators.
Pentz writes that beard references in Norse sagas and poetry often functioned as indications of a healthy male, sexual potency, and martial strength. He further proposes that facial hair functioned as a proxy penis in the Viking era.
The study sheds light on the significance of the beard-stroking gesture in the Viking era, particularly in the context of power and masculinity. The author acknowledges that the interpretation of the beard-stroking figurines as sexual metaphors might seem dubious or bizarre to modern audiences.
The study offers an alternative interpretation of the beard-stroking gesture, viewing it as an overtly sexually charged gesture in the Viking era. This groundbreaking research adds a new layer to our understanding of the Viking culture and their unique expressions of power and masculinity.
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