Vegvísir is one of many magical staves used commonly in Iceland for protection, healing, or luck during the middle ages and later. The images of these staves are preserved in a number of grimoires dating from the 17th century and on.

The origin of this particular type of magic is not know, although some of the staves bear similarities to Norse runic culture. Each symbol has a specific meaning relevant to the worries of Icelanders at the time.

Vegvísir is said to protect the bearer from harsh weather.

(Source: galdrasyning.is)

New archaeological evidence points to a previously unknown Viking exploration of Notre Dame Bay in Newfoundland, Canada.

Archaeologists even suggest that the voyage, which lead from L’Anse aux Meadows and deep into the bay, may have lead to the first contact between Vikings and Native Americans.

The evidence for this comes largely from two jasper artifacts used by the Norse to start fires. The artifacts themselves were found at L’Anse aux Meadows close to a known Viking site, but chemical analysis suggests they originated in the Notre Dame Bay some 140 miles away.

(Source: livescience.com)

Last month the Finnish Defense Forces made live an online archive of 160,000 WWII era photographs.

Taken between 1939-1945, the photographs document all three conflicts that Finland was involved in during this time (the Winter War, Continuation War, and Lapland War). They include images like the above Finnish soldier with a pack reindeer, the aftermath of battles, and Hitler’s only visit to Finland.

(Source: The Atlantic)

Mímir, or Mim, is a Norse god associated with wisdom.

At the end of the Æsir-Vanir War Mímir was beheaded. Odin preserved his head and carried it with him in order to hear Mímir’s wisdom and counsel. 

[Picture: Odin approaching Mímir beneath Yggdrasil.]

The Greater Wrath (“Isoviha” in Finnish) is a term used to refer to the Russian invasion and occupation of Finland from 1714-1721; a part of the Great Northern War (1700-21).

During the period of occupation Finland was governed by military authority. Resistance movements cropped up in the form of partisan warfare, but in response Russian authorities forced Finnish peasants to pay heavy reparations to the occupying forces. The period is marked by plundering, looting, and forced deportation. Potentially tens of thousands of Finns were taken for slave labor in Russia, few of which returned. Most of Finland’s clergy and nobility fled to Sweden, leaving peasants to fend for themselves.

An estimated 60,000 Finns were killed or forced into slavery.

The occupation was finally ended with the Treaty of Nystad in 1721, which handed over Swedish Estonia, Livonia, and a portion of Southeastern Finland to Russia.

[Picture: Finnish painter Albert Edelfelt’s “Isoviha”.]

Dorothea of Saxe-Lauenberg (1511-71) was the wife of Christian III of Denmark. She was a woman of very strong opinion and considerable influence.

In 1540, Dorothea assisted in freeing Birgitte Gøye from her forced engagement, which lead to a law banning arranged marriages for minors. She is said to have helped negotiate the Treaty of Speyer between Denmark and the Holy Roman Empire in 1544.

After Christian III’s death, she repeatedly criticized his successor, her son, Frederik II, and plotted an arranged marriage between her younger son and a princess of Sweden. For this Frederik labeled her a traitor and had her exiled to Sønderborg Castle, where she remained until her death.

Pictured here is the only known 3D representation of a Valkyrie, discovered by an amateur metal detectorist near Hårby, Denmark in December.

The figurine is described as “thumb-size”, made from gilded silver with black niello inlay. It is believed to date to 800CE. Previously, small flat images of women believed to be Valkyries have been discovered at Viking age sites, but this figurine is completely unique. 

In 1803 Denmark-Norway became the first European country to ban the slave trade.

Frederik VI decreed, in the name of his father King Christian VII, a ban on the trade, but not the ownership, of slaves in 1792 which came into full effect in 1803. Slavery itself was not abolished until 1848. 

At this time Iceland was a part of Denmark-Norway. Slavery had been banned in Iceland in 1117 and the practice never resumed despite its legality while a part of Denmark-Norway. France was the first European country to abolish slavery in 1794, but Napoleon made it legal again in 1802.

[Image: Drawing of Fort Christianborg, now called Osu Castle, in Ghana, a center of the Danish slave trade.]

It is well known that Viking explorers used the sun and stars to navigate across open seas, but what did they do when the sun and stars weren’t visible? For centuries legends have told of various tools that Vikings used to help navigate, among them the fabled Sunstone. Now, researchers believe they have finally found one of these stones. 

Until recently, nothing was found among Viking artifacts that matched descriptions from the sagas. However, researchers now believe the mythical sunstone was a calcite-like crystal known as Iceland spar. After extensive tests, researchers now believe that this crystal can be used as an incredibly accurate navigational aid.

Fragments of Iceland spar were first found, or first recognized, in Icelandic Viking settlements only last year.

(Source: independent.co.uk)

Measuring 7 meters high and 45 in diameter, the Håga burial mound in Uppsala, Sweden is the largest built by Nordic Bronze Age cultures.

Built in 1000 BCE, the mound was constructed above a wooden chamber containing an oaken coffin with the cremated remains of a man. Also within the coffin were found several well-preserved Bronze Age artifacts, including a sword, razor, and buttons. The site was excavated in 1902-03 and the findings stored at the Swedish Museum of National Antiquities. 

On 3 September 1967 Sweden officially switched from driving on the left- to the right-hand side of the road. 

This day is usually referred to as Högertrafikomläggningen (“The right-hand traffic diversion”), or H Day. Prior to this day Swedes drove on the left-hand side of the road, just like modern day England, but all of their immediate neighbors drove on the right-hand side. This caused numerous traffic accidents each year, particularly along the Norwegian-Swedish border.

On this day all non-essential traffic was banned from 1-6:00 AM, with all vehicles brought to a stop at 4:50 and carefully switched  from the left to right sides of the road. In major cities such as Stockholm and Malmo the ban lasted longer to allow work crews to adjust major intersections. 

Ja, Vi Elsker Dette Landet (“Yes, we love this land”) is currently considered Norway’s de facto national anthem. 

The lyrics were written by Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson, and the melody by his cousin Rikard Nordraak some time in the 1860s. The song was first performed on 17 May 1864, the 50th anniversary of Norway’s constitution. 

The song holds no official standing as a national anthem, and for a long time was used alongside Sønner av Norge at official functions. However, the 1994 song Mitt Lille Land by Ole Paus has been gaining popularity since 2011, with some calling it a “new national anthem”.

Lalli is a figure out of Finnish history and legend. He appeared around the time of the Swedish crusades that eventually lead to Finland coming under Swedish rule.

According to the legend, Lalli is responsible for the murder and martyrdom of Bishop Henrik of Uppsala. When Lalli returned home one day and learned from his wife that the bishop had been there and left without paying for his food or drink he became enraged. Furious, he followed the bishop and attacked him. Lalli decapitated Henrik with an axe and stole his hat and ring. However, when he put them on, the hat and ring became fused to Lalli’s skin, and when he tried to remove them tore off his scalp and finger. He then drowned in lake Köyliönjärvi.

According to the bishop’s wishes, Lalli’s remains were gathered and loaded onto oxen, where the oxen stopped is said to be the site of the first church in Finland. 

Bishop Henrik has never been officially canonized, but he is widely recognized as a saint regardless; the first Finnish saint.

Stave churches were built throughout Scandinavia in the middle ages. Stave churches are unique for being constructed entirely of wood. So far, 1300 stave churches have been indexed, but only about thirty remain today, all but one in Norway.

Of the few remaining, Urnes Stave Church is considered one of the finest examples. Built in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, this church was named a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1979.