The Vikings are considered to be some of the most savage barbarians to ever exist in the old world. Known for their immense strength, both alone and in numbers, the Vikings were feared for many years throughout the world. However, this was not the only thing that the Vikings did during their time on the planet. They also created wonderful works of art that, unfortunately, went unnoticed for many, many years. The Vikings had six unique art styles that they created through the entirety of their reign of pillaging and vandalism, each of which varied in intricacy and style but kept the same in general feel of their culture throughout the entirety of its time in Vikings history.The first style that will be explored is known as “Oseberg”. This style was prominent throughout the ninth century. The characteristics of this early style are animal designs that were carved around the frame work of the object it was on. There is a gripping beast motif in all of these pieces, showing its prominence in the culture. This particular art style lasted for 150 years in the Norse, Viking, artistic history. The styles that followed were influenced by the overall look from the Oseberg style and carried this animal like appearance for the remainder of the Norse Viking people’s history. This easily made it the most important, or at least, the most influential style during these time periods.
The next style was called Borre. It was named after some bridal mounts that were found on a burial ship in Borre, Norway. This, of course, influenced how the pieces were designed and crafted for their specific purposes throughout the Vikings lives. The Oseberg and Jelling, another one of the Vikings’ styles, styles from the Viking age were also prominent during the time Borre was seen in the culture. This caused it to have attributes from both of the other styles. Aspects from Oseberg can be seen in this style, such as the gripping beast. Although, it is slightly altered to fit this style, such as having a cat-like head, rounded eyes and protruding ears, for example. This style, like Jelling, has many similarities that are noticeable when looked upon.
The Jelling style first appeared around the tenth century and did not start to disappear for roughly seventy-five years. This was a way more stylized look than the traditional Viking art design. This style was sometimes accentuated with that of Borre on the same project that would be created. The style still held the animal like look to it but in a far more curving and winding sense as opposed to that of the previous two styles. Unfortunately, there is not very much information on this particular style from the time period due to the fact that it was a part of another style primarily.
Mammen’s creation, the next art style, can be credited to the Jelling style of which it was inspired by. This style was very popular during the latter part of the tenth century. Inspired by an ax head with similar designs, this style has foliated and animal patterns throughout the entirety of its design. This design would also begin the continuation of a foliage design throughout the art works that would follow. The intricacy of this style is what separates it from the other artistic styles among the Viking population. This style had a very royal design quality about it, meaning there was more clean details to the overall look. Making it almost a richer design compared to the grounded look of the others. Like Borre, this style was also named after the ax head it was inspired by and borrowed very heavily from the initial designs.
By the first half of the eleventh century, the culture created the next art style known as Ringerike. This style became a major part of the prominent runestones that were seen everywhere during this time. The animals that were painted onto these runestones were more snake-like and had almond shaped eyes. Borrowing heavily from the stylized style of Jelling. Between all of the styles listed thus far, this style is the simplest from the time. Instead of being a work of art carved or sculpted, it is etched or painted onto a stone. This would have made it simpler to design and would also have made it easier to do large quantities of these Runestones prints throughout the entire time they were used.
The final style from the Viking time period is known as Urnes. This style was between the year 1050 up until the twelfth century and got its name from a church in Norway. This style was made from wooden panels that were carved to have long, sinewy animals that appeared to have dog like creatures battling a serpent creature. This style kept the beast motif like the others but lost the foliation design element. This style was found more on churches and other respectable establishments as opposed to just lying around a Viking home.
In conclusion, the Vikings had many varying art styles through multiple centuries. However, throughout all of these centuries there was many elements that remained the same and were just adapted to the style it was being used with. The Vikings kept their art styles within the same realm of each other because it is of their beliefs, unfortunately for future generations, this a minor part of their culture. However, many great things could be learned from studying the intricate designs that they carved or painted onto their day to day objects. The Norse Vikings had an attention to details that would not be often highlighted about their culture. All of the designs listed are very intricately crafted, whether it is for a ship, a box, or just a nice design on a stone. A graphic designer today could learn so much from the many designs used by these people, as to further their work in the arts. The Norse arts should be explored far more than they have been because of the uniqueness that was involved in their crafting.