Student uncovers ‘rare’ Viking treasures with metal detector
Den-mark’s the spot.
A young archeology student in the Scandinavian nation discovered seven “spectacular” silver artifacts significant to the Viking rule of centuries past, The Associated Press reported.
The Danish Moesgaard Museum announced Monday that 22-year-old researcher Gustav Bruunsgaard found seven silver arm rings — a material significant to Viking currency circa 800 Common Era — in the city of Aarhus earlier this year.
Three of them, found in a Viking stronghold during its time, were described by the institution as “rare.”
Bruunsgaard discovered them using a metal detector.
These bands, which weigh more than a pound in total, also have incredibly unique histories and global ties.
One of the silver craft’s origins was a Viking settlement in modern-day Russia and Ukraine which had its style spread and copied in the Nordic area.
Another trio of the bands were called “rare” for lacking ornamentation in design, they are from both Scandinavia and England.
The others are common to southern Scandinavia and likely Denmark. All the artifacts displayed “the owner’s financial ability,” per the museum.
This discovery also further puts the nation on the Viking map.
“The find emphasizes that Aarhus was a central hub in the Viking world,” said museum historian Kasper H. Andersen.
Experts who traced the armbands’ existence back to around 800 CE noted that this was the early days of the Viking empire, which survived until approximately 1066 — the same year William the Conqueror invaded England from Normandy.
