Human and Non-Human Animals: Twisting ‘The Animal Turn’ in Viking-Age Scandinavia

Human and Non-Human Animals: Twisting ‘The Animal Turn’ in Viking-Age Scandinavia

Animal-style art of the early medieval period has been described as one of Scandinavia’s greatest contributions to world art history. As “the animal turn” and a posthuman interest in animals currently is being touted globally across many domains of art and archaeology, the emphasis on animals in this art seems opportune. Yet, I complicate the “animal turn” by highlighting overlooked depictions of humans—including heroes and deities in human form—as well as hybrid forms that may express fluidity between human and non-human animals. As part of my overall exploration of people and personhood in this northern culture that is largely proto-historic, I examine the personal agency of artists and their patrons as well as the consumers (users) of their products. Limited contemporaneous inscriptions and later medieval Old Icelandic literature assist us in filling in some gaps in what we know about personhood and individuals—including named human and non-human animals (especially horses) and objects (particularly weapons)—to bring attention to the roles of people, animals, and things in this art.

Nancy L. Wicker is Professor of Art History at The University of Mississippi, where she focuses on art of Scandinavia from the Migration Period (c. 450–550) through the Viking Age (c. 750–1100). Fellowships from the National Humanities Center, the American Council of Learned Societies, and the National Endowment for the Humanities have supported her research on jewelry techniques, female infanticide, and runic literacy. Funded by NEH and Kress Foundation digital art history grants, she co-directs Project Andvari, which promotes access to northern European images. She participated in archaeological excavations at the UNESCO Heritage Viking trading center of Birka in Sweden and has co-edited three volumes on gender archaeology. Wicker was a Visiting Professor at Uppsala University and is an elected member of the Philosophical-Historical Section of the Royal Society of Humanities at Uppsala and of the Internationales Sachsen Symposion, a research network for the archaeological study of peoples of northern Europe.