The Ysby Thor's Hammer and its Striking Resemblance to the Hedeby Thor's Hammer

 Please examine the photograph of a newly discovered Thor's Hammer pendant from the site of an archaeological excavation at Ysby in Halland, Sweden in 2022, which was widely reported in professional journals and the Miami Herald in October of that year.

                                                     Image courtesy of Radio Sweden

The photograph shows the hammer after it had been cleaned up. It is approximately 3cm in height and cast from lead. Although made from the most humble of metals it may have very well been gilded in silver or gold.

I would now like you to see an image of a Thor's Hammer discovered in modern day Hedeby in Germany. I am unable to glean exactly when it was discovered but I am led to believe that it was either in the 1950s or the 1970s. I have owned a bronze version of this hammer since the late 1990s and currently wear a stainless steel version, manufactured in Germany, and purchased by me well over 5 years ago.

The original, as pictured, was cast in silver. Modern reproductions of this hammer are available in gold, silver, bronze, pewter, stainless steel and zinc alloy.

Below is a photograph I have taken of my stainless steel version, which shows the detail with far more precision than my bronze copy.

My readers will note that this is one of the few historical hammers which depict a human face, which by process of deduction must be assumed to be that of the god, Thor, not Odin as some sellers on 'Etsy' have incorrectly suggested! This adds an extra layer of sacrality to the amulet. On the head of the hammer is found an 'infinity knot' with three circles. The design is the same on both sides on the original and on modern reproductions.

My question is this: why do we find the same design of hammer in both Germany/Denmark and Sweden? Are there any other original examples in existence? I would appear to be the very first researcher to have publicly identified the similarity in design of both hammers.

During the 8th to the 11th centuries Hedeby, or to give it its Danish name, Haithabu was an important trading centre on the southern end of the Jutland peninsula. It is now part of the German Land of Schleswig-Holstein in the most northern part of Germany. The issue of German or Danish ownership of this territory became an inflamed question during the 19th century. After the second Schleswig War in 1864 it became a permanent part of Germany but it has been fought over for many centuries prior to that. The official language of the Land is German but the languages of Low German, Danish and North Frisian are also recognised. Its culture is a mix of those three elements, making it an intriguing Germanic 'melting pot'. As an aside, I have recently learned that I am genetically related to a number of human burials from post Viking Age Hedeby, four males and one female, which makes the Hedeby hammer that much more special for me.

Royal Mint's African 'Britannia'

 To my great disgust and consternation I encountered the following 2021 news article from Vogue magazine, when carrying out some research on the Britannia divine archetype, a subject which I have written about before, and which I will return to in a future article on this blog. Here is a link to the news article which I am referring to: https://www.vogue.co.uk/news/article/britannia-woman-of-colour

So it would seem that it is not only the BBC ('Bastardising of British Culture' Corporation) and the educational establishment which is attempting to rewrite British history, but now the Royal Mint! To quote from the article: 

 “It is a huge step change for us,” says Anne Glossop, the first female Deputy Master of the Mint. “Our work is at the core of representing society and the heritage of a nation, and we need to reflect that.”

No, Miss Glossop, your role is to mint British coins, not attempt to rewrite British history or make 'right on' political statements! The 'heritage' of the United Kingdom is not African! Britannia is not merely a symbol of the insulae Britannicae, but a divine archetype, as anyone who has studied ancient historical symbolism could have told you. Britannia is concerned with the origin of the British Isles (which includes the island of Ireland), not recent unwanted developments, since the unasked for mass invasion of our islands since 1948! The native populations of these islands are Germanic, Celtic and a Celto-Germanic mix, a Europid population with a common Indo-European ancestry. It is and never has been native African!

The 'credit' for this unholy creation belongs to an 'Irish children's book illustrator' P.J. Lynch, which the article states:

'who was among a wide and diverse group invited to submit designs and renderings to be judged anonymously.' 

I am not surprised that the judging was 'anonymous'! The Royal Mint's 'advisory committee' appears to be as equally 'diverse'. Once again, nobody has asked the native peoples of the United Kingdom what they think! I trust that all right-thinking people, such as my readers, will vote with their pockets and refrain from purchasing this highly politicised creation! I wish to emphasise that I am not criticising the model who posed for this coin but its creators, designers and commissioners! 

 

 

 

The Nonsense Talked about so-called 'Shield-Maidens'

 In recent years a great deal has been assumed on the subject of 'shield-maidens', sparked off by the discovery that the body buried in Birka grave Bj581 was that of a female, not a male. From the time of its discovery in 1878, it was naturally assumed to be male due to the presence of a sword, a seax, an axe, a spear, two shields, armour piercing arrows and two stirrups.

Analysis of the skeleton's pelvic bones  in 2016, and a DNA analysis in 2017, established the remains to be female. An analysis of the weapons indicates that they had been used. Naturally, academics and feminists are wetting themselves into a frenzy about this and the assumption (unproven) follows that 'shield-maidens', either organised groups of them or individuals, were a common and natural part of life in 10th century Sweden, and by extension, the rest of Scandinavia and the wider Germanic world. However, as the saying goes, 'one swallow doth not a spring make.'

One thing that I would like the academics and feminists to explain, is the lack of wear and tear to the woman's bones, which one would expect from a seasoned warrior. The presence of weapons in a grave is not proof that its occupant was a warrior, and the condition of the bones would suggest otherwise. However, that did not hinder the makers of the television series, The Vikings from presenting 'shield maidens' for their gullible audience to uncritically assume as an historical 'fact'. It was an enjoyable series but at the end of the day, it was simply fiction.

Likewise, feminists and academics will refer to the presence of a few female warriors in ancient myths and legends and cite that as evidence to support their theory. Typical examples from the Germanic world include the following: Brynhildr from the Volsunga Saga, Brunhild from the Niebelungenlied, Hervor from the Saga of Hervor and Heidrek, Lagertha from Gesta Danorum (Deeds of the Danes) and many other lesser known ones. Examples from the Celtic world include Queen Mebd of Connacht from the Tain Bo Cuailinge (The Cattle Raid of Cooley), and Scathach, also from the Tain. There are also examples that my readers will be aware of from ancient history but none of them are said to be warriors but leaders of warriors, such as Boudica, the Queen of the Iceni (Tacitus, Annals), Gwenllian ferch Gruffydd, princess of Deheubarth, Aethelflaed, the Lady of the Mercians and daughter of Alfred the Great. Nobody is disputing the historical existence of female leaders of warriors but that is a far cry from the concept of the common place so-called 'shield-maiden'. 

Wotans Krieger Recommends: My True Ancestry

My readers may be interested in the following website, which allows you to upload your autosomal DNA from any testing website and obtain an initially free analysis of how your DNA matches those of ancient tribal peoples. It will also show you your closest ancient 'matches'. For people like me, this is far more interesting than discovering some living 4th cousin, 3 times removed or the rather inaccurate autosmal analysis regarding modern nations that is often the case with DNA companies, who struggle to discern the difference between German and English DNA! This analysis goes beyond the artificial constructs of 'nations' and identifies with precision, the tribes which you are descended from.

The free analysis will only remain on your account for just over two days unless you pay a nominal fee for the data to be retained. You have the option to choose from 13 levels of membership, so the more you pay, the more detail and the more ancient matches you will receive. What you have already paid will count towards any future upgrades, making this a cost effective way of researching your Copper Age, Bronze Age, Iron Age, Dark Age and mediaeval tribal make up.

My True Ancestry 

Another particularly interesting feature is an analysis of your descent from various Y-DNA haplogroups, not just your own direct paternal line.

 

As well as mtDNA haplogroups:

Further Reflections on the Snaptun Stone and the Gnezdovo Pendant

 Some years ago, while my Celto-Germanic Culture, Myth and History blog was still active, I posted my thoughts on the images contained on the Gnezdovo mask amulet and the Snaptun stone. There is still a link to my article on Pinterest: Celto-Germanic Culture, Myth and History: The Image of Loki on the Snaptun Stone and the Gnezdovo Amulet http://celto-germanic.blogspot.co.uk/2014/09/the-image-of-loki-on-snaptun-stone-and.html

Don't bother clicking on the link as it no longer works! Since that time, due to the popularity of my old blogs, this theory of mine gained traction to such an extent that you will find it repeated on most websites that promote the sale of reproductions of this amulet. Please note: there is a very good reason why I did not reproduce that article on this blog in 2019 when it was founded. This was a theory dating back to 2014, which I now have reservations about. However, it does go to show how gullible people can be, taking the speculations of other people and then promoting these as so-called facts, just because it appears on the world wide web!

There are certainly stylistic similarities between the two objects but that is not proof that my speculations were correct! I stand by my claim that the Snaptun stone has a clear association with Loki. Visually, the face on the stone appears to have its lips sown together. In Skaldskaparmal Chapter 35 (Brodeur translation) it is stated:

'This was their decision: that the hammer was best of all the precious works, and in it there was the greatest defence against the Rime-Giants; and they gave sentence, that the dwarf should have his wager. Then Loki offered to redeem his head, but the dwarf said that there was no chance of this. ‘Take me, then,’ quoth Loki; but when Brokkr would have laid hands on him, he was a long way off. Loki had with him those shoes with which he ran through air and over water. Then the dwarf prayed Thor to catch him, and Thor did so. Then the dwarf would have hewn off his head; but Loki said that he might have the head, but not the neck. So the dwarf took a thong and a knife, and would have bored a hole in Loki’s lips and stitched his mouth together, but the knife did not cut. Then Brokkr said that it would be better if his brother’s awl were there: and even as he named it, the awl was there, and pierced the lips. He stitched the Ups together, and Loki ripped the thong out of the edges. That thong, with which Loki’s mouth was sewn together, is called Vartari.'

It should be remembered that there is also an association between Loki and fire. Many commentators deny this association but there is evidence to be found in Jacob Grimm's Teutonic Mythology, volume 1:

  

'The three brothers Hlêr, Logi, Kari on the whole seem to represent water, fire and air as elements. Now a striking narrative in the Prose Edda places Logi ["flame, fire"] by the side of Loki, a being from the giant province beside a kinsman and companion of the gods. This is no mere play upon words; the two really signify the same thing from different points of view, Logi the natural force of fire, and Loki, with a shifting of the sound, a shifting of the sense. From the burly fire-giant Logi has developed a crafty, seductive evil-doer. Both can be compared to the Greek Prometheus and Hephaestus.'

In my opinion, the character known as Logi in Gylfaginning, who in Old Norse is the personification of fire, is a hypostasis of Loki, as is Utgard-Loki.

'“Then spoke the one who came last, ‘Who was called Loki: ‘I know such a trick, which I am ready to try: that there is no one within here who shall eat his food more quickly than I.’ Then Útgarda-Loki answered: ‘That is a feat, if thou accomplish it; and this feat shall accordingly be put to the proof.’ He called to the farther end of the bench, that he who was called Logi should come forth on the floor and try his prowess against Loki. Then a trough was taken and borne in upon the hall-floor and filled with flesh; Loki sat down at the one end and Logi at the other, and each ate as fast as he could, and they met in the middle of the trough. By that time Loki had eaten all the meat from the bones, but Logi likewise had eaten all the meat, and the bones with it, and the trough too; and now it seemed to all as if Loki had lost the game.

'....

 but he who was called Logi was “wild-fire,” and he burned the trough no less swiftly than the meat. '

The Snaptun stone is most clearly a forge stone, used as part of a bellows, directing air into the heart of the fire. Its soapstone construction makes it resistant to heat. However, this was no simple forge stone; in my opinion, it had a ritual and possibly a cultic purpose, and may serve as evidence for a cult of Loki in Demark, where it was discovered in 1950 at Snaptun, possibly as a result of tidal movement. It also serves as evidence for an association between Loki and the element of fire.

The link between Loki and the Gnezdovo pendant is far less certain and this is why I no longer stand by my earlier theory. The discovery of this item dates back to 1993 and was part of a burial hoard, containing a total of 395 items, including temple rings and other pendants. The actual site where it was discovered, Gnezdovo, begain to arouse interest in 1867 with the construction of the Orel-Vitebsk railway after the discovery of some 10th century silver ornaments. However, it was not until 1874 that a systematic excavation started and was led by M.F. Kustsinsky. It should be noted that Gnezdovo was a Varangian trading station, so one should not be surprised by the mix of Norse, Slavic and even Arabic cultural objects discovered there.

While there is nothing definitive in the design of the pendant to indicate that it represents Odin, it should be noted that He is also called Grimnir, the 'hooded' or the 'masked' one and this pendant does appear to resemble a mask. There is certainly a stylistic resemblance between the pendant and the Snaptun stone but this should not be interpreted as definitive proof of a link with Loki. I would also add, that to the best of my knowledge, no academic has stated any association between the pendant and a specific deity. 

Bloodofox, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lokistone.jpg

An image of the original silver find of the Gnezdovo pendant.

The Hiddensee Amulet

 In this article, I am going to discuss the 'Hiddensee amulet', a little about its background, and some of my own thoughts and speculations on its symbolism. The Hiddensee amulet was discovered as part of a hoard of  Viking-age gold treasure in 1873 on the German island of Hiddensee, which is situated in the Baltic Sea. Its discovery came about as the result of flooding in the area.

Experts date the hoard to the last quarter of the 10th century and it consists of 10 cross-like pendants, 4 small spacer pendants, a broach and a neck ring. The total weight of the hoard is 598g, a very substantial weight in gold! It is generally considered that all 14 pendants were worn as part of a single necklace. If that is the case then many of the spacer pendants are surely missing? It should also be noted that the cross-like pendants vary in size and weight, the smallest weighing just 20.2g and the largest, 40.4g (Armbruster, Eilbracht). If they were intended to be worn as a single item, as suggested, then it would have felt very heavy indeed, especially if the wearer was a woman. A closer examination of the pendants shows that there are at least two different styles. That fact, along with the large variations in size and weight of the pendants, gives me the feeling that this was not intended to be worn as a single necklace.

The whole treasure was manufactured in one workshop and from a single source of metal (Armbruster, Eilbracht). Anyone interested in its manufacture would profit by reading the excellent and detailed analysis by Barbara Armbruster and H. Eilbracht, Technological aspects of the Viking age gold treasure from Hiddensee, Germany.

For a long time there has been speculation that the treasure belonged to the Danish King Harald Bluetooth Gormsson (died 985/986 CE) or a member of his family. The neck so-called ensemble appears to mix heathen and Christian elements which is evident in the 10 cross-like pendants. Bluetooth converted to Christianity at some time in the 960s but the circumstances and details are rather vague and very confusing. Regardless of whom the hoard was commissioned for, the recipient must have been both wealthy and presumably powerful. Due to the dating of the hoard and the location where it was found, the assumption for its ownership by Bluetooth or his family may be valid. It has long been speculated that the hoard was stolen by Slavic pirates, operating at that time in the area. In my opinion, the theft was possibly from a goldsmith's workshop, rather than the Danish royal family, although it could have been commissioned by them.

I have only recently learned that these pendants were not at all unique and other examples have been discovered, one example being a silver version from a hoard in Tolstrup, Denmark and dies from Hedeby, Germany, one being quite elaborate, like the Hiddensee pendants, the other being more simplistic and lacking in filigree ornamentation (Armbruster and Eilbracht). 

Moving on to discuss the symbolism of the cross-like pendants. All 10 cross-like pendants have a suspension loop in the form of a bird, which clearly resembles the Thor's Hammer from Scania, Sweden. I interpret this bird to be a raven, not an eagle as some claim. The raven, as my readers will know, is closely associated with Odin and is thus a heathen, not a Christian symbol. So we have to ask ourselves, what is the the raven doing on these pendants if they belonged to a Christian king? Likewise, what is a wolf's head doing on the suspension loop of the Thor's Hammer from Fossi, Iceland, if it is a cross and not a hammer as I believe? One could argue that in both cases, these were examples of a period of transition from Germanic heathenism to Christianity. I have discussed the wolf hammer before, and I will do so again in a future article.

Another feature of the pendants are the 'eyes' in the lower half of the pendants which give them a mask-like appearance. If you have a reproduction copy and hold it up to the light, you will see this most clearly. Until I read Armbruster and Eilbracht's work I thought that I was probably the only person to have observed this feature. They comment on this on page 38 of their article and quote from Graham-Campbell (2001, p.180), referring to the 'glaring eyes associated with Thor in Eddic tales.' They also compare the body of these pendants with 'the pagan Thor's hammer.' I would encourage anyone who is interested in any aspect of the Hiddensee hoard to read Technological aspects of the Viking age gold treasure from Hiddensee, Germany

 An excellent example of the Tolstrup pendant may be found on the website of Asgard, a Scottish manufacturer of good quality Viking age reproductions: Hiddensee . You will note from this reproduction and the photograph on page 38 of Armbruster and Eilbracht that the Tolstrup pendant lacks the 'eyes' of the Hiddensee ones but they are present on the dies from Hedeby (page 31).

All of the Hiddensee, Tolstrup and Hedeby pendants contain what appear to be three equilateral crosses within their body. Two of the Hiddensee pendants resemble more the cross style featured on the Tolstrup pendant and are less stylised and not so subtle. One can see how the majority of them resemble a series of three Thor's Hammers, rather than Christian crosses and they share this style with the four hammer-shaped spacer pendants.  

Some Thoughts on the Gender of Odin's Ravens

 I have previously discussed the symbolism of Odin's ravens, Huginn and Muninn, on my various blogs. I refer my readers to my article from 22 July 2019 on this blog, Huginn and Munnin, Symbols of the First Function . The article may also be found in my book, Wotans Krieger Volume 4: A Final Blast on the Giallarhorn , also published in 2019 by Black Front Press.

In that article, I discussed how Edred Thorsson viewed the different but related functions of these two ravens. Huginn represents the rational mind, the 'left brain', and so it is emblematic of sovereignty and the law. Munnin represents the intuitive mind, the 'right brain', and so it is concerned with transformation, magic, in other words. Both these ravens, with their separate but related functions, are thus symbolic of the god, Odin Himself.

My recent studies of the various corvid species in the British Isles have caused me to consider another aspect of these ravens and their functions. All corvids mate for life and are very loyal birds. Indeed, I almost always see local carrion crows fly in pairs; no doubt they are mated couples. Where one sees an odd number, say three, if the third bird is a mature adult, then it is highly probable that its mate has died. Rooks, on the other hand, tend to be present in larger groups, not just pairs.

This information made me realise that Huginn and Muninn are a mated pair. The question then arises as to which one is male and which one is female. Huginn is symbolic of rational thought, a quality more associated with men, while Muninn represents intuition, a quality more associated with women. I realise, of course, that I am projecting human gender characteristics onto a different species, but what matters here, is symbolism.    

Germanic Native Faith

 Over recent years, I have pondered the issue of how to name pre-Christian Germanic religion. Our ancestors did not need to apply a name to their religion because it was accepted that all members of their community were already an integral part of their real-world spiritual community by virtue of being born into the clan, tribe, or folk group. The terms 'Germanic heathenism', 'Germanic paganism', or 'Germanic polytheism' are all retrospective terms, and by using them ourselves, it causes us to put an unnecessary psychological distance or barrier between us and our ancestors.

'Heathenry', 'Asatru', 'Wodenism', 'Odinism', 'Wotanism', et cetera are all modern-day terms that are used by practitioners of our religion as self-descriptors. The problem with 'Asatru' is that it immediately implies that the follower is relating to the religion in a particular place and time period, a thousand or so years ago in Old Norse-speaking communities, while the majority of followers live outside of the far north and are a product of the 20th or 21st centuries. The same also may be said about practitioners of 'Vanatru'.

 'Wodenism', 'Odinism', and 'Wotanism' all imply that the follower is a worshipper of the god Wotan, Wodan, Woden, Odin, which may not be the case; his primary allegiance may be to a different deity. It also implies a form of monotheism and the granting of a supremacy to the god, which our ancestors may not have granted. The problem here is our overreliance on the Old Norse written sources and our framing the gods into a hierarchical 'pantheon' like the ancient Greeks and Romans, which, in my opinion, is a serious error. I will explain my thinking on this particular issue in a future article.

The term 'Odinism' originated in 1841 with the publication of the book On Heroes, Hero-Worship and the Heroic in History by the Scottish historian, Thomas Carlyle. This term was then taken up by the Australian, Alexander Rudd Mills, in the 1930s, who founded the First Anglecyn Church of Odin in Melbourne in 1936. Whether he was familiar with Carlyle's work, I do not know. The next major use of the term was by the Odinic Rite, which was founded in England in 1973 by John Yeowell, known as Stubba , and John Gibbs-Bailey, known as Hoskuld. The Odinist Fellowship was founded in 1988 by Ralph Harrison, known as Ingvar, and Mr Harrison was formerly a member of the Odinic Rite. Likewise, Woden's Folk was founded in 1998 by Wulf Ingessunu, a former member of the Odinic Rite. These are the three main Odinist/Wodenist groups that operate in England today, and all three have folkish elements of belief. 

The group Asatru UK was founded by a number of Facebook members in 2013 and describes itself as 'inclusive' and stresses that it welcomes people regardless of 'gender, sexuality, or ethnicity'. We can conclude from that description that it is most certainly not folkish but universalist, placing it at the opposite end of Woden's Folk on the heathen spectrum. 

So, back to the question of what we should call our religion? In recent years, I have taken an interest in Balto-Slavic mythology and pre-Christian religion. Modern-day practitioners of that reconstructed religion call it 'Rodnovery', the etymology of which translates as 'native faith', making it an ancestral and thus folkish religion. Indeed, it is often called Slavic native faith in the English-speaking world. It embraces all the Slavic peoples and gods. Thus, I see no reason at all why we should not use a similar term for pre-Christian Germanic religion, id est Germanic native faith.

Germanic native faith thus embraces all folkish interpretations of the religion, regardless of region and time period and avoids the notion of an hierarchal pantheon, something which in my opinion, is an alien concept to the Germanic folk soul and would rid us of some of the negative baggage and harm that has been done to our religion by American 'white supremacists' over the years.