Posted on 08/09/2022 7:36:57 PM PDT by SunkenCiv
Beaver fur was a symbol of wealth and an important trade item in 10th Century Denmark, according to a study published July 27, 2022 in the open-access journal PLOS ONE...
Written sources indicate that fur was a key commodity during the Viking Age, between 800-1050 CE, but fur doesn't often survive well in the archaeological record, so little direct evidence is available. Previous reports have used the microscopic anatomy of ancient fur to identify species of origin, but this method is often inexact. All in all, not much is known about the kinds of furs the Vikings preferred.
In this study, Brandt and colleagues analyzed animal remains from six high-status graves from 10th Century Denmark. While no ancient DNA was recovered from the samples, perhaps due to treatment processes performed on furs and skins and probably due to preservation conditions, identifiable proteins were recovered by two different analytical techniques. Grave furnishings and accessories included skins from domestic animals, while clothing exhibited furs from wild animals, specifically a weasel, a squirrel, and beavers.
These findings support the idea that fur was a symbol of wealth during the Viking Age. The fact that beavers are not native to Denmark suggests this fur was a luxury item acquired through trade. Some clothing items included fur from multiple species, demonstrating a knowledge of the varying functions of different animal hides, and may have indicated a desire to show off exclusive furs. The authors note the biggest limiting factor in this sort of study is the incompleteness of comparative protein databases; as these databases expand, more specific identifications of ancient animal skins and furs will be possible...
(Excerpt) Read more at sciencedaily.com ...
subtitle, "Identified by ancient proteins, fur was important as a trade and status item"
“...High-status Danish Vikings wore exotic beaver furs...”
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Don’t we all?
Good time to be a non-exotic beaver...
Second largest rodent:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beaver
Rat hat (Seinfeld):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PT-coQ5-ZFA
I can only think of that scene from the Naked Gun.
“Nice Beaver”
“Thanks, I just had it stuffed”
[hands over a stuffed beaver statue]
Just knew it……..🙂
..I was waiting for that...
But sure... it was all about status.
Honestly I have to wonder if these people have ever been outside.
The pelts were highly sought after. One of the worst, maybe THE worst war, ever in North America was over access to beaver pelts.
Native Americans, and since they didn’t have written language we don’t really know how many people were slaughtered over this little rodent.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beaver_Wars
I used to have as my tagline "Trust not the french or the Iroquois"
Yeah. Better not.
The beaver pelts would have been rare if only the Vikings had them.
Unless the Vikings raided Eurasia to get the pelts.
Heck. I wanted to see the fashion shots...
I believe they’re called merkins now.
I wear nothing else.
That's all it takes...:) Most men are only seconds away from being 11 year old boys...
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