Do you think specific animals would be tied to specific types of rituals? Did specific animals hold special significance to Norse people? This question was asked by my friend Mistress Dyrfinna (in the SCA). I spent time looking in to these questions. In reading A history of the Vikings - Children of Ash and Elm by Neil Price, he discusses the use of specific animals in rituals as well as the significance of animals in the Norse culture. Also, using additional readings, I was able to find specific accounts to substantiate my beliefs.
Animal sacrifice was part of the lives of the Norse. Whether it was at the annual bloð or at a funeral. At the bloð the blood of the animals are poured into bowls and onto stones. It is then sprayed over the people in attendance. At the annual bolð oxen are killed and then the skulls are attached to the walls as a symbol of the compact between the inhabitants and the gods.
Birds were used as a sacrifice to open a path between the worlds, especially for the dead. Also, the Muslim explorer, Ibn Fadlan mentions the slaughter of chickens and placed in the grave of the Rus chieftain.
Roosters play a role in Norse Mythology. Roosters are also mentioned in the Skirnismal. The rooster Viðopnir sits atop the tree Mimameðr (mimir's tree). The roosters are prominent in the Voluspa (The prophecy of Ragnarok).
A giant, a herder by trade,
Sits there on a burial mound,
Striking a harp,
He is the cheerful Eggther.
A bright red rooster
Named Fjalar --
Sings near him
In Birdwood
Near the Aesir
Sings the rooster named Gullinkambi,
He wakes the men
Who fight for Odin, Lord of Battle.
But another sings
Below the earth,
A soot-red rooster
In the halls of Hel.
Horses were used as draught horses, and used during rituals (found in gravesites), and were also trained to fight. Horses in the Norse regions were not large war horses but were used primarily for traveling and pulling wagons. In the Hjortspring Mose boat find in southern Jutland had numerous items on board and included a horse, dog, lamb and a calf (Vikings, raid, culture, and legacy). Horses are also linked to the gods. Odin rides the eight legged horse Sleipner while the horses Skinfaxi (shining-mane) and Hrimfaxi (Frost-mane) draw the day and night (Vafpruðnismal 11-14). Also, Arvakr (early-awake) and Alsviðr (fully-awake) draw the sun. The most well known horse sacrifice appears int eh Hakonar sage goða in Heimskringla. In this saga King Hakon converts to Christianity
Cats were prominent in Norse communities. In fact, Norse mythology shows the Goddess Freya riding a chariot pulled by cats. Cats were bread for companionship, to be used on ships for rodent control and lastly they were used for fur. The Eirik the Red Saga mentions that Thorbjorg the Seið practitioner is wearing gloves and a hood made of cat fur. Specifically in the Wood Quay Excavation, Viking Dublin, there were over 600 bone fragments from cats. Based on the various remains the majority of the cats were age between 8 - 14 months. With regards to being used for fur, "Vincent Butler, found light cut marks indicative of skinning on skulls above the nose and concluded that '..a certain amount of exploitation of domestic and/or feral cats as a source of pelts…' was taking place." (pg 219).
Animal sacrifice was part of the lives of the Norse. Whether it was at the annual bloð or at a funeral. At the bloð the blood of the animals are poured into bowls and onto stones. It is then sprayed over the people in attendance. At the annual bolð oxen are killed and then the skulls are attached to the walls as a symbol of the compact between the inhabitants and the gods.
Birds were used as a sacrifice to open a path between the worlds, especially for the dead. Also, the Muslim explorer, Ibn Fadlan mentions the slaughter of chickens and placed in the grave of the Rus chieftain.
Roosters play a role in Norse Mythology. Roosters are also mentioned in the Skirnismal. The rooster Viðopnir sits atop the tree Mimameðr (mimir's tree). The roosters are prominent in the Voluspa (The prophecy of Ragnarok).
A giant, a herder by trade,
Sits there on a burial mound,
Striking a harp,
He is the cheerful Eggther.
A bright red rooster
Named Fjalar --
Sings near him
In Birdwood
Near the Aesir
Sings the rooster named Gullinkambi,
He wakes the men
Who fight for Odin, Lord of Battle.
But another sings
Below the earth,
A soot-red rooster
In the halls of Hel.
Horses were used as draught horses, and used during rituals (found in gravesites), and were also trained to fight. Horses in the Norse regions were not large war horses but were used primarily for traveling and pulling wagons. In the Hjortspring Mose boat find in southern Jutland had numerous items on board and included a horse, dog, lamb and a calf (Vikings, raid, culture, and legacy). Horses are also linked to the gods. Odin rides the eight legged horse Sleipner while the horses Skinfaxi (shining-mane) and Hrimfaxi (Frost-mane) draw the day and night (Vafpruðnismal 11-14). Also, Arvakr (early-awake) and Alsviðr (fully-awake) draw the sun. The most well known horse sacrifice appears int eh Hakonar sage goða in Heimskringla. In this saga King Hakon converts to Christianity
Cats were prominent in Norse communities. In fact, Norse mythology shows the Goddess Freya riding a chariot pulled by cats. Cats were bread for companionship, to be used on ships for rodent control and lastly they were used for fur. The Eirik the Red Saga mentions that Thorbjorg the Seið practitioner is wearing gloves and a hood made of cat fur. Specifically in the Wood Quay Excavation, Viking Dublin, there were over 600 bone fragments from cats. Based on the various remains the majority of the cats were age between 8 - 14 months. With regards to being used for fur, "Vincent Butler, found light cut marks indicative of skinning on skulls above the nose and concluded that '..a certain amount of exploitation of domestic and/or feral cats as a source of pelts…' was taking place." (pg 219).