The Valkyries' Loom
In The Valkyries’ Loom , Michèle Hayeur Smith examines Viking textiles as evidence of the little-known work of women in the Norse colonies that expanded from Scandinavia across the North Atlantic in the ninth century AD. While previous researchers have overlooked textiles as insignificant artifacts,...
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University Press of Florida
2020
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Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.5744/florida/9780813066622.001.0001 |
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crunivprflorida:10.5744/florida/9780813066622.001.0001 2024-04-07T07:52:21+00:00 The Valkyries' Loom The Archaeology of Cloth Production and Female Power in the North Atlantic Smith, Michèle Hayeur 2020 http://dx.doi.org/10.5744/florida/9780813066622.001.0001 unknown University Press of Florida ISBN 9780813066622 9780813058771 edited-book 2020 crunivprflorida https://doi.org/10.5744/florida/9780813066622.001.0001 2024-03-08T03:47:46Z In The Valkyries’ Loom , Michèle Hayeur Smith examines Viking textiles as evidence of the little-known work of women in the Norse colonies that expanded from Scandinavia across the North Atlantic in the ninth century AD. While previous researchers have overlooked textiles as insignificant artifacts, Hayeur Smith is the first to use them to understand gender and economy in Norse societies of the North Atlantic.This groundbreaking study is based on the author’s systematic comparative analysis of the vast textile collections in Iceland, Greenland, Denmark, Scotland, and the Faroe Islands, materials that are largely unknown even to archaeologists and span 1,000 years. Through these garments and fragments, Hayeur Smith provides new insights into how the women of these island nations influenced international trade by producing cloth (vaðmál); how they shaped the development of national identities by creating clothing; and how they helped their communities survive climate change by reengineering clothes during the Little Ice Age. She supplements her analysis by revealing societal attitudes about weaving through the poem “Darraðarljoð” from Njál’s Saga , in which the Valkyries—Óðin’s female warrior spirits—produce the cloth of history and decide the fates of men and nations.Bringing Norse women and their labor to the forefront of research, Hayeur Smith establishes the foundation for a gendered archaeology of the North Atlantic that has never been attempted before. This monumental and innovative work contributes to global discussions about the hidden roles of women in past societies in preserving tradition and guiding change. Book Faroe Islands Greenland Iceland North Atlantic University Press of Florida Faroe Islands Greenland |
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University Press of Florida |
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description |
In The Valkyries’ Loom , Michèle Hayeur Smith examines Viking textiles as evidence of the little-known work of women in the Norse colonies that expanded from Scandinavia across the North Atlantic in the ninth century AD. While previous researchers have overlooked textiles as insignificant artifacts, Hayeur Smith is the first to use them to understand gender and economy in Norse societies of the North Atlantic.This groundbreaking study is based on the author’s systematic comparative analysis of the vast textile collections in Iceland, Greenland, Denmark, Scotland, and the Faroe Islands, materials that are largely unknown even to archaeologists and span 1,000 years. Through these garments and fragments, Hayeur Smith provides new insights into how the women of these island nations influenced international trade by producing cloth (vaðmál); how they shaped the development of national identities by creating clothing; and how they helped their communities survive climate change by reengineering clothes during the Little Ice Age. She supplements her analysis by revealing societal attitudes about weaving through the poem “Darraðarljoð” from Njál’s Saga , in which the Valkyries—Óðin’s female warrior spirits—produce the cloth of history and decide the fates of men and nations.Bringing Norse women and their labor to the forefront of research, Hayeur Smith establishes the foundation for a gendered archaeology of the North Atlantic that has never been attempted before. This monumental and innovative work contributes to global discussions about the hidden roles of women in past societies in preserving tradition and guiding change. |
format |
Book |
author |
Smith, Michèle Hayeur |
spellingShingle |
Smith, Michèle Hayeur The Valkyries' Loom |
author_facet |
Smith, Michèle Hayeur |
author_sort |
Smith, Michèle Hayeur |
title |
The Valkyries' Loom |
title_short |
The Valkyries' Loom |
title_full |
The Valkyries' Loom |
title_fullStr |
The Valkyries' Loom |
title_full_unstemmed |
The Valkyries' Loom |
title_sort |
valkyries' loom |
publisher |
University Press of Florida |
publishDate |
2020 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.5744/florida/9780813066622.001.0001 |
geographic |
Faroe Islands Greenland |
geographic_facet |
Faroe Islands Greenland |
genre |
Faroe Islands Greenland Iceland North Atlantic |
genre_facet |
Faroe Islands Greenland Iceland North Atlantic |
op_source |
ISBN 9780813066622 9780813058771 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.5744/florida/9780813066622.001.0001 |
_version_ |
1795667640460509184 |