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Signs and Symbols Represented in Germanic, Particularly Early Scandinavian, Iconography Between the Migration Period and the End of the Viking Age

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Signs and Symbols Represented in Germanic, Particularly Early Scandinavian, Iconography Between the Migration Period and the End of the Viking Age Signs and symbols represented in Germanic, particularly early Scandinavian, iconography between the Migration Period and the end of the Viking Age Peter R. Hupfauf Thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, University of Sydney, 2003 Preface After the Middle Ages, artists in European cultures concentrated predominantly on real- istic interpretations of events and issues and on documentation of the world. From the Renaissance onwards, artists developed techniques of illusion (e.g. perspective) and high levels of sophistication to embed messages within decorative elaborations. This develop- ment reached its peak in nineteenth century Classicism and Realism. A Fine Art interest in ‘Nordic Antiquity’, which emerged during the Romantic movement, was usually expressed in a Renaissance manner, representing heroic attitudes by copying Classical Antiquity. A group of nineteenth-century artists, including Dante Gabriel Rossetti, Holman Hunt and Everett Millais founded the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood. John Ruskin, who taught aesthetic theory at Oxford, became an associate and public defender of the group. The members of this group appreciated the symbolism and iconography of the Gothic period. Rossetti worked together with Edward Burne-Jones and William Morris. Morris was a great admirer of early Scandinavian cultures, and his ideas were extremely influential for the development of the English Craft Movement, which originated from Pre-Raphaelite ideology. Abstraction, which developed during the early twentieth century, attempted to communicate more directly with emotion rather then with the intellect. Many of the early abstract artists (Picasso is probably the best known) found inspiration in tribal artefacts. However, according to Rubin (1984), some nineteenth-century primitivist painters appreciated pre-Renaissance European styles for their simplicity and sincerity – they saw value in the absence of complex devices of illusio-nist lighting and perspective. The strong Post-Modernist focus in Western society, particularly on aesthetic values of the Renaissance, seemed to disregard stylistic features and aesthetic aspects of the early Middle Ages. The relative lack of discussion of Germanic and, in particular, early Scandinavian art and artefacts, encouraged me to investigate these phenomena. I have found that a great range of literature exists regarding the development of early Nordic styles. However, analysis of the images and ornamentation appearing on items/artefacts is overdue in order to clarify whether certain elements such as shapes and patterns were applied for specific reasons other than decoration. In order to discover a wider range of ele- ments relevant to this research, it was necessary to develop a method, not previously applied in this field, for analysing objects and images. Principles from the psychological concept of visual perception were applied, in analysing images from selected objects. The results have shown that this method is a valuable tool for further investigation. In the case of this research it appears very likely that considerable knowledge existed in early Scandinavian culture about the suggestive power of shapes in signs and symbols which were used for sacred and secular reasons. i I should like to acknowledge with deepest gratitude the excellent advice, encouragement and guidance given by my supervisor Professor Margaret Clunies Ross. Her sharp mind and fine humour were invaluable tools for the completion of this dissertation. I am also grateful to Professor Dr. Rudolf Simek, who was my supervisor for one semester, during which he helped me tremendously to develop a deeper understanding of early Nordic iconography. I should like to thank Dr. Colin Clifford for his advice on psychological aspects, particularly visual perception. I am also indebted to Professor Dr. Klaus Düwel, who has been an extraordinary friend and mentor, providing me with great insight into the world of runes. I also like to thank Mrs. Gabrielle Singleton for her generous contribution by assisting in language matters and proof-reading. I should also like to thank my family for their generosity, allowing me to spend so much time writing this thesis. Particularly I thank my wife Mrs. Uta Herzog for her encouragement and her professional advice regarding issues of visual perception. This project was assisted by funds from the University of Sydney Postgraduate Award (co-funded) 2000 - 2. ii iii Contents Preface i Contents iv 1 Introduction 1 Mediaeval sources of information 1 Time-frame covered by this research 1 Culture-specific symbolism 2 Analytical methods used 3 Scope of investigations 4 2 Signs and Symbols 6 Definition of signs 6 Definition of symbols 11 History 12 Applications 16 Aesthetics 21 Signs and symbols of relevance in contemporary ‘Western’ society 22 3 Visual perception 28 Introduction 28 The visual pathway 29 Colour perception 31 Object recognition 32 Horizontal/vertical line preferences 34 Form definition/Gestalt 34 Perception of depth 36 Motion adaptation and after-effect 37 Shading 38 Summary of perception 39 Application of perceptual principles in order to identify images from the tenth and early eleventh centuries 48 Application of perceptual principles in analysing the object from Larmøya, Kaupang, Larvik, Vestfold in Norway, to identify parts of its design not previously defined. 52 Hypnosis 53 Summary of hypnosis 58 4 Styles 62 Animal Style 64 iv 69 Animal Images and Shamanism 72 A - E Styles 76 The Oseberg find 81 Animal designs from Broa 83 The gripping beast 84 Borre Style 86 90 Jellinge Style 95 Ringerike Style 99 Urnes Style Summary on styles 5 Guldgubber 113 The hoard from Sorte Muld 116 Symbolic elements 124 Application of perceptual principles in identifying symbolic values in guldgubber 131 6 Bracteates 136 Associated signs 142 Symbolic elements in main depictions on bracteates 146 Symbolic expressions of associated signs on bracteates 151 Application of perceptual principles in identifying symbolic elements in bracteates 154 7 Runes 160 Definition 160 The origin of runes in mythological perspective 161 Development of runic letters 162 Runes compared with the Etruscan alphabet 165 History 166 Runic inscriptions 168 Symbolic significance of runes 179 8 Gotland picture stones 187 1. Shapes 194 Group ‘A’ 195 Group ‘B’ 198 Group ‘C’ 198 Group ‘D’ 201 Group ‘E’ 201 2. Images 204 Images on group ‘A’ 205 v Images on group ‘B’ 205 Images on group ‘C’ 206 Images on group ‘D’ and’E’ 207 Men’s garments 209 Women’s garments 210 Pictures of riders and horses 211 Buildings 211 Furniture and household items 212 Snakes and fetters 212 Animals 213 Birds 214 Miscellaneous natural objects and elements 215 Abstract depictions 215 Mythological pictures 217 Summary 222 Symbolic elements in depictions on Gotland picture-stones 225 Application of perceptual principles in identifying symbolic values in images of Gotland picture-stones 233 9 Conclusion 238 10 Appendix 248 A Objects and images on objects from early Scandinavian culture, discussed in this thesis, which have signifying qualities or are likely to carry symbolic qualities 249 B A detailed analysis of guldgubber of the hoard from Lundeborg 260 C Paintings representing love or marriage by two people holding each other 298 11 Bibliography 301 vi 1. Introduction Mediaeval sources of information This document focuses predominantly on signs and symbols from Germanic, particularly early Scandinavian, society between the Migration Period and the end of the Viking Age. Although the symbolism of contemporary Western society is well documented, no early medieval documentation exists about the meanings, symbolic or otherwise, of iconic repre- sentations in early Scandinavian society. Runes are known as to have been used in northern Europe since the beginning of the first millennium; however, all early inscriptions and most of the later ones are short and do not necessarily document events of the time. The majority of runic inscriptions, according to Quinn (2000, 30), are of “memorialising, ownership and magic quality”. Many literary sources from medieval Scandinavia indicate that a rich native oral tradition existed before the introduction of the Roman alphabet, which appeared with the conversion to Christianity. The conversion took place, according to Foote (1993, 106), first in Denmark (960 AD), “when Harald Gormson was baptised by Poppo, a German cleric”. Norway was converted “in the reign of Óláfr Tryggvason (995 AD – 999/1000 AD)”. Members of the ruling dynasty in Sweden converted to Christianity from about 1000 AD onwards. However, pre-Christian, early Scandinavian culture, according to Quinn (2000, 31) is reflected in “skaldic praise poetry, eddic mythological and heroic poetry, mnemonic lists and genealo- gies, narrative prosimetra and oral sagas”. Skaldic poetry from the Viking Age, is a valuable source of information for the identification of symbolic values of objects and items from early Scandinavian cultures. Snorri Sturluson compiled the so-called Prose Edda which is assigned to the 1220s AD, and the Codex Regius collection of eddic poems is thought to have been written c.1270 AD in its present form. Even if these texts were written by authors who were Christians, they provide an insight into earlier poetic traditions and preserved knowledge about many early Scandinavian practices, moral and ethical. This is also, to a certain extent, reflected in the iconography of this culture. Time frame covered by this research Significant attention has been
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