Ødeby, K 2013 Through the Portal: Viking Motifs Incorporated in the pia Romanesque Style in , . Papers from the Institute of Archaeology, 23(1): 15, pp. 1-19, DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5334/ pia.433

RESEARCH PAPER Through the Portal: Viking Motifs Incorporated in the Romanesque Style in Telemark, Norway Kristine Ødeby*

This paper presents the results of an analysis of motifs identified on six carved wooden Romanesque portal panels from the Norwegian county of Telemark. The findings suggest that animal motifs in the Late Viking style survived long into the Late Medieval period and were reused on these medieval portals. Stylistically, late expressions of Viking animal art do not differ a great deal from those of the subsequent Romanesque style. However, their symbolical differences are considered to be significant. The motifs themselves, and the issue of whether the Romanesque style adopted motifs from pre-Christian art, have attracted less attention. The motif portraying Sigurd slaying the dragon is considered in depth. It will be suggested that Sigurd, serving as a mediator between the old and the new beliefs when he appeared in late Viking contexts, was given a new role when portrayed in Christian art. Metaphor and liminality are a central part of this paper, and the theories of Alfred Gell and Margrete Andås suggest that the portal itself affects those who pass through it, and that the iconography is meaningful from a liminal perspective.

Introduction dition outweighed renovation. Therefore it is The Romanesque style was carved on stave interesting to take a closer look at the use of portals and other Christian art objects motifs in this new church style - the Roman- in Norway from the 12th century onwards. It esque style. It is relevant to ask whether the was a composite of late Viking art and Euro- Viking motifs were deeply ingrained in the pean impulses (Anker 1998: 135–136; Fugle- woodcarver’s repertoire. sang 1981; Hohler 1999a). The ornamenta- The overarching question of this research tion on portals parallels that on concerns reuse of motifs from Norse ani- the portals of secular buildings from the 13th mal art in the Romanesque style as seen and 14th centuries. on wooden portals. By analysing the use of The coming of brought a wave motifs on six wooden portals from the Nor- of new styles and motifs to Norway which wegian county of Telemark, I will attempt was adapted by woodcarvers, and which to answer the following specific questions: can be seen in the artistic carvings in stave Which motifs from late Norse animal art are churches and on medieval furniture (Anker reused in the Romanesque style, and how 1997: 222). In Norway’s deepest valleys, tra- can they be interpreted? Which motifs are used on the stave church portals compared to the profane portals? To what degree can * University of , Norway the motifs be interpreted as symbols? And [email protected] lastly, in the medieval period, was the portal Art. 15, page 2 of 19 Ødeby: Through the Portal considered not only as a metaphor, but also have since been demolished or badly weath- in relation to the bodies that passed through ered, were sketched by architects (Hohler it? This last question will be addressed first as 1999a: 9). Art historians later studied these I explore the portals’ metaphorical function sources and published the sketches, among by applying theories of liminality and ‘the them Dietrichson (1892, 1902), Fett (1909) enchantment of technology’. Next, results and the archaeologist Nicolaysen (1853–55, from the analysis of the portals’ individual 1861, 1903). A number of recent works also motifs will be presented followed by a dis- depict stave churches and their ornaments. cussion of their possible symbolical and met- Work on stave churches by Hauglid (1969, aphorical interpretation. Lastly, a closer look 1973, 1976), Fuglesang (1980, 1981, 1982) will be taken at why different motifs appear and Anker (1997) connect the woodcarving in different contexts. to Viking ornaments. Romanesque expres- Medieval portal ornaments have been sion in the carvings was given attention by researched previously by art historians, archi- Blindheim (1965) and Hohler (1999a). Hohler tects and building historians, but have tradi- documented the entire collection of stave tionally not been a field of study for archae- church sculpture, including all remaining ologists. Other fields of study have also portals and fragments of portals. considered the morphological and iconologi- Secular portals have been similarly treated. cal aspects of medieval art (Hansen 1995: 12). Berg (1991, 1993) wrote an overview of all However, I would argue that this project is an medieval secular buildings in Norway, and archaeological project. First, the Norse ani- Gjærder (1952) was the first to document all mal art of the late Iron Age has been studied secular portals. This paper builds on previ- mainly by archaeologists (see Domeij 2004; ous research and documentation, but takes Hedeager 1999b; Hedeager 2004; Klæsøe it further by schematically identifying portal 2002; Kristoffersen 2000, 2010; Salin 1935). motifs and comparing them to the motifs The reason for this is that the Norwegian used in the late Viking style. Iron Age is classified as a pre-historic period. The comparison of material from different The Portal as Part of a Liminal periods is not unusual in archaeology and is Zone a key aspect of this paper. Second, the use of The key to historic doors - the key to portals metaphorical thinking, such as the phenom- in this context - can be obtained from meta- enological aspects surrounding the experi- phors. The object itself must be taken into ence of entering through a portal, and the account in the study of art. As Gell’s theory ethnographic and anthropological aspects of ‘the enchantment of technology’ states: of liminality are widely used in archaeology. the power technical processes can fascinate Thus, although it rarely is, studying portal the viewer with allows the viewer to take an ornaments should be interdisciplinary. enchanted look at the real world (1999: 163). The technology of enchantment, on the other Previous Research hand, demonstrates a certain level of techni- Stave churches and objects connected to cal excellence that only a work of art that is them have received special attention due made beautiful can achieve. Art can thus be to their unique place in European archi- understood as a component of technology. tectural history, and their symbolic place in Andås (2007) explores the relationship Norway’s nationalistic development during between space and ritual. She chooses to the Romantic period. Unfortunately, most of describe the physical space around the church the churches have been demolished. Aside as a ‘liminal zone’; an area between the con- from the portals themselves, sources for the secrated and non-consecrated ground. She portals stretch back to the mid-19th century. describes how the door played an important Before AD 1860 churches and portals, which role in the ritual of public penance in the Ødeby: Through the Portal Art. 15, page 3 of 19 early 13th century (Andås 2007: 47). Ritu- nography and motifs could have a far greater als, physical location and movements were political role than previously thought. If this clearly related to its meaning. The door con- is the case, the iconography of the liminal stituted a space ‘in-between’, neither inside zone had a direct influence on the rituals nor out, and the rituals that took place at outside the church, and possibly actions the portal had a between-ness to them. The which took place in the courtyard outside a rituals themselves were focused on the input secular storehouse. or transformation by recalling a biblical Andås’ theories can be adapted to stave transformation or highlighting a significant church portals. The church was built on con- moment in an individual’s life. secrated ground. Whether it was a cathedral As a final comment, Andås (2007: 123) or a parish church, or if it was built in wood emphasises that the choice of iconography or stone, probably had little impact on the in the middle of the 13th century tells us portal’s status or metaphorical meaning. something essential about the cathedral with The portal would have led people into God’s regard to: house. According to Andås (2007: 84) the doorway represents a threshold of the eter- … what was considered important at nal law and the manifestation of the sacred the time, about their religious and law as a guide to human life. The church political ambitions, about how they cemetery hosts both sacred and secular juris- perceived their political reality and diction, as seen in the local courts held in about their strategies. As the religious the cemetery. centre of a large province, the cathe- Whether portals in storehouses can be dral was a communicator of ideas and assigned to the same trait must also be dis- political attitude. The Cathedral was cussed. The main physical difference between the architectural key monument of its the church portals and profane portals is that province. The construction of some- profane portals were much lower and wider. thing as prominent as the south chan- As a result, a person would have to bow his/ cel porch, would not have gone un- her head and walk sideways through the noticed. The message communicated portal to enter. This indicates that entering would undoubtedly soon have been through a profane portal was a completely observed by other political agents of different experience compared to entering the Norwegian Medieval state. It is in through a church portal. Through the por- this light that the iconography should tal went a connection between home and be understood. the outside world. A closed door was a sym- bol of private law (Gjærder 1952: 11). Also, Iconography should therefore be under- the medieval profane doors were heavy, so stood in the light of the building’s function it was a process in itself just to open them in society. With regard to , (Gjærder 1952: 226). The storehouse, a stab- it was a key architectural monument and bur (Figure 1), had a specific function as a religious centre for its district, and thus an storage compartment. The storage of food important communicator of ideas and politi- had to be indoors, where animals and unin- cal attitudes. The construction of the choir’s vited guests had no access. The door was south entrance would have been noticed, locked and only the owner had the key. Medi- and the iconographical message would have eval stabbur were independent treasuries been noted by other political agents. The with one or two floors, to store grain, flour, quote above proposes two thoughts relating bread, fish and meat products. On the upper to this project’s analysis. First, it proposes floor was a grand bedroom for guests and that the stave church portals can be inter- storage for clothes, it was called a loft (Berg preted in the same light and second, the ico- 1989: 174). Christensen (1998: 265) writes Art. 15, page 4 of 19 Ødeby: Through the Portal

body is the most important element involved in actions. The portal has no meaning with- out people to see it, touch it and go through it. Anyone who enters the building must pass through it and finds themselves surrounded by the portal: welcoming in front when out- side, towering over when standing on the threshold and protecting from behind when inside. When the portal has such a significant task as the building’s entrance, and is signifi- cant to the consciousness of the person who walks through it, the portal has a physical aspect. The world is experienced with the body and human practice makes the world available to us through a particular percep- Figure 1: The storage house from Tveito, tion of it. It directs us as spectators by con- Telemark, in its new environment at the structing a relationship between us and the Norwegian Folk Museum in Oslo. The things around us (Fredriksen 2005: 210). ground floor portal and its three-dimen- The impact of the motifs can start long sional carved capital lions can be glimpsed before people go through the portal. The from a distance. Photo: author. major motifs, especially the capital animals were visible from a distance. Among the por- that the living conditions in the medieval tals surveyed in this analysis the Nissedal period were largely controlled by magical portal is the only one currently in its origi- performances; at the entrance to the barn or nal location (see Table 1). The motifs on storehouse, tar crosses and six leaf roses were the Nissedal portal were likely to have been painted and there could be inscriptions that highly visible when the portal was new and asked for blessings or wood carved masks visible from some distance. Today, the wood on the doors. Gjærder (1952: 31) states that is decomposing and it is difficult to distin- the doors of the medieval log houses were guish the different motifs, especially from largely without the complicated ornamenta- afar. The portal of Southern Tveito is in the tion seen on stave churches, but showed far Tveito loft at the Norwegian Folk Museum more types and varieties, and a larger range (Figure 1), and is better preserved. It has capi- of decorative motifs. tal animals and a three-dimensional carved The 12th century manuscript Gamal Norsk mask. The capital animals can be seen at Homiliebok, contains spiritual statements a distance. From 10 to 20 m away one can relating to different parts of a church build- make out the motifs and recognise the ani- ing. One part of the manuscript, the Stave mal motifs. At a distance of 40 to 60 m one Church Sermon, could have been used once a can see that the capitals and side pieces are year as a reminder of the church’s consecra- ornamented, but not what they represent. tion (Hjelde 1990: 290). In the Stave Church To distinguish between the different motifs, Sermon the portal is described as a metaphor. the carving may have been painted. The Nes- For the people who used the portal in every- land portal has remnants of blue and white day life, it may also have been seen as a meta- paint on the columns (Figure 5) but it is phor. The portals practical feature was as an unlikely that this is original. The west por- entry and exit to the building. It also marked tal from the nave of stave church, a liminal zone and physical and bodily expe- is painted with blue, yellow and riences were important aspects of its use. The red but the paint is newer than the portal. Ødeby: Through the Portal Art. 15, page 5 of 19

Portal Original location Dating The Sauland portal Sauland stave church in Hjartdal, Stylistically dated to the late 12th or Telemark early 13th century. The Nesland portal Unknown. Reused in Nesland stave Stylistically dated to ca. AD 1200. church in Nystu søndre, Vinje, According to a runic inscription the Telemark church was consecrated in AD 1242. The Lisleherad portal Lisleherad stave church in Landsverk Stylistically dated to the 13th or early nordre, Heddal, Telemark 14th century. The Tveito portal The farm Søre Tveito in Hovin, Tinn, Dated to ca. AD 1300 based on style, Telemark a runic inscription and the log construction. The Lundevall portal The farm Lundevall in Kviteseid, Stylistically dated to AD 1250–1350. Telemark The Nissedal portal The rectory in Nissedal, Telemark Prior to AD 1350 based on the con- struction. Previously the portal has stylistically been dated to the early 13th century. Table 1: The analysed portals

Meanwhile, the west portal from Nore stave the portals suddenly and is overwhelmed. church, is painted with green, yel- The portals must have been perceived as low and red. Gjærder (1952: 30) states that large and powerful and also magnificent (the the medieval profane doors were also col- technology of enchantment) and magical oured. On the Tveito portal there remains (the enchantment of technology). Where the original ochre and rust red pigment. Today portal is experienced in its magnificence, it the colours are heavily worn and eroded in is stunning because it is a product of tech- some places, but enough is preserved to nology and ‘made’ beautiful, and has thus establish that polychrome played a role in achieves the technical level of excellence. portal art. Polychrome was used as an accom- Where the portal is perceived as a magical paniment to the carvings, and seemed to object, medieval people saw the portal in an separate motifs from each other (Gjærder enchanted light. 1952: 30). Thus the motifs on both ecclesias- tical and profane portals could be seen from Norse Animal Art, the Portals and a distance, and were not necessarily just for their Ornaments those who went through the portal. In this research, wood was chosen as the In over half of the extant stave churches, research material for the Romanesque style the carved portals are not visible from the since it could be studied in both ecclesias- outside of the church. These portals are usu- tical and secular contexts. In Norway the ally set into a supporting wall inside the stone portals from secular houses are not built galleries. The portals in these cases preserved. Wood was the main material for had a different effect since they could not building houses in the medieval period since be seen from afar and one could prepare to it was cheap and easy to transport. It was meet them. An example can be seen in Hed- also the material used in traditional Viking dal stave church. Here the four portals are woodcarving. With the exception of a few unlit in dark galleries. They are very tall and halls and fortresses, only churches were built almost reach the roof. The viewer thus meets in stone (Ekroll 2000: 13). It is in Norwegian Art. 15, page 6 of 19 Ødeby: Through the Portal

This analysis includes six portals from the Norwegian county of Telemark, three stave church portals and three portals from secular buildings (Table 1). Using Panofsky’s iconological method to analyse the portals’ carvings, a number of motifs were identified. Panofsky’s icono- logical method consists of three levels: pre- iconographical description, iconographical analysis and iconological interpretation. The aim of pre-iconographical description is to find the image’s primary topics by identify- ing pure forms. The iconographical analy- sis puts the image in the context of literary sources, and the iconological interpretation tries to understand the artist’s choice and presentation of designs, based on contempo- rary national principles (Panofsky 1982: 30). Panofsky’s method was significant in identi- fying the portals’ motifs and their meaning. Table 2 presents the identified motifs from the six analysed portals. By applying the iconological method the portal motifs were individually identified. Although interpreting motifs in art is not fully objective, this method provides the required level of objectivity. For example, using Panofsky’s three levels, in level one the battle-scene between a large snake and a man is described as the interaction between three figures (Figure 3): a man, a long snake and a horse. The man, wearing a large ring on his back, is running his sword through Figure 2: The Sauland portal, depicting the the body of the snake, which in turn bites the classic Sogn- design. Photo: John horse’s tail. In level two this scene is cross- Erling Blad. referenced with literary sources and analysed to be a monster-slaying hero - possibly St. woodcarving that the old ornaments are best George, the Archangel Michael, Didrik of preserved, made in a milieu where traditions Bern or Sigurd the Dragon Slayer. Consider- were kept and impulses held at a distance ing the presence of the ring, the composi- (Hohler 1984: 145). Within these traditional tion most likely depicts Sigurd, whose story ornamental styles, it is the stave church carv- revolves around the finger-ring Andvarenaut. ings that dominate, especially the beauti- In level three, the interpretation reveals that fully composed Sogn-Valdres design (Hohler the Sigurd motif is already an old motif when 1984: 145–146; 1999b; see Figure 2). The it appears on the Lundevall portal. Stories woodcarver’s choice of ornaments must, from the Volsung Legend, where Sigurd orig- however, have been determined by a limited inates, were widely used as motifs in Viking set of compositions (Hohler 1984: 146). styles and the Romanesque style, especially Ødeby: Through the Portal Art. 15, page 7 of 19

Portal motifs Specifications and interpretation Snake Head seen from front Ribbon-shaped animal Head in profile, 2–4 legs Dragon Head in profile, legs and wings Four-legged animal - Mask Man’s face Lion’s head - Bird - Plant Vine Horse With a rider, Sigurd’s horse Grani Battle between dragons and snakes Battle-motif Battle between four-legged animals Battle-motif Battle between men and animals Battle motif, Sigurd and Fafnir Two men and a woman The Creation Eight people in a boat Noah’s Ark Three men by the sea The crossing of the Red Sea Four people Jesus raises a dead girl (?) Five people Three men in a furnace (?) Two men David and Goliath

Table 2: Identified motifs from the six analysed portals. The question marks indicate an un- certain interpretation based on literary sources. in Norway, and the Isle of Man. The Table 3 presents three categories: motifs motif is often found in combination with exclusively from the Viking styles, motifs runic inscriptions, and is often interpreted exclusively from the Romanesque style and as an allegory of Christianity’s victory over motifs from both. Generally, animal motifs pagan beliefs. For an elaboration of the inter- appear in both contexts but there is a notice- pretation of motifs presented in the tables able trait relating to the biblical motifs; see Ødeby (2012). Old Testament stories are introduced in the The identification of motifs from the Romanesque style and New Testament sto- three latest Viking styles are based on other ries disappear. Aside from this it seems that researchers’ results (see Fuglesang 1980, motifs in the Romanesque style also exist in 1981, 1982; Hedeager 1999, 2011; Klæsøe the Viking styles. The answers to why this is 2002; Kristoffersen 2000; Nielsen and Krist- the case can be obtained from discussing the offersen 2002; Shetelig 1950; Wilson 1980). motifs’ symbolic value. Only the youngest Viking styles from around AD 950–1100 (Mammen-, - and Symbols in the Norse Animal Art Urnesstyles) were used in the comparison The symbolic content of the Norse animal because in those styles Christian motifs can art has been studied by a number of scholars be identified in the ornamentation and they (see Domeij 2004; Hedeager 1999; Hedeager are considered Christian animal styles. 2004; Hedeager 2011; Kristoffersen 2000, Art. 15, page 8 of 19 Ødeby: Through the Portal

Figure 3: The Lundevall portal portraying Sigurd slaying the dragon. Drawing: P. Gjærder (1952: 63).

2010). Hedeager (2011: 66) emphasises that (Hedeager 2011: 68). In several places com- the animal’s role should be understood as plete, or part, human bodies are incorpo- part of the pre-Christian mindset. The icon- rated. Ambiguousness is an important struc- ographical elements are thought to have turing element, but the semantic potential been carefully chosen. Art was used in the of animal art is so complex and multidi- establishment and legitimisation of power, mensional that we cannot possibly grasp its and thus control and maintenance of style is full meaning today. We can, however, draw considered to be an elite strategy (Hedeager some conclusions (Hedeager 2011: 73–74). 2011: 51). These include that the portrayals cross the The complex representations of animals boundaries between humans and animals, reveal that the style does not reflect the ani- the depicted animals are wild beasts (not mals themselves, but rather the mentality domesticated animals) and that species are Iron Age people attributed to them (Kristof- portrayed as a reconciliation of animal and fersen 2010: 262). The style expresses a real- human body parts. ity more revealing than a naturalistic ren- The question then arises as to whether dering could have done. Species are mixed medieval motifs can be interpreted as symbols together, such as a snake with a bird’s head in the same way. Researchers are split into two Ødeby: Through the Portal Art. 15, page 9 of 19

Motifs from the three latest Portal motifs styles: Mammen, Ringerike and Urnesstyle

Dragon Dragon Snake Snake Ribbon-shaped animal Ribbon-shaped animal Four-legged animal Four-legged animal Horse Horse Bird Bird Plant Plant Mask Mask Sigurd the Dragon Slayer Sigurd the Dragon Slayer Lion – Battle between ribbon-shaped animal and snake – Battle between lion and snake – The Adoration of the Magi – Birth of Christ – Crucifix – The Bethlehem stable – Saints – – The Creation – Noah’s Ark – The crossing of the Red Sea – Jesus raises a dead girl – Three men in a furnace – David and Goliath – Lion’s head – Battle between two four-legged animals – Battle between dragons and snakes

Table 3: Motifs from the late Viking period compared with motifs on the medieval portals. groups: those who try to find symbolic mean- Symbols in the Romanesque Style ing in the Romanesque style (Anker 1997; Arguments for the motifs to incorporate a Dietrichson 1892; Hohler 1995; Staecker symbolic content are that both pagan and 2006), and those who interpret the design Christian symbols and symbols of power as purely ornamental and without meaning occur. Fuglesang (1980: 92) identifies the (Anker 1997; Hohler 1981). This question will four-legged animals in the Mammen, Ring- be discussed in the next section. erike and Urnes styles as lions, and interprets Art. 15, page 10 of 19 Ødeby: Through the Portal them as royal symbols of power. Half of this motifs on church portals is difficult. There project’s material is church portals, and their would be little point in interpreting them motifs may have had a symbolic meaning as as pagan thus Sigurd cannot be interpreted a portrayal of the Christian church and vic- as either a religious or non-religious motif tory over evil forces (Anker 1997: 267). (Hohler 1995: 171). The Lundevall por- An argument against the motifs hav- tal dates to the 13th or 14th century, during ing a symbolic value is that they may have which period pagan myths were distant sto- belonged to a secular portal tradition and ries. According to Staecker (2006: 366–367) that the symbol had lost any meaning. This the Sigurd myth played an important part in theory, however, lacks any evidence to sug- the transition between pagan and Christian gest that stave church portals had a secular times, acting as a mediator between the old origin and was built on a fully imported and new beliefs. The question remains why compositional scheme (Anker 1997: 267). Sigurd is portrayed in ornaments in the late There are no preserved secular doors in Nor- medieval period. There was no further need way older than ca. AD 1100, but several of for a mediator, and his function must there- these doors show a well-developed style and fore have been different. technical skill in the performance of the Dietrichson (1892) suggests that Sig- craft (Gjærder 1952: 14). This may indicate urd represented the ideal Christian knight, that the impulses went the other way, that and Staecker (2006: 366) views Sigurd as a the secular portals drew inspiration from the praefiguratio Christi, or a symbolisation of church portals, when it came to the decor the dragon slayer St. Michael. In this sense and use of design. the slaying of the dragon equates to victory The following is an elaboration of the over the Devil. Blindheim points out that possible symbolic contents of the Sigurd- there is a pseudo-Christian light over the motif, the inhabited vine and the general other two main characters in Vǫlsungasaga animal motifs. - Gunnar and Hogne. The knightly ideals may be sensed in the martyrdom of Gun- Sigurd nar and Hogne, and the other protagonist’s Sigurd the Dragon Slayer has been inter- revenge. Carved on the choir portal in Lunde preted in different ways. In Vǫlsungasaga Church in Telemark, Sigurd with the dragon Odin enters the story, and there are clear and Samson with the lion are portrayed on references to Norse mythology. Nordanskog opposite capitals. When these two myths are (2006: 217) asks whether the motifs were paralleled on either side of the church portal, ordered by defiant pagan peasants. How- it can explain how the story of Sigurd got a ever, the portals analysed are from the 12th foothold in the church (Blindheim 1972: 20; and 13th centuries when Norway had been Nygaard 1996: 131). Christian for a long time and the story of The common denominator in the inter- Sigurd was known and accepted (Nordan- pretation of Sigurd’s appearance in medi- skog 2006: 222). According to Blindheim eval art is that it represents a subconscious (1972: 11), Sigurd was the ideal of mascu- idea of the battle against evil, which offers linity for the Viking period and medieval an explanation of how the design could pass men; a hero favoured by gods and loved in to an ecclesiastical environment. On the by women. Sigurd could have symbolised a Lundevall portal, one can argue that Sigurd is pride in homely traditions. He was the big- depicted as a hero. Where he sticks his sword gest hero in the Norse sagas, so to use him in the snake, the dragon Fafnir, the snake as a motif was no accident. symbolises the Devil. This is underlined by Sigurd clearly cannot be connected to the way poetry was used in church decora- Christian beliefs and interpreting secular tion throughout in the medieval Ødeby: Through the Portal Art. 15, page 11 of 19 period. The story also had a certain historical authenticity. In one version of Ragnar Lod- brok’s saga, it is said that Sigurd’s daughter Aslaug married Ragnar Lodbrok and their son Worm’s-eye, begat Ragnhild - Harald Fairhair’s mother. In this way, Sigurd is an historical person, and genealogically linked to the Norwegian royal family (Hohler 1995: 173; Nordanskog 2006: 221). Nordanskog (2006: 222) also attempts to explain why Sigurd was carved on churches. The pictures and the story of Sigurd could obviously be placed somewhere it was no problem to use them. It was probably on the stave church portals and the secular portals that our image of the Viking era and the pre- Christian Scandinavian religion was formed. Out of the 40 medieval depictions of Sigurd in Norway, 33 are connected to churches and cemeteries (Blindheim 1972: 20; Liepe 1989: 11). However, ecclesiastical objects are better Figure 4: Inhabited vine on the Sauland por- preserved than secular objects (Blindheim tal. Photo: author. 1972: 20). animal ornamentation (Hohler 1995: 177). Inhabited Vines Dietrichson and Bugge interpreted the vines Animals and vines are the motifs which art as the world-tree Yggdrasil, while the strug- historians have had the greatest difficulty in gle between animals symbolised Ragnarok interpreting. They are not placed into figure (Hohler 1995: 177). That Ragnarok is the end or pictorial scenes, but are entangled in each of the pagan world is underlined by the fact other in larger compositions. This applies to that the motif is placed on the portal to the both the Urnes portal, the oldest preserved house of God, and illustrates the final battle stave church portal with its famous Urnes between good and evil. This interpretation is style design, and portals with the Sogn- now out of date, as is the interpretation of Valdres composition, of which the portal from Sigurd’s history as a pagan story, because it is Sauland is part. Among the most common contradictory to interpret pre-Christian sym- Romanesque motifs are those which Hohler bolism on portals that were made long after (1995: 177) calls ‘inhabited vines’, where the the arrival of Christianity. animals sit in the vines (Figure 4). The expres- sion itself is thus a part of the Christian Animal Motifs Romanesque tradition. However, the combi- In Christian medieval art individual ele- nation of three dragons on the lintel over the ments in paintings had their own symbolic door opening that is present on the portal meaning or function. Ferguson examined from Sauland (see Figure 2), is distinctive for this in Signs and Symbols (1989) in which he stave church portals and not found on secu- established the symbolic meanings of indi- lar portals. Johan Christian Dahl believes vidual motifs including the dragon which that the motifs had a background in Norse symbolises the Devil who is portrayed in Rev- mythology, and according to Nicolaysen it elations 12:7–9 as God’s enemy. The serpent, may have been a development from the Irish often in the same costume as the dragon, is Art. 15, page 12 of 19 Ødeby: Through the Portal depicted as the one who tempts Adam and represent woodcraft in decay (Gjærder 1952: Eve in Genesis 3:13. Therefore the serpent 41). The county of Telemark belongs to one represents the general temptation to deceive of the most tradition-bound regions and people and lead them into sin (Ferguson ornamentation here is increasingly an echo 1989: 17). In the Renaissance, the horse is of early medieval art. That a specific sym- often depicted as a symbol of desire (Fergu- bolic meaning can be dedicated to an orna- son 1989: 20), which is inspired by Jeremiah ment once it has become ‘traditional’ art is 5:8. Birds were used in the early Christian uncertain. By the beginning of the 13th cen- period as symbols of a ‘winged soul’. Gen- tury the Gothic style was on its way in, but eral, not species-specific, birds were used by it can be seen from the dates of the portals artists to represent the spiritual, as opposed in this analysis (Table 1) that Telemark kept to the material (Ferguson 1989: 12). Plants up the old traditions longer than the central are often more difficult to interpret, but in regions of Norway. The quality of the portal Renaissance art, the various flowers, trees ornaments is a problem which is beyond the and plants had different symbolic meanings. scope of this paper. Vine elements could be interpreted as grape- vines. Vines are one of the most vivid sym- Motifs as Metaphors bols of the Bible, and represent the relation- To interpret the portal motifs as symbols ship between God and his people (Ferguson has been tried by many different research- 1989: 39). ers. Therefore, I will present an alternative Ferguson’s examples from Renaissance interpretation of the motifs which consid- paintings illustrate how the symbols were ers their metaphorical, rather than symbolic, used in Christian art. All of the portals in associations. Animal fragmentation and my analysis are made in, and for, a Chris- composition of the material culture has ear- tian community. From this it would not be lier been linked with linguistic concepts such unreasonable to suggest that the symbolic as metaphors, whereby words and concepts interpretations presented above are real. are rewritten for the sake of poetic effects. Previous research, however, rejects this inter- Domeij (2004: 150) has looked at the corre- pretation of portal motifs when the motifs lation between animal ornamentation and are depicted alongside vines and animals verbal expressions in early medieval Skaldic on wooden doors in the Norwegian moun- poetry. She concluded that if the aforemen- tain regions (see Anker 1997; Hohler 1995). tioned animals and body parts, in Skaldic Such a fixed symbolic interpretation under- verses where animals occur, were picked out estimates, according to my assessment, the and put together as a whole, a hybrid occurs complexity of the early Christian community similar to the compositions of the ornamen- in Norway. Renaissance paintings from the tation of Scandinavian Iron Age art. In this High and Late Medieval period had a differ- way, Domeij believes that we can deepen our ent function from portals, and their symbol- understanding of animal ornamentation. ism cannot be automatically transferred to On the basis of metaphorical thinking the the designs in such a different context. The identified motifs on the portals give some portal is more than just art and has a very associations. The first association is the specific function. Anyone who enters the ‘supernatural’. Dragons are fabulous beasts building must pass through the portal and of legend and folklore, and are depicted on finds themselves surrounded by it. I suggest portals as winged serpents with or without that the motifs were selected for the portal legs. Along with Sigurd on the Lundevall por- to complement this function. tal, the dragon is depicted as an unnaturally The portals in this analysis are among the large snake without wings and legs. The fact younger preserved medieval portals, and that Sigurd fought against a dragon is itself a Ødeby: Through the Portal Art. 15, page 13 of 19

Motifs on stave church portals Motifs on storehouse portals Snake Snake Ribbon-shaped animal Ribbon-shaped animal Four-legged animal Four-legged animal Plants Plants Horse Horse Dragon – Bird – Lion’s head – Battle between dragons and snakes – Biblical motifs – – Battle between four-legged animals – Mask – Sigurd the Dragon Slayer

Table 4: Motifs on church portals compared with profane portals. supernatural phenomenon, and may be asso- ing and their expressions must be associated ciated with a fight against forces that may with the reference framework they origi- seem insurmountable, since they are not of nated in. this world. The second association is the ‘unnatural’. The Ecclesiastical and the Secular The animals depicted in the portal orna- Art is found in many different contexts and ments, whether they are real animals or rendered in many different media. Previous supernatural imaginary animals, have a research concludes that Christian and secu- behavior that is not natural to the respective lar art in medieval Norway are connected, animals. Large four-legged animals are laying and were not very different. Hauglid (1950: still and pout at the spectator. Dragons and 71) and Gjærder (1952: 15) believe there was snakes are fighting for their lives. Animals no profound distinction between Christian are placed symmetrically towards each other, and secular art and architecture, and that silently witnessing that they are guardians of the artistic effects that prevailed on the secu- the entrance. Men are fighting an impossible lar doors had a certain connection with the battle against giant carnivores. ecclesiastical art and must be seen in rela- The third association is the ‘natural’. Plants tion to this. Karlsson (1976: 41) also assumes wind together, horses follow their owners that the basic Roman forms and motifs are and birds are taking off from the grounds and common to secular and ecclesiastical archi- plains. One element which is difficult to deter- tecture. My analysis supports these claims, mine, however, is the mask without context. while providing a more nuanced picture. To look at the motifs as metaphors can Table 4 presents the results from the analysis help us interpret them. To see motifs as met- of the distribution of motifs on church por- aphors implies that they really belong in a tals compared with secular portals. different frame of reference. The motifs had Based on Table 4 there is an inequality in previously worked at another level of mean- the distribution of motifs. The biblical motifs Art. 15, page 14 of 19 Ødeby: Through the Portal

Figure 5: The topmost motif on the Nesland portal: The Creation, depicting a standing halo- wearing God creating Adam and Eve. Photo: author.

(Figure 5) can be seen as a matter of course in pany’. Therefore there is no doubt that the ecclesiastical context and it is not surprising church door, and thus the portal, was a key that they are not found in secular context. If element in Christian symbolism. It is not just they existed, they are not preserved today. a door leading into the church space but also Designs that appear only in a secular context a door which leads believers into the Chris- are: the battle between four-legged animals, tian community. The starting point for the masks and Sigurd the Dragon Slayer. Designs door’s allegorical details goes back to Greg- that include Sigurd do appear on stave ory the Great (Hjelde 1990: 296). First and church portals other than those included in foremost, the door symbolised faith and a this analysis. set of three doors symbolised faith, hope and Why some motifs are used in both con- love. The door could also symbolise Christ texts, while others are reserved for one con- (John 10: 7–9). The interpretation that the text only cannot be answered without taking portal symbolises faith is made clear by the several factors into consideration. Along with Stave Church Sermon. the use of motifs, the building’s function The biblical scenes in the ecclesiastical indicates the portal’s metaphorical signifi- context may have had the same function cance. It is likely that the portal distinguishes as the ones Andås described in her analysis. between more than just inside and outside. The designs were known to medieval people, That is why there are pictures on the portal. who were reminded of the Bible stories as The portal is an important place to express they went through the portal. The message essential elements of iconography. Church could mean that the person was obliged portals probably had a stronger position as to follow the moral of the story by going a metaphor than secular portals. It is only on through the portal, and to choose salvation the church portal that biblical motifs are pre- rather than condemnation. The same could served and the church door in contemporary also apply to the story of Sigurd the Dragon literature was awarded a symbolic meaning Slayer, who here has been interpreted as a beyond any practical function. hero, whereby the act of killing the dragon In the Stave Church Sermon it is said that was understood as that the hero fighting the church door ‘indicates the true faith that and conquering evil. A reminder of Sigurd’s guides us in to the common Christian com- story could involve a call for people to live Ødeby: Through the Portal Art. 15, page 15 of 19 as good Christians and to constantly fight 13th century people perceived all the mes- the evil around them. This appeal has been sages we currently read into the pictures. placed on both the religious and secular por- Nordanskog believes that the images could tals, and could therefore serve as a general be interpreted as Christian symbols, royal moral - whilst remaining a good story - in all propaganda or stories about heroes from strata of society. a lost time depending on who was viewing Why the motifs mask and battle between them. Markus (2003: 189) discusses whether four-legged animals are only on the profane the level of understanding of medieval ico- portals and why dragon, bird, lion head and nography was different for the customer, cre- the battle between dragons and snakes are ator and farmer. She assumes that the public only located in the church context is more reaction to the art was changing in the 12th difficult to answer. Christensen (1998: 265) century, but that it cannot be compared states that masks were often carved above with today’s human individualistic agency. the door of a storehouse and loft, and may Can it be concluded that all motifs were have been reserved for secular buildings. understood differently depending on who The dragon, on the other hand, is part of the regarded them in the medieval period? This widely used Sogn Valdres design and this probably does not apply to the customer, composition may have been reserved for who ordered the design and had a sense of stave church portals. Where medieval people what the motifs symbolized, or what he/ got the models for this composition scheme she wanted them to be perceived as. I would remains unanswered. suggest, on the basis of their ambiguity and When it comes to the snake, horse, ribbon- the difficulty in interpreting them that the shaped animals, four-legged animals and motifs were metaphors meant to give the plants, which are found in both contexts, viewer associations. these are classic animal and plant motifs in We have seen that the portal can legiti- their simplest form. They are inherited from mately be interpreted as a metaphor. Subjects the Viking styles and are, as expected, found adapted to the context and the church portal in all medieval art. The horse especially was was given their own meaning which differed seen as a powerful animal (see Oma 2000), from other parts of the building. A church and the four-legged animals can represent portal was also a liminal zone where rituals several different species. Both the ecclesi- took place and iconography was viewed. astical and profane portals have four-leg- ged animals as guards on either side of the Conclusion entrance. These animals are often the only Several designs from Viking animal styles three-dimensional elements on the portals, were reused in the medieval Romanesque and face each other symmetrically (Gjærder style on wooden portals in Norway. The 1952: 38). Their three-dimensional quality style had changed with the establishment makes them project out from portal, and of Christianity but the motifs still existed makes them visible from a distance (see Fig- in their simplest form. Their symbolism is ure 1). Thus, the viewer’s visual relationship constantly discussed but is understood dif- with the animals was established a good ferently by different people at the time. On while before reaching the portal and they the ecclesiastical and secular portals, there were clearly visible to the person who went was a certain inequality in the distribution through the portal. of motifs, but generally the selected motifs’ The definite reason for applying Sigurd locations were significant to the portal’s limi- the Dragon Slayer and other motifs on the nality and had an impact on the people who portals cannot be determined (Nordanskog entered through it. 2006: 221). Some interpretations are com- From six relatively late portals from the plex and it is questionable whether 12th and county of Telemark, I identified 18 individual Art. 15, page 16 of 19 Ødeby: Through the Portal designs. Compared with motifs in the late that existed in both contexts. Also Sigurd’s Viking styles, nine were common motifs in history can be seen as a story about moral the two periods, eight were exclusively in the strength. Sigurd fought against the dragon, Norse animal art, and nine were exclusively winning over evil. In line with the biblical on the medieval portals. Generally the ani- motifs, Sigurd could remind people about mal motifs like the snake, dragon, bird, horse, fighting for good when they went through ribbon-shaped and four-legged animals were the portal. used in both periods. This indicates that ani- The use and placement of designs, along mal motifs were resistant elements when with the building’s function, indicates the they were used in their simplest form. portals metaphorical significance. The church The extent to which motifs are interpreted portal distinguished between outside and as symbols is difficult to answer. The inter- inside the house of God, and between the pretation of animal styles emphasizes that church and the consecrated cemetery. The animals symbolized the mentality people profane portal in storehouses and lofts dis- attributed to them. Research alternates tinguished between the storage room, where between a symbolic interpretation and a per- food and clothes could be stored safely, and ception that the motifs were only decorative the open courtyard. That the portals func- and meaningless. Sigurd the Dragon Slayer tioned as a liminal zone, as the threshold has been much debated, but in my opinion between inside and outside, is reflected in he can, when he appears on medieval por- contemporary literature. The Stave Church tals, be understood as a hero. An attempt to Sermon emphasized that the door was the understand the motifs on the basis of classi- pivotal element that leads believers into the cal Christian interpretations clarifies that the Christian community, into the church. If the portal motifs cannot be interpreted in the moral of the narrative stories was reinforced same way as motifs in Renaissance paintings, by going through the portal, the iconography in which each scene has an enacted symbolic is meaningful in a liminal perspective. meaning. To interpret portal motifs likewise Designs can tell us about human percep- underestimates the complexity of the early tion of life in both the Viking and medieval Christian community in Norway because the periods. The art’s basic theme in the con- portal was more than just art. The portal’s text of the door itself lay deep in human function as an entrance and exit to the build- consciousness. ing suggests that the motifs had to comple- ment this function. Acknowledgements Comparing the motifs of the ecclesiastical I would like to express my gratitude to and profane portals reveals that motifs in Julie Lund and Lotte Hedeager, my supervi- their simplest form as a snake, four-legged sors on this project, and to the Institute of animals, plants and horses are inherited Archaeology, Conservation and History at from the Norse animal art and existed in the University of Oslo where this project was both contexts. It seems that the mask has undertaken. I am also greatly indebted to been reserved for profane portals, while the Jack Hunt and Emma Nielsen for their com- dragon and biblical motifs were reserved for ments on earlier drafts of this paper, though church portals. The biblical motifs would all errors and assumptions remain my own. be recognized by medieval people, who were thus reminded of the moral act in the References story. To walk through the portal and enter Andås, M S 2007 Art and Ritual in the Limi- the church, could commit one to follow the nal Zone. In: Andås, M S, Ekroll, Ø, Haug, morals and choose salvation rather than con- A and Petersen, N H The Medieval Cathe- demnation. Although it did not appear in the dral of Trondheim. Turnhout: Brepols, pp. analysis, Sigurd the Dragon Slayer is a scene 47–126. Ødeby: Through the Portal Art. 15, page 17 of 19

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How to cite this article: Ødeby, K 2013 Through the Portal: Viking Motifs Incorporated in the Romanesque Style in Telemark, Norway. Papers from the Institute of Archaeology, 23(1): 15, pp. 1-19, DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5334/pia.433

Published: 25 September 2013

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