Weapons of the Vikings

Atgeir

A lost weapon of the Viking Age is known as the atgeir (Shyryakova 1). The atgeir was a polearm that was used like a javelin and any type of slashing weapon at the same time. Before historians settled on the javelin/sword hybrid they classified it by, they originally thought it was a halberd-type weapon. Historians know of its existence because of stories left behind by the Vikings that tell of heroes using an atgeir as a weapon to fight (Shyryakova 1-6).

Ulfberht

Blacksmiths in the Viking Age were able to make a lot of good weapons and armor. Each blacksmith would trademark their weapons either to show that they made it or to say “This is a high-quality sword. Buy it now. Give me money”. A person named Ulfberht made about 100 of these swords with the inscription +VLFBEHR+T on them (Smithing and Counterfeit 1).

Hard Steel

Weapons in the Viking Age were usually buried with the user of the weapon. Most of the weapons that were buried with these warriors were stolen by grave robbers or were decayed due to weather and soil. We have about 29 artifacts from these graves. One of these is a spearhead made of hard steel. Hard steel is a version of steel that has been infused with more types of steel to make it more durable and strong. Another artifact was inscribed with SINIMIA(I)N(I)AIS. This inscription was found on a sword (Carlisle 126-128).