Danish museum says Vikings had stained glass Windows [View all]

[Judi Lynn]

New research shows that Viking Age windows were created using stained glass in the 9th century, contrary to popular belief that stained-glass windows only emerged during the construction of medieval churches and castles in Denmark.

Researchers in Copenhagen analyzed 61 fragments of glass panes and concluded that the pieces of glass can be dated from long before the churches and castles of the Middle Ages and that Vikings had windows with glass panes between 800 and 1100. The Viking Age is considered to be from 793 to 1066.

“Several fragments of glass windows found on important Viking Age sites in South Scandinavia, made us wonder if it was just a mere coincidence that they were there,” says Torben Sode, the study’s lead author who first noticed the special find material. “And it wasn’t, they can be dated to the Vikings Age and most likely must have been in use in that time-period as well.”

The museum said glass windows were for the upper echelons of society and religious use, as was the case in the rest of Europe. These Viking Age windows were not the large, transparent windows we are accustomed to today. Instead, they likely consisted of smaller panes in various shades of green and brown, not meant for viewing the outside world but for infusing the interior of their buildings with colorful light.

The fact that glass windowpanes were uncommon in Denmark until several centuries later, when medieval churches and castles were built, is what makes the discovery so astonishing. This new information highlights the fact that the Vikings were much more advanced than commonly believed.



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