I have a marketing meeting (my first!) with my publisher today, and I’m bringing some visual aids that I thought you might enjoy also. (Credit for most of these photos goes to my husband Seth Miller.)
First some pictures from Strongman competitions I’ve done. While 9th century vikings did not pull trucks, they did some of the Strongman events that are seen in competitions today. For instance, the Husafell stone carry, which today is usually done with an object that looks like a small metal coffin, was originally done with a 418-lb Icelandic stone. (That is more than I can lift–usually I use a 200-lb stone.)
Me pulling a 17,000-lb truckMe having gotten a 150-lb atlas stone to my shoulder for the first time.
Then some pictures from my research trips:
Out sailing at the Viking Ship museum in Roskilde
The site of this Norwegian farmhouse was settled in the 1100s; the building on the left dates back to the 1700s
Great views from up at the farmhouse
Suitor Falls in Geirangerfjord, Norway as seen from the farmhouse across the way where we camped
The Oseberg ship at the Viking Ship Museum in Oslo.
Decoration on a cart at the Viking Ship Museum, Oslo.
Detail from a Viking-Age Icelandic vertical loom at the National Museum of Iceland. It would take more than a day to weave a yard of cloth.
One of the Faroe Islands, seen from a helicopter.
Sheep! More specifically, Faroese sheep that welcomed us back to earth after our helicopter ride.
