Despite the wildly popular image of a raging Viking with a horned helmet brandishing an axe, archaeological evidence for Viking helmets is few and far between. In fact, only a single intact helmet from Viking Scandinavia has ever been found. Most armour and weapons that we know of from the Vikings has been found in burial sites, where it was thought it would help the deceased in the afterlife. Sources show that only free and independent men of a certain rank were buried with their weapons, and these were often included as a display of wealth and status.
In the fascinating article “The Mystery of the Missing Viking Helmets” (2000), the author, Knut Wester, suggests various hypotheses as to why only a single helmet and a handful of helmet fragments have been found amongst the thousands of weapons uncovered in the Viking graves of Scandinavia. They may have been considered too expensive to leave in burial sites, though this seems unlikely given the riches that have been found in some of these sites. They could have been used in a similar way to crowns and passed from one leader to the next. Perhaps they were not made of metal but an organic material like leather, and as a result they decomposed long ago. Or, as Wester suggest, perhaps Vikings never used helmets at all.
Since the inception of our business, we have spent a considerable amount of time designing and developing our products. We strive to make our replica artefacts as historically accurate as possible, but in order to be appropriate for wear and tear in the classroom (I know exactly what happens in a Year 8 class on Friday afternoon!), we’ve made certain concessions and adjustments. Our first helmet was based on what you commonly see at Viking replica events: a pointed cone, with an iron trim, and a nose guard extending down in the centre of the face. This type of helmet has been depicted on coins and tapestries that relate to the Viking age.
Viking reenactors in a mock battle
Our first iteration of a Viking helmet
We combined the concept of helmets made of thick leather panels with the defensive elements (such as the nose guard) made of metal to construct the first iteration of our Viking helmet. And even though I took a blacksmithing lesson, I decided within an hour that it was not for me! I found that even aluminium was hard to work with. But I wasn’t ready to give up just yet.
Our second iteration of a Viking helmet
Take two. I tried another helmet, this time with just a band of aluminium (no crosspieces or nose guard). I was happier with the aluminium band on this, but as I’d folded the edges over to remove the cut edge, it was even harder to work with it because it didn’t want to follow a curve smoothly. So we went back to the drawing board, and this is where we discovered the Gjermundbu helmet after doing some deeper research.
Gjermundbu helmet
The Gjermundbu helmet was the only Viking helmet found in Scandinavia. It has a fairly simple construction and included an eyepiece that cuts into and also extends below the rim. A ring on the side was most likely used for attaching chain mail for the neck. It is also fairly large (66cm circumference if you want to test that out!), so a thick lining would have undoubtably been used to help cushion the wearer from any blows.
After reading about the Gjermundbu helmet, in conjunction with the hypothesis that Viking helmets might have been made of organic materials I conceived of an all leather helmet. The saga of King Håkon the Good suggests that he was able to cleave through his opponent’s helmet and head, all the way down to the shoulders, in a single blow with a one-handed sword. This astonishing if rather gruesome feat would be much more credible if the helmet in question was made of leather rather than iron.
Our third iteration of a Viking helmet
My third design was the result of this deeper research. I decided to try another design for the leather panels, which required some stitching to create a domed shape. All of the crosspieces and bands were leather too, and I incorporated a leather version of the Gjermundbu eyepiece. Unfortunately, I didn’t choose the correct thickness of leather. I made several other mistakes along the way that lead me to the brink of madness, but with a little encouragement from my husband, I managed to fix them and finish it. But I was still not happy with the design!
Our final iteration of an all-leather Viking helmet
The final prototype used all the lessons of the previous versions, and with the right equipment (brand new leather shears made a huge difference!) and correct leather choices, we think it’s an accurate iteration of the only Viking Age helmet that was found. Based on our research, we feel confident that an all-leather helmet is not inconceivable for the Viking Age, especially given the lack of archaeological evidence. While we know that Vikings did not use horned helmets as is so often depicts, they may not have worn helmets at all, and this item in our kits provides a great enquiry into historical accuracy and interpretation.
