Digitised reconstruction of a Viking sword

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This is a digitised reconstruction of a Viking sword. The hilt and the blade are from separate swords. Images of the two parts were combined to create an approximation of how the sword from Eigg might have looked.

The hilt was discovered on Eigg in 1830, but none of the fragments of the blade survive. The double-edged blade was found with a hilt of different form near Gorton in Moray.

Viking men were often buried with their weapons, together with a range of objects to accompany them after death. Swords were highly valued items, even plain ones. Some were elaborately decorated. They were used as slashing weapons.

Record details

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• Online ID: 000-190-001-232-C
• Image Rights Holder: National Museums Scotland
• Project: National Museums Scotland
  Project description   View all records in project
• Ref: National Museums Scotland  X.IL 157
• Date: 9th century
  Date of original hilt: 9th century; date of original blade: 900-1000
  
• Material: Bronze, silver, gilt and niello
  Sword hilt
  
• Dimensions: 7.50" L
  
• What: Sword hilt
  
• Subject:
• Who:
• Where: Scotland, Inverness-shire, Eigg
  
• Event:
• Description: Viking sword hilt of bronze inlaid with silver, from Eigg, 9th century
  
• References:
  • Grieg, Sigurd. Viking Antiquities in Scotland (=Viking Antiquities in Great Britain and Ireland, Part II, ed. by Haakon Shetelig). Oslo: H. Aschehoug & Co., 1940, pp 63-6, 159. 
• Translations:
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