The sovereign seeress
The South Scandinavian chair pendants of the late Viking Age form a famous and much debated find category. They have been associated with the cult of Odin as well as female seeresses. However, their find contexts clearly link the amulets intimately to a female use-sphere and their condition shows t...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Editorial Board of DJA
2022-01-01
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| Series: | Danish Journal of Archaeology |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://tidsskrift.dk/dja/article/view/122229 |
| _version_ | 1797600462879326208 |
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| author | Mads Dengsø Jessen Kamilla Ramsøe Majland |
| author_facet | Mads Dengsø Jessen Kamilla Ramsøe Majland |
| author_sort | Mads Dengsø Jessen |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description |
The South Scandinavian chair pendants of the late Viking Age form a famous and much debated find category. They have been associated with the cult of Odin as well as female seeresses. However, their find contexts clearly link the amulets intimately to a female use-sphere and their condition shows that they have been worn intensely. With a new pendant emerging from the detector finds from Gudme, Denmark, the connection between chair amulets and dominant settlements is further strengthened. The female prerogative, the locational aristocratic reference in combination with the chairs association with royal privileges lead to the argument that the amulets must be connected with the deep historical presence of the seeress as a sovereign power across Northern Europe. Her position is explained as a triangulation of Seeress, Odin and King which are all represented as being seated. Consequently, seating is regarded as a main attribute and a recurring and noticeable privilege for all three characters. Thus, the chair en miniature is argued to function as a material anchoring of the socio-symbolic understanding of the seated sovereign seeress.
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| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T03:48:28Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-30e9c3ed4570490cbaab8bdffe24cf0b |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2166-2290 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T03:48:28Z |
| publishDate | 2022-01-01 |
| publisher | Editorial Board of DJA |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Danish Journal of Archaeology |
| spelling | doaj.art-30e9c3ed4570490cbaab8bdffe24cf0b2023-11-18T01:03:14ZengEditorial Board of DJADanish Journal of Archaeology2166-22902022-01-011010.7146/dja.v10i0.122229The sovereign seeressMads Dengsø Jessen0Kamilla Ramsøe MajlandNationalmuseet The South Scandinavian chair pendants of the late Viking Age form a famous and much debated find category. They have been associated with the cult of Odin as well as female seeresses. However, their find contexts clearly link the amulets intimately to a female use-sphere and their condition shows that they have been worn intensely. With a new pendant emerging from the detector finds from Gudme, Denmark, the connection between chair amulets and dominant settlements is further strengthened. The female prerogative, the locational aristocratic reference in combination with the chairs association with royal privileges lead to the argument that the amulets must be connected with the deep historical presence of the seeress as a sovereign power across Northern Europe. Her position is explained as a triangulation of Seeress, Odin and King which are all represented as being seated. Consequently, seating is regarded as a main attribute and a recurring and noticeable privilege for all three characters. Thus, the chair en miniature is argued to function as a material anchoring of the socio-symbolic understanding of the seated sovereign seeress. https://tidsskrift.dk/dja/article/view/122229miniatures, chair pendants, völva, aristocracy, Gudme, pre-Christian cult, Viking Age |
| spellingShingle | Mads Dengsø Jessen Kamilla Ramsøe Majland The sovereign seeress Danish Journal of Archaeology miniatures, chair pendants, völva, aristocracy, Gudme, pre-Christian cult, Viking Age |
| title | The sovereign seeress |
| title_full | The sovereign seeress |
| title_fullStr | The sovereign seeress |
| title_full_unstemmed | The sovereign seeress |
| title_short | The sovereign seeress |
| title_sort | sovereign seeress |
| topic | miniatures, chair pendants, völva, aristocracy, Gudme, pre-Christian cult, Viking Age |
| url | https://tidsskrift.dk/dja/article/view/122229 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT madsdengsøjessen thesovereignseeress AT kamillaramsøemajland thesovereignseeress AT madsdengsøjessen sovereignseeress AT kamillaramsøemajland sovereignseeress |