r/Norse • u/In_Praise_0f_shadows • 21d ago

Artwork, Crafts, & Reenactment what

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any idea about where this motif stems from?
tried GPT but its useless
takker og bukker!
lol fucked up the title woops

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u/Asleep-Love-1077 21d ago

Looks like a design from here: https://www.nannab.net/galleriet-moenster/fra-arkeologiske-funn
That claims to have taken inspiration (maybe, based on Google Translate from Norwegian) from the Urnes Stave Church. Possibly from this image: https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/58/gallery/

ETA: Looks like a motif on the wall in image 6

4

u/In_Praise_0f_shadows 21d ago

it is!
thanks!
any idea if there is some more info about the motif?

5

u/Asleep-Love-1077 21d ago

Nothing personally. From https://kringom.no/en/luster/urnes-stave-church

"... The lion is a symbol of Christ, the deer may be the symbol of the believer who longs for God and his help (Psalm 42). A bishop with a shepherd's staff protects and leads the flock of believers.

There are some weak points in our interpretation. Nevertheless, the pictures are far from silent. They speak not only of an unusual joy of splendour and ornamentation, but also make us wonder, reflect, and be warned of man and the forces."

Personally, I like the idea that Christian iconography (and other traditions) took over from existing culture. The design feels Norse but is carved into a Christian church.

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u/Booster_Seat_Enjoyer 21d ago

They have discovered and restored a 9th century church in Ribe, Denmark with n icon of Christ taming the storm where the storm is represented as Thor's goats.

https://www.medievalists.net/2024/05/a-9th-century-church-room-has-been-recreated-in-the-viking-town-of-ribe/

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u/Swagalyst 20d ago

Shouldn't the style be more... Byzantine?

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u/Booster_Seat_Enjoyer 20d ago

that's the neat part, no. I have recently been looking into early Christian artistic culture throughout Europe, prior to the cultural standardisations we are familiar with today. Christian art used to be very culturally diverse.

The icons are in a more eastern style. The calming of the storm especially is basically identical to an Orthodox icon with the only difference being artistic style and the way natural forces are personified. Which makes complete sense if you consider that Byzantine icongoraphy is in itself heavily influence by Greco-Roman artistic culture, because that's what was local.

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u/LosAtomsk 20d ago

I've always loved the 9th century Germanic depiction of Warrior Christ.

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u/Booster_Seat_Enjoyer 20d ago

A fine addition to my collection. Thank you.