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The Överhogdal tapestries (Swedish: Överhogdalstapeten) are a group of extraordinarily well-preserved textiles dating from the late Viking Age or the Early Middle Ages that were discovered in the village of Överhogdal in Härjedalen, Sweden.^[1]

Discovery and dating[edit]

The Överhogdal tapestries were found in the vestry of Överhogdal Church (Överhogdals kyrka) in the Diocese of Härnösand by Jonas Holm (1895-1986) in 1909 during the renovation of the church. The tapestries were brought to Östersund in 1910 by the artist Paul Jonze (1883-1973) and the County Governor's wife Ellen Widén, who was a dominant figure within the regional heritage movement at the time, took charge.^[2] The first thing she did was to give the dirty linen a good wash.^[2]^[3] Radiocarbon dating tests conducted in 1991 indicated that the tapestries were made between 800 and 1100 AD, during the Viking Age.^[4] Newer tests in 2005 instead indicated a period between 1040 and 1170 AD.^[5]

Description and construction[edit]

The Överhogdal tapestries have been theorized as depicting imagery of both Norse and Christian origin. The contents of the pictures are much debated; some characters have a pagan content, featuring the detailed look of Odin's horse Sleipnir, while other characters are clearly part of Christian imagery. The artwork depict stylized animals, dark blue and red horses, birds and people. There is also a ship, a tree and inscriptions. The four surviving sections of the tapestries have 323 figures of people and 146 and 3 partial animals, all generally moving to the left.^[2]

The large animal and smaller human figures seem to rush by a tree, which could be the mighty ash Yggdrasil, a massive tree central to nine worlds in Norse mythology. Some scholars have suggested that what is shown is the Christianization of the region Härjedalen. However, today the dominant theory, given the radiocarbon dating of the tapestries, is that Ragnarök, a series of events foretold to occur in Norse mythology, is being depicted. Research has established that the figures are made of plant dyed wool, which is interwoven with the linen with a special technique.^[6]

Today, these unique tapestries are on display in a specially designed room at Jamtli, the regional museum of Jämtland and Härjedalen in Östersund.^[7]

References[edit]

^ "Överhogdal Tapestries". wsimag.com/culture. 17 September 2018. Retrieved August 1, 2019.
^ ^a ^b ^c Göransson, Eva-Marie (1995). "Människor i Rum av Id: Bilder av Kvinnor och män på Överhogdal" (PDF). Fornvännen. 90. Swedish National Heritage Board: 129–138. Retrieved 2010-05-03.
^ "Paul Jonze". lexikonettamanda. Retrieved August 1, 2019.
^ Nordanskog, Gunnar (2006). Föreställd Hedendom: Tidigmedeltida Skandinaviska Kyrkportar i Forskning och Historia. Lund: Nordic Academic Press. p. 255. ISBN 978-91-89116-85-6.
^ "'Nya' rön om de gåtfulla vävarna" ["New" findings about the mysterious tapestries]. Länstidningen Östersund (in Swedish). 22 January 2010. Archived from the original on 28 January 2010.
^ Kaliff, Anders (1998). "Recensioner" (PDF). Fornvännen. 93. Swedish National Heritage Board: 54–56. Archived from the original (PDF) on 18 July 2011. Retrieved 2 June 2010. (reviewing Wikman, Sture (1996). Fenrisulven Ränner: En Bok om Vävarna från Överhogdal. Jämtland Museum. ISBN 91-7948-118-3.)
^ "Överhogdal tapestries at Jamtli". jamtli.com. Retrieved December 1, 2019.

External links[edit]

The Överhogdal Tapestries at Jamtli

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-[[Image:Överhogdal tapestry detail.JPEG|thumb|220px|[[Viking ships|Viking ship]], detail from the Överhogdal tapestries]]
+[[Image:Överhogdal tapestry detail.JPEG|thumb|220px|[[Viking ships|Viking ship]], detail from the Överhogdal tapestries|alt=Detail from the Överhogdal tapestry showing viking ship Author: Jämtlands läns museum Jamtli Source: Jämtlands läns museum Jamtli  ]]
 [[File:Wandteppiche von Överhogdal - Detail 2.jpg|thumb|220px| Detail from one of the Överhogdal tapestries]]
+[[File:Wandteppiche von Överhogdal - 2.jpg|thumb|The five tapestry pieces]]
+[[File:Wandteppiche von Överhogdal - 1.jpg|thumb|Three panels from Överhogdal tapestries]]
-The '''Överhogdal tapestries''' ({{lang-sv|Överhogdalstapeten}})  are a group of extraordinarily well-preserved textiles dating from late [[Viking Age]] or early [[Middle Ages]] that were discovered  in the village of Överhogdal in [[Härjedalen]], [[Sweden]].<ref>{{cite web|url=    https://wsimag.com/culture/42819-the-overhogdal-tapestries |title=Överhogdal Tapestries|publisher = wsimag.com/culture  |date=     17 September 2018
+The '''Överhogdal tapestries''' ({{lang-sv|Överhogdalstapeten}})  are a group of extraordinarily well-preserved textiles dating from the late [[Viking Age]] or the [[Early Middle Ages]] that were discovered in the village of Överhogdal in [[Härjedalen]], [[Sweden]].<ref>{{cite web|url=    https://wsimag.com/culture/42819-the-overhogdal-tapestries |title=Överhogdal Tapestries|publisher = wsimag.com/culture  |date=     17 September 2018|access-date=August 1, 2019}}</ref>
-|accessdate=August 1, 2019}}</ref>
-[[File:Wandteppiche von Överhogdal - 1.jpg|thumb|Three panels from  Överhogdal tapestries]]
-==Discovery and dating==
-The Överhogdal tapestries were found in the [[Sacristy|vestry]] of [[:sv:Överhogdals kyrka|Överhogdal  Church]] by Jonas Holm (1895-1986) in 1909. The tapestries were brought to [[Östersund]] in 1910 by the artist Paul Jonze (1883-1973)  and the County Governor’s wife [[:sv:Ellen Widén|Ellen Widén]], who was a dominant figure within the regional heritage movement at the time, took charge.<ref name="Göransson">{{Cite journal |last=Göransson |first=Eva-Marie |authorlink= |title=Människor i Rum av Id: Bilder av Kvinnor och män på Överhogdal |journal=Fornvännen |volume=90 |pages=129–138 |publisher=Swedish National Heritage Board |location= |year=1995 |url=http://fornvannen.se/pdf/1990talet/1995_129.pdf |issn= |id= |accessdate=2010-05-03}}</ref> The first thing she did was to give the dirty linen a good wash.<ref name="Göransson"/>
-<ref>{{cite web|url=    https://www.lexikonettamanda.se/show.php?aid=18958|title=   Paul Jonze |publisher = lexikonettamanda|accessdate=August 1, 2019}}</ref>
+==Discovery and dating==
-[[Radiocarbon dating]] tests conducted in 1991 indicated that the tapestries were made between 800 and 1100 AD during [[Viking Era]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Nordanskog |first=Gunnar |authorlink= |title=Föreställd Hedendom: Tidigmedeltida Skandinaviska Kyrkportar i Forskning och Historia |publisher=Nordic Academic Press |year=2006 |location=Lund |pages=255 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8L4HqxAYhOUC&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_v2_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false |id= |isbn=978-91-89116-85-6}}</ref> Newer tests in 2005 instead indicated a period between 1040 and 1170 AD.<ref>{{Cite news|title='Nya' rön om de gåtfulla vävarna|trans-title="New" findings about the mysterious tapestries|date=22 January 2010|language=Swedish|work=Länstidningen Östersund|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100128042119/http://ltz.se/nyheter/1.1742104}}</ref>
+The Överhogdal tapestries were found in the [[Sacristy|vestry]] of [[:sv:Överhogdals kyrka|Överhogdal Church]] (''Överhogdals kyrka'') in the [[Diocese of Härnösand]] by Jonas Holm (1895-1986) in 1909 during the renovation of the church. The tapestries were brought to [[Östersund]] in 1910 by the artist Paul Jonze (1883-1973)  and the County Governor's wife [[:sv:Ellen Widén|Ellen Widén]], who was a dominant figure within the regional heritage movement at the time, took charge.<ref name="Göransson">{{Cite journal |last=Göransson |first=Eva-Marie |title=Människor i Rum av Id: Bilder av Kvinnor och män på Överhogdal |journal=Fornvännen |volume=90 |pages=129–138 |publisher=Swedish National Heritage Board |year=1995 |url=http://fornvannen.se/pdf/1990talet/1995_129.pdf |access-date=2010-05-03}}</ref> The first thing she did was to give the dirty linen a good wash.<ref name="Göransson"/><ref>{{cite web|url=    https://www.lexikonettamanda.se/show.php?aid=18958|title=   Paul Jonze |publisher = lexikonettamanda|access-date=August 1, 2019}}</ref>
+[[Radiocarbon dating]] tests conducted in 1991 indicated that the tapestries were made between 800 and 1100 AD, during the [[Viking Age]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Nordanskog |first=Gunnar |title=Föreställd Hedendom: Tidigmedeltida Skandinaviska Kyrkportar i Forskning och Historia |publisher=Nordic Academic Press |year=2006 |location=Lund |pages=255 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8L4HqxAYhOUC |isbn=978-91-89116-85-6}}</ref> Newer tests in 2005 instead indicated a period between 1040 and 1170 AD.<ref>{{Cite news|title='Nya' rön om de gåtfulla vävarna|trans-title="New" findings about the mysterious tapestries|date=22 January 2010|language=sv|work=Länstidningen Östersund|url=http://ltz.se/nyheter/1.1742104|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100128042119/http://ltz.se/nyheter/1.1742104|url-status=dead|archive-date=28 January 2010}}</ref>
 ==Description and construction==
-The Överhogdal tapestries have been theorized as depicting imagery of both [[Norsemen|Norse]] and [[Christianity|Christian]] origin. The contents of the pictures are much debated; some characters have a pagan content, featuring the detailed look of [[Odin]]'s horse [[Sleipnir|Sleipner]], while other characters are clearly part of Christian imagery. The artwork depict stylized animals, dark blue and red horses, birds and people. There is also a ship, a tree and inscriptions. The four surviving sections of the tapestries have 323 figures of people and 146 and 3 partial animals, all generally moving to the left.<ref name="Göransson"/>
+The Överhogdal tapestries have been theorized as depicting imagery of both [[Norsemen|Norse]] and [[Christianity|Christian]] origin. The contents of the pictures are much debated; some characters have a pagan content, featuring the detailed look of [[Odin]]'s horse [[Sleipnir]], while other characters are clearly part of Christian imagery. The artwork depict stylized animals, dark blue and red horses, birds and people. There is also a ship, a tree and inscriptions. The four surviving sections of the tapestries have 323 figures of people and 146 and 3 partial animals, all generally moving to the left.<ref name="Göransson"/>
-The large animal and smaller human figures seem to rush by a tree, which could be the mighty ash [[Yggdrasil]], a massive tree central to [[Norse cosmology|nine worlds]] in Norse mythology. Some scholars have suggested that what is shown is the Christianization of the region [[Härjedalen]]. However, today the dominant theory, given the radiocarbon dating of the tapestries, is that [[Ragnarök]], a series of events foretold to occur in [[Norse mythology]], is being depicted. Research has established that the figures are made of plant dyed wool, which is interwoven with the linen with a special technique.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Kaliff |first=Anders |authorlink= |title=Recensioner |journal=Fornvännen |volume=93 |pages=54–56 |publisher=Swedish National Heritage Board |location= |year=1998 |url=http://fornvannen.se/pdf/1990talet/1998_litt_a.pdf |issn= |accessdate=2 June 2010}} (reviewing {{Cite book |last=Wikman |first=Sture |authorlink= |title=Fenrisulven Ränner: En Bok om Vävarna från Överhogdal |publisher=Jämtland Museum |year=1996 |location= |pages= |url= |isbn=91-7948-118-3}})</ref>
+The large animal and smaller human figures seem to rush by a tree, which could be the mighty ash [[Yggdrasil]], a massive tree central to [[Norse cosmology|nine worlds]] in Norse mythology. Some scholars have suggested that what is shown is the Christianization of the region [[Härjedalen]]. However, today the dominant theory, given the radiocarbon dating of the tapestries, is that [[Ragnarök]], a series of events foretold to occur in [[Norse mythology]], is being depicted. Research has established that the figures are made of plant dyed wool, which is interwoven with the linen with a special technique.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Kaliff |first=Anders |author-link=Anders Kaliff |title=Recensioner |journal=Fornvännen |volume=93 |pages=54–56 |publisher=Swedish National Heritage Board |year=1998 |url=http://fornvannen.se/pdf/1990talet/1998_litt_a.pdf |access-date=2 June 2010 |archive-date=18 July 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110718004325/http://fornvannen.se/pdf/1990talet/1998_litt_a.pdf |url-status=dead }} (reviewing {{Cite book |last=Wikman |first=Sture |title=Fenrisulven Ränner: En Bok om Vävarna från Överhogdal |publisher=Jämtland Museum |year=1996 |isbn=91-7948-118-3}})</ref>
-Today, these unique tapestries are on display in a specially designed room at [[Jamtli]], the regional museum of [[Jämtland]] and [[Härjedalen]] in [[Östersund]], [[Sweden]].
+Today, these unique tapestries are on display in a specially designed room at [[Jamtli]], the regional museum of [[Jämtland]] and [[Härjedalen]] in [[Östersund]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.jamtli.com/en/about-jamtli/jamtlis-history/|title =Överhogdal tapestries at Jamtli
+|website=  jamtli.com|access-date=December 1, 2019}}</ref>
 == See also ==
@@ Line 28: / Line 28: @@
 ==External links==
 *[https://www.jamtli.com/en/exhibitions/overhogdalsbonaderna/ The Överhogdal Tapestries] at Jamtli
-==Related reading==
-* Ulla Oscarsson (2010) ''De gåtfulla Överhogdalsbonaderna''(Östersund: Jamtli Förlag) ISBN 9789179482312
+==Related reading==
-{{DEFAULTSORT:Overhogdal tapestries}}
+* Ulla Oscarsson (2010) ''De gåtfulla Överhogdalsbonaderna''(Östersund: Jamtli Förlag) {{ISBN|9789179482312}}
+{{Tapestry}}
+{{DEFAULTSORT:Overhogdal tapestries}}
+[[Category:11th-century works]]
+[[Category:12th-century works]]
+[[Category:1909 archaeological discoveries]]
 [[Category:Eschatology in Norse mythology]]
 [[Category:Scandinavian folklore]]
-[[Category:Viking Age art]]
+[[Category:Viking art]]
 [[Category:Germanic archaeological artifacts]]
 [[Category:Tapestries|Overhogdal]]
-[[Category:1909 archaeological discoveries]]
 [[Category:Textile arts of Sweden]]
+[[Category:Yggdrasil]]

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