Vikings didn't leave many written records behind and the blood eagel is one of those things that leaves no archeological traces. Their findings indicate, for instance, that torturers may have used spears with shallow hooks to unzip the ribs from the spinea conclusion that could explain the presence of a spear inone of the few(possible) medieval visual depictions of the ritual. The lungs would also likely have collapsed by this point into compact tissue about the size of a fist. breium hjrvi Future US, Inc. Full 7th Floor, 130 West 42nd Street, (The correct answer is: All of the above.). The sources are often vague, referencing legendary figures of dubious veracity or mixing up accepted historical chronology. Archived post. We won't go into detail here, but watch our new horror video to see how bad torture was in the past, and how you pretty much have it made living in 2020. Vikings, like many medieval people, could be spectacularly violent, but perhaps not more so than other groups across a range of time periods. However, ribs could potentially be "unzipped" from the spine with a small, barbed spearhead, and such weapons have also been recovered from Viking burials, the researchers reported. A Viking Blood Eagle is a graphic form of execution where an individual's back would be sliced open and the ribs, intestines, and lungs pulled out while the victim was still alive. Citing accounts from books published in 1799 and 1834, Smithsonian Magazine provides a much more elaborate (and nauseating) definition of the Blood Eagle torture method: First the intended victim would be restrained, face down; next, the shape of an eagle with outstretched wings would be cut into his back. "There is no possibility that a victim would have remained alive throughout the procedure," the researchers wrote. Why Did Madison Write the Second Amendment? Each rib was then meticulously separated from the backbone with an ax, which left the victims internal organs on full display.". And maybe it simply refers to letting the rotting corpse be torn apart and eaten by an actual eagle. ok hugin gladdi.[12]. The blood eagle scene was a real parallel to Athelstan's crucifixion. Vikings from different areas had slightly different methods. Next, take an axe there's nothing about sharpening it first and use the axe to hew the victim's ribs from the spine. TheSagagoes on to explain thatthe Earl Einarsubjected Hdlfddnto the Blood Eaglebecause he had killed the Earl's father. Performing such a horrific act would have been "anatomically challenging" for the torturer but it would not have been impossible, scientists reported in the January 2022 issue of Speculum: A Journal of Medieval Studies. During the 1980s, Murphy says, the prevailing attitude in scholarship [was] that the Vikings had been unfairly maligned as bloodthirsty barbarians, and that they were really savvy [and rational] economic actors. The pendulum had swung the other way. Instead,"We suspect that a particular type of Viking spearhead could have been used as a makeshift tool to 'unzip' the rib cage quickly from the back," the authors wrote in an accompanying essay for The Conversation. Thorbjrn Harr played Jarl Borg of Gtaland in the first two seasons of the History Channel series. As this new article helps demonstrate, perhaps the pendulum needs to stop. When she's not writing, you can find her trying to learn a new language, watching hockey (go Avs! Saxo Grammaticus in Gesta Danorum tells the following about Bjrn and Sigvard, sons of Ragnar Lodbrok and king lla: Idque statuto tempore exsecuti, comprehensi ipsius dorsum plaga aquilam figurante affici iubent, saevissimum hostem atrocissimi alitis signo profligare gaudentes. varr ara, All of those things can be, and are, true. The Icelandic ritual is the most commonly used in television and film, seeing as it is recognized as being the most painful. A BRUTAL Viking torture ritual rubbished by researchers may have actually been a thing, according to a new study. She is an Audiovisual Communication graduate who wanted to be a filmmaker, but life had other plans (and it turned out great). Nec vulnus impressisse contenti, laceratam salivere carnem. Vikings saw Jarl Borg being killed through the "blood eagle" ritual, and while some texts talk about this method, it might have not been real. Not satisfied with impressing a wound on him, they salted the mangled flesh. While dissecting a living human body in this way was within the realm of possibility, surviving such torture was not. Both were written several centuries after the events they depict, and exist in various versions known to have influenced each other.[4]. Founded in 2010, Thought Catalog is owned and operated by The Thought & Expression Company, Inc. For over a decade, we've been at the bleeding edge of media, pioneering an infrastructure for creatives to flourish both artistically and financially. Many historians suggest that even the earliest literary references to the Blood Eagle were in poems rather than in historical accounts, which may mean they were merely intended for entertainment and not to be taken literally. The historian community believes that the blood eagle ritual is a piece of complex poetic misunderstanding due to the lack of information. Theres nothing about severing the ribs from the spine or pulling the lungs over the exposed ribsthose details would be piled on, one-by-one, over the coming years. Borgs involvement in Vikings was through his conflict with King Horik, as they both wanted control over mineral-rich lands and Horik sent Ragnar as his emissary. Vikings aimed to be as historically accurate as possible, which wasnt easy given the few historical records about the Viking Age, but theres one big mistake when it comes to the most brutal death in the series: the blood eagle, and heres what happened. Second, the mere act of opening the thoracic cavity from behind would likely weaken or sever several major arteries of the body, and probably deflate the lungs. In the video game Assassins Creed: Valhalla,Ivarr the Boneless, a character based on the Viking chieftain who invaded the British Isles in the ninth century C.E., performs theblood eagleon his nemesis, King Rhodri. Ivar the Boneless: The truth behind the famous viking - History 101 Finally, for the final stage of removing the lungs through the cuts along the spine, one would need to fold the ribs outward to create wings. Gruesome Viking "blood eagle" ritual is anatomically possible, study finds But victims would have died long before the torturous execution concluded. Always loved the ending of Midsommar for the Blood Eagle. Real Life / Cruel And Unusual Death - TV Tropes Blood eagle? : r/NSFL__ - Reddit See more at profgabriele.com. Related: Vikings: Jarl Borg Created A Major Location Mistake In The Show. Who's Really to Blame for America's Lousy Transit Systems? This would be sufficient if the ritual was merely the carving of an eagle into the victim's back, then folding back large flaps of skin and muscle to either side of the body to make "wings." This they did at the appointed time; and when they had captured him, they ordered the figure of an eagle to be cut in his back, rejoicing to crush their most ruthless foe by marking him with the cruellest of birds. [14], Roberta Frank reviewed the historical evidence for the rite in her "Viking Atrocity and Skaldic Verse: The Rite of the Blood-Eagle", where she writes: "By the beginning of the nineteenth century, the various saga motifseagle sketch, rib division, lung surgery, and 'saline stimulant'were combined in inventive sequences designed for maximum horror. This, in turn, led to a more nuanced discussion of not only what could have happened, but how and why. published 27 January 2022 It literally turned victims inside out. In each of the extant nine accounts, the victim is captured in battle and has an eagle of some sort carved into their back. Human anatomy is complex, and the authors noted three distinct anatomical challenges to performing the ritualparticularly if the goal was to keep the victim alive for the entire process. They further concluded that, were it performed in the most extreme versions depicted in the sagas and the subject of the torture still lived at that point, death would have followed the severing of the ribs from the spine within seconds, due either to exsanguination or asphyxiation. I'll 'vengeThee well; But in the nine known written accounts of the blood eagle ritual, the people who ordered the torture and their victims were men of elevated social status, and most of them were royal, according to the study. Other sources detail the practice more fully. Matthew Gabriele "Such a weapon might even be depicted on a stone monument found on the Swedish island of Gotland, where a scene carved into the stone depicts something that could have been a blood eagle or other execution.". The victim was allegedly alive the entire time, and his last breaths would cause a final fluttering of the lungs, akin to the fluttering of a bird's wings. Vikings, like many medieval people, could be spectacularly violent, but perhaps not more so than other groups across a range of time periods. This is technically possible, although it would require tremendous strength and coordination, and the ribs would likely need to be fractured again somewhere on the victim's side. An Anatomy of the Blood Eagle: The Practicalities of Viking Torture Matthew Gabriele is a professor of medieval studies and chair of the Department of Religion & Culture at Virginia Tech. "The 'blood eagle' plays a prominent role in our early 21st-century constructions of 'Vikings,' which generally favor an [understanding that] violence was commonplace in the Iron Age Nordic region. One would also need to sever the muscles attaching the ribs to the lower back. The ritual was only known about from sagas until the University of Iceland team discovered that it 'could have' been performed with Viking weapons . What Is the 'Blood Eagle' Execution Method? - Smithsonian Magazine Oral tradition can screw up details, especially when theres a 200-year lapse between the alleged event and the description. If you know anything about history, its that they winners are never content simply winningthey need to justify their victory by claiming their victims were evil and deserved it. Others are more graphic, aligning with the extreme versions depicted in contemporary popular culture. kinsmen of kings, However, many historians believe the blood eagle wasnt real, and thus Vikings got those two deaths wrong, even if the sagas described one of them (and the sagas are considered fiction by many, with Ragnars existence also being debated). She suggests that these tales of martyrdom inspired further exaggeration of the misunderstood skaldic verses into a grandiose torture and death rite with no actual historic basis. The execution method shows up twice in the popular History Channel drama series Vikings as a ritual reserved for the protagonists worst enemies, Jarl Borg and King lla, a fictionalized counterpart to the actual Northumbrian ruler. Brutal Blood Eagle Ritual from Viking Legends Is Anatomically Possible BLOOD EAGLE EXECUTION OF KING AELLE - BEHIND THE SCENES PICTURES - VIKINGS - YouTube 0:00 / 1:54 Sign in to confirm your age This video may be inappropriate for some users. The Vikings do indeed loom large in the modern American popular imagination. Vikings: The Blood Eagle Death Explained (& What It Gets Wrong) Heimskringla/Harald Harfager's Saga#Halfdan Haleg's Death. The give-and-take nature of the pairs collaboration withLuke John Murphy, a historian of religion at the University of Iceland, proved eminently fruitful, with the different perspectives of history and medicine pushing the scholars in unexpected ways. The longest that any Bald Eagle has been known to live in the wild is 39 years. Adrienne Tyler is a features writer for Screen Rant. All of that exposed tissue then gets salt rubbed into it, which certainly puts "lemon juice on a paper cut" into perspective, doesn't it? With a broad sword The authors also re-assessed archaeological and historical data and concluded that the blood ritual was in keeping with the behavior of the Viking Age warrior elite. Has the lore of the Blood Eagle surpassed the historical accuracy of its existence? Find Blood Eagle stock images in HD and millions of other royalty-free stock photos, illustrations and vectors in the Shutterstock collection. If the Vikings did perform the blood eagle, does that mean the Middle Ages were as brutish, nasty and dark as stereotypes suggest? Few were better 936 Blood Eagle Images, Stock Photos & Vectors | Shutterstock His latest book, co-authored with David M. Perry, isThe Bright Ages: A New History of Medieval Europe(Harper, December 2021). The primary versions share certain commonalities: the victims are both noblemen (Halfdan Haaleg or "Long-leg" was a prince; lla of Northumbria a king), and both of the executions were in retaliation for the murder of a father. No contemporary accounts of the rite exist, and the scant references in the sagas are several hundred years after the Christianization of Scandinavia. Frithiof's Sagamentions that the methodcould be called "Blood Owl," a term used by later antiquarians and authors who wrote about the Vikings. A Note to our Readers In the new study, the researchers evaluated the blood eagle practice by first analyzing human anatomy, breaking down the sequence of the torture step by step and approximating how it might have been accomplished in a public ritual. Related: Fierce fighters: 7 secrets of Viking seamen. These representations take their cue from medieval sources written in both Old Norse and Latin. ), or wondering what life would have been like had Pushing Daisies, Firefly, and Limitless not been cancelled. The research team also stated that the ritual was 'consistent with the Viking . Ok Ellu bak, In popular lore, few images are as synonymous with Viking brutality as the " blood eagle ," a practice that allegedly found torturers separating the victim's ribs from their spine, pulling. Ragnars legacy and presence could still be felt until the end of the series, and he left behind various memorable moments, both good and violent, and falling into the latter category is the death of Jarl Borg (Thorbjrn Harr). Either way, the rituals appearance in these texts is intended to send a message tied to honor and revenge. Details About The Blood Eagle, One Of History's Most - Ranker Some believed that the brutal rite resulted from . Blood Eagle Execution of King Aelle - Behind the Scenes Pictures This article will discuss the representation of the . Before we get into the details, remember that this one specialized in keeping the subject alive throughout the proceedings. The blood eagle was an execution method done by the Vikings of Scandinavia. Jrvk, skorit.[9]. The use of salt was later adopted by writers; they described the process as a "saline stimulant" intended to inflict additional pain and suffering, usually applied before the lungs were spread. So, the Vikings were ocean-going, artistic, sadistic, and consistent. A common element in the medieval sources, according to the authors of the new study, is that the aggressors perform the ritual on enemies who killed one of their family members. You know like an eagle. But wait: there's more. New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast. In fact, he might have survived the first stage, although probably not in silence, since the removal of the soft tissue from the back would have been excruciating. Approaching the question from a different angle allowed the researchers to dig through the scholarship, place the medieval sources within the proper context and draw on modern technology to examine what actually would have happened during the ritual. Ritual torture like the blood eagle dehumanized by literally transforming man into an animal. If the Vikings did perform the blood eagle, does that mean the Middle Ages were as brutish, nasty and dark as stereotypes suggest? The show led them to medieval sagas, which opened up further questions and made them realize they needed to consult a historian. A posterior view of the thorax illustrating the results of detaching or cutting the ribs. Hacking away at the ribs with a sword or small axeas Ragnar does in the Vikings scene would have seriously damaged the lungs. Snorri Sturluson's Heimskringla contains an account of the same event described in Orkneyinga saga, with Einarr actually performing the deed himself: gkk Einarr jarl til Hlfdanar; hann reist rn baki honum me eima htti, at hann lagi sveri hol vi hrygginn ok reist rifin ll ofan alt lendar, dr ar t lungun; var at bani Hlfdanar. Unless archaeologists find a corpse bearing clear evidence of the torture, well likely never know. Her videos about dinosaurs, astrophysics, biodiversity and evolution appear in museums and science centers worldwide, earning awards such as the CINE Golden Eagle and the Communicator Award of Excellence. Matthew Townend (ed.) Then we come to various rituals and rites that don't involve reciting sagas and drinking a lot. Get the latest History stories in your inbox? Brutal Viking 'blood eagle' ritual execution was anatomically possible Spectacular executions, displaying of dead bodies, and "deviant burials" did occursuch as the skeleton of a beheaded noblewoman buried with her head tucked under arm and her jawbone replaced by a pig's mandible. Gillis observation builds on the earlier work of scholar Valentin Groebner, who wrote in 2004 that terror tends to disorient. Violence (and how that violence was portrayed) in the European Middle Ages was a way of making meaning, of rendering visible important ideas that had previously remained unseen. The blood-eagle ritual-killing rite appears in just two instances in Norse literature, plus oblique references some have interpreted as referring to the same practice. The debate among historians about whether or not the Blood Eagle actually occurred continues. Jennifer Ouellette Blood Eagle Photos and Premium High Res Pictures - Getty Images However, the first literary reference to this practice didnt emerge until sometime between 1020 and 1038 AD in this simple passage from the Viking saga The Tale of Ragnars Sons, which describes Ivarrs murder of King Ella: And varr, the one The execution methods recurring appearances in medieval texts, often without extensive explanation, suggests a common understanding among Viking-age readers and listeners, many of whom would have learned the tales through oral tradition. In the paper, the authors move methodically through the medieval sources before discussing what would happen to the human body if the fullest version of the procedure was carried out (in short, nothing good). There is debate about whether the blood eagle was historically practiced, or whether it was a literary device invented by the authors who transcribed the sagas. They then looked at weapons from that era, to see how diverse blades might have been used for a task so laborious and grisly. baki ristinn. What Is The Blood Eagle According To The Vikings? Visit our corporate site (opens in new tab). [7], Afterwards, Earl Einarr went up to Halfdan and cut the "blood eagle" on his back, in this fashion that he thrust his sword into his chest by the backbone and severed all the ribs down to the loins, and then pulled out the lungs; and that was Halfdan's death.[8]. Behind the scenes pictures of blood eagle execution of king Aelle from the TV series VIKINGSMusic by: Bensound.com Prior to Screen Rant, she wrote for Pop Wrapped, 4 Your Excitement (4YE), and D20Crit, where she was also a regular guest at Netfreaks podcast. One would first need to rapidly remove all the skin and muscles of the back; it would otherwise not be possible to cut and manipulate the underlying ribs so the lungs could be removed. "For the slayer by a cruel death of their captive father, Ragnar's sons act the blood-eagle on Ella, and salt his flesh.". Study co-authors Monte Gates and Heidi Fuller, both medical scientists at Keele University in England, were spurred to investigate the blood eagle by the Vikings series. InFrithiof's Saga, Bjorn swears to subjecthis comrade's killer to the Blood Eagle: "Fall'st Thou, War Brother! He characterized St. Dunstan's description of lla's killing as an "accurate account of a body subjected to the ritual of the blood eagle". The blood eagle is referred to by the 11th-century poet Sigvatr rarson, who, some time between 1020 and 1038, wrote a skaldic verse named Kntsdrpa[9] that recounts and establishes Ivar the Boneless as having killed lla and subsequently cutting his back. Some scholars believe that the Blood Eagle was connected to earlier human sacrifices made to Odin, although whether or not those sacrifices every took placeremains controversial. About 50 percent died during the first year due to their inexperience at meeting the dangers of living in the wild. Dreamstime is the world`s largest stock photography community. The killing of lla, after a battle for control of York, is described thus: They caused the bloody eagle to be carved on the back of lla, and they cut away all of the ribs from the spine, and then they ripped out his lungs. The Portal for Public History. Sign in BLOOD. In the paper, the authors move methodically through the medieval sources before discussing what would happen to the human body if the fullest version of the procedure was carried out (in short, nothing good). Severing the ribs was a trickier task particularly if the lungs needed to remain undamaged, as hacking at them with a sword or sawing with a serrated knife would have likely torn or punctured the lung tissue. | Cookie Settings, The Bright Ages: A New History of Medieval Europe, Five Places Where You Can Still Find Gold in the United States, Scientists Taught Pet Parrots to Video Call Each Otherand the Birds Loved It, Balto's DNA Provides a New Look at the Intrepid Sled Dog, The Science of California's 'Super Bloom,' Visible From Space, What We're Still Learning About Rosalind Franklins Unheralded Brilliance. Privacy Statement According to 12th and 13th century authors, the Blood Eagle had a long tradition in Scandinavia, often being associated with Vikings, and was used against the most heinous enemies. Mindy Weisberger is a Live Science editor for the channels Animals and Planet Earth. It wouldnt be until the early 1200smore than 300 years after the alleged participants had diedthat a very detailed and graphic description of the method appeared in the Orkeyinga Saga: Einarr made them carve an eagle on his back with a sword, and cut the ribs all from the backbone, and draw the lungs there out, and gave him to Odin for the victory he had won. According to Saxo Grammaticus'sGesta Danorum, after the previously detailed mutilation, the flesh was rubbed with salt. 251 Blood Eagle Stock Photos, Images & Pictures - Dreamstime [5], Einarr made them carve an eagle on his back with a sword, and cut the ribs all from the backbone, and draw the lungs there out, and gave him to Odin for the victory he had won.[6]. Real Executions Downplayed in Film and TV, Execution and Infamy in 18th Century Britain, Details About The Blood Eagle, One Of History's Most Nightmarish Torture Methods. There are two stanzas of verse near the end of its section6, "Sigurd Felled the Sons of Hunding", where a character describing previous events says:[12][13], N er blugr rn and gladden the raven. This worked doubly well for the Victorians as a means of demonstrating the superiority of the native English over the Viking invaders. They were intrepid, fearless oceangoing explorers who beat Columbus to North America by, well, a lot, and according to the National Museum of Denmark, they had no actual horns on the actual helmets, which ruins a lot of optics but you have to admit it makes absolute sense. Some references to the torture are terse. Here's your blood eagle how-to, as related by Smithsonian Magazine: First, fasten the victim, face-down, and carve the image of an eagle, wings outstretched, on the victim's back. carved on the back Supposedly, this was reserved for the worst of the worst criminals, like someone who murdered his parents , but there is some question as to whether or not the . Blood Eagle: The Grisly Torture Method Of The Vikings - All That's The Blood Eagle - Worst Punishments in the History of Mankind | However, theres a lot of debate on whether the blood eagle was real, a literary invention, or a mistake in the translation of the original texts. The answer is complex. What I've been wanting to know is if anyone has information about the torture method known as the blood eagle. Two separate episodes of the hit History Channel show Vikings depict an unimaginably grisly and horrific torture method that is known as the Blood Eagle. In the first, the villain Karl Borg is murdered through the extremely cruel and brutal method; in the second, the corrupt King Ella is tortured to death using the Blood Eagle method. The work of scholars is to understand how this violence fit into a complex societyand a new study does just that. After that, his exposed lungs would be pulled out of his body and spread over his wings, offering witnesses the sight of a final bird-like fluttering as he died. Carved on the back. We wouldnt wish the Blood Eagle upon our worst enemyOK, except for maybe that one guy who did that one thing one time. varr, with eagle, Unless archaeologists find a corpse bearing clear evidence of the torture, well likely never know. "The blood eagle was thus no mere torture: it had meaning," the researchers wrote in the study. As Murphy explains, The blood eagle plays a prominent role in our early 21st-century constructions of Vikings, which generally favor an [understanding that] violence was commonplace in the Iron Age Nordic region. Thats been the case for quite a while, he adds: The [ritual], as it exists in popular culture today, owes a lot to the attitudes of Victorian scholars who were keen to exaggerate its role in order to emphasize the barbarity of the past and civilized nature of their own time. In captivity, they may live over 50 years due to fewer hazards and veterinary care. "They've provided a totally fresh perspective on some very old questions, and let us tackle the blood eagle in a new way," he said. Others are more graphic, aligning with the extreme versions depicted in contemporary popular culture. So it probably comes as no surprise that the group known as the Vikings gets a new veneer every few years or so. Borg doesn't get an easy death when his schemes ultimately fail and he is captured. The series prides itself on being as historically accurate as possible, which is a challenge, given that much of what we know about the Viking Age comes from epic poems telling of their achievements in spoken form, finally written down centuries later.
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