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Viking Textiles - A deeper look at plaids, stripes and checks

8/25/2015

22 Comments

 

The Evidence

One question that often comes up on message boards is whether or not plaids are appropriate for a Viking reenactor.  It is not an easy answer, but I have been putting together a list of things as I come across them and, in all honesty, I would have to say that at this point I personally would be very careful of what patterned fabrics I would use for a period impression.

If we look prior to the Viking age, we see a host of exceptional plaids.  Hulremose had an exceptional plaid from the an Iron Age bog find that is dated to the 2nd century BC.  Thorsberg, from the 3rd to 4th century CE has also yielded large, bold plaid textiles. 
Picture
Huldremose costume from the National Museum of Denmark.
Picture
Thorsberg cloak reproduction at the National Museum of Denmark.
The Viking age, however, does not seem to show the same love for vibrant, large scale patterning.  The technology was certainly there to craft large plaids or stripes, but the evidence that they were used is lacking.

What we do have, however, is a small selection of woven patterns that show a much smaller scale.  Delicate lines comprised of a single thread, or pair of threads, creating a repeating pattern, is much different than their more tartan-like predecessors.  I have looked at the mass of articles and books in my collection to see what sort of patterning was used and after eliminating all silks (likely imports) and self-patterning (meaning that the pattern was either a result spin-patterning - using S and Z spun threads in the same textile - or using threads of different grist to weave cloth with a plaid or stripe) I have found the following examples of patterned cloth from the Viking era and in Viking areas:
  • Hedeby Graves Linen - Windowpane plaid linen.  This type of textile was found in two graves.  One was blue with white patterning and the other was red with blue, both of a tabby weave.  The patterning was TINY, the white and blue resulted in 4mm checks.  These textiles were likely from shirts or serks (underdresses).

Picture
Z/Z spun blue linen tabby woven in a check pattern with thicker threads of white forming the pattern. Each check is small being only 4mm across. (Hägg, Siedlung, p212)
  • Hedeby Graves Wool - Fragments from a woman's grave VI/1930 were of plaid chevron twill with the bright stripes likely of linen.  These checks are only 12mm by 17mm.  Thread count is approximately 48Z warp threads per inch by 25Z weft threads per inch.
Picture
Diagram and photo Z/Z plaid textile woven in a chevron twill from the Hedeby settlement grave VI/1930. (Hagg, Siedlung, p241-242)
  • Hedeby Graves - Grave S27 had light reddish yellow with darker red striped twill wool fabric has two threads separating bands of twelve threads.  The repeat would be approximately 8mm wide and the thread count is exceptionally fine at 96Z warp threads per inch and 50S weft threads per inch.  This garment was thought to have been an overtunic.
Picture
Diagram and photo Z/S striped textile woven Hedeby settlement. (Hagg, Siedlung, p40-44, 79, 90)
  • Hedeby Harbor - Fragment 84. This item was brought to my attention by Mistress ffride Wlffsdotter and additional translation assistance by Marius Reinecker.  This cloth is a high quality twill of very light, nearly translucent woolen fabric.  It has a checked pattern of 8-9 reddish brown threads in the warp, followed by as many dark brown.  The weft is comprised of  4 bright yellowish brown threads and then 4-5 dark brown.
Picture
Possible weave structure for Fragment 84.
  • Haugen in Rolvsøy had a red and white checked fabric, but I do not have a thread count for this item, but the checks are less than an inch wide.  (This plaid is often seen online as the Oseberg ship plaid). 
Picture
Picture
Red and white checked fabric. (Brøgger, p25-29)
  • Birka Wool - Grave 1090.  This tabby woven wool has dark red and blue stripes that are 5mm wide.  Possibly part of a smokkr (aprondress).  Thread count is approximately 45X23 threads per inch.

Picture
Fragments of striped wool from Birka. Plate 6. (Geijer)
  • Birka Linen - Grave 757.  This fragment has a thread count of 51X51 threads per inch and is tabby woven.  The patterning is a very tiny plaid of a white thread, 5 blue-green threads, then a red thread, then 5 blue-green (the pattern occurs in both warp and weft).

Picture
Fragments of plaid linen from Birka. Plate 3. (Geijer)
  • Værnes - A grave here yielded a piece of loosely woven and coarse wool in a two colored checkerboard pattern on top of a brooch. (Blindheim, 146-147)
Picture
  • Dublin Wool - This fabric is red (from a lichen purple) and black in stripes of varying width.  I, unfortunately, have no further information on thread count or repeat.
  • Oseberg - among the remnants of textiles in this find, there is an even and firmly woven tabby of Z spun tabby in the warp and weft.  Thread diameters are .2-.3mm and some of the fragments have traces of red dye, while others show weak traces of a plaid or stripped pattern 1cm wide (colors undetermined).  (Christensen and Nockert, p199)  (Added 10/13/15)

Additional Finds

These items are excluded from my list above due to date, or in the case of the Skjoldehamn find, due to the fact that it could potentially not be a Norse item.  I still consider them when looking at textiles to use, but would not choose something based solely on these finds were I looking for a patterned textile for a more accurate costume.

  • Guddal Tunic - This garment from 11th - 12th century Norway could potentially be out of the Viking era.
Picture
Images of the Guddal tunic. ( Universitetsmuseet i Bergen)
Picture
  • Skjoldehamn Blanket - this heavy, two-tone plaid blanket was part of a find that included an entire costume.  There are arguments that this grave could likely be Sami, rather than Norse, which is why I am including it in peripheral finds.  It has been dated to the 11th century.
Picture
  • Elisenhof -  this 8th century find from Germany yielded two twills that had stripes of various colors and widths in both the warp and weft.  E76 was is quite coarse and was black and brown with 24 threads per inch warp and 20 weft.  E414 was red and black with 50 threads in the warp and 24 in the weft. (Weaving diagram images and information update added 3/21/16)
Picture
The black and brown plaid from Elisenhof. This plaid is still fairly small compared to modern plaids.
Picture
Red and black plaid from Elisenhof. Again, small scale is key.
  • Striped textile from Gdansk, Poland.  Likely 10th-12th century.  Source: Kiersnowski - Kiersnowska (1965). Życie codzienne na Pomorzu wczesnośredniowiecznym, p. 104. Thanks to David Stříbrný for sending this one over!
Picture

My Thoughts and Process


I do recognize that there are, of course, a couple of issues with looking at historic textiles in terms of color.  Often textiles are not analyzed for color, and tests can also come back inconclusive.  So there could indeed be more patterned (or even colored) cloth than which we currently can consider.  That being said, the sampling we do have is so exceptionally small in terms of the overall volume of finds, that I believe that patterned textiles in this time period were indeed in the minority.

Does that mean that I would never choose to use a plaid or stripe for a new piece in my Viking kit?  No, but any purchases I make from this point on will take into consideration that the evidence does show me one clear thing and that is the importance of scale.  The stripes tend to be narrow, and the plaids or checks are tiny.  Things that read as modern, such as pinstripes, might actually be a much better choice than plaids that would be better suited to a kilt. 

Were I to come across a larger, two-tone plaid or check in a heavy fabric, I think it might suit well enough for a cloak or blanket, but I would not choose to use it now as textile for a garment such as a tunic, dress or pants.  The larger checks from Haugen in Rolvsøy, which is a coarse textile, as well as the coarse, loose wool from Værnes seem better suited to those types of applications.  (And I would, at this point, only look at items with two colors, as seen in those fabrics as well as the Thorsberg and Skjoldehamn cloaks, rather than a plaid of many colors.)

Examples of fabrics I have or will be using, and my current thoughts on the choices, are below so that you can follow along with my thought process on this if you so choose.

Picture
This is a wool/silk/linen blend fabric that I bought years ago and made into an aprondress. I love the fabric itself and the feel and the colors are plausible for natural wools of the time. However, this type of plaid is unlike anything I have found in my perusal of Viking textiles and were I to come across more of this fabric, I would choose to use it for another project. (Note, I would also choose NOT to spend the time with the decorative herringbone and other stitches as well! lol)
Picture
This is a fine 100% wool. While the two-tone weave was not overly common in the Viking age, the fact that it is just different shades of the same color would not deter me. The thread count, 40X40 threads per inch, is also decent for a modern wool. The stripes are made in single lines which is nice, though the plaid is about 1.5X2 inches, which is larger than the scale of anything I have found in period. That being said, the plaid is quite subtle and I will still use this wool for a tunic or smokkr.
Picture
This is a fabulous wool that I purchased two years ago at Pennsic. It is light in weight and has a nice drape to it. The repeat is about 3 inches across, and that, as well as the fact that it is three colors, would prevent me at this point from using it for a Viking garment. I will instead use it for a Bronze or Iron Age peplos, as it seems much better suited to that era.
Picture
This is a wool plaid I have on a loom currently that is modeled after one of the linens from Hedeby. The extant textile has a higher threadcount than mine, but my 6mm checks are not terribly off the 4mm of the original and I think it reflects the scale of period plaids quite well.
Does this mean that you should never use that great paid you have in your stash for a Viking costume?  Of course not!  We are free to use what we will and I always advocate for "Use What You Have" when possible.  It is, however, good to know what the extant pieces looked like, and how frequently they were found compared to other types of cloth, when we go out to purchase new fabric for a historical garment.

And please, if you have evidence of other stripes, checks or plaids, I would absolutely love to see them!!!

To help give a sense of scale, I have included a single page that can be downloaded and printed on 8.5X11 inch paper.  This printout should be close enough to the correct size to give a rough sense of scale for these historic plaids.


plaid_handout_back_page.pdf
File Size: 763 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

RESOURCES

Blindheim, Charlotte. Vernesfunnene og kvinnedrakten i Norden i Vikingtiden, 1945.

Christensen, Arne Emil and Nockert, Margareta. Osebergfunnet: bind iv, Tekstilene (Universitetet i Oslo), 2006.

A.W.Brøgger. "Rolvsøyætten. Et arkeologisk bidrag til vikingetidens historie" _Bergens Museums Aarbok_. 1920-21

Geijer, Agnes.  Birka III, Die Textilefunde aus Den Grabern.  Uppsala,1938.

Hägg, Inga.  Die Textilefunde aus der Siedlung und us den Gräbern von Haithabu (Karl Wachlotz Verlag). 1991.

Hägg, Inga.  Die Textilefunde aus dem Hafen von Haithabu (Karl Wachlotz Verlag). 1984.

Pritchard, Frances.  "Aspects of the Wool Textiles from Viking Age Dublin", Museum of London.

22 Comments
Kristin Page link
9/4/2015 06:26:12 am

Many thanks for your article with great photos. As you mention, many of the textile finds are few and small; large scale patterns might exist but leave fragments too small to identify their presence. Another problem that arises with pattern identification derives from the use of different natural wool colors that are subsequently dyed by peat and/or iron.

My area of research is Iron Age textiles from northern Europe so there's overlap with the "Viking Age". How far afield are your interests? Mine are bounded by the Pyrenees, the Alps, the Urals and the sea but include Greenland, Iceland, Ireland, and UK. What would you like to see here?
There were excavations at Birka/Bjorko during the summer of 2014 that produced a few textile fragments, at least one nearly the size of my hand, that have not yet been analyzed. When I have the report I'll post a copy here as a comment.

Reply
Alfrun
9/4/2015 08:14:51 am

You are welcome!

And yes, as I noted there are some issues with analyzing these types of textiles totally (due to fragment size, coloration, etc). I do, however, prefer to base my own choices at this time on things I can document in some manner, rather than what I assume might have been, and this document is to aid with that. I am sure there are many more types and colors of textiles than we currently understand, but I choose to work with what I can document. This survey (which I hope will continue to grow) has given me a better picture, even if imperfect. I have a better understanding of scale now than I did before, and that is a step that I can use to help me make better fabric purchase choices or to help me better craft my own textiles.

As for area, for this survey specifically I am looking at Norse textiles (or those from Norse settlements, including those in the British Isles) from 800-1050 (though I will go 750-1000). My own personal area of interest as far as persona development is Kaupang in the latter part of the 9th century.

As for general research, I do tend to read anything I can get my hands on that covers textiles from the Iron Age through early Middle Ages in Scandinavia as it helps me greatly to understand how textiles developed, rose and fell from fashion, and where they ended up.

I would love to see that report on the new Birka textiles when you have it!

Thank you so very much!

Reply
Sigrid
9/6/2015 08:29:58 am

Have you had a chance to see "Things from the Town: Artefacts and Inhabitants in Viking-Age Kaupang" (Kaupang Excavation Project). While there isn't much on fabric, it's a fascinating book.

Reply
Alfrun
9/7/2015 01:58:56 pm

It is absolutely a fantastic book. I have it and just last week ordered _Kaupang in Skiringssal: Excavation and Surveys at Kaupang and Huseby_. The final book in the series on the silver finds is in my wishlist. hehe

Marion link
9/5/2015 05:38:16 am

Thanks for posting all this amazing stuff!
That two piece, two tone blanket (under 'Additional Finds' is especialy interesting, but I'm not sure which caption is referring to it. I'm thinking the third one, as it's the third photo, but the second caption refers to plaid, but the second photo is stripes.
My principle field of interest is weaving in migration period Britain, but extends to all early and 'primitive' fabric production, and a few more crafts besides!

Reply
Alfrun
9/8/2015 06:40:05 am

Each image goes with the bullet point above it. That particular item is the Skjoldehamn blanket and links to the reports on it can be found on this site: http://www.medieval-baltic.us/skjold.html

If you are interested in Migration era, you might look at the book War and Worship as it has information on the Thorsberg textiles. http://www.oxbowbooks.com/oxbow/war-and-worship.html Very nice book especially for the price!

Reply
Linda Griffen
9/8/2015 12:27:26 pm

I love to see good scholarship shared so amicably. Thank you both for this beautiful sharing of your works.

Reply
Anna Lena Lind link
9/21/2015 10:13:48 pm

Thank you so much for a most valuable info! Having been in Viking age clothes and textiles for almost two decades - what an amazing evolution in knowledge through these years! - I have laid low for a couple of years, but now! I get most inspired, especially when I have learned weaving at an handicraft school here in Sweden. So how I have a reason to set up my gears again. Lovely. Thanks for your work.

Reply
janet
11/19/2015 04:30:23 am

Thank you for such a well done document. Thank you for bringing the idea of color and variety to our impressions.

Reply
Yvonne
1/16/2016 03:05:32 pm

Really nice written! If you write warp and weft numbers for Hedeby - like for grave S27 you should perhaps write that they are for 2 cm : 96Z warp and 50S weft so they are actually Z38 ans S20 for 1cm. But I guess if someone will reproduce he/she will look it up more closely. :-)

Reply
Alfrun
1/17/2016 02:42:27 pm

Hello Yvonne! Actually, many of these figures have numbers that I converted from cm to inches, and this is one of them. It is the correct as written count for inches (this item was listed per cm in the original text). I referenced unit of measurement in many places, but not this one. I will add in that it is inches. Thank you!

Reply
Kim link
8/8/2016 03:38:34 pm

Nice reading post. Thank for share here

Reply
Systa of Varghus
9/20/2016 09:40:22 am

Thank you SO much for the most excellent research and pictures! You have been a god send collecting all these different finds and presenting them with meticulous referencing. :D
FYI: I just saw a picture of the sleeve of the Lendbreen glacier tunic that certainly looks like a check or possibly a plaid. You might want to add it to your list as it certainly fits your time frame. Really looking forward to seeing more finds add to this great collection.

Reply
Systa of Varghus
9/21/2016 03:32:29 pm

Thank you SO much for the most excellent research and pictures! You have been a god send collecting all these different finds and presenting them with meticulous referencing. :D
FYI: I just saw a picture of the sleeve of the Lendbreen glacier tunic (circa 300 AD) that certainly looks like a check or possibly a plaid. You might want to add it to your list of Additional finds. Really looking forward to seeing more finds add to this great collection.

Reply
Alfrun
9/22/2016 10:58:04 am

Thank you the compliments! Lendbreen is an absolutely fascinating find. Have you seen the article about the reconstruction, as well as the video produced? It is fantastic! I deliberately did not include it in this survey because it is far too early for the Viking Age. Amazing plaids, as well as many large scale ones like Huldremose, occurred much earlier in history, but is not really seen as often in a Viking context. There is some research by K. Gromer on Central European textiles that show the same type of trend - plenty of plaids and stripes but they seem to drop off before the Viking Age as well. I wonder if it is something that just became less fashionable for a reason after a time.

Reply
Graham Webb
3/2/2019 11:31:40 pm

Earlier period than my interest but a fascinating insight into plaid development none the less. I am interested in the mid C17th plaids that are in period illustrations as Irish and in the Dungannon bog find. Those plaids are depicted as large, more like 100mm and are perhaps emphasised to represent the 'wild' and primitive nature of the Irish at that time.

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Michelle R Bauer
3/3/2019 01:31:47 pm

Thanks for this information, trying to do my research for my compilation art form...my "Opus" so to speak, and don't want to make silly mistakes~

Reply
Ylva link
9/5/2019 05:31:56 am

I love this blog post and have referred many people to it when they have related questions. I was going over my notes about Irish VA textiles this evening and was reminded again about your comment about a Dublin textile. If only there were more information! Sadly this is very much the case across the board for Irish VA textiles; never enough info!

Reply
Constance
10/5/2021 03:01:53 pm

Very helpful especially the section on checks/tartans you might use even though they're not exactly like the finds.

Reply
eco friendly clothing link
2/20/2023 11:44:38 pm

Thanks for sharing your ideas and thoughts! Winter is the natural time to escape the norm – whether that’s a long and relaxing beach vacation or a party weekend in Miami. It’s also the perfect time to showcase new looks and push the boundaries with fresh designers and styles.

Reply
ken hulme
3/24/2023 07:17:48 pm

Very well done article on period plaids! One I didn't see mentioned though is the Shepherds/Northumbria/Border check -- undyed "brown/black" and "white" small herringbone pattern in wool found in a Roman excavation dated to 250AD near Falkirk in the Scottish Borders.

Reply
Alfrun
3/26/2023 11:53:56 am

Thank you for your comment! This plaid, and many, many others are not included in the survey because this is a gathering a Viking Age textiles from Northern Europe. I do cover some Central European Celtic plaids and stripes in other articles in the appropriate section on this blog, but have not addressed any Roman material at this time.

Reply



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