Vikings Influence On Western Civilization

The term Viking is generally applied to medieval Scandinavian culture as it prospered between the 8th-11th centuries CE. Viking art, also known as Norse art or the art of Scandinavia included the British Isles and Iceland. It has design elements in common with Celtic, Germanic, Romanesque and Eastern European art. Besides being known as plunderers, the Vikings were also excellent tradesmen and known for being traders along their coasts. They traded timber, amber, furs, and slaves with Byzantine and Arab merchants in the Mediterranean and Middle East and the Scandinavian colonies throughout Europe. Between their trading and plundering ventures, the Vikings travelled great distances by ship and which exposed them to a variety of arts along
Viking raids which began in the late 8th century brought about an end to monastic centres and aristocratic life. These raids are presumed to have interrupted the work on the Book of Kells. Later Gospel books aren’t as intricately illuminated. In the early Viking period, periodic raids on the rich monasteries of Ireland and England and on the north-western coasts of Europe including the raid on England's Christian monastatic community of Lindisfarne Island in 793, the reign of Viking fear began. Viking craftsmen were excellent at woodwork and metalwork, jewelry from silver, gold and bronze, and weapons. Much of their jewelry contains design elements of Celtic art and earlier Roman art pieces. Many of these designs are popular and are used today for jewelry and tattoos. I have a Celtic bracelet that I really like. I didn’t know much about the style other than the fact that I liked it, until now. They were skilled at pottery. During the Viking age, Norse people apparently did not create art for just decorative purpose but instead, Norse art is characterized by beautiful ornamentation of everyday objects. The Viking ships showed beautiful design and art forms that were truly unique. The ships timbers were crafted with abstracted animal forms and elaborate patterns of
Insular art is the style of art produced in the post-Roman history of the British Isles. The term derives from insula, the Latin term for "island". Great Britain and Ireland shared a common style that differed from the rest of Europe. Insular art affected all of the following European medieval art, most notably in the decorative elements of Romanesque and Gothic manuscripts. Examples of Insular art are mainly illuminated manuscripts, metalwork and carvings in stone, which their stone crosses, are well known. Surfaces are highly decorated with intricate patterning. The best examples include the Book of Kells, Lindisfarne Gospels and the Book of Durrow. Features of Insular manuscripts include historiated initials , canon tables and figurative miniatures and Evangelist portraits. The Insular style is most well known for its highly intricate decoration and designs. Spirals, triskeles, circles and geometric motifs are from late Celtic art. These were combined with animal forms probably from the Germanic version of the general Eurasian animal style and from Celtic art. Depth was not represented in manuscript painting; the most important feature was on the brilliantly patterned surface. After the large initials are depicted, the following letters on the same line, or for some lines beyond, continue to be decorated at a smaller size. The opening few words of each Gospel was especially decorative.