The scientist confirmed that the legendary execution of the Vikings "bloody eagle" existed
Stories about medieval executions and torture are very popular today. Some of them are quite real, others are questioned. One of the controversial was the brutal execution of the Vikings "bloody eagle". It was so fanatical that its existence was questioned by many historians. Recent studies conducted by scientists from Iceland have confirmed that it could well exist.
For a long time, the execution of the "bloody eagle" was considered a horror story by Christian preachers or a sophisticated invention of Scandinavian skalds. This execution, despite doubts about its existence, has firmly entered modern popular culture. She can be seen in the TV series "Vikings", the horror film "Solstice" and the computer game Assassin's Creed Valhalla.
In ancient sagas, such as The Saga of the Orkney Jarls and The Elder Edda, the execution is described as extremely painful and very spectacular. Christians often used the "bloody eagle" as an example of the barbarism and inhumanity of the pagans. In particular, this is how the Christian author Saxo Grammaticus gave information about it in the 12th century.
The execution began with the fact that the condemned was fixed with his back up. Then the back was cut with a certain tool and at the same time not only the skin and muscles were cut, but also the ribs. After that, the bones were turned out, thus opening the chest. The ribs, broken from the back, stuck out to the sides like wings, which gave the name of the execution.
Ancient images clearly show how everything happened. The execution is shown on the Stura Hammar stone found on the island of Gotland in the Baltic Sea. There the execution is depicted unusually, as a sacrifice. The researchers came to this conclusion because the altar is clearly visible on the bas-relief.
Despite the many facts, there have always been many scientists who questioned the use of the "blood eagle". Dr. Luke John Murphy from the University of Iceland was the first to put an end to the controversy and began researching the bloody custom. He was primarily interested in the medical aspect. Is it possible to cause such damage to a person and not kill him immediately? How did the executed man feel? How difficult was it to perform such an operation?
Together with like-minded people, Dr. Murphy began to move step by step towards the goal. Previously, it was believed that the victim's ribs were cut with a large knife or even an axe. But after careful study of the issue, it turned out that the traditional Viking spear is more suitable for these purposes. By the way, it is this tool that can be seen on the Stura Hammar stone.
The films show that after opening the chest, the victim lives for a long time and suffers a lot. This is most likely not true. During such an execution, a person would die very quickly and would not be able to scream, as described in the ancient sagas.
To finally close the issue of execution, Dr. Luke John Murphy connected third-party experts to the study. He invited experts in Scandinavian ethnography to assess how the "bloody eagle" contradicts the principles and customs of the Vikings. It turned out that, from the point of view of the Scandinavians who lived in the early Middle Ages, such an execution would have been quite normal.
In those days, they loved to mock the bodies of enemies and tried to carry out executions as edifying as possible. Dr. Murphy summed up his work as follows:
Murphy added that the Vikings often staged bloody events with the killing of people and animals. Therefore, the "bloody eagle" would not be something unnaturally cruel or violating any principles for them.