"A newly constructed barrow stood waiting, on a wide headland close to the waves, its entryway secured. Into it the keeper of the hoard had carried all the goods and golden ware worth preserving. His words were few: 'Now, earth, hold what earls once held and heroes can no more.'"
Beowulf (lines 2242-2248)
When the Oseberg ship was discovered in 1904, five carved dragon heads were found onboard, four of which are displayed in the Viking Ship Museum (Oslo) and the fifth in storage. Four were found in the burial chamber of the ship, each of which had an iron rattle attached to a rope, which suggests that they were displayed in a religious procession as part of a burial ritual or perhaps used as a talisman, their apotropaeic effect (from the Greek "turning away") intended to ward off evil. With remarkable foresight, these heads remained submerged in tanks of water for fully half a century until a proper method of conservation could be found.
Carved by the "Academician," this traditional style harks back to the eighth century. A short horizontal tenon at the base of the neck allowed the post to be carried or fitted into place. The other three posts have only their mortise.
This post by the "Baroque Master," exquisitely decorated with silver nails and twisted wire, follows a later style.
This carving by the "Carolingian Master" had been conserved with alum which, although an acceptable treatment at the time, significantly blurred fine details in the carving. The other heads, therefore, were immersed in water until the mid-1950s.
The Lion head
One of the most beautiful of the five dragon-head posts, this second head by the Baroque Master was almost completely destroyed when the water-filled tank in which it was held sprung a leak while in storage during World War II. Fortunately, a carved wooden copy already had been made. The few pitiable pieces of the original are in museum storage.
These three details from the Bayeux Tapestry show Duke William holding his sword in imitation of a scepter, flanked by scenes of Edward the Confessor sitting in his palace at Westminster (the first panel of the Tapestry, where he addresses Harold Godwinson, and again just before his own death, where he greets Harold after his return from the Norman court). What is of interest are the animal heads that decorate the chairs of state, evoking the lions that flanked the armrests of the throne of Solomon (I Kings 10:19)—and which may have adorned the head posts of Viking chieftains.
The detail of a dragon (top) is from the Sutton Hoo burial and is one of the mounts on an elaborately decorated shield. Both the burial and Beowulf may date to the eighth century AD. The Oseberg ship and its treasures were buried perhaps a century or so later.
Reference: Museum of Cultural History: Objects from the Collection: "The Long Soak" (Oslo) website.
