Get the Look: Female Viking Warrior of the Northern Mountains

June 3, 2025

In this blog, we take you to the Nordre Kjølen near the Norwegian Solør. Here, the grave of a 10th century Viking woman was discovered. She was laid to rest with a sword, spear, axe and arrows in her grave. Her bow likely deteriorated over time. During the funeral, she was laid with her head on a shield.

Although it wasn't the norm, women in Viking culture sometimes engaged in warfare. The female Viking warrior of Solør belonged to the Norse Viking elite.

The composition in this blog is inspired by the Viking women's grave of Solør and is not a complete replica. This way, you have more freedom for your own interpretation without reproducing the woman of Solør exactly.

The woman of Solør was 18-19 when she died. She was buried in a central location that clearly marked her grave. When archaeologists discover a grave with weapons, it's standard to assume it's a man's grave. Additionally, graves often lack skeletal remains that could be used for DNA analysis to determine gender. For years, this woman's weapons were assumed to have had a purely ceremonial function. But this Viking woman reveals a different, gruesome reality.

For this photoshoot, we chose to work with a female model who was the same age as the woman found in the grave.

Female Viking Warriors

The woman of Solør is not alone. Graves have also been found in Birka and Bogøvej in Denmark in which women with weapons were buried. Was this ceremonial?

The evidence for this we see in the skull of the woman of Solør. At a young age, probably around her 16th-17th year of life, this woman experienced something terrible. During a fight, an enemy's axe struck her right in the skull. The trauma to the skull must have been enormous and caused at least a concussion and loss of consciousness. From the impact, her skull was dented in. For the rest of her life, she would have had to live with a large, deep scar on her forehead, if this wound hadn't already been fatal.

In any case, confronting evidence shows how violent, short and harsh life during the Viking age must have been, for both men and women.

Written sources also mention female Viking warriors. The Byzantine historian John Skylitzes wrote about the battle with Sviatoslav I of Kiev where Viking women fought. The Greenland Saga tells how Leif Erikson's pregnant half-sister Freydís Eiríksdóttir fought the Skrælings (Inuit) in Vinland (Canada). Saxo Grammaticus mentions that at the Battle of Brávellir, Danish women also fought. Åsa Haraldsdottir, in the Saga of the Ynglings, is described as a skilled seafarer who led expeditions at sea and was probably a warrior as well as captain.

These written sources and these graves have one thing in common: the women in question were exclusively of aristocratic descent. It's possible that within aristocratic families, both men and women were trained to fight. And that's what they did.

The woman in this composition is far less known than the female Viking warrior of Birka. But we can only look with the utmost respect at the sacrifice this woman made for her family and her tribe. In this reconstruction, we call her Ingibjorg.

About Ingibjorg

We know little about Ingibjorg's life, except that it was violent and short. Ingibjorg died at a time when the Solør region had just become part of the united kingdom of Norway. She lived just after the reign of the semi-legendary Viking king Harald Fairhair. Various rivers run through Solør. The Glåma river is the longest river in Norway. It was a central traffic artery at a time when traveling by land was difficult. It's possible that Ingibjorg's family acquired land during Harald Fairhair's conquest war.

Fun side note: according to Snorri Sturluson, Harald himself was married for a number of years to Ragnhild the Mighty. Her nickname suggests she also knew how to fight.

As a member of such a powerful family, Ingibjorg learned to fight. Enemies were numerous for the fertile area of Solør. When she was 16 or 17, she was hit with an axe in a fight against a rival tribe. It's unclear whether she recovered, or if the head wound was fatal.

According to Scandinavian religion, she earned a place in Walhalla by falling on the battlefield. Valkyries descended from the sky and took her from the battlefield. They brought her to the great feast hall. Until the day of Ragnarok, she fights here with other heroes, and feasts every evening with the gods Odin and Thor.

Clothing

Viking tunic & undertunic

According to Anglo-Saxon chronicles, Æthelflæd wore men's clothing during her war against the Vikings. This gave more freedom of movement than a long dress. Ingibjorg wasn't always dressed as a man. Outside of training and combat, Ingibjorg wore traditional Viking women's clothing. This is detailed in a separate blog.

In this reconstruction, Ingibjorg wears a long undertunic. This provides extra warmth. The extra layers showed her wealth. The more clothing, the richer the Viking.

Over her undertunic, Ingibjorg wears a light blue tunic. This is a relatively rich color. Remember, the brighter the color, the richer the person.

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Viking trousers

Ingibjorg wears typical Viking baggy trousers as depicted in the 9th century Oseberg tapestry.

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Leg wraps

Ingibjorg wears leg wraps that keep her lower legs and feet extra warm in the cold Norwegian climate.

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Viking shoes

Ingibjorg wears Viking shoes that are based on finds from the ship grave at Oseberg. The tapestry depicting her baggy trousers was also found in this grave.

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Armor

Viking kaftan

Ingibjorg wears a kaftan that keeps her warm in the cold Norwegian climate. Not all Vikings probably wore kaftans. They were based on an earlier type of Germanic overcoat, or influenced by the steppe peoples that Scandinavians came into contact with during their travels.

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Viking cloak

Although the Scandinavians traded in fur, this would only be incorporated into clothing by the richest. Unfortunately, the cloak from this photoshoot is no longer available, but we do offer alternatives.

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Viking sword

The sword in Ingibjorg's grave was laid in a striking way. In most Viking graves, the sword was laid with the tip pointing toward the feet. In this grave, the sword point was directed toward the head.

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Viking shield

The shield is also striking. Instead of beside her body or at her feet, Ingibjorg was laid with her head on the shield. The wood of the shield had deteriorated, but it was likely a round shield like the famous Viking shields.

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Viking axe

The axe in the grave was a Petersen type A.

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Viking bow

Only the arrows were found in the grave, likely because the natural materials of the bow and any quiver had deteriorated. Recurve bows were used throughout the Viking world and were called hornbogi, named after the multiple layers from which the bow was constructed.

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