Buried Swords and Hoards, the Vikings in Furness

The Vikings, those Norse men and women who rampaged across Europe invading countries, raping and pillaging as they went. Arriving in their long boats with their huge axes and swords to reek havoc on the unsuspecting shores on which they landed...right? Well, not quite!

Vikings is a loose term that describes Norse seafarers who traded, and indeed often raided, across north Europe from their homeland of Scandinavia. Often depicted as terrifying warriors who killed and ravaged wherever they went the Vikings were in fact a relatively peaceful bunch. They generally spent time trading with and settling in areas of Europe. Of course violence would often occur but they were not the blood thirsty race which is often depicted. They were no more violent and bloodthirsty than the later English kings of the middle ages or indeed the Celts and Romans before.

There is huge amounts of evidence of the Viking occupation across England from the remains of their capital city, Jorvik in York to the vast amount of hoards and artifacts discovered from the time. When it comes to Vikings in Furness though evidence gets a little bit sparse and discovering their occupation a little bit tricky!

One of the main things that shows some Viking influence in the area is the name of 'Furness' itself. It is believed that the name derives from the Viking 'Far Ness', ness being Norse for headland. This most likely in reference to the area as seen from the south of Morcambe bay.

There are also many place names in the area which derive from the Vikings and the old Norse language. Scales, Sowerby, Soutergate, Roa, Hawcoat, Bigger and even Barrow all have Norse origins. Places like the Haggs in Dalton also come from Old Norse.

Some of the more physical evidence of Vikings in the area are small in number but do certainly paint a picture:

The Rampside Swords

Around 1854-5 a gravedigger at Rampside Church, named William Jackson, was digging a new grave. While doing so he came across what was a well corroded but very obvious sword. It was about 12 inches long with a 3 inch guard as well as a handle. Sadly it had no pommel but was believed to be of Viking origin.

Later, in 1909, another sword was discovered buried beneath the ground. Jacob Helm and his son Thomas were digging a grave in the churchyard when they made the discovery. It lay about 2 feet 6 inches beneath the surface and had about 6 inches of the blade still intact, although about half missing. It bears a guard, handle and part of a pommel (see image) and is of typical Viking design. Interestingly this sword, in difference to most other swords of the time, only has one edge.

Both these finds suggest Viking settlement here in Furness with accompanying burials. The question however is whether these burials took place in the early Viking age or later when Christianity started to take hold. It is believed that the owner of the second Rampside sword may well have been a converted Norse man and was buried in consecrated ground around an early christian church.

The Furness Hoard

Image courtesy of the Dock Museum.

In 2011 a local metal detectorist made a fascinating discovery in the hills near Stainton, a Viking Hoard!

Buried beneath the soil next to a large limestone rock (quite the marker) was a large selection of silver coins, ingots and arm rings all from the Viking Age, 92 pieces altogether.

The coins are from varying dates ranging from around 947, and the reign of Eric Bloodaxe, to around 955 and the reign of Eadwig.

In it's time the hoard was likely worth around 50 sheep, which was a high sum. This could give reason as to why it was buried.

Although no-one can ever be sure why it was buried, and what happened to the owner, there certainly are some theories. One theory is that this was the personal bank account, as it were, of a local person. The money buried under a marker so the owner knew where it was when needed but it was kept safe from thieves. This could have weight as the hoard was buried close to an ancient area of settlement, maybe a local would dig up the hoard every now and then to add more coins to it. The Viking equivalent of a savings account! Personally this is my favored theory although we will no doubt never know the truth.

The hoard is often described as the "missing link" as it sheds new light on Viking habitation in the area and is an extremely important find.

If you want to see the hoard yourself then you can! It is on display in the Dock Museum, Barrow. It is well worth taking a look at and pondering how it came to be buried beneath the earth and forgotten about all those years ago!

Lead Weights

Metal detectorists have been responsible for a couple of other interesting Viking finds in the area too.

Two lead weights have been found across Furness, the most recent being beautifully decorated (see image) and found near Dalton-in-Furness. Lead weights like this were used to weigh out goods before sale and show that there was certainly Viking trade happening in the area.

The other weight found is decorated in a celtic knott work design with gold finish. Another fine example and another piece in the puzzle.

Both weights are on display, with the hoard, inside the Dock Museum.

Carved Stone

There have been several Viking stone carvings found in the area including a tympanum, a semi circular shaped surface which would sit over an entrance, found at Pennington Church, which was adorned with runic inscription dating to the Viking age and the segment of a cross found at Urswick Church. This fragment (pictured) was found in the grounds of the church and is a small section of a Viking cross and could indicate early Viking religious activity.

This fragment is still retained inside Urswick Church but is not on display to visitors.

There have been other, smaller finds, over the years also from a hollow copper alloy head found near Furness Abbey, believed to be an early religious decoration which would adorn a chair, to various Spindle whorls, the weighted bases of wool spinning tools.

All of these finds, although few in number, start to paint a picture of the Vikings in Furness. The evidence of their place names surviving through time to influence our modern world, the small finds which give evidence of their trade in the area and their lost and forgotten hoard which shows the Viking way of life had spread to the area. Whether the owners of these items were actually of Norse decent may never be known but whoever they were they certainly had adopted the Viking way of life.

So, were the Vikings ever in Furness? You can be certain they were! Let us hope though that in time more work is carried out and new evidence is discovered which will fill in the gaps and complete the puzzle of the Norse men in Furness...

An Ancient Cross and Christian Monument, Urswick Church

Slightly hidden behind a tree-lined graveyard in Urswick stands the Church of St. Mary and St. Michael, an ancient and wonderful little church. On a site with a history dating back to, at least, the Viking age the church has a lot to discover within its stone built walls.

One of the first interesting little features to be found at this church is outside about half way up the tower. The bottom part of this tower is believed to be pre-Norman and was possibly some form of pele tower to provide protection to the locals. A sandstone lintel runs around the tower marking the top the original keep. But sitting on and above this line, to the left of the western end of the tower, is a rather weathered sandstone sculpture. This sculpture is of the Mother Mary holding Jesus after the crucifixion. The sculpture is thought to have been from Furness Abbey and placed in the tower here after the dissolution of the monasteries. The top section of the tower was built in the Tudor period so it would certainly fit.

Within the church itself can be seen another, much earlier, piece of carved sandstone. This piece is known as the Tunwini Cross and dates back to the period of British history known as the Anglo-Saxon period. The stone was a fragment of what would have been a larger cross. The slab was found in 1911 when work was undertaken at the church to expand a window. The cross section was built into the wall below the lintel of the window. On discovery an expert in Northern English Anglo-Saxon and Scandinavian crosses was called to the church. Having studied the cross he determined that the cross was Anglian with hints of Celtic design and dated to about 850-870 AD. He also deduced that the ruins carved into one side (as seen below right) read "This cross Tunwini erected in memory of Torhtred a monument to his Lord. Pray for the soul."

Later studies have suggested that the current ruins adorning the cross have been carved on top of an earlier runic inscription. It is thought that the original runes, and thus the cross, was produced to commemorate a meeting between the 7th Archbishop of Canterbury, Theodora, and Tarsus, prior of a monastery named Elen. It is also theorised that the two figures carved below the text are these two men. This would date the cross to the later 7th to early 8th century, one of the earliest runic inscription discovered in Britain.

The finding of the cross was during one of many alterations the church has undergone over the centuries. The original church would have most likely been where the current nave is and been lower with a roof probably made of reeds. The stone church present today was up to its current height by 1598 and, as mentioned earlier, the tower was modified and extended in Tudor times. 

The chancel of the church was added much earlier in the Norman period and has many interesting features including several lovely stained glass windows, but one of these windows is particularly interesting. A long thin window, made up of various pieces of broken glass, has fragments of stained glass originally from Furness Abbey. It cannot be determined exactly which pieces are from the Abbey but the circular piece with a greyhound inside it (see left) is a very likely candidate. It is also probable that the yellow, white and black pieces are from the Abbey too, as they match up in style with other fragments of glass dotted around the area known to be from Furness Abbey. To the top of the window is an Abbots hat along with a crozier extending up behind it, this section is also believed to be from the Abbey. It is very tricky to say exactly where each piece of glass comes from where as they have all been interspersed with later and modern glass. This does make for quite a fun activity though; trying to work out what bits you think could be from the Abbey or not. I certainly spent a fair bit of time trying to work it out!

Looking around the inside and outside of the church you can find many different features from a squint, a cut through the chancel wall so that anyone sitting in the pews behind can see through to the alter, to various wooden and stone carvings. Including two very early looking carved heads that sit outside the east window (see right). While I was at the church a man who helps look after the church said something that seemed to ring true. He said that a man once came to the church and had commented that 'you can feel the history emanating from the walls', or something to similar effect. I can certainly see what he means, when you walk in you can really sense the age of the building and you know it has seen a vast amount in its time. Having been here since at least Anglo-Saxon times it will have certainly seen a fair amount, with the surrounding village changing and expanding to an array of different visitors. The site itself might even date back to an earlier time. A fragment of a Viking cross, with knot design, has been found in the church grounds in the past which does give evidence to Viking settlement in the near vicinity, if not early Viking religious activity! Unfortunately this cross fragment is not on display in the church but there is an image of it, along with an artists impression of what the rest of the cross may have looked like.

Urswick Church really has a lot of hidden heritage to offer, both inside and out. The church is often open for the public to visit, except when services are taking place, so it is well worth a visit. It is easy to reach by foot, just off the main road through Urswick. There is also a small car park for visitors should you wish to visit by car. This site is an ancient one and the church itself is one of the older in Furness so why not have a look?

Come back on 29th April for the next Furness Hidden Heritage blog post looking at some interesting features on Walney.

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The Churches of Furness Series does what it says on the tin, it takes a look at the many and varied churches of the Furness area of South Cumbria. From churches with Norman origins to Victorian houses of worship there certainly is an array of religious buildings to discover! 

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