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...

1066, the Year of the Normans: Spotlight on Normans in Furness

This year, 2016, marks the 950th anniversary of the Battle of Hastings where Duke William II of Normandy defeated King Harold of England to become the new ruler of the country. A battle which saw the face of England change forever and the new Norman way of life take hold!

This blog post will shine a spotlight on the Normans in Furness and highlight posts from the blogs past about them, so, lets take a look:

A Motte Without a Bailey and a Manor Without a Town, Aldingham

The first Norman lord to come to Furness was Michael Le Fleming who was given the lands which later became Muchland, the main base for his rule though was at Aldingham. Here he built a large motte and bailey castle to impose his presence and his power on the area.

In this past blog post we explore the site of his castle and the lost town which it ruled over.

Furness Abbey, the Second Richest Cistercian Abbey in Britain

It was in 1127 that Furness Abbey was first founded by Savigniac Monks coming over from France. They no doubt set up here to bring more Norman rule to the land and introduce more of the Norman way of life. It was later taken over by the Cistercian order who built it to become one of the richest Cistercian monasteries in England!

This post took a look into the abbey and also showed some hidden features to discover around the site, now run by English Heritage.

Fading Faces in a Medieval Quarries - the Amphitheatre Next to Furness Abbey

The amphitheatre next to Furness Abbey holds many gems related to the great abbey. There is the precinct wall stretching the top of the natural formation, most likely constructed in the Norman period, and two large quarries where the stone for the abbey was carved out of the ground, again most likely first used in the Norman period.

Take a look at this post to find out more about these features as well as other, later features.

A Majestic Medieval Priory, Cartmel

Cartmel Pirory, just a short distance from Furness in the Cartmel Peninsula, was founded in 1189 by the Norman lord William Marshal. The Augustinian order worshipped in and ran the priory. Never growing to become an Abbey the site managed to survive until present day and is a beautiful and unique Norman building to behold!

In this post we took a deeper look into the priory and its history and showcased some wonderful pictures! Keep an eye out for the typical Norman features like the rounded Norman arches.

An Ancient Cross and Christian Monument, Urswick Church

Urswick Church is predominantly of Norman construction, the chancel being constructed in the Norman era, and is a lovely little church to look at and wander around. There are also many interesting features dotted around the church from an earlier Anglo Saxon runic slab to pieces of stained glass from Furness Abbey.

This post looks at all these features as well as the history of the church itself.

The Tale of a Man Called Wimund

Wimund was a monk, turned bishop, turned warlord who lived and was at his height in the Norman period. He started as a monk at the newly founded Furness Abbey before being sent to the Isle of Man to set up a new daughter house, Rushen Abbey. He soon was accented to Bishop but turned power hungry and went on a rampage through Scotland.

Explore the tale of this interesting and vicious character in this fascinating blog post.


As you can see there is a great deal of Norman heritage dotted across the Furness peninsula, all well worth a look. Of course there are many other sites with Norman origins which we have yet to cover in this blog and there are no doubt many long lost Norman sites still waiting to be discovered. Maybe one day we can return to shine another spotlight on the Normans in Furness! Until then we have lots of other unique heritage sites still to explore...


Return here on October 25th for another new blog post about a fortification which may well have a Norman origin!

A Hill Fort and Farmsteads, Neolithic to Iron Age Urswick and Furness

Urswick today is a quaint little village near to Ulverston but it has had a particularly vivid history of its own. On the outskirts of Urswick village can be found some of the earliest history of the area, a hill fort and Iron Age farmstead!

To the north of Great Urswick, sitting on a hill overlooking the land below, stands Skelmore Heads Hill Fort. In the picture above you can see the hill fort sat upon the limestone outcrops that adorn the top of the hill. You can see where earth has been lain to create a flattened platform, this platform is roughly 1.4 hectares in size. An earth bank and timber fence would have surrounded the platform creating a form similar to that typically associated with a fortification.

Skelmore Heads is thought to date back to the Neolithic period, around 4000 BC - 2500 BC, but would have been used and updated through to the Bronze and possibly Iron Age. Large sites like this were often used for centuries, which may give an indication to their importance.

Although called a hill fort this site in reality was no such thing. It is believed that it was in fact a site of ritual importance for the early inhabitants of Furness. The enclosed platform has no evidence of buildings or habitation. It appears that the site was used for ritual purposes, a place where offerings could be placed or buried in the ground or even inserted into the limestone outcrops. It is also speculated that gatherings and celebrations could have been held here. It seems that high lands, like the hills surrounding Urswick, were important to prehistoric man, as this is where they had their ritual and burial sites. Birkrigg common, which we spoke about previously, was a large burial and ritual site that sits on the next hilltop along from Skelmore Heads.

Roughly 1 mile south west of Skelmore Heads is a large area of mounds and ditches forming the site known as Urswick Stone Walls, an ancient Bronze to Iron Age farmstead or township.

This site is hidden in plain sight really, it is situated next to a public footpath, not far from a road entering Urswick, but many may walk right by the heritage at their feet. It is, admittedly, tricky to spot some of the features that make up the township but with a bit of moving around you will start to find the curving walls that create the enclosures.

The township was built atop a natural limestone outcrop, much like the hill fort. In the picture above you can see the limestone outcrop visible to the left, just next to this you can make out the raised embankment sweeping around into the distance behind, as well as running across to the right in the foreground. In the far distance you can just about make out the hill fort also, on top of the hill above the trees.

The section pictured would have been the living area of the township with several round houses inside with a series of walls partitioning the different clusters of houses. There are six known dwellings in the farmstead but there may well have been more that have yet to be unearthed. The whole living section of the site would have had a wall surrounding it, made from the local limestone with a large wooden palisade adorning the top of it. An image showing the remains of these walls can be seen bellow.

The houses of the town would have been the typical Bronze and Iron Age roundhouse design, with curved stone built walls and thatched roofs. One of the houses here was a lot bigger than the rest with a total diameter of about 12 metres. The rest had diameters somewhere in the region of 8-9 metres each. This large house was no doubt that of the chieftain or main family.

To the south west of the dwellings is a square enclosure where livestock would have been kept. This is thought to be a later addition to the site but is hard to determine exactly when it was added.

In the Bronze and early Iron Age livestock were often kept inside the houses with the people. It might seem odd now but the animals would have provided well-needed warmth, they would also have been kept safe inside the house rather than outside. It is not until later that enclosures, pens and even buildings were introduced to hold the animals.

Running alongside Stone Walls is a vein of iron ore with a length of around 400 metres. The vein has been quarried from the surface; this is clearly evident from the large ditches left today, which suggests that iron smelting was taking place at or near to the site sometime in its lifetime.

Impressive as Stone Walls is it was not the only settlement of its type in the area, although it is the biggest of those known. Roughly 1 kilometre south east of Great Urswick is another Iron Age settlement. It is situated in a field just off the road leading from Birkrigg Common to the village of Scales. The field is accessible by footpath from the roadside if you want to go in search of the site. This settlement is not as large or as grand as Stone Walls but the earthwork remains are clear as day (see below). There is a large ditch with a mound protruding from the ground creating the living enclosure. Within the enclosure are the visible outlines of two round houses, although there most certainly would have been more.

Another known settlement of this type was near Stainton with Adgarley. The site here has been recorded as being of a substantial size and it yielded many finds dating to the Bronze Age, such as bronze axe heads. Unfortunately much of this large site has been lost leaving little evidence. Having said that though there is one part of it, or what may have been a later edition next to the original site, still intact today. The site that is left appears to have a curving outer mound or wall, much like the other two sites, and has the remains of three round houses within (see below). There could also be a square animal enclosure to the southwest but it is hard to tell without archeological excavation. The original, larger, site showed evidence of iron smelting much like at Stone Walls.

All three sites are similar in the respect that they are built next to or into limestone outcrops. This is no doubt to aid in the construction of the settlements. Some utilise the limestone in forming part of the enclosure, others may sit on top of it to provide sturdy foundations. Or it could simply be that they are built next to or on top of limestone because, well, that was the stone that was around them.

It’s hard to say for certain exactly what is going on at these wonderful sites, as they haven’t been fully examined by modern archeology. Some of them, such as Stone Walls, have been excavated in part during the 19^th-early 20^th century when little was really known about prehistory. This means many of their secrets have yet to be brought to light!

I, for one, would love for more work to be undertaken at all these settlements.  To gain a better understanding of the people who lived here during prehistory and to see artifacts used in their every day lives uncovered for all to see would be a wonder to behold.

The prehistoric periods of Furness history are little explored and thus little known about and that is a true shame.

These plans are estimates of how the settlements may have been laid out. Mapped using aerial images with visible marks as well as trips to the sites, plotting out the walls and buildings then drawing over the aerial images. The Urswick Stone Walls plan is more accurate as the marks are very visible and there has been archeological surveys done to produce similar plans.