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Originally Posted by chevalier
id always thought viking swords had been locally forged until recently when i read somewhere that most norse/danish/swedish viking blades where actually frankish in origin.
is this true?
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You really are quite a professor Chevalier!!
At first glance the question seems simplistic, but 'doing the homework' on this was not only intriguing but there are of course certain complexities. Like most broad questions, I think the best answer is...primarily sword blades in the Viking Age (c.750-1100 AD) were products of various smiths in the Rhine regions (where the huge swordblade machine of Solingen evolved), thus the lands of the Franks.
There is considerable focus on the 'names' or possibly trademarks found on many of the blades, prevalent as 'ULFBERHT' and 'INGELRI'. That these appeared in such variation in spelling and application, and over such an extended period, suggests that while these might have been names, the continued use of these may have been much in the sense of using well established names as quality indicators.
It seems that as has typically been the case, hilting was often done locally, and using imported blades from Frankish smiths. In the deep ancestry of commercialism, the practice of inlaying inscriptions of names and varied wording and symbols became common during Charlemagne's time. That there was considerable export of these blades is evident when Carolingian rulers did attempt to forbid supplying thier present or potential enemies with these highly sought products.
The fact that these blades are found in such wide scope geographically is simply that they were indeed exported to Viking armourers, who hilted them in the fashion of the region or time. In addition, the Vikings who carried them of course took them to many areas in thier well known activities. I think the single exception I can think of might be in the case of Norway, and possibly others, where smaller edged weapons were indeed made locally, and as in the case of the sax or scramasax where these gradually evolved into sword length single edge blades.
As Manuel has noted, there was blade making industry in the Celtiberean regions, which did evolve into production of the magnificent blades of Toledo and of other Spanish centers, but these blades are not normally associated with known Viking swords as far as I know. I believe however, that the metal forging secrets of the Moors were in degree carried into the Frankish regions from these centers, and wonder if this may have supplanted the pattern welded blades with the strong forged steel of these regions in about the 9th century.
I think it is interesting that the history of these early weapons reveals in so many ways the perspective that the fundamentals of those times are actually so simillar to present times.
All best regards,
Jim