Notes

VIKING GIRLS had to help with cooking, spinning, weaving, making cheese and
sewing clothes. They were expected to keep their fingers busy all day long: sewing and
weaving, but most of all spinning wool



VIKING BOYS had to work on the farm, or help to make goods in wood or metal.Boys didn't get told off for fighting. In fact, they were actually encouraged to fight – not
just with their fists or by wrestling, but with proper weapons: spears, axes and SWORDS
This is what a typical house belonging to a fairly
rich Viking family looked like inside:
The walls are lined with wooden panels. The floor is
made of beaten-mud. In the centre is the fire-pit,
where the family burned wood, peat or dried animal
dung. This kept them warm and gave out light.
Don’t miss the cooking pot hanging over the fire.
On either side of the fire there were wide, built-in
wooden benches. During the day people sat on
them, and at night they slept on them. There are
sheepskins on the benches to make them more
comfortable. The children’s mother and father often sat in the ‘high-seat’. This was an area
in the middle of one long bench, marked out by carved pillars.
Some Viking houses only had one room. But the house in the picture had some smaller
rooms too, and also an entrance porch where people could hang their cloaks and store
tools. Can you see the door leading out to it at the far end?