Archaeologists have unearthed a significant textile production site from the Viking Age in Denmark, revealing the advanced nature of Viking society. Experts from Moesgaard Museum announced that the vast 100,000-square-meter site in Søften includes an area for flax processing and over 80 pit houses. These semi-buried huts served as workshops and homes during the Viking era.
The site is situated 10 kilometers north of Aarhus, Denmark’s second-largest city, on the Jutland peninsula. Dating back to the late Iron Age and early Viking Age, the site spans the period from around A.D. 600 to 950.
Archaeologist Liv Stidsing Reher-Langberg, who led the 10-month excavation, stated that the focus on textile production differentiates this settlement from others of its time. “We have spindle whorls and weight looms, indicating the activities in the pit houses,” she explained. Additionally, silver coins, glass beads, and pottery were discovered.
The site features designated areas for production and crafts, alongside a single residential home. This suggests that a powerful figure oversaw resources and production. Over the past three decades, metal detector enthusiasts have uncovered several silver coins in the area. A trial excavation 18 months ago, linked to new road and industrial construction, sparked the archaeologists’ interest.
Moesgaard Museum historian Kasper Andersen described the Søften discovery as a vital clue to understanding the local economic and political structure. During the Viking era, Aarhus, known then as Aros, was a hub for royalty and international trade. A nearby site in Lisbjerg, uncovered last year, is believed to have housed nobility.
“This large-scale production site is part of a vast international network,” Andersen remarked. “It goes beyond the local area, indicating a much larger international perspective.”
Reher-Langberg hopes that carbon dating and pollen analysis will answer questions about the specific nature of the textile production at the site.
During the Viking Age, from A.D. 793 to 1066, Norsemen engaged in raids, colonization, and trade across Europe, reaching as far as North America. Andersen emphasized that the Søften discovery dispels the notion of Vikings as mere barbaric hordes. “A place like Søften reflects a well-organized society with a production line and a market beyond the local area,” he noted.