What did Viking Age Men’s Hair Look Like?

Note: While this entry focuses on men’s hair, I will eventually do one on women’s hair, as well!

An audio version of this entry is available here.

A thirteenth-century chronicle credited to the Benedictine monk John of Wallingford describes how Danes living in England were able to seduce various Anglo-Saxon women, due to their fashionable hair and beards.

They were wont, after the fashion of their country, to comb their hair every day, to bathe every Saturday, to change their garments often, and set off their persons by many such frivolous devices. In this manner they laid siege to the virtue of the married women, and persuaded the daughters even of the nobles to be their concubines.

Although this account is from slightly after the Viking era, it gives us a glimpse into the grooming ritual of Danish men of that time, and how that was perceived by others. In particular, it gives us an idea of what they were doing differently from the Anglo-Saxons, as that is what is being discussed – they changed their clothes often, they bathed once a week, and they combed their hair daily.

With the importance of hair and grooming in mind, we’ll have a look at what evidence we have for period hair styles – starting with the some carvings from the Oseberg cart, the pre-9th century marvel of Viking Age carving and engineering ability.

One carving from the cart shows a human face, bearded and mustachioed, eyes bulging and mouth open as if to yell. The head wears what appears to be a simple helmet or cap. The moustache is well trimmed, with no hair appearing to cover the cheeks, and the beard itself is trimmed to end at the lowest points of the moustache. While the face wearing it is fearsome and striking in appearance, the facial hair is well kept and cared for.

Another carving from the wagon shows a beardless face with a prominent, though neat, moustache, ending on the cheek in line with the corner of the mouth, and what appears to be spiked hair. It is reminiscent of the 1st Century Roman statue Dying Gaul and this style may therefore be seen as a long standing or traditional grooming style. The statue, again, shows hair that is wild in appearance, but well kept, and a prominent moustache.

A third example, again pre-Viking but further solidifying the idea of a consistent grooming style, is a Vendel-era helmet plate from Öland depicting a man, sometimes interpreted as the god Tyr, binding the wolf Fenrir.

Further carvings from the Oseberg wagon depict Gunnar in the Snake Pit, a scene from the Völsunga Saga. In the carving, Gunnar appears to have what would be known mundanely as a bowl cut, although it may be a less prominent version of the haircut depicted in the Bayeux Tapestry.

I believe that Gunnar’s role in the saga should be considered in context of his depiction in the art portraying him. Not to be confused with Gunnar from Njal’s Saga, this Gunnar is a traitor and complicit in the death of the hero Sigurd. Could this hairstyle have connotations with traitors or disguised motives?

The carving of Gunnar at Vangestad, which dates from between the 14th and 16th century, depicts a similar hairstyle as shown on the Oseberg cart. Similar but unrelated depictions from some 800 years apart seems to suggest that my speculation may be correct. At the very least it suggests that it was a common hairstyle.

The Bayeux Tapestry, which depicts the events of 1064 – 1066 and created only half a decade later, shows another style of hair. Retaining the shorn back of Gunnar’s hairstyle but introducing a much more prominent front.

A depiction of the distinctive hairstyle from the Bayeux Tapestry.

This is possibly the best documented period hairstyle that we have for men, in part because of the supporting literature. At some point before his death in the year 1010, Anglo-Saxon abbot Ælfric of Eynsham wrote in a letter addressed to a ‘brother Edward,’

I also tell you, brother Edward, that you act wrongly when you abandon the English customs which your fathers observed and love the customs of heathens, wit them you show that you despise you kin and your elders, when you adorn yourself in Danish fashion, with bared neck and blinded eyes.

Of artificially changing the colour of their hair, Roman author Pliny the Elder some 700 years before the start of the Viking age, wrote:

Soap, too, is very useful […] an invention of the Gauls for giving a reddish tint to the hair. This substance is prepared from tallow and ashes, the best ashes for the purpose being those of the beech and yoke-elm […] much used by the people of Germany, the men, in particular, more than the women.
Pliny the Elder, The Natural History

Whether this practice continued into the Viking age is a matter of contention. While it is often claimed that Ahmad ibn Fadlan speaks to the practise in his account of meeting the Rus in Mission to the Volga, I haven’t seen any direct quotes and I wasn’t unable to locate this statement in my copy of the book.

I believe that this is due to a misattribution of the quote.

Confusing matters more, the words appear to be quoted from 12th century Muslim writer At-Turtushi, who seems to be quoting a 10th Century work from the Jewish traveller Ibrahim ibn Yaqub – which no longer exists.

Even actual published real-world books seem to jam them all together and create one person out of three people who existed over several hundred years.

It does not help that in translations of some of these works, the translators often use the other authors as an additional source. When I tracked down those sources, they were also a quote of one of the other authors.

This may go without saying, but there is also a lot of evidence of Viking men being completely bald. A whalebone idol thought to be a depiction of Thor is one of several period depictions of men with bald heads.

While beards maintained a common place in art, prominent moustaches, in particular, appear to have been important in the Viking Era – they are featured in a huge amount of period art. This may have been a symbol of rebellion to the outside world – many cultures and religions enforced clean shaving rules. The earlier Romans were either clean shaven or possessed a moustache only in conjunction with a beard, and later, the Christians also seemed to be repulsed by the concept of a moustache. In fact, in 1105, a Bishop Godfrey was said to have refused Holy Communion to any man who had come to church unshaven!

As many gods are often depicted with prominent moustaches, it may have been a symbol for something spiritual. What ever the reason, depictions of men with moustaches only outnumber depictions of mean with moustaches and beards by a large margin.

I really hope that this entry has helped your progress! If you decide to attempt a period style haircut, you should definitely send it through to me (through the contact link) – I’d love to see how others interpret the styles!

Edit

Thanks to Hersir Ulf Skeggison for bringing these additions to my attention.

Below is a head carved from elk horn, 11th Century Sigtuna, Sweden. Evident is a hair style that I haven’t seen elsewhere. The clarity of the carving is really impressive. Also evident is another prominent mustache, this time paired with a beard.

Although slightly post-period, as they are from the 12th Century, the Lewis chessmen hold further clues as to period appropriate haircuts.

Carved from sperm whale teeth, the Lewis chessmen are named for the Isle of Lewis, Scotland, in whose bay they were found. It is widely accepted that the pieces were produced in Trondheim, Norway, although this has been subject to some debate.

Compiled References

Stevenson, J. The church historians of England. Seeleys. 1858.
Retrieved from: https://archive.org/details/thechurchhistor202unknuoft/page/n8

Schjeide, E. Crafting Words and Wood: Myth, Carving and Húsdrápa: A dissertation submitted in
partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy In Scandinavian
and Literatures in the Graduate Division of the University of California, Berkeley. 2015

Photograph of Dying Gaul released under creative commons license from creator.

Photograph of the Öland helmet plate from Stjerna, K. Helmets and Swords in Beovulf. 1903.
Now in public domain.
Retrieved from: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bronspl%C3%A5t_4_fr_Torslunda_sn,_%C3%96land_(Stjerna,_Hj%C3%A4lmar_och_sv%C3%A4rd_i_Beovulf_(1903)_sid_103).jpg

Depictions of the carving of Gunnar on the Oseberg Wagon courtesy Museum of Cultural History,
Oslo.
Retrieved from: https://www.khm.uio.no/english/visit-us/viking-ship-museum/exhibitions/oseberg/oseberg-cart.html

Andersen, G: Gunnar in the Snake Pit.
Retrieved from: http://middelalderuka.no/index.php/en/middelalderdalen/kulturminner/22-gunnar-in-the-snake-pit

Bayeux Tapestry. c. 1070. Musée de la Tapisserie de Bayeux, Bayeux, France.
Retrieved from: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tapisserie_de_Bayeux_31109.jpg

Porck, T. Anglo-Saxons putting on Viking (h)airs.
Retrieved from: https://dutchanglosaxonist.com/2017/04/17/cultural-blending/

Bostick, J. (trans) The Natural History. Pliny the Elder. Taylor and Francis. 1855.
Retrieved from: http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.02.0137

Grimm, J. The Earliest Representations of Old Norse Gods: Mythological and Religious Art
Retrieved from: http://www.germanicmythology.com/works/EARLYART.html

Hawksley, L. Moustaches, Whiskers and Beards. Telegraph Books. 2014.
Retrieved from: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/men/fashion-and-style/11220712/Facial-hairs-formative-years-what-the-Vikings-and-Romans-did-for-male-grooming.html?fb

Edit

Compiled References

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