The Nordic Bronze age is a fascinating period in the ancient North. Not only do the beautiful and culturally revealing petroglyphs appear, but with the advent of better metal smelting techniques comes many archaeological treasures.
One such example is the beautiful Nordic bronze age razors. These razors mostly found in Denmark are constructed from bronze and ornamented with the most intriguing artistic depictions. Whilst the razors obviously had a practical purpose as tools, the symbolic artwork that adorns them clearly shows they had some greater value.
Sadly, as with so much of our ancestors ancient creations, we are mostly left to wonder and speculate upon their exact meaning and purpose. Where they objects of status? What do these mysterious symbols carved upon them truly mean?
Before we take a look at this though I would like to separate what for me are two distinct types. There are some that are adorned at the handle with the carving of a horse, others that have a more curved “looped” design more suitable for fastening to a belt. The latter, which will be the focus for this piece are also the examples that have the most intricate designs upon them. The horse head razors are much plainer, often either with no other decoration or simple patterns along the top edge. There is also a third type, less common and instead of a horse head have a sun wheel carving at the “handle” end. Like the horse head versions though it is adorned with simpler decorations. Below is a depiction of both the horse head and sun wheel designs surrounded by the more common “looped” design.
Despite the type, Razors across Northern Europe in the Bronze age are mostly associated with high status male burials. This of course makes a lot of sense given the practical use of the razor as a tool. The burial aspect may also explain why they are so richly decorated. They are also found in hoards, which again would add to the notion they are prestigious items. It is also possible that some of these “hoards” are in fact votive offerings, buried not as a keep safe, but as an offering to the divine that dwells within the land. In any instance it is hard to tell if such finely decorated pieces were ever used in a practical way or such examples were specifically for ceremonial usage.
Given their association with high status burials and lack thereof in less splendid burials, we can certainly associate such pieces with a representation of wealth and power. As noted Razors were common in such burials all over Northern Europe in the Bronze age, specifically Scandinavia, Britain and Ireland. These burials also generally contain weaponry and paraphernalia associated with a warrior.
The Bronze age was a time when warfare became far more common. A combination of higher populations and the advent of strong alloys like Bronze lead to an increase in war. This can be seen on the Scandinavian petroglyphs too, as many scenes seem to depict sea warfare. The fact that these items would be contained in warrior graves, also adds to the idea that they were symbols of status, an essential part of the warriors equipment he would need to fully present himself in the afterlife.
It may also give us a clue to the symbols depicted upon them. If they were mostly for ceremonial usage, specifically burials, then it is possible that the designs depicted on them are related to this specific purpose.
Examples of Bronze Age Razors
In the examples above it is clear to see that the most common artistic adornment is that of a ship. If we are assuming that the designs are created with burials in mind then the ship, obviously has great symbolic meaning. Anyone interested in the much later “Viking age” will know ships held special significance for the dead. Magnificent examples such as the Oseberg Burial (Norway) of two females and Anglo-Saxon examples such as the equally impressive Sutton-Hoo Burial (England), show us just how significant.
Oseberg Ship, from the Burial
Sutton Hoo Ship Burial
Ship related burials are not only found in that period of Northern history either, like much of “Viking Age” culture it has its origins in the Nordic Bronze age. Examples From the Bronze age such as the most intriguing Burial Cairn found at Ringenrøysa, Norway, with its boat and spiral patterns shows that connections between boats and travelling to the other world are certainly present at this early period.
Ringenrøysa Burial Cairn
Such burials are also found in the iron age. A great example of this is the huge Stone ship cemetery that appears to of started in the Germanic Iron age and was still used in the “Viking Age”, found in Denmark and contains over 600 such examples.
As well as the Boat symbolism, there is another far more intriguing image found on many of the razors. In the middle of many of the ships there is a strange and curious object. It has been described as many things, from mushrooms to sails, but if the razors do depict scenes related to burials we may have to look at them a little differently.
In a recent Live stream I did on “Thors Hammer” I to speculate a little upon the meaning of this interesting symbol. Without going into to much detail, I speculate upon its links possible to the Hammer (axe) symbol and also that of the Irminsul. In the context we are looking at both would be equally relevant. The Irminsul connection is specifically interesting giving my ideas of the Irminsul being related to boundaries. This though sadly is an area I still need to do much research on, and is certainly worthy of examination in its own right.
We also have symbols of the sun, or in some cases two suns. This like the boats, axes and strange “mushroom” symbols is also a prominent feature nn the Scandinavian rock carvings of the same period. We could speculate that the two suns may even indicate two worlds, one of the living and one of the dead. This of course would be pure speculation and would need a lot more work to fully form into a solid idea.
And example with both two Suns and the strange central object.
Other hints at the depictions on the razors being significant to travelling to the under world can be seen on some of the rarer examples. Below is an image of a razor that has the “Divine Twins” Imagery clearly depicted in the Boat. As well as this we have a figure on the left, possibly the deceased entering the boat? As the divine twins are often associated with ancestry and progenitors of a tribal group, we could begin to create a story from such imagery. The deceased so renowned that upon his death the Demigod progenitors of his people come to meet him in person and carry him to the land of his ancestors. Of course, I may be letting my more romantic and sentimental side get carried away here, but such things will always spark the imagination.
"Divine twin" Razor. Possibly depicting the deceased and even his Fylgja?
Many razors also have crude depictions of what appear to be water birds too, something again associated with the migration of souls and transformation in general. This too was carried into the Viking age, where Valkyries are often described as wearing “swan armour”. Even in the modern age we have the popular phrase “swansong” indicating the final or last of something.
Given all we have looked at, we could also consider that these razors were used in the ceremonial slaughter of any animals or even people that were to travel with the deceased upon their journey.
Despite all the connections to the migration of the soul upon death, it is entirely possible these razors were used by the living. I for one cannot think of a more perfect moment to be reminded of the fragile nature of life and your duty to it, than when one has a razor sharp blade at his neck.
Whatever the true meaning of the symbols and usage of these enigmatic razors may be, they are exquisitely beautiful regardless. They are splendid examples of our ancestors craftsmanship as well as their philosophical and spiritual ideas.
On a small side note, whilst researching these razors, I was compelled to get a more hands on feel. I always find touching and carving the symbols a great way to interact with the objects in a much more intimate way. Whilst this doesn’t transfer greatly to a written piece, it certainly helps build a personal relationship. If anyone is interested please check them out HERE.
Anyway thank you for taking the time to read my ramblings on these beautiful creations.