By Paul Whitelam | Posted: May 19, 2017
Torksey AD 872/873
A 1,100-year-old camp the Viking Great Army at Torksey has been brought to life in stunning virtual reality based on the latest research.
Heralded as the most realistic immersive experience ever created of the Viking world, the exhibition at the Yorkshire Museum in York runs from May 19 to November 5.
Three dimensional images and soundscape reveal what life was like in the camp of the Viking army on the banks of the River Trent at Torksey, near Gainsborough, in the winter of AD 872-873, as thousands of Vikings prepared to conquer vast swathes of England.
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New research by the University of York and the University of Sheffield has been used to create the incredible views of life in the camp for the Viking: Rediscover the Legend exhibition.
The Vikings spent the winter melting down stolen loot, repairing their longships, playing games, fishing, and trading goods and slaves.
The exact location and scale of the camp has been debated for many years, but now research by the two universities is beginning to reveal the truth.
It is now thought to have been at least 55 hectares in size, bigger than many towns and cities of the time, including York.
And the thinking is that thousands, not hundreds, of Viking warriors, women and children lived here in tents.
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There have also been more than a thousand finds by metal detectorists and archaeologists, including more than 300 coins.
They include more than 100 Arabic silver coins which would have come to the area through established Viking trade routes.
More than 50 pieces of chopped up silver, including brooch fragments and ingots have been found along with rare hack-gold.
Evidence has been found that these items were being processed at the camp – chopped up to be melted down.
Other finds include the 300 gaming pieces, iron tools, spindle whorls, needles and fishing weights.
All the scenes in the exhibition are based on real objects found by archaeologists and metal detectorists at Torksey.
In 865 AD a large Viking force landed in East Anglia. It is described in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, our main contemporary documentary source, as the 'Great Army' as it was much larger than previous raiding parties.
The force seized the Northumbrian capital of York in 867 and went on to wage war against the Anglo Saxon Kingdoms of Mercia and Wessex.
In 871 the army was reinforced from Scandinavia and over the next decade their warfare transformed the political and cultural landscape of Britain.
In 872 AD the army chose Torksey, 13km from Lincoln as a suitable defensive and strategic position for their winter base.
Using landscape analysis, the research has been able to reveal the topography of the camp.
With the River Trent to the west and surrounding land prone to flooding to this day, its strength as a defensive position becomes clear.
Funding for the research has been provided by the British Academy, the Society of Antiquaries of London, and the Robert Kiln Trust.
Professor Julian Richards, from the Department of Archaeology at the University of York, of Meet the Ancestors fame, said: "These extraordinary images offer a fascinating snap shot of life at a time of great upheaval in Britain.
"The Vikings had previously often raided exposed coastal monasteries and returned to Scandinavia in winter, but in the later ninth century they came in larger numbers, and decided to stay.
"This sent a very clear message that they now planned not only to loot and raid – but to control and conquer."
Dr Gareth Beale from York's Digital Creativity Labs added: "The new research by the University of York and Sheffield has been used to create the most realistic images of the camp to date, based on real findings.
"These images are also believed to be the most realistic Virtual Reality ever created anywhere of the Viking world."
An image of the camp. From The Antiquaries Journal
The Virtual Reality scenes have been modelled by Gareth, working with Dr Guy Schofield and Dr Jonathan Hook, both from the Department of Theatre, Film and Television at the University of York, and the acoustic sound track was created by Dr Damian Murphy, Lewis Thresh and Kenneth Brown from the AudioLab in the Department of Electronic Engineering.
Dr Schofield said: "It's been a real cross-disciplinary project and exciting working with the archaeologists and museum professionals to create an authentic but entertaining visitor experience."
The research by Sheffield and York is beginning to reveal the true extent of the camp and the activities that took place there.
Prof Dawn Hadley, who leads the Sheffield side of the project, said: "Torksey was much more than just a handful of hardy warriors – this was a huge base, larger than most contemporary towns, complete with traders, families, feasting and entertainment.
"From the finds we know, for example, that they were repairing their boats here and melting down looted gold and silver to make ingots – or bars of metal they used to trade.
"Metal detectorists have also found more than 300 lead game pieces, suggesting the Vikings, including, women and children, were spending a lot of time playing games to pass the time, waiting for spring and the start of their next offensive.
"The visitor will be transported into this world and able to look around in a 360 degree landscape complete with conversations from the period."
Map produced for The Antiquaries Journal
In a paper published in The Antiquaries Journal, the researchers conclude: "In summary, our research at Torksey has revealed not only the location of the Viking winter camp, but something of its character as well.
"The sheer quantity and value of the metalwork assemblage forces a radical reappraisal of the scale of wealth amassed by the Viking Great Army.
"Plunder was being processed on a massive scale. There was intensive trade and exchange in goods and probably in slaves.
"The evidence from Torksey suggests a hybrid economy with monetary as well as bullion transactions and the minting of coins, reflecting something of the complexity of the multiple economic systems that co-existed during the Viking Age."
As for Torksey, after the Vikings moved out, it developed as an important Anglo-Saxon borough with a major wheel-thrown pottery industry.
The VR experience features alongside star objects from the British Museum and Yorkshire Museum's world class collections in the new exhibition which aims to give fresh perspective on how Vikings shaped every aspect of life in Britain.
It will include the most famous Viking hoards ever discovered in this country, including the Vale of York Viking Hoard, Cuerdale Hoard and the Bedale Hoard.
After York, the exhibition will go on tour to the University of Nottingham Museum, The Atkinson, Southport, Aberdeen Art Gallery and Norwich Castle Museum.
