His5 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

His5 - Essay Example The Vikings were essentially pagan, illiterate and virulent. However, there is much work today that revisits common perception and stereotype of the Vikings as mere barbarians to a more complex race that had more to offer as traders and explorers with sharp business acumen and propensity to travel faraway lands to further their trade links and craft. Much of the Vikings’ history was written by monks and natives who were the victims of the attacks by the Vikings. There is speculation that their accounts might be overly dramatic and extraneous. The Vikings were superior craftsmen, most commonly associated with lightweight, well-built ships that took them from Greenland to North America. Archaeological explorations reveal that these ships were meant for long distance, solid travel rather than battle. The Vikings have also been found masterful at crafting swords, artifacts, paintings and clothing. The Vikings voyaged to the land of America which they called Vinland the Good, as early as 1000 A.D., which is almost 500 years before any written record of Columbus. Vikings are known to be explorers, thus it is not incorrect to surmise that they explored the land, seeking fodder, habitable area and semblances of culture. They also traded and worked with the local people of this land, by them called the ‘skaelings’; they also took residence with them by building houses, which is another indication that they did not intend barbarism and pillaging but cohabitation in peace and harmony and general prosperity of society. These conclusions are drawn by the translation of the Icelandic sagas of the Vikings into more common European languages, around two hundred years ago (National Museum of Natural History). There is general consensus among people that the land called Vinland is situated south of two other lands in North American explored by the Vikings, Helluland