Viking Horns

VIKING HORNS

What better represents a Viking than drinking a beer from his horn? Literally nothing. Come on, let me tell you a bit about the history of the horns and what they generally drank.

WHAT DID THE VIKINGS DRINK?

Wine? Beer? Coke? (I don't think so). According to archaeological discoveries, we can affirm that beer was by far the most consumed drink of our Viking friends. However, these same discoveries have taught us that they did not drink only that; they also drank wine. Well, in reality, there wasn’t that much of it, because wine production was very expensive and it is assumed that only the richest men could afford this kind of drink.

So, it was mostly beer that the Vikings drank in their drinking horns. Well, I’m talking about drinking horns, but we’ll see a bit later that horns were not always used. Anyway, back to our main topic. The majority of the beer consumed was called “Ale”; compared to what one might imagine of these big guys, their beer was only very lightly alcoholic. Well, after all, nothing stopped them from having several glasses.

Besides beer and wine, Vikings sometimes also drank mead. If you have never heard about the making of this drink, we invite you to check out our blogs on the Norse gods. You will be surprised by this legend. However, to make mead, you needed honey, and that was expensive.

MUG OR HORN?

So yes, when we think of a Viking drinking, we often have this image of them drinking from a horn, but in reality, the horn was reserved for special occasions. When it came to drinking with friends one evening after a good day’s work, Vikings generally drank from mugs. So if you prefer to stay traditional, we have just what you need!

WHERE DID THESE HORNS COME FROM?

Indeed, how did Vikings manage to get horns in those days, without means, logistics, or production facilities? Well, like the rest of their objects, with whatever they had on hand. For drinking horns, it was mostly ox horn.

Since we’re really nice, we prepared a recipe for you to make your own Viking horn, but you do need to have a horn nearby:

• Soak the cleaned horn in boiling water and leave it in the water for half an hour. This way, you will get rid of the horn’s foul smell and eliminate bacteria.
• Dissolve 100% pure beeswax. To do this, put the wax in a bowl of hot water.
• Pour the wax into the horn until you cover the inside of the horn with a thick layer.
• You can polish and touch up the outside of the horn as you wish.
• Let the horn dry for at least 24 hours.
• Make a stand on which you can place the horn while drinking your beverage.
• Pour the beer into the horn and enjoy it like a true Viking.

SO, HOW TO CHOOSE?

Well, this is improvisation, our horns are also all made from authentic ox horn. Of course, each piece is unique and does not necessarily contain the same amount, since it’s real horn.

What I advise you to do is to look at the accessories we provide, whether you prefer a stand, a strap, or a wooden box. Once that’s done, immerse yourself in each horn’s story; if you like this world, you will definitely love these stories.

I invite you to visit our collection of Viking mugs and cups to see other creations.

Come on, Skal my friend, it’s the perfect occasion to say it!