Food In Viking Age Essay

Food consumed during the Viking Age was mainly food that was easy and convenient to acquire; however, we will see more uncommon foods being served at special occasions such as feasts where the purpose of that food was to impress the highly-ranked guests. When researching the topic of Viking Food, there are many different traditions that are brought up that deal heavily with food. However, in most sources there is a common theme that is repeated, which is the importance of certain foods and the way these foods are served. As we will see throughout this paper, alcohol played a large role in the traditions of Viking feasts. We are shown the importance of food in order to build relationships and make deals between chieftains and warriors, as well as the role women play when dealing with food and guests. This paper also addresses the typical types of food that were eaten in everyday life during the Viking Age, as well as how these foods were made and the different types of foods that certain classes of people ate. Cooking methods and the utensils used during the …show more content…
We are shown Riseley’s focus from the beginning of the article when he says “Drinking ceremonies played a very important social role in Viking Age Scandinavia and Anglo-Saxon England” (Riseley i). Throughout his article, Riseley gives evidence to support his view that drinking ceremonies played an important role in the Viking Age. Riseley strongly portrays the importance of alcohol when he writes “it formed some of the most important gatherings and rituals” (Riseley, 1). This is effective in setting the tone for the rest of the article and getting his point across that alcohol was a major part of the Viking