Author: Steinunn Kristjánsdóttir, PhD, Professor of Archaeology at the University of Iceland
„The age of the Svalbarð cloth is uncertain, but the iconography embroidered in it and its entire design strongly suggest that it is from the medieval Catholic era, being designed in the Romanesque style.“
„Tapestries and wall-hangings were made by people who had knowledge of embroidery and the ability to record events in pictorial works with complex symbolism. Medieval people also knew how to read symbolism in iconography, similarly to how the typeface of a book is read. In general, men wrote the medieval accounts, but women sewed stories and events onto textiles. We must also keep in mind the person for whom the source is written, what is included, what is left out, and what is lied about.“ says Steinunn Kristjánsdóttir, professor of archaeology, in her newly published article about Ólöf the Rich and the Cloth from Svalbarð, Iceland.
