V iking stranger‐kings: the foreign as a source of power in V iking A ge S candinavia, or, why there was a peacock in the G okstad ship burial?

Research reveals that the concept of the 'stranger-king' played a pivotal role in Viking Age Scandinavia, serving as both a political strategy and a source of power for early Scandinavian rulers. Analyzing the Jelling Mounds complex in Denmark, the study demonstrates how this site materializes the myth of an immigrant forefather founding the dynasty, with ship settings and burial mounds symbolizing the foreign king's control over local land. The 'stranger-king' archetype is identified as a central element of Old Norse mythology, closely tied to sacral rulership and the embrace of the exotic to project authority beyond human control. This finding underscores the significance of the foreign in the formation of early Scandinavian states.

Dobat, A. S. (2015). Viking stranger‐kings: the foreign as a source of power in Viking Age Scandinavia, or, why there was a peacock in the Gokstad ship burial? Early Medieval Europe, 23(2), 161–201. Portico. https://doi.org/10.1111/emed.12096