The figurine was discovered in Lejre on the Danish island of Zealand. Lejre is internationally known for its monumental royal halls from the early Middle Ages, long associated with kingship, diplomacy and elite culture in Scandinavia. The small silver figure is widely interpreted as Odin, also known as Wodan, seated on a high throne and flanked by two birds. Internationally, the object is regarded as an iconic example of early medieval visual culture.
Isabella Fuglø, Chief of Collections and Public Engagement, Lejre Museum /ROMU, explains: “Lejre was one of the most significant centres of power in Northern Europe during the early Middle Ages, and the Odin figurine is a rare material testimony to the cultural and political networks that connected Scandinavia with the wider North Sea world. From a Danish perspective, the object speaks not only to mythology and belief, but to Lejre’s role as an international hub where power, diplomacy and cultural exchange converged. We are very pleased that the figurine will now be presented in a broader European context through the REDBAD exhibition.”
With this loan, the Fries Museum highlights one of the exhibition’s central themes: the world in which King Redbad lived, a world where trade, diplomacy, warfare and belief were deeply intertwined across the North Sea region.
According to Diana Spiekhout, curator of Middle Ages and Mound Culture in the Fries Museum, the object is an important key artefact on the cultural world of Redbad:
“This figurine reveals the world Redbad lived in: a world in which old gods, power and kingship were closely connected. Such imagery would have been recognisable across pre-Christian Northwestern Europe, including in Redbad’s Frisia. It is entirely plausible that rulers like Redbad moved through the same diplomatic and cultural networks that connected centres of power such as Lejre and the North Sea coast. There is even a later historical account stating that Redbad’s grandson was a Danish king.”
