Måned: november 2010

OK Erik

Next time we will have Labskaus-scouse as we had for the book-launch for

Ingimunds Saga back in 2001, which Trondheim sent their top

people:

https://www.nottingham.ac.uk/-sczsteve/BBCNW2_01.MPG

If you ring me I can tell you more about what we are

doing.

What about supporting Tranmael? Our Viking team is playing

Hartlepool tonight, kick off 7.45pm.

Steve Harding

---

From: Erik Ribsskog

[mailto:eribsskog@gmail.com]

Sent: 23 November 2010

12:31

To: Steve.Harding@nottingham.ac.uk

Subject: Fwd:

Viking-congress in Chester/Fwd: St. Olave's Church in

Chester

Hi again,

so I have really started my own Viking-project here a bit. 🙂

I just wanted to level with the Viking-congress, that was on

Saturday, in Chester.

But I'll update and level more, when I know more, from my contact

with the experts in Norway.

Hope this is alright, and sorry that I'm sending so much

correspondence about this!

Thanks again for the good food, on Saturday, even if it wasn't

'speke'-food, I still think it was good food with the chicken balti sandwiches

etc.

Best regards,

Erik Ribsskog

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: Erik Ribsskog <eribsskog@gmail.com>

Date:

Tue, Nov 23, 2010 at 12:15 PM
Subject: Fwd: Viking-congress in Chester/Fwd:

St. Olave's Church in Chester
To: Steve.Harding@nottingham.ac.uk

Hi,

here is what the Riksantikvaren in Norway, wrote about the Vikingship on

the Wirral, by the way:

From: Haustveit, Gunvor <gunvor.haustveit@ra.no>

Date:

2010/10/18

Subject: Svar på spørsmål "hjelp med å grave opp vikingskip

i England"

To: eribsskog@gmail.com

Hei og takk

for
e-post.

Det er flere

kompetansesentra og forskere som er dyktige på feltet
om vikingskip.

Anbefaler først og fremst: Kulturhistorisk museum

med
Vikingskipshuset, dernest Norsk Maritimt Museum og Norsk

Institutt for
kulturminneforskning. I Danmark er det kompetanse ved

Roskilde museum.

Lykke

til!

(Translates to:

Hi and thanks for the e-mail.

There are many competence-centers and scientists who are good at the

field vikingships. I recomend first and foremost: Cultural-historical museum

with the Vkingships-huset, then Norwegian Maritim Museum and Norwegian

Institute for Cultural Heritage Science. In Denmark they have competence at

Roskilde Museum.

Good Luck!).

(This was sent before I read about the project on your website, regarding

this vikingship).

Helsing

Gunvor Haustveit
Informasjonsseksjonen

Riksantikvaren

Postboks 8196

Dep

0034 Oslo

Tlf: + 47 98 20 27 60

www.riksantikvaren.no

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: Erik Ribsskog <eribsskog@gmail.com>
Date: Tue, Nov 23, 2010 at

11:15 AM
Subject: Re: Viking-congress in Chester/Fwd: St. Olave's Church in

Chester

To: Stephen Harding <Steve.Harding@nottingham.ac.uk>

Hi,

yes, but if they have vikingships on museums in Norway, they are also

made of wood, and they don't decay.

They even have Vikingship-museums in Northern Germany, that used to

be southern Denmark, as far as I remember.

I've heard that the vikingship is under the _parking-lot_ of the pub,

(like I said on the congress).

But I have contacted, (like I wrote), the University of Oslo,

cultural-historical museum, both before and after the congress, and I hope to

hear back from them soon.

I just went to Meols, to look at the old Viking-harbour, you see, just to

get some fresh air, since I live in the City Centre of Liverpool.

And then I asked one of the 'natives' about where the viking harbour

was, and he also told me, that there was a viking ship, under the pub

there.

And then I went to the pub, the Railway Inn, and spoke with the staff

there, (a woman in her 20's, I think, who almost looked Norwegian, I

think).

And she showed me that there was newspaper-articles on the wall, in the

big pub, and pictures of a viking longship, etc.

I promised I'd write about this on my blog, so that people in Norway

could read about it.

Then I contacted University of Oslo.

But then, later, I read about your desition, to leave the ship under

the clay.

But then, I saw that you had asked universities in Gothenburg and

Stockhome for advise.

And I don't understand why you ask Swedish universities for advise,

regarding Norwegian vikingships.

Because the Swedes went east.

And the Norwegians went to the Irish Sea, etc.

The Swedish Vikings didn't go to England and the Irish Sea, they went

to Russia etc, in the east.

So I thought that project was a bit strange, why involve Swedish

universities in this?

Since there is a rivalary between Sweden and Norway, after many wars,

from the Viking-time and up to modern history.

So that made me a bit sceptical, to that project, when I saw that many

Swedish universities were involved.

My reflex, since I am from Norway, would be not to let Swedes be to

much involved in a Norwegian/(Irish) Viking-project.

But anyway.

But I have contacted the University of Oslo, cultur-historical museum

about this, who the 'riksantikvaren', in Norway, refered me to.

So I'm just waiting to get an answer from them.

And then I'll contact you when and if I hear something back from

them.

Hope this is alright!

Thank you very much for your replies, and sorry that I was a bit late for

the congress, I just missed the Chester-train, and then I had to take the next

train, for Port Ellismere, and change for Chester, so then I was

delayed.

This is mostly because I'm from Norway, that I'm interested in the

congress and the Viking-places on the Wirral, because in Norway, this is

almost like general knowledge, that we learn about on school etc., so this

with Viking-stuff is almost the only thing we take serious in Norway, (except

from skiing).

(Only joking).

But that's why I'm so interested in this.

Thanks again for the reply to my e-mail!

Best regards,

Erik Ribsskog

On Tue, Nov 23, 2010 at 8:03 AM, Stephen Harding <Steve.Harding@nottingham.ac.uk> wrote:

Dear

Erik

I was part

of the team that did the Ground Penetrating Radar studies 3 years ago that

appeared to verify the existence of the old vessel and we did discuss this

in detail with the people in Oslo – Arne Christiansen and Knut Paasche of

the skiphuset Bygdoy. The Chair of the afternoon session was Dr. David

Griffiths, distinguished Viking Archaeologist from Oxford, born and brought

up in Heswall and like myself a passionate Wirralian – as he explained in

his talk. All 3 of us – Rob Philpott, David and myself are in total

agreement as to the situation about the boat. Unfortunately you can’t just

go down and expose the boat as the old wood would decay rapidly: this would

be very irresponsible!. Its underneath a pub and near a major road so

unless we can find an estimated 8-10 million pounds, we have to leave it

where it is. Then when we have the money lets go for it! To

repeat what Rob has said, if you have any ideas where we can get this money,

let us know. Believe me we would dearly love to have this excavated

but it just can’t be done at the moment. However we are going to have

a meeting soon but I can’t see – without the money – much else we can do at

the momentThe Friends of Meols Park organisation are having trouble trying

to raise £40,000 for a statue of Ingimund for Meols Park, again if you have

any ideas for funds that would be great.

Nottingham

involvement:

The

organizers of the conference were Liz Royles and myself. Liz: is

Keeper of early archaeology at the Grosvenor Museum at Chester – and was

born and brought up from Meols. Liz did a tremendous job putting on the

exhibition and obtaining the grants so that everyone could attend for free –

and even have free refreshments.

Myself:

Indeed I am now at the University of Nottingham but was born and brought up

in Wirral – near Meols and then Wallasey, and come from 2 very old Wirral

families that go back at least several hundred years, and very proud of this

– if you have a chance please look at my website

http://www.nottingham.ac.uk/-sczsteve

even

Tranmere – Tranmael – my team, has a Norwegian name:

http://trsn.blogspot.com/

it would be

great if you could join us!

I have just

written another book with Liverpool FC fan Stig Vaagan from Hamar – det

Norske Liverpool – Vikinger, DNA og Nåtid, which will

be published soon in Norway, which includes a lot about the Scandinavian

Church on Park Lane: do you know these people there.

I have also

secured an agreement from the people re-constructing the “Drakken” ship of

Harald Harfagre for it to sail to Liverpool and Wirral in 2012/2013 after

the boat is complete and indeed have been trying very hard for the last 10

years to develop the whole areas Viking Heritage.

What about

meeting up for a beer sometime and we can discuss the boat?

All the

best

Steve

Harding

From: Erik Ribsskog [mailto:eribsskog@gmail.com]

Sent: 23 November 2010 04:11
To: Stephen

Harding
Subject: Re: Viking-congress in Chester/Fwd: St. Olave's

Church in Chester

Hi,

I wasn't aware of that there

were boats in clay in Scandinavia.

But, like I wrote in the

earlier e-mail, in Scandinavia, we have a lot of ships in museums from

before.

And they had made 46 trenches

in Irby, and none in Meols, even if Meols is more Norse/Viking, Irby means

town of the Irishmen.

So I question the priorities

here, and as I wrote, and updated the congress about, I have contacted the

University of Oslo, about this.

So I was mostly

summarising, what I said on the congress.

Further, to my

complaint.

I think what happened after

lunch, distroyed the congress.

The chair from University of

Chester was ill, and a new chair, from Nottingham, was a reserve.

I remember it like you only

mentioned his firstname, briefly before the congress started again, after

lunch.

And his field wasn't mentioned

I think.

I understood this to be a

national Viking congress, and not a Nottingham one.

So noone knew who this guy was

or what his field was, (the new chair).

He was a reserve, and

should have toned himself down, I think, due to this, and due to that his

name and field wasn't mentioned in the agenda.

So I think this distroyed the

congress a bit, I'm sorry to say, because the new chair went directly in,

with facts, or 'facts', from Scandinavia, all the time.

Without saying e.g. that

the ship was in Gothenburg, he just said 'Scandinavia'.

And with 't' becomming 'd',

like the young chair said was usual in Scandinavia.

I think that is in Germany,

that 't' becomes 'd', like in 'Donerstag' instead of 'Thursday'.

So my experience of the

congress was distroyed by this new chair, I have to admit, so I wanted to

complain about the congress.

I also think it's strange

that all this Viking-stuff on the Wirral should be run from

Nottingham.

I think one should have a

centre in the Wirral or Chester or Isle of Man, to do with the Norwegian

Vikings.

Because the Norwegian Vikings weren't in Nottingham I

think.

I think a local university,

which is located geografically, in what was Norwegian Viking-territory, in

the UK, should 'run the show' on this.

I think Nottingham was

south of were the Norwegian Vikings lived, in the UK.

I think the Wirral was

obviously a Norwegian Viking-land.

Why don't the Wirral run

the show on this?

Why is the Wirral

Viking-stuff run from Nottingham, (and Chester).

Maybe Chester would be logical,

but was has Nottingham to do with Norweigan Vikings in the Wirral?

This sounds strange to

me.

Also, I think one should

have a specialist in Viking-archology, digging up the Viking-stuff on the

Wirral, because the professor from National Museum Liverpool, in a

specialist in Roman and 'later' archeology.

And he explained that he

thought something was roman, and then someone else came and said that

bird-figure for a weight, was viking.

I don't think this is taken

seriously enough.

Look at the Roman

arcahology, with the Circus etc, in Chester.

You say it isn't proven the

Viking-ship in Meols is Viking.

But it is 'klinke'-buildt,

which means it's Norse.

So I think you try to make

this unclear, the ships origin, it definately Viking/Norse, and not anything

else.

So I question really the whole congress and you at Nottinghams

motivation.

I understand that University of

Oslo or University of Trondheim didn't send any people, it's probably

because they didn't feel welcome.

Sorry that I think I have

to write this direct to put it strange.

But there wasn't much

viking about that congress I think.

Then it should have been served

beer/ale and not wine.

And 'speke'-food, and not

Pakistani samosa-food.

This was not a Norse

Viking-congress I think.

Sorry to say!

Best

regards,

Erik Ribsskog

On Mon, Nov 22, 2010 at 9:09

PM, Stephen Harding <Steve.Harding@nottingham.ac.uk> wrote:

Thanks Erik, yes we thoroughly

enjoyed the congress, everyone seemed so enthusiastic … and it was great

having a Norwegian at the conference. The books on sale were Vikings in the

Irish Sea (Dr. David Griffiths), Irby (Dr. Rob Philpott) and Viking DNA (by

Turi King, Mark Jobling and myself).

Thanks for modern dynge = heap, but

I will check with Dr. Paul Cavill to see if this can help. Dingesmere:

there are some links to this and Brunanburh on my own Viking page http://www.nottingham.ac.uk/-sczsteve

Boat: yes we’d all love to get this

out, but as Dr. Philpott said it would cost 8-10Million to achieve, but the

boat is perfectly safe in the blue clay until that time comes.. which may

not be for a long time. We don’t know its Viking, all we know its very

old! There are I think boats in blue clay in Scandinavia – one in Karmoy and

one near Gothenburg which have been left for the foreseeable future.

If there are any developments with Wirral we’ll be sure to let you

know,

Hope this helps!

Beste hilsener

Steve Harding

From: Erik Ribsskog [mailto:eribsskog@gmail.com]

Sent: 21 November 2010 07:24

To: Steve.Harding@nottingham.ac.uk

Subject: Viking-congress

in Chester/Fwd: St. Olave's Church in Chester

Hi,

thanks for arranging the

Viking-congress, which I thought was a very fun idea!

I was just wondering, who was

the chair, after lunch again, (the young man in his 30's with a beard on his

chin or under his mouth, or what it's called).

Because I thought he was a bit

'on' me.

The one who replaced the

professor from Chester who was ill.

I've also sendt to the

professer from National Museums Liverpool and cultural historical museum

Oslo University again, about possible founding or expertice from Norway, for

the vikingship in Meols, which I brought up about, yesterday, on the

congress, after the professor from National Museums Liverpool spoke about

the archeolology in Irby.

Also, I tried to explain about

my contributing regardin the subject of Dingesmere, to do with the big

battle between the Vikings and the English, on the Wirral.

In Norwegian, 'dynge' means

'heap'.

And I thought that could be

relevant, since Norwegian and English once were the same language.

The young chair was an

expert on Scandinavia, (which I'm not I'm just a normal Norwegian, but I've

worked on a viking-farm in Norway, actually, Løvås farm in Kvelde, (where

someone tried to murder me, i 2005, so I went to Liverpool, and the police

wont investigate).

The young chair said that in

Scandinavia 't' often became 'd'.

(This I don't know myself

from being Norwegian, even if I one term at high-school got the best grade,

'S', in Norwegian).

The young chair also said that

vikingships in Norway weren't always dug up.

But, in Norway, we have many

vikingship, in several musums, (like in Denmark etc).

But in the

Wirral/North-England, you haven't got a single vikingship which had been dug

up.

So if it's right that we

have ships like that, under clay, in Norway, then at least we have some

vikingships which we have put in the museum first.

E.g. the Vikingship Museum

in Bygdøy, in Oslo.

Also, I thought I had to

'argue' with two people at the same time, when I spoke.

Because the young chair,

interrupted, my dialog with the two professors, I thought a bit.

So that's why I left before

the book-launch, because I was a bit disapointed in the young chairs

behavour.

So I was just a bit

currious, who the young chair was again.

Because his name wasn't

mentioned on the agenda, since the initial chair, after lunch, the professor

from University of Chester, was ill, if I understood you right, when you

briefly spoke, after lunch, yesterday.

Thank you very much in advance

for any reply!

And thanks again for holding

the Viking-congress, which was very fun, and the Viking-exhibition, at the

Grosvenor Museum, in Chester, was also very fine I think!

Yours sincerely,

Erik Ribsskog

———-

Forwarded message ———-
From: Steve Harding <Steve.Harding@nottingham.ac.uk>
Date: Mon, Jul 20,

2009 at 9:31 AM
Subject: RE: St. Olave's Church in Chester
To: Erik

Ribsskog <eribsskog@gmail.com>

Dear Erik

Many thanks for your

email. I will write a more detailed reply later but I thought I'd

better point out that the present St. Olave's building is of course not the

original but is probably on the site of an original building which may

have been wooden – we don't know. It is in the southern part

the city which we believe to be the Scandinavian part of Chester

in the 10th Century (and includes the discovery site of a viking treasure

hoard at Castle Esplanade and some timber constructions similar to those in

Dublin). The main area of Norse settlement in the area was in Wirral

where there is extensive place name, archaeological and historical evidence,

including 2 hogback tombstones.

If you get a chance have a look

at my website

http://www.nottingham.ac.uk/-sczsteve

and its links, but I will write

back to you more when I have some more time,

Beste sommerhilsener

Steve Harding

http://www.nottingham.ac.uk/-sczsteve
steve.harding@nottingham.ac.uk

Tel: +44(0) 115 951 6148

(fax 6142)
Mob: +44(0) 78110 90635

---

From: Erik Ribsskog [mailto:eribsskog@gmail.com]

Sent: 19 July 2009 19:25
To: Steve.Harding@nottingham.ac.uk
Subject: St.

Olave's Church in Chester

Hi,

I'm from Norway, but I live

in Liverpool, and the other day, I was in Chester, and I

coinsidentily

stubled upon, the St. Olave's

Church, since I thought I had to see a bit of the other towns

and

cities, in the North-West,

and not only Liverpool.

I took some pictures of the

church, and posted on my blog.

From the 'sign' there, it

could seem like the church was from the 18th century, so much

was

my surprice, when I searched

on the internet, and found, that the chuch was almost a thousand

years old, built by Norwegian

Vikings who were refugees from Dublin, since they lost control

there,

it seems to me, after reading

on the internet about this.

I read on a blog called

'Ainscough Family History', which I found throug Google, about the

'Viking

march', between the Wirral

and Chester.

So I wrote a comment on that

blog, with questions about the St. Olave's Church, and was

adviced

to contact you.

I was just wondering if

the church is listed, since I don't think we have that old viking

stone-

buildings in

Norway.

We have 'stav'-churches,

in three, but I don't think we have any stone-buildings, that are this

old.

So, I was just curious about

this.

I also wondered if there

had been conflicts between the St. Olave's Parish and the St.

Michaels

Parish, since on one

building, 'Nine Houses', the borded between the parishes, was written

on

the buildings

facade.

And, I was also wondering,

why it isn't a plaque there, explaining about, that the church is

almost

a thousand years old, built

by Vikings from Ireland, because the plaque that's there now,

makes

it almost seem, that the

building was built much later, or, it only least the year the church

was

conserved, in the 18th

century, I think it was.

As I understand, all the part

of Chester, from the main street, and down to river, used to

be

a Viking-district.

I was wondering, on some of

the half timbered houses, I saw some symbols that looked a bit

like what we call

'firkløver', that's four-cleaver, I think, in English, could these symbols

have

been from Norway, or are they

English, since I heard that these black and white half-timbered

houses are 'Tudor-style', so

I guess that the Vikings, in Chester, would have other types of

buildings, that was there,

before the Tudor-style buildings,contemporary with the St.

Olave's

Church?

Sorry that I'm asking a lot

of questions, I understand if you haven't got the time to answer

any

of these questions.

I just coincidentaly

notices this church, when I was in Chester, and thought it was fun, to

see

place-names, and buildings,

named after a Norwegian king, that we learned about at school,

in Norway.

And at school, in Norway,

we, as far as I remember, only learned about that York, or

'Jorvik',

like the Vikings called the

town or city, was a Norwegian Viking-town or city.

But we didn't learn

about, that there were viking setlements, in Cheshire and

Merseyside.

So I wasn't aware of,

that there was Viking-buildings, in Chester, when I went there, so I

was

a bit surprised to see the

church, and read about it on the internet, so that was very fun.

I thought that maybe this

church, could be one of the few buildings etc,. that

remained,

after the Vikings, that had

to leave Ireland.

In Norway, we learn at

school, that Vikings founded Dublin etc., but we don't learn

that

they went to England, after

they lost control in Ireland, so this was fun to learn.

So sorry again that I'm

asking a lot of questions, and thanks in advance, if you have

the

time to explain about any of

the questions which I've ask!

Yours

sincerely,

Erik

Ribsskog

This message has been checked for viruses but

the contents of an attachment may still contain software viruses, which

could damage your computer system: you are advised to perform your own

checks. Email communications with the University of Nottingham may be

monitored as permitted by UK legislation.

This message and any attachment are intended

solely for the addressee and may contain confidential information. If you

have received this message in error, please send it back to me, and

immediately delete it. Please do not use, copy or disclose the information

contained in this message or in any attachment. Any views or opinions

expressed by the author of this email do not necessarily reflect the views

of the University of Nottingham.

This message has been checked for viruses but

the contents of an attachment may still contain software viruses which could

damage your computer system: you are advised to perform your own checks.

Email communications with the University of Nottingham may be monitored as

permitted by UK legislation.

This message and any attachment are intended solely for the addressee and may

contain confidential information. If you have received this message in error,

please send it back to me, and immediately delete it. Please do not use,

copy or disclose the information contained in this message or in any attachment.

Any views or opinions expressed by the author of this email do not necessarily

reflect the views of the University of Nottingham.

This message has been checked for viruses but the contents of an attachment

may still contain software viruses which could damage your computer system:

you are advised to perform your own checks. Email communications with the

University of Nottingham may be monitored as permitted by UK legislation.