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Zach Gordon




Location: Vermont. USA
Joined: 07 Oct 2008

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Posts: 252

PostPosted: Mon 23 Aug, 2010 3:09 pm    Post subject: String         Reply with quote

Hi y'all,
I was wondering what Viking era and Medieval string would look like? I mean how would it differ from modern string?
What color would it be? How thick?
I cant find any info about it online, just keep coming up with string instruments.
Thnx
Z
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Jean Thibodeau




Location: Montreal,Quebec,Canada
Joined: 15 Mar 2004
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Posts: 8,310

PostPosted: Mon 23 Aug, 2010 4:04 pm    Post subject: Re: String         Reply with quote

Zach Gordon wrote:
Hi y'all,
I was wondering what Viking era and Medieval string would look like? I mean how would it differ from modern string?
What color would it be? How thick?
I cant find any info about it online, just keep coming up with string instruments.
Thnx
Z


I don't know but I'm at least reasonably sure that finding some nylon string or polypropylene would be somewhat hard to do. Wink Razz ( Sorry couldn't resist. Sad Razz Laughing Out Loud ).

I would guess most of the natural fibres like wool, linen, hemp, cotton and maybe leather strips ?

You can easily give up your freedom. You have to fight hard to get it back!
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Walter S




Location: Czech Republic
Joined: 16 Aug 2008
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Posts: 86

PostPosted: Mon 23 Aug, 2010 4:21 pm    Post subject:         Reply with quote

I would expect something like this - Description says its 160m of 3mm thick string made from 100% flax.:
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Tristán Zukowski




Location: Poughkeepsie, NY
Joined: 29 Oct 2009

Posts: 41

PostPosted: Tue 24 Aug, 2010 8:33 am    Post subject:         Reply with quote

If by "string" you mean thread or yarn, which is simply just a series of fibers (wool, linen, silk) twisted into a long length, then I imagine there would be little significant difference to what we have available today. Thread weights (i.e. the thickness) could vary from heavy to very fine, and colors could be produced using a variety of naturally occurring dyestuffs and mordants. Your only real difference would be the lack of modern materials, such as polyester, nylon, etc., as Jean pointed out. Happy

Here is a rather brief overview of Anglo-Saxon/Viking textiles: http://www.regia.org/textiles.htm
Here is a very in-depth look at dyestuffs available to someone in northern Europe around the 9th-11th centuries: http://www.cs.vassar.edu/~capriest/vikdyes.html

It may help if you mention what the application for said string would be; whether you intend to use it for sewing, for embroidery/ornamentation, plaiting for arming laces, etc. At least that would focus what exactly it is you're looking for, and help the rest of us help you find the answers. Happy

Tristan P. Zukowski
Longsword (KdF) Instructor, New York Historical Fencing Association
Longsword (KdF) Instructor, Sword Class NYC
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David Huggins




Location: UK
Joined: 25 Jul 2007

Posts: 490

PostPosted: Tue 24 Aug, 2010 10:48 am    Post subject: String         Reply with quote

Its a good question, I imagine that a number of fibre producing products could be used,, flax (linen0 hemp, nettle.

Woolen yarns tend to be two ply, not three ply which modern wool tends to be.

Viking Age rope is believed to utilised marine mammal hide.

best
Dave

and he who stands and sheds blood with us, shall be as a brother.
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Jared Smith




Location: Tennessee
Joined: 10 Feb 2005
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PostPosted: Tue 24 Aug, 2010 5:15 pm    Post subject:         Reply with quote

I would expect things similar to what was pictured above in linen, hemp (Jute today), and flax. Thread of flax and linen in varying sizes existed since ancient Egyptian times. http://www.reshafim.org.il/ad/egypt/timelines/topics/flax.htm
Absence of evidence is not necessarily evidence of absence!
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