Viking Exhibit


This morning Veronica and I went to Norwich castle to see their new Viking exhibit. I was eager see it when we left UEA, but I came home extremely disappointed. Because of the experience I acquired while working at the Vance Birthplace last summer, I’m well aware that museum exhibits are written for an eighth-grade reading level, so I was excepting that from the information boards. What I was not expecting was that the whole exhibit would be aimed at elementary school age children. If your nine then this exhibit is amazing!
The York Helmet

Aside from the numerous artifacts on display, they had interactive stations that allowed you to row a long boat, spell words with runes, tie a knot in a piece of rope, or play a Norse board game called, “HNEFATAFL.” They even had a section where you could build Viking long boats out of Legos. They also had videos that you could watch that told you about the spread of the Norse language into Britain as the Vikings settled in the region, or how thanks to their ship building abilities the Vikings were able to sail as far as North America. I liked these videos, I just wished the historians they had picked to speak had not been so dull and monotone. If your goal as a museum is to persuade kids to develop a fascination about history then choose people who are passionate about it.
Spelling with Runes

Overall, if you have kids they’ll love it, but if you’re an adult you will be bored to tears. I LOVE history, and I’m super nerdy about it, but even I was uninterested. 
If after reading this you're still interested in going to see it, here is a link to the castles website with all the pertinent information.

 https://www.museums.norfolk.gov.uk/norwich-castle/whats-on/exhibitions/viking-rediscover-the-legend




Photos

Sword & assorted items 

Lewis Chessman &  a stamp

Stone carving

Location: Norwich, UK

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