Royal Ontario Museum's Viking Exhibit

Last weekend I went to see the new viking exhibit at the ROM in Toronto. It's amazing seeing real artifacts left behind by people who lived a thousand years ago...

Here are a few things I thought were very cool.

 Before you enter the museum proper, there's a side room with this reconstructed viking ship. Many of the items on display were reproductions, but there were a lot of real antiques, including the items pictured below which were discovered in Sweden.                   
In the exhibit itself, you'll find the rest of the items.

Probably my favourite was this folding comb with case, made out of bone. It is decorated with circle and line ornamentation. Alas, it's not a particularly good photo. 

 This is an urnes style brooch, made out of bronze.

A pendant crucifix made of silver. It is considered to be the oldest known crucifix in present day Sweden. 

 Bronze and leather rune sheet. The inscription reads, "Malevolent, Unne calls forth your destruction."

There were several plaques explaining magical practices and the various deities.

 Iron sword.

Textile tools: two pairs of iron scissors, an antler ironing board and glass polishing stone (bottom left), two weaving combs of antler (the one on the right is a reproduction and shows the teeth), and two needles, one of iron and one of bone.