Just as the Viking sword in the ASHM's collection helps us to understand warfare in medieval Scandinavia, these bronze pins help us to understand clothing in Viking settlements. Such pins were simple ways to secure one's cloak, a rectangular piece of fabric that offered easy protection against the wind and cold. Archaeologists unearthed these cloak pins in Ireland, showing the extent to which the Norsemen visited and, in many cases, settled in lands around the Atlantic Ocean.
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