Last week, news broke about a grave marked “Bj 581” at the UNESCO World Heritage Site in Birka, Sweden, that was long thought to be a high ranking Viking warrior amongst Nordic soldiers. Scientists discovered the warrior was, in fact, female!
Through scientific discovery, more and more of pop culture’s fictional female warrior icons like Wonder Woman, Brienne of Tarth, Eowyn Of Rohan, and Mulan are becoming a reality.
Éowyn of Rohan defeating the Witch King in Lord of The Rings: The Return of the King
Thanks to DNA analysis and Genomics, it has been confirmed that the grave, adorned with weapons, such as swords, lethally sharp arrows, shields, and two horses, belonged to a badass lady Viking. The gender of the warrior became quite the controversy among the archaeologists studying her remains. It was assumed that due to the volume of weaponry the Viking may have been male, although many researchers argued the opposite.
Viking Swords courtesy of Flickr user madmrmox 
Viking Brooche courtesy of Flickr user Hans Splinter
According to Discovery magazine, this might not be the first time a female Viking grave was found with weapons, however, none of the previous female remains found have ever been speculated to be at such a high rank. A game-board and set pieces was found buried with the remains. As published by the American Journal of Physical Anthropology, researchers suggest it is a game of “knowledge of tactics and strategy, stressing the buried individual’s role as a high-ranking officer.”
Scientists could not identify a specific geographic area from where the woman originated, but believe that the she was not born in the Birka area. According to DNA results, she was genetically most closely related to those presently living in the British Isles and Scandinavia, and to a lesser extent, the east Baltic area.
Viking Women courtesy of Flicker user Hans Splinter
Hopefully, through further research, we can put a name and history to this fierce Viking lady warrior and she can join the ranks of Joan of Arc, Lozen, and Nakano Takeko on the lists of historically kick-ass women. Scientific discoveries like these are playing a big role in the feminist movement today as they are filling in the holes of history and challenging the ideas of what the roles of women were historically.
Images thanks to Flikr Users madmrmox & Hans Splinter
Top photo: “Warrior Queen,” 2003
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