50+ Facts That Will Change the Way You Watch Netflix’s “Vikings”
The Horned-Helmets Are Purely Fiction
Contrary to popular belief, Vikings never wore horned helmets. This iconic image, oddly enough, stems from 19th-century theater. Costume designers in charge of Richard Wagner’s opera cycle, “Der Ring des Nibelungen,” were so eager to bring drama and Norse flair to the play that they fashioned these fictitious horned helmets.
The striking visual made a lasting impression, and it wasn’t long before that misrepresentation infiltrated pop culture. Today, despite historical evidence, this theatrical creation still dominates our perception of these Nordic seafarers.
NEXT: What if helmets, in general, were never part of the narrative?
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