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As well as inhabiting Scandinavia and settling parts of Britain and Ireland, the Faroes, Iceland, Greenland and Newfoundland (Canada), the Vikings also sailed into the Gulf of Finland and up the River Neva to the huge inland watercourse of Lake Ladoga, and on to the mouth of the River Volkhov. The Viking settlement called Aldeigjuborg is known today as Staraja (Old) Ladoga. Finds from this area indicate a Scandinavian presence from as early as circa 750 AD. They herald a significant chapter in Viking history: journeys of discovery, trade (in slaves, amber, furs, birds of prey and silver). Swedish Viking colonisation spread to the east and south to Gårðarike, Miklagårð and Särkland – the Nordic names for Russia, Constantinople and the Muslim Caliphate. Contacts between the Muslim and Viking worlds are recorded in the writings of travellers such as Ibn Fadlan, Ibn Rustah and Al-Tartoushi.
Many of the penannular brooches presented here were found in the Lake Ladoga area and are typical of the Rus culture of the eastern Baltic region. Please check the individual provenance of each item for confirmation.
