Historical Records of the Völva

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In the Record: Texts, Bones, and Lore

This page gathers the core factual foundations for the vǫlva, what we know from texts, archaeology, and law. These aren’t guesses. They’re signposts. Each point links deeper for exploration.

In Ancient Texts

The vǫlva appears in multiple Old Norse sources, not as legend but as a described figure. In both the Poetic Edda and Prose Edda, she is a seeress, often traveling, seated with a staff, and speaking prophecy. In Eiríks saga rauða, she arrives veiled, dressed in cat skin, and seated on a high platform. Her appearance is precise, ritual, elevated, and structured. She is not treated as folklore. She is a specialist. The word vǫlva itself comes from vǫlr, meaning “staff,” according to the Cleasby-Vigfusson Old Norse Dictionary. The title literally means “staff-carrier,” which directly links her identity to a physical tool found both in the stories and the ground.

In Burial Archaeology

Multiple burial sites across Scandinavia include evidence that supports the existence of ritual specialist women, particularly those buried with staffs or staff-like objects.

The boat burials at Tuna in Badelunda (Sweden) contain high-status women laid in boats with iron staffs and exotic grave goods. These burials are richly furnished and centrally placed.
(Sources: National Museum of Denmark, vrak.se, Academia.edu)
The Köpingsvik grave on Öland held an 82 cm iron staff with a bronze top shaped like a tiny house or shrine. The grave included bear skin, sacrificed animals, and imported goods, all pointing to spiritual or magical roles.
(Sources: National Museum of Denmark, Instagram archives, archaeological summaries)
The Oseberg ship burial (Norway) included a wooden staff placed beside cannabis seeds. Scholars have suggested this links plant-based ritual with Seiðr practice.
(Sources: suppressedhistories.net, ppg.revistas.uema.br)
In Klinta, Öland, a tenth-century grave included a specialized iron staff with a cage-like head. This matches other known vǫlva burials by tool form and ceremonial layout.
(Sources: ResearchGate, Historiska Museet collections)

In Grave Goods and Symbolic Tools

At Tuna in Alsike, laboratory analysis revealed that several stone artifacts were touchstones, tools used to test the purity of metals. These were found alongside ritual staffs and other ceremonial items. This suggests that the vǫlva may have had a role in wealth-protection, craft rites, or status-based ceremony.
(Sources: archaeologyofvikings.blogspot.com, Academia.edu)

In Historical Observation

Written records outside the sagas also confirm the presence of female ritual specialists among northern European tribes.

Roman historian Tacitus, writing in the first century CE (Germania), describes prophetesses like Veleda, who held political sway and sacred status.
Adam of Bremen, an eleventh-century Christian chronicler, records the presence of priestesses in temple spaces at Uppsala.
(Sources: Gesta Hammaburgensis Ecclesiae Pontificum, suppressedhistories.net)

In Law Codes and Criminalization

Icelandic and Norwegian law codes documented Seiðr as a punishable offense.

In Grágás, specific penalties were written for calling up spirits, shapeshifting, and performing harmful sorcery.
King Magnus the Good’s law code names Seiðr explicitly, outlawing it under Christian rule.

These were not abstract fears. These were real laws responding to active practices.

Explore Further

Staff and Staff Burials
Stone Touchstones and Wealth Work
Law Codes and Christian Records

These discoveries are foundational, not interpretive. They offer hard lines of evidence for the presence, tools, and suppression of the vǫlva tradition.