In 85 AD, the Vikings were a seafaring people who inhabited the lands around the Baltic and North Seas. Their cities were vastly different from the Roman cities of the time, and the sounds, sights, tastes, and smells of their cities would have been quite distinct.

As you approached a Viking city, you would have seen a cluster of wooden buildings, surrounded by a palisade made of logs. The city would have been situated near the coast, with longships moored at the quayside. The buildings would have been arranged haphazardly, with narrow streets winding between them.

The sound of the city would have been raucous, with the clanging of blacksmiths’ hammers and the barking of dogs. The occasional horn blast would signal the arrival of a longship, and the sound of rowers’ oars slapping against the water could be heard from the harbor.

As you walked through the city, you would have been hit by the smell of smoke and saltwater. The smoke would have come from the blacksmiths’ forges and the cooking fires of the inhabitants, while the saltwater scent would have come from the sea. The taste of the city would have been dominated by the flavors of seafood, including smoked herring, pickled cod, and mussels.

In the market square, vendors would have sold furs, pottery, and wooden carvings. The air would have been filled with the smell of leather, as tanners worked on animal hides nearby. The city’s central hall, where the chieftain held court, would have been a hub of activity, with mead flowing freely and the sound of bards’ harps filling the air.

Despite the rough and ready appearance of the Viking city, there was a sense of community and belonging among its inhabitants. The city was a place of commerce, where people from different lands came together to trade goods and exchange ideas. It was also a place of culture, where the arts of storytelling, music, and poetry were celebrated.

In many ways, the Viking city was a microcosm of Viking society itself: rough and rugged on the surface, but with a deep sense of tradition and community at its core.