Lunchtime lecture with local archaeologist and author Alex Harvey, for the Fearsome Craftsmen exhibition. Attend in person or online.
This talk will focus on a largely understudied area of Early Medieval North Lincolnshire: the Isle of Axholme. Now but farmland, Axholme (or Haxeholm) was once a series of islands jutting out of the Humber Wash marshlands. In the Viking Age, these islands were an enclave of piratical and commercial activity.
This talk will focus on primarily the archaeological evidence from the Isle between the years 850-1066, highlighting the immediate and long-term impact Scandinavian traders and makers had on this swampy archipelago. But the historical record and wider evidence from Flixborough will also be considered. The Isle may have been one of the first places raided in the entire Viking Age. It could have even been the site of a later Viking army camp. Cnut The Great may have even visited here when rallying his forces at Gainsborough. It is in the Isle of Axholme when the last flame of the Viking Age was extinguished in 1069 during the Harrying Of The North.
Alex Harvey is the author of Riddles Of The Isle, an Early Medieval analysis of the Isle of Axholme and the first book of its kind for the local area. He works for York Museums Trust and is currently reading for his PhD at the University of York, after having studied there for his MA and BA since 2018. Alex also has a second book releasing in 2024, entitled Forgotten Vikings: New Approaches To The Viking Age, published by Amberley.
Get a National Art Pass and explore The North Lincolnshire Museum
You'll see more art and your membership will help museums across the UK
How to get there
The North Lincolnshire Museum
Oswald Road, Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire, DN15 7BD
01724 297055
Opening times
Mon – Sat , 10am – 4pm
Sun, 1pm – 4pm
Exclusions and safety measures
We have maintained the usual Covid 19 precautions.
There are layouts which encourage social distancing, hand sanitiser is availbe at the entrance and in the vuene.
All staff wear a face covering, and in line with government guideance, customers are enocuraged to wear a face covering in enclosed spaces and where people are, they don't usually meet.
We have extra doors and windows open for ventilation.
There is a one way system in place, but to allow access for visitors who may need to use the lift for mobility issues, or those with very young children in prams, you may have to give way to those customers who will being going against the one way system.
Refurbishments
None currently
How to get there
What else is on at The North Lincolnshire Museum
The more you see, the more we do.
The National Art Pass lets you enjoy free entry to hundreds of museums, galleries and historic places across the UK, while raising money to support them.