ey, as well as depictions of mythical beasts. The Vikings educated their children at home in the basic duties of the farm: fathers taught sons how to plough the fields and plant the crops, how to hunt and fish, how to forge new tools and repair old ones. The mothers taught daughters how to care for the livestock and work the loom, how to cook and maintain the home. To the Vikings, family was of paramount importance. It helped to define their place in the world and provided a link with the past great deeds of ancestors. Families were of such importance to the Norsemen that blood feuds were a common occurrence. Quarrels between individuals almost always brought in the entire family. An insult to one member of the family was considered an insult to the whole family. This brought one full-scale feuds marked by maimings and killings and endless rounds of retaliation. It was possible to stop the feud two different ways. The first was for one or both families paying compensation to the other. This payment of atonement, called bot, was then divided among the members of the wronged family. The second way was to bring the matter before The Thing. They and other litigants would then face a group of judges consisting of all the assembly's members or perhaps a smaller panel chosen by The Thing. A defendant, in addition to calling witnesses to testify, could attempt to bolster his case by submitting to trial by ordeal. For example: he might volunteer to hold red-hot metal strips in his hand for a few moments. The wound was bandaged and a jury would than look at the burns four days later. If the jury members found the wound clean, he would be pronounced innocent. If the wounds were festering, he would be found guilty. Punishments could range anywhere from paying a fine to hanging or beheading. The runic form of writing that the Norse used is believed to have evolved among Germanic tribes, starting around the 1st century AD or sli...
