Islamic Persian Origin of the Steel Used in Viking Ulfberht Swords

The Vikings were among the fiercest warriors of all time. Yet only a selected few carried the feared Ulfberht sword between 700 - 1000 AD. Ulfberht blades are rare Viking swords that bore the Latin characters and crosses: +Ulfbreht+. Recently, it has been discovered by archaeologists that those blades were not pattern-welded as once believed, but made of crucible steel, utilizing metallurgical techniques that was unknown in Europe until the 18th century. The swords contained no slag pockets like other contemporary weapons, and possessed three times the carbon content. But how did Viking sword makers design and build the Ulfberht? Apparently, the steel of higher purity and carbon content that they used came from else where: the southern coast of Caspian Sea.

این متن در مورد تجارت فولاد بین ایرانیان , آسیای میانه و وایکینگ‌ها از طریق دریای خزر و رودخانه ولگا در دوران خلافت عباسی است

Since the archaeologists have found Islamic coins in some Viking burial sites, it is possible that the Vikings imported these steels in ingot from Persia or Central Asia. In the Middle Ages, the Volga trade route [1] connected Scandinavia, Northern Europe and Northwestern Russia with the Caspian Sea, via the Volga River. The Rus' used this route to trade with Muslim Arabs and Persians on the southern shores of the Caspian Sea and Central Asia, sometimes penetrating as far as Baghdad. During this period in 922 AD, Abbasid Caliph al-Muqtadir dispatched an embassy to the king of the Volga Bulgars [2] who became Muslim afterwards. Ahmad ibn Fadlān (Arabic: أحمد بن فضلان‎) [3] was an Arab traveler and a member of this embassy. His account is most known for providing a description of the Volga Vikings, including an eyewitness account of a ship burial.

Commanding the Volga River in its middle course, the Volga Bulgars controlled much of trade between Europe and Asia prior to the Crusades. The capital, Bolghar, was a thriving city, rivaling in size and wealth with the greatest centers of the Islamic world. Trade partners of Bolghar included Vikings, Bjarmland, Yugra and Nenets in the north to Baghdad, Persia, Central Asia, and Constantinople in the south, from Western Europe to China in the East.

It is noteworthy that the Vikings also planned to invade Særkland or Serkland (Abbasid Caliphate and Muslim Dynasties in Caucasus and Persia) in 1036–1042. Ingvar the Far-Traveled [4] (Old Norse: Yngvarr víðförli, Swedish: Ingvar Vittfarne) was the leader of this unsuccessful attack. For more information about the Viking sword, watch this interesting video below. Sources: [5] , [6]

Interesting Footage from Ahmad Shah Qajar

I have always been interested to learn more about Soltan Ahmad Shah Qajar. This Monarch, who became the King of Persia in a young age as his father was deposed, had a very sad faith. Unfortunately, he was more of an observer of the events that took place in Iran at the time. I sometimes wonder what could have happened if he had managed to save his dynasty. To this day, he remains as the only Iranian ruler who had a democratic mentality... The music belongs to 1970s.

Qajar Prince in Russia

This footage is part of a documentary film about the Russian Empire. In this episode, you can see a Qajar delegation sent to St. Petersburg to convey the Shah of Persia's regret about the murder of the Russian ambassador, Aleksander Griboyedov, and his staff  in Tehran. Apparently, when Griboyedov had arrived to the capital, he started to locate Georgian women who were married to Persian nobles in order to return them to Russia. This caused an anger in Tehran, and people stormed the Russian embassy killing the new ambassador. Click here [1], to learn more about Griboyedov.

Correction: Someone just left a note telling me that this movie is not a documentary. Apparently, it is a 2002 historical drama film called Russian Ark (Russian: Русский ковчег) directed by Alexander Sokurov. [2],[3]. To see the complete movie, you can click on link 3. One hour into the movie, the Persian prince appears.

Nader Shah Museum in Mashhad

This footage was taken from inside Nader Shah's mausoleum.

Stenka Razin Throwing The Persian Princess into Volga River

Drawing
Date: 1681
Published: in Amsterdam
Sources: [1],[2],[3],[4],[5]

استنکا رازین رهبر قزاق‌های شورشی و کشاورزان ولگا بود. رازین در قرن هفدهم علیه تزار روسیه شورش کرد. او به کرانه‌های شمالی ایران و برخی شهرهای مازندران و گیلان نیز تازید. ولی پس از اخراج توسط شاه سلیمان صفوی که به درگیری بین قزاقها و سواره‌ نظام شاه انجامید، از ایران فرار کرد. از او افسانه ای به جا مانده که وی معشوقه خود را که یک شاهزاده خانم اسیر شده ایرانی بوده به علت نارضایتی همراهانش به رودخانه ولگا پرتاب نموده و به قتل رساند. اولین فیلم روسی نیز در مورد این شخص و شاهزاده خانم در سال ۱۹۰۸ میلادی تولید شد

Stenka Razin (Russian: Степан (Стенька) Тимофеевич Разин; 1630 – 1671) was the leader of a group of outlaws who lived a life of revelry and carousing along the Volga River and in the nearby forests. They led a major uprising against the Tsar's bureaucracy in Russia. In 1668, Razin led the majority of his men down the Ural River while a small portion stayed behind to guard city of Yaitsk (called Oral in modern Kazakhstan). However, the government defeated Razin’s men in Yaitsk and Razin lost his base there.When Razin becomes distracted by a captured Persian princess and starts to be affectionate toward her, his men become displeased, feeling that he is neglecting them and their usual activities.

According to Theory and History of Folklore  By Vladimir Iakovlevich Propp, Iz-za ostrova na strezen is a song about Stepan Razin and a Persian princess. The story goes as Razin and his people sail along the Volga river. Razin's friends complain that their leader has forgotten them because of the princess. Razin throws the woman into the water. The author of the text is D.N. Sadovnikov (1847-83); it was first published in 1883 and became a folk song soon after.

After losing Yaitsk, Razin sailed south down the coast of the Caspian Sea. He and his men took Baku (present-day Azerbaijan) easily, but at Rasht (modern Iran) the Persians killed roughly 400 Cossacks in a surprise attack. Razin went to Isfahan to ask the shah for land in exchange for loyalty to the shah.

In 1669, Razin built a base on the eastern side of the Caspian Sea and began raiding Turkmen villages. Then in the summer of 1669, he annihilated a Persian fleet sent against him. He was finally captured and executed in 1671 by the Tsar. The YouTube video that you see is the first Russian narrative film ever made. This silent film is a fictionalized account of the episodes from the life of Stenka Razin and was premiered in 1908.