Miami University professors lend expertise to Vikings exhibit

Experts from Miami University are collaborating with the Cincinnati Museum Center’s “Vikings: Beyond the Legend” exhibition this month.

On Saturday, Feb. 4, the museum is presenting Miami Galleries Day and hosting Miami faculty and graduate students as they share their expertise on Vikings with a variety of informal talks.

The gallery talks are included with admission to the exhibition. Miami Galleries Day will be set up as a series of informal talks from noon to 2 p.m. Guests are welcome to move from one to another, as the lectures take place concurrently.

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On Feb. 21, Miami will present “Know Your Vikings: Raiders, Builders and Legends,” a panel lecture. The free lecture begins at 7 p.m. and is free, but space is limited so reserving a seat is recommended.

“The Vikings cared about much more than just swords and looting,” said P. Renee Baernstein, professor of history and associate dean of Miami’s College of Arts and Sciences. “This exhibition, along with the Miami-sponsored events, invites the public to feel, hear and imagine how the people we call Vikings lived everyday life: how they ate, farmed, worked, wrote, sang and dreamed. Miami Galleries Day in particular will be great for kids, too, so bring the family.”

“Vikings: Beyond the Legend,” features more than 500 original artifacts from the Swedish History Museum, plus interactive displays and hands-on challenges. The exhibition features four Viking ships, including 21-foot and 27-foot reproductions, a “Ghost Ship” consisting solely of the ship’s original iron rivets and, for the first time ever in North America, the Roskilde 6, the longest Viking ship ever discovered.

THINGS TO DO: Find a local event and have some fun this weekend