4021) Eric the Red, was a Viking hero and explorer who settled Greenland: "The Way to Valhalla Coin Collection Series": A 2000 Francs CFA 2 oz Pure Silver Antique Finish Coin minted by – Mint XXI – Republic of Cameroon: Date/Year of Coin issue: 2024:
On the mystical land of the North, where rugged landscapes meet the endless sea, a new story emerges.
The world of the Viking warriors, where blood runs like rivers and battles echo through the ages. Here, the bravest of the brave can find The Way to Valhalla — a celestial realm of fallen Vikings welcomed by Odin himself.
The Way to Valhalla unveils a mysterious saga of fierce and courageous Vikings and their adventures leading them to everlasting glory. Feel the pulsating rhythm of their hearts as they sail across treacherous seas, fearlessly pushing the boundaries of their destiny. With each swing of their mighty axes, the air crackles, carrying the taste of triumph.
With a thrilling 12-edition journey ahead, The Way to Valhalla series immerses you into the heart of the Viking world, where the air is permeated with fascinating stories of Scandinavian myths.
Erik Thorvaldsson (c. 950 – c. 1003), known as Erik the Red, was a Norse explorer, described in medieval and Icelandic saga sources as having founded the first European settlement in Greenland. Erik most likely earned the epithet "the Red" due to the colour of his hair and beard.
According to Icelandic sagas, Erik was born in the Jæren district of Rogaland, Norway, as the son of Thorvald Asvaldsson; to which Thorvald would later be banished from Norway, and would sail west to Iceland with Erik and his family.
During Erik's
life in Iceland, he married Þjódhild Jorundsdottir and would have four
children, with one of Erik's sons being the well-known Icelandic explorer Leif
Erikson.
Around the year of 982, Erik was exiled from Iceland for three years, during which time he explored Greenland, eventually culminating in his founding of the first successful European settlement on the island. Erik would later die there around 1003 CE during a winter epidemic.
Thorvald would later be banished from Norway for committing acts of manslaughter.
Thorvald would then proceed to sail west from Norway with his family, including a 10-year-old Erik.
Thorvald and his family would eventually settle in Hornstrandir in northwestern Iceland, where Thorvald would eventually die sometime before 970 CE.
Marriage and family:
After his father's death, Erik married Þjódhild Jorundsdottir and moved to Haukadalr (Hawksdale) where he built a farm called Eiríksstaðir; Þjódhild was the daughter of Jorundur Ulfsson and Þorbjorg Gilsdottir. Medieval Icelandic tradition relates that Erik and his wife Þjódhild had at least three children: three sons, the explorer Leif Erikson, Thorvald and Thorstein.
Sources differ on Erik's daughter, Freydís, with The Saga of the Greenlanders describing her as a full sister to Leif, but The Saga of Erik the Red describing her as his half-sister. Unlike his son Leif and his wife Þjóðhildur, who became Christians, Erik remained a follower of Norse paganism.
While Erik's wife took heartily to Christianity, even commissioning Greenland's first church, Erik greatly disliked it and stuck to his Norse gods—which, the sagas relate, led Þjódhild to withhold intercourse from her husband.
Exile:
Similar to his father before him, Erik also found himself exiled for a time. The initial confrontation occurred when Erik's thralls (slaves) caused a landslide on a neighboring farm belonging to a man named Valthjof, and Valthjof's kinsman, Eyjolf the Foul, killed the thralls. In retaliation, Erik killed Eyjolf as well as Hrafn the Dueller (Holmgang-Hrafn).
Kinsmen of Eyjolf sought legal prosecution and Erik was later banished from Haukadale for killing Eyjolf the Foul around the year 982.
Erik then moved to Brokey and Öxney (Eyxney) island on Breiðafjörður in west Iceland. Erik asked a man named Thorgest to keep his setstokkr—inherited ornamented pillars of significant mystical value—which his father had brought from Norway.
When Erik had finished building his new home, he went back to retrieve his pillars from Thorgest; however, Thorgest refused to return them to Erik, and so Erik then went to Breidabolstadr and took the pillars back. As a result, Thorgest and his men gave chase, and in the ensuing fight Erik slew both of Thorgest's sons as well as "some other men". After this conflict both Erik and Thorgest kept close a large number of allies.
Styr gave assistance to Eirik, as also did Eyjolf, of Sviney, Thorbjorn Vifilsson, and the sons of Thorbrand, of Alptafjordr (Swanfirth). But the sons of Thord Gellir, as also Thorgeir, of Hitardalr (Hotdale), Aslak, of Langadalr (Longdale), and Illugi, his son, gave assistance to Thorgest.
The dispute between Erik and Thorgest was later resolved at the Thorsnes Thing, where Erik and the men that sided with him were outlawed from Iceland for three years; many of these men would then join Erik on his expedition to Greenland.
Death and legacy:
Erik's son Leif Erikson became the first Norseman to explore the land of Vinland–part of North America, presumably near modern-day Newfoundland–and invited his father on the voyage.
However, according to the sagas, Erik fell off his horse on the way to the ship and took this as a bad sign, leaving his son to continue without him. Erik later died in an epidemic that killed many of the colonists in the winter after his son's departure.
Discoveries:
It has been a common mistake for popular history to occasionally credit Erik as being the first European to discover Greenland, however, the Icelandic sagas suggest that earlier Norsemen discovered and attempted to settle it before him.
Tradition credits Gunnbjörn Ulfsson (also known as Gunnbjörn Ulf-Krakuson) with the first sighting of the land-mass.
Nearly a century before Erik, strong winds had driven Gunnbjörn towards a set of islands between Iceland and Greenland, later named Gunnbjörn's skerries in his honour. However, the accidental nature of Gunnbjörn's discovery has led to his neglect in the history of Greenland.
After Gunnbjörn, roughly eighty years later the outlaw Snæbjörn galti had also visited Greenland and attempted to settle there.
According to a saga that has now been lost to time, Galti headed the first Norse attempt to colonize Greenland, of which ended in failure for Galti and his party due to the many unforgiving hardships that they faced during the winter on the island.
As a result of Galti's failed expedition, Erik the Red is widely credited to be the first known, and successful, permanent settler of Greenland.
Greenland:
During his exile, around 982, Erik sailed to a somewhat mysterious and little-known land that Snæbjörn galti Hólmsteinsson had unsuccessfully attempted to settle a few years before.
Erik rounded the southern tip of the island, later known as Cape Farewell, and sailed up the western coast. Eventually, Erik reached a part of the coast that, for the most part, seemed ice-free and consequently had conditions—similar to those of Iceland—that promised growth and future prosperity.
According to the Saga of Erik the Red, Erik spent his three years of exile exploring this land. The first winter Erik spent on the island of Eiriksey, the second winter he passed in Eiriksholmar (close to Hvarfsgnipa). In the final summer Erik explored as far north as Snaefell and into Hrafnsfjord.
When Erik returned to Iceland after his exile had expired, he is said to have brought with him stories of "Greenland". Erik purposefully gave the land a more appealing name than "Iceland" as "people would be attracted to go there if it had a favorable name", per Erik's own words. Erik knew that the success of any settlement in Greenland would need the support of as many people as possible.
Erik's salesmanship of Greenland proved successful as after spending the winter in Iceland, Erik returned to Greenland in the summer of 985 with a large number of colonists. However, out of 25 ships that left for Greenland, only 14 arrived, some of the other 11 having turned back, but others likely lost.
The Icelanders established two colonies on the southwest coast: the Eastern Settlement or Eystribyggð, in what is now Qaqortoq, and the Western Settlement, close to present-day Nuuk. Eventually, a Middle Settlement grew, but many suggest it formed part of the Western Settlement.
The Eastern and Western Settlements, both established on the southwest coast, proved the only two areas suitable for farming. During the summers, when the weather was more favorable to travel, each settlement would send an army of men to hunt in Disko Bay above the Arctic Circle for food and other valuable commodities such as seals (used for rope), ivory from walrus tusks, and beached whales.
The Coin:
'Erik the Red', features on this coin in the 'The Way to Valhalla' series by MINT XXI.
Clad in the tempest of exploration and conquest, the coin captures the Viking explorer in his most formidable guise: axe in hand, a raven companion, and his gaze as piercing as the cold northern seas.
Enhanced with digital printing that breathes fire into his red beard and hair, and sculpted in high relief, it showcases the might of his arms.
Banished from Iceland, he sailed beyond the edge of the known world to Greenland, founding the first Norse settlements amidst ice and stone.
Venture into the silver saga of Erik the Red's
adventurous life with the spirit of exploration and the courage to forge new
paths.
The Reverse of the 2,000 Francs CFA 2-ounce Silver Antique Finish High-relief Coin'.
Eric the Red, a man who was both a hero and a harbinger of exploration in a world ruled by sword and sail.
Forged in high relief, this 2 oz coin captures the icy gaze of an explorer, the unyielding strength of a leader who carved his path across oceans, discovering new lands.
His powerful figure is etched in silver, as timeless and formidable as the icy Nordic seas he once conquered.
Part of The Way to Valhalla collection, it channels the spirit of Norse myth – where heroes are judged not by life, but by the legends they leave in their wake.
The Obverse of the 2,000 Francs CFA 2-ounce Silver Antique Finish High-relief Coin features a Viking Warrior riding a horse. The Design is supplemented with Celtic/Viking knots.
The peripheral inscriptions read - "REPUBLIQUE DU CAMEROON. 2025. 2 oz. 2000 FRANCS CFA. AG 999."
Issuer: Republic of Cameroon
Coin Theme: Eric The Red
Issuing Year: 2024
Face Value: 2000 Francs CFA
Metal Composition: .999 Silver
Weight: 2 oz
Dimensions: 50.00 mm
Condition/Coin Quality: Antique Finish (AF)
Mintage: 500 pieces
Special Features: Digital printing, high relief
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Rajan Trikha
ReplyDeleteInteresting and informative post👍
Thank you so much, Trikha sahab.
DeleteSantosh Khanna has commented:
ReplyDelete"Very interesting post .Thanks for sharing this informative post."
Thank you so much, Khanna sahab
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