- 5/7/2025
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00:01A thousand years ago, Vikings came to North America.
00:05But how far south did they travel?
00:07We're 400 miles-plus from the ocean.
00:10And was there conflict with Native Americans?
00:13You would not want to get hit in the head with that.
00:16We'll examine ancient artifacts.
00:18I'm pretty excited right now.
00:20We'll learn to fight like Vikings
00:23and find out who would have emerged victorious.
00:27Come at me, bro.
00:29This is the moment we've been waiting for.
00:34The Vikings.
00:36We're on the trail of where they went in America.
00:38This could change American history as we know it.
00:41I'm archaeologist and military vet Blue Nelson.
00:46And I'm archaeologist and ocean explorer Mike Arbuthnot.
00:50I'm having trouble standing up.
00:52We'll go to any length to uncover the real history of America.
00:56Got it, man. I think we're game on.
00:58We've worked together for almost 10 years.
01:01But we've never tackled a mystery as big as this.
01:04Holy cow.
01:05And my Viking blood means that this investigation is personal.
01:08These are my cousins.
01:10We'll be using cutting-edge technology and hands-on archaeology to reveal how the Vikings survived.
01:18This is like something from a horror movie.
01:20And how far into America they really went.
01:23Together, we're on the hunt for America's lost Vikings.
01:29The ancient Viking sagas chronicle the discovery by Leif Eriksson of what is thought to be North America 1,000 years ago.
01:43They also tell how Leif's brother Thorvald explores further.
01:49He encounters and battles with people the sagas call Skrælings.
01:53If the sagas are right, these Skrælings could be Native Americans.
01:57But can we find evidence that these battles really took place?
02:02Our archaeological careers have taken us miles below the ocean's surface to the Titanic
02:08and around the world to uncover hidden war graves.
02:11But for us, the mystery of the Vikings in America is as big as it gets.
02:18Our investigation brings us to New York State.
02:22We're headed to analyze a suspected Viking weapon kept in the Wayne County Museum.
02:27Some believe it could be Viking, but it's never been confirmed.
02:32Howdy. Larry Ann.
02:33Hi.
02:35Curator Larry Ann Evans has agreed for us to get hands-on
02:38and analyze the spearhead for the first time in 80 years.
02:42This is it.
02:43This is it. The North spearhead.
02:48Wow.
02:50I want to get my hands on it if I can.
02:51Alright, well I have some rubber gloves for you.
02:56This artifact could mean Vikings made it as far as New York State,
02:59encountered Native Americans, and fought with them.
03:04But first, we have to prove this thing is Viking.
03:08Can I take a look?
03:10Yes.
03:11I'm a professional.
03:12Okay.
03:13Trust me.
03:14He tells everybody that.
03:18There's something amazing about touching an ancient artifact for the first time.
03:23It allows you to connect with the period of time that the artifact was manufactured.
03:28It's got some age to it.
03:31The characteristics of this are kind of interesting.
03:33You can tell that this has been folded.
03:37Folding is a positive sign the spearhead is hand-forged from before the industrial age.
03:44Vikings were prolific metal forgers creating an incredible array of tools and weapons,
03:50ranging from tiny nails to beautifully designed swords.
03:53Incredibly, this spearhead has never been tested with any scientific equipment.
04:01Today, that's all going to change.
04:04First up is our microscope.
04:07This tool has a magnification of 200 to allow us to examine the surface for signs of age.
04:13That is heavy corrosion.
04:16I'm seeing what looks like rust, and you can see that it's pitted.
04:20Clearly, this has some antiquity to it.
04:24It's been around the block.
04:26It just looks so delicate, magnified to such a degree.
04:30It just seems like it could just crumble.
04:32No sneezing, right?
04:33No, exactly.
04:34Our evidence is pointing to this spearhead being hundreds of years old.
04:41But if it's Viking, we have to prove it's a thousand years old.
04:45Let's see what this thing tells us.
04:48For the first time ever, we're going to test the elemental composition of this spearhead.
04:55Our PXRF gun fires x-rays onto the metal surface to reveal what it's really made from.
05:01Viking weapons had a high iron content, so I'm hoping to see that reflected in the results.
05:10If it is Norse, I mean, we might be able to say where it came from.
05:21That's iron.
05:24Based on the elemental compound, what we have here is no doubt an old piece of forged iron.
05:29The FE here is your iron content.
05:33With iron at 93.25%, this spearhead is within the percentage range of iron found in other Viking artifacts.
05:41That's kind of cool, right?
05:42That is kind of cool.
05:43I mean, it looks old, and now we know that definitively it is based on its material composition.
05:49Okay.
05:50And the other trace elements in the metal may give us even more information.
05:57There are some impurities in this.
06:00The manganese concentration in this tells me that this predates the Industrial Revolution.
06:05Based on these numbers, it does not rule out the Vikings.
06:08That's amazing.
06:09I can't be more happy.
06:10This is incredible.
06:11Yeah, I'm pretty excited myself.
06:14These tests have been really useful, but are unable to confirm this is a genuine Viking spearhead.
06:20And unfortunately, more in-depth tests could cause damage to this precious artifact.
06:25So we need to survey the area where this spearhead was originally found.
06:35We head 12 miles north to Sotus Bay on the southern edge of Lake Ontario.
06:40This area was invaded by British soldiers during the Battle of Sotus Bay in 1813.
06:49But was it also visited by Vikings 800 years earlier?
06:56The spearhead was found by local resident Augustus Hoffman as he dug foundations for his boathouse in 1929.
07:03Amazingly, since then, the site has never been investigated.
07:07Will, I'm gonna need you to be up here, you know, spotting me.
07:14Well, it's till we can find.
07:17All right, Mike.
07:18If I start screaming, you better David Hasselhoff it in there.
07:21I'll come for you, buddy, I promise.
07:24Wish me luck.
07:25Good luck.
07:27Anytime you're on an expedition, you never know what you're gonna come across.
07:29So there's that sense of wonder.
07:31If the Vikings were in battle here, could there be more evidence left behind?
07:38What do you got down there?
07:40I got some old foundational elements in there.
07:43We need to conduct an initial survey of the area.
07:47And it's safe in the water. No problem. It's, uh...
07:50Could there be evidence of a Viking battle hidden beneath the water?
07:54We're in New York State, on the southern edge of Lake Ontario, where a suspected Viking spearhead was found in 1929.
08:15Throughout our careers, we've used metal detectors at known historic battlefields.
08:23But this time, we're looking for any evidence that the Vikings may have fought Native Americans on this site.
08:34We're getting hits everywhere.
08:36This is not good news.
08:39Anytime you have structures, you're gonna have what we call nail rain.
08:41From the decades of repairs, old nails have contaminated this area under the boathouse.
08:50I decide to narrow my search and zero in on the exact location where local resident Augustus Hoffman found the spearhead.
09:00We know that Hoffman was building concrete foundations for his boathouse on the shoreline.
09:06What you got?
09:07He was excavating a trench for the footer.
09:11So wherever he found it was in this area or along the front of this.
09:15All right, this is the spot right here, then.
09:16This is us.
09:18Got a couple of small hits.
09:23Sounds kind of promising.
09:25That's a solid hit.
09:27Let's see if we've hit pay dirt.
09:29If this is the spot, then maybe we should, uh, move some dirt.
09:33To reach items from the Viking Age here, I should only have to dig down about 10 to 12 inches.
09:45Lot of rock.
09:47There could be another spearhead.
09:49There could be a belt buckle.
09:50There could be fasteners from ships.
09:52Could be any number of artifact types.
09:53Rock soup, man.
09:57That's what it felt like.
09:59When I poured the water out.
10:02Wait.
10:04Well, that's not a Viking spear.
10:05A Viking, uh, lag bolt.
10:06Not a Viking bolt.
10:08Just, just a regular plain bolt.
10:11Around here, this is what you're most likely to find.
10:14You know, 200 years ago in this area would be a different story.
10:16Yeah.
10:17But with all this construction around here, it's a little bit of a needle in a haystack.
10:20Our initial survey of the area has confirmed it's contaminated by modern metal waste.
10:26This makes uncovering evidence of Vikings here an almost impossible task.
10:30Although we haven't found the evidence we were after, it's clear this area would be attractive to a small band of Viking explorers.
10:45It would make sense to be here.
10:47I mean, it's a really different story.
10:48But with all this construction around here, it's a little bit of a needle in a haystack.
10:52Our initial survey of the area has confirmed it's contaminated by modern metal waste.
10:56This makes uncovering evidence of Vikings here an almost impossible task.
10:59It doesn't make sense to be here.
11:00I mean, you've got a protected bay here right off a major lake.
11:05Theoretically, Vikings could have sailed here all the way from Lonsaw Meadows,
11:10traveling across the Gulf of St. Lawrence, along the St. Lawrence River, to Lake Ontario.
11:16If I were a Viking, it would be kind of a fun place to post up for a little bit.
11:20And if they did make it to Lake Ontario, they wouldn't have been alone.
11:24A thousand years ago, this area was heavily populated with Native Americans, and these could be the Skrælings referred to in the sagas.
11:35The sagas talk about conflict between the Vikings and the Skrælings.
11:40Could this spear point be evidence of that?
11:42In one Viking saga, Thorvald Eriksson encounters nine Skrælings in canoes.
11:49He captures and kills all but one, before being attacked by a large crowd looking for revenge.
11:56But are these ancient Viking stories just that, stories?
12:00I've been privileged to work at many Native American sites, and I know their ancient storytelling is strongly rooted in history.
12:11So I've come to Albany, New York State.
12:14I'm meeting an expert on Native American oral histories, Dr. Joseph Bruchek.
12:19Oh, welcome to Luisa Sozap.
12:22Sure.
12:23Blue Nelson, nice to meet you.
12:25Any connection between the Native American oral histories and the Viking sagas could prove that an attack like Thorvald's really took place.
12:34Oh man, this place is incredible.
12:36We know from the sagas that the Vikings talk about having encounters with Skrælings, which we assume were Native Americans.
12:47Are there any Native American stories that suggest conflict with the Vikings?
12:52Well, within all of our Northeastern traditions, there are stories of these giants who have skin made of stone.
12:57Arrows bounce off, and these hard-hearted, very violent people turn up in Inuit stories, they turn up in Biltok stories, they turn up in all the Wabanaki stories.
13:10A thousand years ago, these groups are thought to have numbered 100,000 and inhabited potential Viking landing sites along North America's East Coast.
13:20With stories describing arrows fired at giant invaders, it's strong evidence that the Vikings and Native Americans clashed on the battlefield.
13:30If the Native Americans were to engage in combat with the Vikings, what kind of weapons do you think they would have used?
13:37They'd use a bow and arrow, they'd use clubs.
13:40The bow and the arrows would be our predominant weapon of war, but when we fought, we believed we needed to see the enemy.
13:46It wasn't honorable to fight someone from a distance where they couldn't see you.
13:51Let me show you this because I think it's pretty cool.
13:56This is a war club.
14:01This would be the root of a tree, and it would be very compact.
14:05This could be used as a really terrible weapon of war.
14:08Yeah, you would not want to get hit in the head with that.
14:10In the sagas, they talk about, you know, natives approaching them with a pole, and they were waving them in a certain direction.
14:20And that meant that they wanted war.
14:23Yeah, in fact, in many of our traditional cultures, symbolically, you would signal one thing or another, depending on how you were holding a weapon or an object.
14:30It's amazing to hear Native American and Viking stories potentially reference the same conflicts.
14:37If the Native Americans were to engage in combat with the Vikings, what were their odds?
14:42Because they had iron or steel weapons, their odds would be very good in the Vikings' favor.
14:47If the Vikings were battling Native Americans, they would have needed a steady supply of arms.
14:56Could the Vikings have made weapons on the road?
15:00Things are about to heat up as Mike and I find out.
15:03Viking sagas and Native American oral histories suggest these two cultures may have fought a thousand years ago.
15:24But could a band of Vikings restock their armory if they found themselves in enemy territory?
15:36We're in Ontario to test this theory.
15:40We're here to meet one of the few men in the world to create iron, the Viking way, Daryl Markowitz.
15:47So welcome to the Weirin Forge.
15:50So we're going to hopefully smell some iron today.
15:52All right, let's go.
15:53Okay.
15:54Vikings didn't leave behind an iron making handbook.
15:57So Daryl and his team have had to learn everything from research and exhaustive experimentation.
16:04These techniques were passed down in the father to the son and it was never recorded.
16:09This has been learned through recent experimental archeology.
16:12Vikings refined iron smelting over centuries.
16:17By adding elements like carbon, they could produce metal that rivaled modern day steel.
16:23Now we're going to find out firsthand just what it takes to make Viking metal.
16:29The job we start everybody with, fellas, is charcoal monkey.
16:34Vikings use vast quantities of charcoal to generate the intense heat needed for smelting.
16:39It burns at a staggering 2,012 degrees Fahrenheit.
16:45That's twice as hot as wood.
16:48If you want charcoal, it's all about the same size so that it all burns evenly throughout.
16:52We need about a hundred kilos.
16:55That's over 220 pounds.
16:58I'll tell you what, it's kind of therapeutic, but I don't know if I need that much therapy.
17:02Yeah, you do.
17:03Think about the Viking age, the work that went into cutting down those trees.
17:10You don't want to waste any of this valuable material.
17:13Once the charcoal smashed, we're ready to load the furnace.
17:19Dump it in slowly.
17:21To push the heat up to its maximum, Daryl hooks up some Viking-style bellows which need to be pumped all day.
17:27They're based on a 12th century carving found in a Norwegian church.
17:34It's believed to depict Vikings forging iron.
17:38The rhythm is the same as your heart, one stroke per second.
17:42The bellows are incredible, but no mortal man is going to be able to do that alone.
17:48You need a big crew to be able to keep working those bellows.
17:53How long have we been doing it?
17:55Oh, maybe about three minutes.
17:58Luckily for me, Daryl has a modern-day alternative.
18:02A military-grade electric air pump.
18:05This will make about four times as much air.
18:08Even with this pump working, it's still going to take six hours and plenty more charcoal before the furnace is hot enough to create iron.
18:19While we wait, Daryl brings over the smelt's key ingredient.
18:24This is a red iron oxide bog ore.
18:29This red clay substance is found in bogs around the world and was the lifeblood of Viking weaponry.
18:34Newfoundland's confirmed Viking site shows how highly valued bog ore was.
18:43The settlements at Lonsaw Meadows were built around a large bog that contained this valuable resource.
18:52Our furnace is now burning at over 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit, the optimum temperature for making iron.
18:58As that layer of charcoal burns down even with the top of the furnace, then we add another quarter of our ore.
19:09This incredible process begins when the burning charcoal produces carbon monoxide.
19:15There's a chemical reaction between this deadly gas and the bog ore that produces carbon dioxide and iron.
19:26This ancient process repeats with each batch of bog ore and charcoal, creating a ball of iron and waste called a balloon.
19:35Vikings mastered this incredibly complex process a thousand years ago.
19:42They used their high-grade iron to help them create superior warships and weapons to conquer their enemies.
19:50But as we continue our Viking smelt, Daryl spots a serious problem.
19:54Slag bolt sitting really high.
19:59We have slag blocking our air intake.
20:03Slag is a waste product that forms a pool on top of the iron bloom.
20:08And right now, we've got way too much building up.
20:11When I see Daryl start running around, I start realizing the gravity of the situation.
20:17If he's unable to clear this blockage, our experiment's over.
20:21No air, no heat. No heat, no smelt.
20:24And we have a very short period then to clear that and make sure that we've got our furnace running correctly.
20:30We need to act fast. Our smelt is about to fail.
20:35Our experiment is in real danger.
20:41Our attempt to make Viking Age iron has gone badly wrong.
20:54The furnace's air pipe is blocked.
20:57Our experiment is about to fail.
21:00Want to give me a chisel?
21:02Daryl, our Viking blacksmith, has seconds to clear the blockage.
21:07He smashes a hole into the furnace for the slag to drain away.
21:11It's like lava.
21:13The slag level lowers. The air pipe clears.
21:17Our experiment is back on.
21:20Disaster averted.
21:22You know, there was a moment there where I wasn't so sure I wasn't going to have to die for cover.
21:27We're witnessing firsthand what Vikings might have gone through to create weapons during their exploration of America.
21:34Nice work.
21:35It's been 10 hours of feeding the 2,000 degree furnace, and now the ore has formed an iron bloom, ready for extraction.
21:45This is the moment we're waiting for. We know we have a bloom, but we have no idea how big it is.
21:50I've drawn the short straw. It's my job to wrestle the iron bloom from the furnace.
21:55This is a professional aviator firefighter's jacket.
22:00All right.
22:01This is extremely good protection.
22:03Mike looked like an astronaut.
22:05That makes me feel better.
22:07But for good reason. Mike is going to be the guy that goes in and pulls the bloom out.
22:10I only had to wear an apron because I got to stand away from the fire for a change.
22:16Time to see if it's iron bloom or bust.
22:19Now this is the exciting part.
22:21Yeah.
22:23Battering ram.
22:25When I smash down on the bloom, it should drop out the bottom of the furnace.
22:30This looks like the gates to hell right here.
22:33Straight up and down.
22:34You shadow the furnace, you don't put anything on your feet.
22:36I'm dealing with temperatures I've never been that close to in my life.
22:41It is like looking into a soup of lava.
22:46Even with the heat-resistant coat, I'm burning up.
22:50I don't know how the Vikings did this with nothing more than leather to protect them.
22:56As I hammer down on the bloom, nothing happens.
23:01It's too big.
23:02Oh, man.
23:03Daryl takes over.
23:05The iron blooms wedged in place.
23:12Yo, hey, you got some cracks in the furnace.
23:13It's going to collapse, buddy.
23:17You can see it begin to topple.
23:19I thought Daryl's knee was going to be on fire.
23:22He was this close.
23:23Wow.
23:28That is some molten material.
23:32Get the big tongs?
23:33Holy cow.
23:35Can you get a hold of that?
23:36Wow, that's heavy.
23:37You got it?
23:38Yeah.
23:39Now, it's a race against time.
23:42The bloom is rapidly cooling.
23:43If we don't complete the next phase quickly, the iron will be useless.
23:49All right, Blue.
23:50Game on, man.
23:52Me and my crew hammered down on the bloom to remove impurities like oxygen and silica.
23:56We're trying to compress the bloom and knock all the slag off of the outside so that Daryl has something that's workable.
24:13Every hammer blow is turning this into a solid block of iron.
24:16It's exhausting.
24:17And it's not over yet.
24:19Every spot every time.
24:20Good man.
24:23We have to cut it in half.
24:25This all has to happen with speed because as it's cooling, it's getting harder and harder to cut through.
24:37Whoa.
24:38Hey, there we go.
24:39Man.
24:40Nicely done, guys.
24:43Finally, we've got Viking iron.
24:46Wow.
24:47But are these blocks big enough to help restock a Viking's armory?
24:51How many spearheads can you make out of a couple of blocks like this?
24:55I guess somewhere between four to six out of that side.
24:58Whoa.
24:59So Vikings would have gone through all that for, at best, 12 spearheads.
25:04Or it'd have been enough for making just one sword.
25:08This is heavy.
25:10We've shown it would have been hard work, but Viking explorers could have rearmed themselves as they went.
25:15If I hold it up.
25:16If I hold it up.
25:19But in a battle against Native Americans, would a Viking sword or spear be more deadly?
25:26We need to see their weaponry in action.
25:28So we've arranged to meet a group of modern-day Viking fighters who give us a warm welcome.
25:40Their Viking chief is Mark Svartuna.
25:42I'm Mike. How are you?
25:43Who has agreed to show us how deadly these weapons are.
25:46I mean, looking around, it looks incredibly authentic here, and you have quite a number of weapons.
25:52Absolutely.
25:53We'll teach you how to use them in combat.
25:55We'll teach you some techniques.
25:56Excellent.
25:57The other thing is, though, when we train, when we fight, we always wear the actual clothing that they would have worn during that age.
26:06So I would require that you guys suit up.
26:09I'm in.
26:10Right?
26:11Bring it.
26:12All right.
26:13Well, let's give it a go.
26:15I tell you what, I like that outfit on you.
26:16Well, thanks.
26:17I like that hat on you.
26:19Well, thank you.
26:20Mr. American Viking.
26:21Hey, you know it.
26:22We're used to digging up centuries-old artifacts.
26:25But right now, we're about to witness thousand-year-old weapon tech in action.
26:31Our first weapons test is spear throwing.
26:34Well, this should be fun.
26:36Helping us is spear expert Ragnar.
26:39And a dead pig.
26:41This is the iron tip.
26:42Not a very large spear.
26:43You don't need a lot of metal to make something like this.
26:46And this is something you would have seen all over the battlefield.
26:48I gotta tell you, I feel like everything in me wants to just chuck it with everything I have in.
26:54If you can penetrate anything beyond two inches, you're hitting a vital organ, and that's the end of the road.
27:00You want to give it a toss?
27:01You go first.
27:02All right.
27:04This is definitely rookie with a dangerous weapon here.
27:08Vikings use spears as throwing and thrusting weapons.
27:13So how effective are they when thrown?
27:16That's a tough target.
27:17Come on, Mike.
27:18Show us.
27:20Ah!
27:21Oh, my God.
27:22You suck.
27:26Michael, you didn't make it look easy.
27:28That's for certain.
27:29I mean, I think there's a scratch on the backside.
27:33Hey, in the Viking age, that could have infected, and that could have been really bad.
27:37No pressure.
27:38Well, dude, one of us is going to have to hit this because we look pretty silly in front of these folks.
27:41Well, do it. Come on.
27:42Come on.
27:43Uh-huh.
27:44Now, Mike, watch how a real Viking does it.
27:49Yeah!
27:50Oh!
27:51Yeah!
27:52All right.
27:53Nice.
27:54Boom.
27:55You're not walking away from that.
27:57And then, you know, I was aiming for that exact spot, by the way.
27:59I want that to be clear.
28:02Wow.
28:03That's like six or seven inches.
28:05This is thick, hard flesh.
28:08Yeah.
28:09And it easily sank in there.
28:11That's a weapon right there.
28:12That's a tool of death.
28:15Well, Mike, it is when one of us uses it.
28:19Now, let's see how devastating the other iconic Viking weapon is.
28:23The sword.
28:26Iron needed for Viking swords made them incredibly expensive and could only be afforded by noblemen and kings.
28:33One of the most desired was the Ulfbear sword, which was legendary for its sharpness.
28:40Many Viking blades were designed with a blood groove, which lightened the weapon.
28:44This allowed for quicker and more devastating strikes.
28:48Mark steps up to show what damage a Viking sword can really do.
28:54Now, let's see what this does to that.
29:00Oh!
29:01Whoa!
29:02We took the one leg off and almost the other one.
29:05Look at that.
29:06You cut through all the meat and all the bone.
29:09That is devastation.
29:11Absolutely.
29:14Nicely done.
29:17We've witnessed what damage the sword and spear can inflict, but which would be the most effective in battle?
29:23Oh!
29:24Boom.
29:26Nice job.
29:27Time for me and Mike to face off in the name of science.
29:30Hey, Mark.
29:31Hello, gentlemen.
29:32I'm sword guy.
29:33Are you a lefty or a righty?
29:34I'm a righty.
29:35Okay.
29:36Okay.
29:37So, your job is to keep from getting stabbed with the spear.
29:39Yeah.
29:40Yeah.
29:41Ragnar.
29:42It looks like blue is going to be your spear guy.
29:45So, if you could give him some pointers, that'd be great.
29:47Immediately, you're going to notice you got a big, big range advantage.
29:50So, you're going to want to maximize that.
29:52And the big thing with this weapon is some of how you see, like, jabbing and boxing.
29:56You want to keep range checking them, just keep poking and stay busy.
29:59Because you want to make sure that they stay at the far end of this spear.
30:02You don't want them closing the gap and getting by that.
30:04Because then it's going to be bad for you.
30:06Okay.
30:07Let's do this.
30:08And I'm looking forward to watching you guys try to kill each other.
30:10Awesome.
30:11Thanks, man.
30:12So, if I were to come.
30:17Oh.
30:20It's immediately clear.
30:22I can keep Mike exactly where I want him.
30:26Oh.
30:27You'll notice he has to hold his shield a little bit differently to defend because it's a spear.
30:31Mm-hmm.
30:32You can, if you poke it on the left or right side, you'll actually notice it almost creates this swivel effect.
30:37And it'll open up.
30:38Yeah, exactly.
30:39You poke it like that.
30:40Now his body's open for a shot.
30:41Okay.
30:42One thing I'll say is you went high.
30:43I brought the shield up.
30:45I had no idea where that spear was.
30:47Mm-hmm.
30:48You know?
30:49Yeah.
30:50But, at the same time, if you don't come up, face shot.
30:52My focus is only on the one thing.
30:54Mm-hmm.
30:55Offense.
30:56You've got to worry about defense and offense.
30:57Yeah.
30:58Take a few more shots.
30:59Yeah.
31:00That's the only invite I need.
31:02Time to finish this battle.
31:04Oh!
31:05Ooh!
31:06Oh!
31:07Oh!
31:08Oh!
31:09Oh, my God!
31:11Oh!
31:14Oh, I got my leg.
31:17All right.
31:18Pause.
31:19that's another victory to me mike i think spears would have been the go-to weapon for vikings in
31:27america but to judge the outcome of a battle against native americans we need to experience
31:33viking warfare first hand
31:49our investigation has brought us to a forest in new hampshire we spent our archaeological careers
31:55exploring historic battlefields but today we're stepping onto our very own kill shot
32:02blue and i are facing off against each other to experience viking warfare firsthand
32:09the chain mail feels awesome it's king mike versus king blue
32:14all right we need shields here my friend before it all kicks off it's time for a pre-battle
32:22pep talk go straight for the king man blue he's big but he's slow
32:27if vikings did clash with native americans hopefully this will give us a clearer picture of how vikings
32:35waged war you just go berserk aim for mike and i'm just gonna tuck in behind you guys and
32:41look like i planned this whole thing let's do it guys shields in one two three
32:47that sounded better than their scream didn't it
32:52it's get in there and move as fast as you can as quick as you can and hopefully your sword hits
33:10you know your opponent before theirs hits you
33:12as a military veteran i'm used to conflict what the hell what's he mad but mike's years behind
33:30the desk are catching up on him get him get him all right you got me my warriors take him out with
33:39ease i bashed my own head with my shield it was a good day for king blue and uh as always it was a
33:47poor day for king mike if i went into battle uh in the viking age i'd uh be dead it's pretty clear from
33:54today oh jokes aside we've just had a short and painful education on the brutality of viking warfare
34:03mike's warriors were slaughtered in seconds
34:08the viking's success was based on their speed and ferocity in close quarters combat
34:14it's no wonder vikings rampaged across europe they took land and untold riches by force in lightning
34:21quick raids they were versatile tacticians and unpredictable in battle constantly outsmarting
34:28their opponents the reputation of viking warriors was so great that some formed an elite mercenary
34:35unit for byzantine emperor basil ii in the 10th century
34:42we're in baltimore it's time to finally test if the vikings would have been victorious against native
34:49americans we've secured access to a ballistics lab this high security facility normally tests
34:57state-of-the-art modern weapons but today we are rewinding time a thousand years
35:07it's going to shed a lot of light on the results of the conflict that
35:09occurred a thousand years ago aaron ten bears an expert native american archery and mark
35:16our well-armed but friendly viking are here to help us the juxtaposition here is kind of incredible
35:24you're fully armored you've got a complete arsenal with you and you've brought a bow and a few arrows
35:30that's it in europe vikings came up against enemies who used similar fighting styles and familiar weapons
35:39but native american archers posed a very different threat they wore no armor and moved swiftly you've
35:48got the advantage of being at a distance and using your weapons exactly yeah and looking at at what he's
35:54brought today uh yeah i'm not going to get too close to him the vikings are going to be close quarter
35:59combat guys but what is the maximum effective range of of your arrows the max well it really depends on the bow
36:06more so than the arrow so uh for a self-bow like this um effective range 50 yards wow that's incredible
36:14hell of a rank it is anything anything brought my shield granted most engagements were a lot closer
36:22than that you know sometimes even like in a matter of feet um so i'm interested to see what happens
36:29first we set up a ballistics dummy with the same consistency as human flesh to see
36:35what damage an arrow can do the tension in the room is palpable when aaron notches up his arrow for
36:42his first shot what damage will a native american arrow cause to an unarmored viking
36:49we're in a baltimore ballistics lab investigating who would have won a battle between vikings and native
37:09americans aaron 10 bears our native american archer is ready to unleash his arrow at an unarmored viking
37:18great shot good shot this arrow sinks three inches into our viking's stomach
37:27the trauma that it's going to do with the arrow is one thing but there is a percussive force that pushes
37:32around the entire torso when it's hit the damage that it would do to the internal organs these would
37:38have been dirty dirty wounds look at that damn this right here i mean it's a kill shot trying to
37:47pull that out of your intestines yeah yeah you're incapacitated at this point for sure
37:54during their exploration vikings would have been hugely outnumbered by the native americans
37:59which means their defense would have been as crucial as their offense and in their playbook
38:06was this made up of 30 000 interlinked iron rings viking chain mail stopped large sharp blades from
38:15piercing the skin of their warriors but native american archers posed a very different threat this
38:24is a critical part of our investigation because here we're actually able to test native american
38:29stone projectile points versus viking chain mail we'll be able to get scientific results
38:36hey mark can i borrow you for a second yes sir first i need to get aaron to a spear safe distance
38:43i want to know what the maximum effective range of your weapon is so if i could get you to stand here
38:47and and put your spear out sure maximum thrusting distance yes sir
38:53you'll be just outside of it and this way we'll be able to see what kind of damage you could inflict
38:58on a close quarter combat gotcha if native americans attack beyond the reach of the spear then the
39:05effectiveness of viking chain mail is going to be key will this armor deflect a razor sharp stone-tipped
39:13arrow i'm excited this is the moment we've been waiting for man that's a solid hit
39:24but is it enough to kill an armored viking
39:37it hit right up in here yeah that's where it hit right there
39:42is definitely damaged the arrow slams into the chain mail at 72 miles per hour
39:51but it's not enough to pierce the armor that did cause damage to the chain mail yeah but it's
39:58not going to take him off the battlefield not at all yeah but you might have taken him off his feet
40:01with that velocity this impact produces a 20 joule burst of energy the equivalent of being hit with a
40:0925 caliber bullet fired 500 yards away it could easily do some serious damage like breaking a bone
40:19i'm really impressed with the viking chain mail it is a really effective form of armor
40:26this suggests a direct hit on the chain mail would not have killed a viking
40:31but native americans could quickly take another shot i'm definitely going to shoot for something
40:38that's exposed where he doesn't have the chain mail the arms the legs the neck the face anything at all
40:43that can you know incapacitate him or take him out of the battle out of the fight
40:50the viking saga suggests this is what could have happened to the explorer thorvald erickson
40:55he and his men encounter a group of scraylings who could have been native american
41:03when they are attacked an arrow drives into thorvald's exposed flesh killing him
41:13well mark you're the guy that wears the chain mail what are your thoughts on this my thought is
41:17no chain mail back to the boats chain mail come at me bro
41:26an experienced archer you know you can get several arrows in the air um you know before you would be
41:31able to close in that distance and more than likely it would not be just me we've seen how vikings could
41:38have been vulnerable against an adversary launching deadly attacks beyond the reach of the viking's swords
41:44battle axes and spears you're not having a good day that's for sure
41:52we wanted to learn how a battle between vikings and native americans would have played out and now we
41:59have our answer for 300 years vikings raid and dominate their known world slaughtering any who stood in their
42:09way but on american soil the odds are they were overwhelmed by a smart and deadly enemy and i think
42:19from what we see in our investigation it's safe to conclude that that is probably what occurred in north
42:25america a thousand years ago
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