Atgeir

The atgeir is a thrusting polearm used across Viking Age Scandinavia, Norse settlements in the British Isles and Iceland, most often described in sources from the late tenth and early eleventh centuries even though the word itself is older. No archaeological example has been firmly identified as an atgeir, but scholars believe its blade resembled the larger Petersen type spearheads, likely with wings on the socket to keep a struck body from sliding down the shaft. Saga evidence indicates the weapon was used mainly for thrusting rather than cutting, distinguishing it from a simple spear, and the best known literary atgeir belonged to the warrior Gunnar Hamundarson in Njal's Saga, though its famous ringing sound when drawn is thought to reflect a later medieval retelling rather than genuine Viking Age detail. This description is adapted from Wikipedia contributors under CC BY-SA 4.0; changes were made. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/