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Strictly speaking, Scandinavia is made up of the countries Norway, Sweden, and Denmark—yet the term is often used more broadly to include other Nordic countries such as Iceland and Finland. Regardless, these countries share related geography, history, languages, and other cultural elements. For the purpose of this book, the term will be used without specific distinctions. While Scandinavia may not be the most common vacation destination for those without Scandinavian ancestry, the general public seems to understand a few basic facts about these countries: mountainous terrain, cold winters, and sing-songy speech patterns. And, of course, Scandinavia is also known as the home of the Vikings. What many may not know is the important role that wood, animals, and wooden animals have played in the region throughout history.

Scandinavia is naturally a heavily wooded region, so traditional homes and workplaces were also heavily wooded. Spoons, bowls, furniture, wagons, boats, houses—all were primarily built of wood. And since these objects were so critical to a people who toiled the land, raised livestock, and fought off harsh cold winters just to stay alive, they were well appreciated. It seems that this appreciation, and potentially some occasional seasonal downtime, led Scandinavian craftsmen to decorate the surfaces of such wooden objects with beautiful forms and motifs. While craftsmen obviously reused symbols and overall styles throughout Scandinavia from time to time and place to place, I have not yet seen evidence of entire patterns being shared. Rather, traditions in these countries ebbed and flowed in the spirit of folk art; that is, inspiration was the primary subject that was passed on from one interested person to another.

An ale hen drinking vessel with decorative chip-carved feathers.

In terms of style, Scandinavia has had a fairly diverse palette. Carved dragons must have been high fashion in the Viking Age, since they not only stretched out from the ends of ships and drinking vessels, but also covered panels around doors on farmhouses and religious centers. Such carved dragons twisted and turned around each other, much like the floral patterns and acanthus leaves of later periods did. Another common decorative carving style is known in English as chip carving. In this style, simple geometric shapes (often diamonds, triangles, and crescents) are chipped out of surfaces over and over to form intricate designs. Of these decorative styles, basic chip carving is the most accessible. It can be executed with just a knife, it can be applied to almost any wooden surface, and, once you learn to make clean cuts, patience is all you need to make a pleasing piece of art.

A 19th-century Norwegian mangle board, a non-metal pre-electric clothing iron.

Folk art in pre-modern Scandinavia was rarely purely aesthetic; it was often inspired by important elements of the surrounding natural landscape. Scandinavians have historically utilized the natural shapes of tree limbs to create useful tools, and they have also formed traditions centered on borrowing the shapes of animals to make their wooden creations more interesting and meaningful. Naturally, the shapes of horses—common symbols of fertility—found their way into the handles of pre-modern wooden clothes irons called mangle boards. The necks and tails of horses, chickens, and other birds became widely used shapes for the handles of ale bowls. Lions, animals that have never in recorded human history natively occupied Scandinavia, were also popular symbols, especially in Norway. Lion heads are some of the most commonly used figureheads for the traditional Norwegian fiddle, although they may not look terribly recognizable to the untrained eye. While familiar animals were represented in imaginative yet meaningfully caricaturistic ways, depictions of unfamiliar animals like the lion or fictional beasts like dragons varied greatly.

Today, the Scandinavian countries are prosperous, their people are wealthy, healthy, and happy, and their influence extends throughout the globe. Scandinavian design, which focuses on naturalism and simplistic forms, is popular among interior designers and artists of all kinds. Furniture from IKEA, a Swedish company, seems ubiquitous. Mads Mikkelsen, a Danish actor, has been featured in many blockbuster Hollywood films for the past two decades. Many popular video games, including Minecraft, call Sweden home. Norwegian sweaters are loved by many Americans—especially those in the Midwest. Many young Scandinavians are obsessed with cell phones, listen to hip hop music, and often enjoy frozen pizza.

However, despite complete societal modernization, Scandinavian countries have preserved their cultural traditions. It is no longer commonplace for all men to carry knives, for handcraft to be depended on, or for whittling to be a common pastime, yet various organizations have risen up to preserve both cultural artifacts and traditions. Folk art clubs and organizations specializing in more specific branches—such as folk music, dance, carving, weaving, painting, and so on—exist throughout Scandinavia and abroad. If you visit the Scandinavian countryside, you will still see sheep and cattle roaming freely, the forested mountains will still inspire awe, and you might even run into traditional craftspeople. Without even leaving your own home, you can participate in traditional Scandinavian handcraft yourself. Flat-plane carving could be your perfect starting point.

Scandinavians have formed traditions centered on borrowing the shapes of animals to make their wooden creations more interesting and meaningful. Even today, if you visit the Scandinavian countryside, you will spot some of the same animals that inspired ancient craftspeople.