With the “bloody eagle”, they beat the convict on the back with an ax to cut the ribs. After that, the ribs were spread apart like the wings of a bird and the lungs were pulled out. The victim died due to traumatic shock or pneumothorax.
This ritual was featured in the Vikings TV series and the video game Assassins Creed: Valhalla, as well as in the 2019 Swedish horror film Midsommar. However, until now it was not known whether the Vikings actually practiced this.
The new study says the bloody eagle procedure is difficult to implement, but not impossible, even with the technology of the time. Scientists said that the Vikings could use a special type of spearhead to quickly cut through the back. At the same time, the victim died very quickly, so all further manipulations were carried out on the corpse. The researchers concluded that the “bloody eagle” really could have existed in the Viking Age.
