The banquet hall
The banquet hall was furnished with benches or platforms along the walls. The open hearth, on which food was cooked, was near the middle of the floor. For everyday use, the hall was large enough for people to practice crafts and textile work. This was where the throne, i.e. the raised seat of the master and mistress stood. It may have been framed by ornamental wooden posts on which figures of deities were carved.
The throne was the symbolic hub of all political as well as religious and social life. In farms, just as in castles, power and governance emanated from this point. This was where the ruling couple sat during feasts and other important ceremonies.
It was the hall that hosted sacrificial rites and ceremonies. Guests would enjoy being served horse meat, which is juicy as well as savoury. From these walls, laughter and the clanging of goblets would resound together with tunes from a harp, a lyre or a flute. People enjoyed board games, and beer and mead were served, often more than generously, if we are to trust what is suggested in the mythological poem Hávamál:
A man does well to drink without losing his wits and sense.
The consumption of beer, wine and mead was not only for the enjoyment`s sake but also to commemorate important events and to generate a sense of common purpose and affinity.
The chieftain used extravagant goblets and jugs and beer was so important that Asbjørn Selsbane had to make trips from Trondenes to Jæren to buy grain when the grain harvest had failed year after year in the north, so that he could celebrate with his men; or so we are told in the saga of Saint Olaf.
