The Tower of Thor

(Redux)

Scandinavian and Northern European history is rich with stories, myths, and superstitions about ancient religions, gods, and traditions during the Viking era. This cache is intended to give just a glimpse of Norse mythology.

Thor was the ancient pagan god of thunder and lightning. Archaeological records note that he was a much admired and powerful god of ancient Germanic tribes until the late Viking Age. He was called on for protection. Thor is often depicted in pictures with red hair and a beard riding his chariot drawn by goats and wielding his hammer, Mjolnir, which had the power to throw lightning bolts. Thor became a defiant symbol of Norse paganism during the Christianization fo Scandinavia. Evidence of him can also be found in England, Ireland, and Iceland.

During Christianization, Boniface (later Saint Boniface) cut down a sacred oak tree, Thor's oak, in the 8th century in the northern region of Hessen, Germany. This was an important move to convince the pagans that the Christian god was superior to the pagan god. Boniface called on Thor to strike him down if he cut the "holy" tree. Nothing happened, in fact, a big wind arose and as Boniface chopped the tree, the wind blew the oak over. Boniface used the wood to build a chapel. With the felling of the oak, pagans converted to Christianity.

The name of one of the days of the week, Thursday, derives from Thor's name and ultimately relates to thunder. Many writers identify Thor with Jupiter. Both were gods of the sky that control thunder and lightning, are children of the Mother Earth and were at some time considered the most powerful of gods. In modern culture, Thor has appeared in lyrics, song, comic books, television and literature. Scandinavian literature has many mythical stories and sagas of one of the most powerful pagan gods, Thor.

(Source: Wikipedia)

This is a revision of the original cache that has existed since February 2008. Unfortunately, the tree where it was, was cut down, necessitating the relocation of this cache.