> > There were several cultures (such as Viking era Iceland) where
>> wergild was a fixed legal value, no matter who was killed.
>
> Um, not in Iceland, at least not in the Saga period. Offhand I can't find
> any instances where Viking/A-S geld *wasn't* differentiated by class and
> gender and circumstance. Anyone have an instance?
"In Gragas the right to lawful redress for injury and the legal amount prescribed, 6 marks (48 legal ounces), was the same for all freemen, whether farmers or chieftains. The sagas, however, show awards being adjusted for the relative respect accorded to different individuals." [Jesse Byock, Viking Age Iceland, p.135]
John, I very carefully wrote that. The legal code had a standard wergild. However, nobody was obliged to accept wergild, so honor might require a different value. (The sagas are also of debatable historical value, though Byock tends to find them valuable.)
And outside any friendly disagreement on this matter, I strongly recommend this book by Byock to anyone interested in how Iceland actually worked in this time period.
-- David Dunham <mailto:dunham_at_pensee.com> Glorantha/HW/RQ page: <http://www.pensee.com/dunham/glorantha.html> Imagination is more important than knowledge. -- Albert Einstein --__--__-- End of Glorantha Digest
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