What exactly are the rings the Norse sagas mention?

by neosdark

In the saga of the People of Laxardal, its mentioned that King Hakon of Norway gave Hoskuld a gold ring, by "drawing [it] from his arm". Was this ring actually drawn from the arm like an armlet/brassard, a ring from one's finger, or something else? What size would it be? Do we have any surviving examples?

WizardofUrthsea

In a word, yes. Neck rings and arm rings were a common adornment for the Nordic peoples in the Viking Age. They were often a display of wealth as mentioned in the famous "Account of the Rus" by Ibn Fadlan: "The women wear neck rings of gold and silver, one for each 10,000 dirhems which her husband is worth; some women have many." He also recounts them, when necessary, being cut into pieces and used as bullion to purchase goods. A number of examples have been discovered in hoards scattered through Scandinavia and England. In the Prose Edda in the Skáldskaparmal section on of the kennings for fore-arm and arm more generally is "Earth of Gold Rings".
Arm rings were supposedly given by lords as a sign of their generosity or as payment, as attested in a few more tales in the Skáldskaparmal, as well as sagas such as the one you mention. And of course there is the mythic arm ring Draupnir which Odin wore.
As for some real rings here are some examples of different styles, and here is a particularly impressive one on display in the British Museum.