[Regia-NA] Viking Barbie!

[Tracie Brown]

Here's the good news:  the box describes her as having long 
blonde braids, the daughter of a jarl, living in a longhouse 
in a Danish village, playing hnefatafl, skating and skiing, 
listening to skalds reciting sagas.  There's a reasonably 
historically informed illustration of a Viking lass on skates 
(probably from a European source).

The bad news:  "Princess of the Vikings Barbie" has long 
blonde braids, a winged helmet, a form-fitting scale 
breastplate, complete with brass brassiere, a white chiffon 
undergown with "interesting" hanging sleeves, overlaid by 
gold mesh.  And a sword.

Under $20 at WalMart.  There's also a medievalish Irish 
Princess Barbie, a Princess of the Danish Court who looks 
like she's wearing one of Anne of Denmark's 17c outfits, and 
a Princess of the Portuguese Empire who looks like she's 
supposed to be 16c.

If you go to the web site www.barbietravel.com and click 
around you will find Viking Barbie's biography, which 
indicates that someone at Mattel did some research, even if 
it wasn't the costume designer. Ah, well...

-- Tracie