Vikings of Bjornstad - Art Institute of Chicago Museum

"Home to a collection of art that spans centuries and the globe, the Art Institute of Chicago is located in the heart of the city— and is one of TripAdvisor’s Top US Attractions of 2022." Here's the museum's web site. These photos of the arms and armor gallery of the museum were taken by Dr. Steven Shepard and are presented here with his kind permission. The captions are mine based on the photos; please let us know of any errors.
A nice place to spend a few hours...
An interesting set of Viking era artifacts. There's a helmet, probably Anglo-Saxon, without nasal or ocular, a very Viking axe head, a spear point, a horse bit, a set of spurs and an unidentifiable flying saucer shaped object (a collapsed set of scales?). The mace at center-left was ubiquitous in warfare and could have come from practically any period, any location. The swords include one forged with "Ingermefecit (Latin for "Inge made me") and another with "Ulfberht" (Old Norse for "Wolf Bear"). These forged-in names are well known and documented, representing, in effect, brand names. The sword at right is slightly later period.	Norman period gear, probably from the 11th and 12th centuries. Helmets include a pig-faced bascinet at upper left and a barbute to its right. Two warhammers stand at right center. A cross bow is at lower right, in front of an archer's shield enabling the archer to have some protection while reloading.
Jousting armor, including a array of bolt-on additions to the jouster's primary harness, helmets, a shield with cut-out on which to rest the lance, gauntlets, two horse's chamfrons at top, and a lance tip at middle bottom	16th century armor. The absolute peak of the armored knight. The bulk of the helmets are of a type called an armet. Even young boys of royal or aristocratic parentage would appear at important festive occasions in armor made for the occasion.
Late 15th and 16th century arms and armor. Halberds provide excellent counters to mounted opponents and formations of pikemen. The matchlock pistol makes its entrance on the battlefield. Helmets begin to scale back full-face protection as one-on-one sword and axe combat decreases.	Late 15th and 16th century arms and armor. Swords have declined in importance on the battlefield as armor has steadily improved. Warhammers and axes are now the more effective weapons. Lower leg protection has been de-emphasized and eliminated in most cases for infantry troops.
A fine set of armor, with decorative inlay. The targe (shield) provides supplemental protection, primarily for the face and legs.	16th and 17th century gear - as armor becomes less prevalent on the battlefield. The shields are marginally effective, but were probably used by a relatively small number of combatants at this point. The object at lower left is a codpiece that makes its appearance on full-body armor during this period. Its full, true purpose is open to speculation. The gorget neck protection in the center would survive for centuries as a ceremonial remnant of the armored era. The open-faced morion at top that would be one of the first documented armored helmets to cross the Atlantic to the New World. The arquebus at upper right would be from the 16th century - or possibly late 15th century. Below it are powder flasks.
16th century armor (probably). Firearms have improved in design, effect and appearance.	Armor from the 17th century (probably). Most armor has become primarily ceremonial. The weaponry reflects the increasing lack of armored targets...