Red Dead Redemption 2is packed full of details that are still being discovered to this day. Plenty has taken fans by surprise, but the origins behind one particular in-game weapon turns out to be a real-life archeological find.
Many players ofRed Dead Redemption 2will have come across the Viking Hatchet in-game. It’s a rare weapon that provides moderate damage with both striking and throwing attacks, and it turns out that there’s a real life version of it that it was most likely based on.
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Redditor Ebbedebbe took to theRed Dead Redemptionsubreddit to share the discovery. They provided side-by-side images of the in-gameViking Hatchetnext to a specific real-world Viking axe. The real version of the axe dates back to around 970 A.D., and features the same decorative carvings and etchings as the in-game blade. The only thing missing is the handle, which likely deteriorated long before it was dug up in 1868 in Mammen, Denmark. However, the grooves on the axe blade are still perfect, and it’s clear to see they would have been used to attach the blade to the handle in the same way as theRed Dead Redemption 2hatchet.
There’s a lot inRed Dead Redemption 2that’s either taken inspiration from or is directly based upon real-world items and weapons. The in-game catalog is based onSears and Roebuck catalogsfrom the same time, and the two look nearly identical. Weapons like the Lancaster Repeater are also based upon the famous real-world Winchester brand. It makes sense, then, that an artist may have looked up this exact axe when looking for a reference to base the Viking Hatchet on.
Perhaps the most interesting thing about the find is that in terms of the timeline of the game,Arthur’s Viking Hatchetand this real-world axe could be one and the same. It’s not out of the question for it to have been dug up in 1868 and found its way to the old west by the 1890s, presumably with someone attaching a new handle and leather wrap at some point. It’ll remain a mystery how it made it so far, though, since Arthur finds the Viking Hatchet embedded in a skull with no one around to tell the tale of how it got there.
For anyone who finds themselves there, the real Viking axe can be seen in a Danish museum.Weapons from the real worldare replicated all the time in video games, and while this particular blade stood the test of time on its own, it’s fascinating that it ended up being immortalized in digital form over a thousand years after it was made.
Red Dead Redemption 2is available now for PC, PS4, and Xbox One.
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