The "key charm" was not a charm, it was all the keys of the household: When a free woman married, she would receive all the keys to her husbands farm, all the storage sheds and so on, much in the same fashion women now recive a ring for the finger. The keys were status symbols that showed her power and standing in society, and it was the proof that she was married. By virtue of having those keys, she had the power to say who ate, who didn't, when and what. It was her domain to control, so those keys are no joke. I have a stack hanging off my broaches, but in the pic, they're in the creases of the apron dress, so they don't show. I've a knife that is not visible hanging off there, too, and that white thing on my right is a bone sewing kit. On my skirt are chains with my scissors and my whetstone. The horn is another female attribute, also indicative of power and standing in society. Lesser people (such as men...) had cups at their disposal, but women were in charge of the horns. The horns were used to seal contracts and at blóts. Without the horn, no deal. Without the woman that owns the horn lending it, no horn. Gives women all sorts of non-official power. A man could not be elected lord w/o it being drank to from that particular horn (in other words, women had power at the thing, becasue they supported or withdrew support from the lord who'd represent her people), a man could not receive his inheritance w/o drinking from it, a man could not marry, complete a bussiness contract or perform a blót without drinking from it, and if the woman of the house did not agree, all she had to do was NOT offer up the horn and the deal was effectively off, without the man being able to do a damn thing about it. The horn was passed from one woman to the next in wills, and was actually give more importance in those wills than, for example, who was to inherit land and homes.
