Jhonny Therus | Uppsala University (original) (raw)
Books by Jhonny Therus
Luihin ja ytimiin - Tutkimuksia ja tulkintoja Euran Luistarin kalmistosta / I märg och ben - Studier och tolkningar kring Luistari gravfält i Eura, 2023
Etu-Sihvola, H., Moilanen, U. & Therus, J. (Eds). 2023. Luihin ja ytimiin - Tutkimuksia ja tulkin... more Etu-Sihvola, H., Moilanen, U. & Therus, J. (Eds). 2023. Luihin ja ytimiin - Tutkimuksia ja tulkintoja Euran Luistarin kalmistosta / I märg och ben - Studier och tolkningar kring Luistari gravfält i Eura. Turku: Sigillum.
Den yngre järnålderns gravskick i Uppland. Framväxten av den arkeologiska bilden och en materialitet i förändring. Aun 50, 2019
Dissertation presented at Uppsala University, Tuesday, 11 June 2019 for the degree of Doctor of P... more Dissertation presented at Uppsala University, Tuesday, 11 June 2019 for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy.
Full text PDF Link: http://uu.diva-portal.org/smash/record.jsf?pid=diva2%3A1304837&dswid=3468
Abstract
Therus, J. 2019. Den yngre järnålderns gravskick i Uppland. Framväxten av den arkeologiska bilden och en materialitet i förändring.
Aun 50. 452 pp. Uppsala: Uppsala universitet. ISBN 978-91-506-2762-6.
This thesis examines archaeological approaches to burials and changing mortuary practices during the Late Iron Age (c. 500-1100 AD) in central Eastern Sweden. Understanding the change in mortuary practices is fundamental to the study of the Late Iron Age. Our knowledge of burial customs is largely colored by 20th century studies of burial monuments, in particular the large mound, boat and chamber burials, which was often combined with analyses of Eddic and saga material. More recent excavations, however, have shown that burials are much more complex than previously thought.
This thesis comprises two parts. The first considers eight formative publications, written between 1904 and 2005, in order to examine the historiography of Iron Age burial archaeology. It explores the changing perception of graves and the archaeological practices documenting them. The impact of Björn Ambrosiani’s two-part model is considered as influential in shaping the definition of burials and their typology.
The second part of the thesis addresses the changing mortuary practices of the Late Iron Age and highlights several burial types and practices, centered on cremated bones and stones, which have not been sufficiently studied. Two major changes are identified during the period. The first comprises a move from dispersed to individual burials, while the second consists of a change from cremation to inhumation practices that coincides with the Christianization process. This part of the thesis features a number of case studies that illustrate the change in mortuary practices. Among the phenomena discussed are the stone structures called hǫrgr, the amulet rings commonly found in cremation burials and at older cultic sites, and the hybrid nature of Late Viking Age burials.
The study found that from the late 900s to the late 1000s, cremation and inhumation are practiced side by side in many burial grounds. The discussion introduces the concept of “bridging practices” – memory practices consciously connecting the past and the future, as a key to understanding the burials of the period. These bridging practices served to facilitate and normalize processes of change, and are argued to be the defining trait of Late Viking Age mortuary behavior.
Keywords: Late Iron Age, Viking Age, burial practice, bridging practice, monument gravity, historical gravity, grave, memory, hǫrgr, amulet ring, cosmology, cremation, Christianization, settlement archaeology, mortuary behaviour, dispersed burial
Link: http://uu.diva-portal.org/smash/record.jsf?pid=diva2%3A1304837&dswid=3468
During the autumn of 2013 Upplandsmuseet, in collaboration with SAU (Societas Archaeologica Upsal... more During the autumn of 2013 Upplandsmuseet, in collaboration with SAU (Societas Archaeologica Upsaliensis) investigated Burial ground 62 as well as parts of 127 and 227, Danmark Parish, in the southeast outskirts of Uppsala. The excavated features included a very large burial mound dating from the late 6th century CE, cremations from 700 – 1000 CE, and inhumations from the 10th to 13th centuries CE. Apart from purely archaeological methods, a number of assisting sciences and methods were utilised. When excavating skeletons we adopted a system of field anthropology. Apart from radiocarbon dating, a number were sampled for stable carbon and nitrogen isotopes. Osteology as well as macro fossil, wood anatomy and phosphate analyses were used. In addition a careful analysis of the different layers making up the mound and GIS-analysis were used to achieve a new and relevant understanding about burial customs and rituals, as well as social and religions conditions, both local regional, during a period of political and religious change. In the southeast edge of Burial grounds 62/127 we excavated a large burial mound 18,5 metres wide and 3 metres high and dating from the late 6th century CE. The funeral pyre had contained a grown male, accompanied by several horses, dogs, birds of prey, pigs and sheep. Artefacts were extremely fragmented by cremation, but among 800 grams of bronze we also found gilded objects with mounted garnets. Parts of a helmet, sword, shield as well as elaborate horse equipment were identified. Among other objects were imported glass, ceramics and whale bone gaming pieces. The mound had been erected in three phases, using clay from marine deposits, presumably from the lake that existed south of the area at the time. This lake was an important communication route for access to the Baltic coast as well as the inland communities of Gamla Uppsala, Valsgärde and Vendel, via various river systems. In the following centuries, the area around the mound was used as a burial ground. Four cremation burials dating from 700 – 1000 CE were excavated and found to be severely damaged by modern landscaping. Burial customs influenced by Christianity included inhumations and began to appear in the 10th century. Up until the 13th century 28 individuals were buried within the excavated parts of Burial grounds 62/127. They were of all ages and biological sexes. In the 12th century a further 12 individuals were buried within Burial ground 227. These early inhumations display great variety in terms of burial customs, body posture and body orientation. Individuals were buried with or without coffins. Very few artefacts were found in the graves. Isotope analysis indicated a substantial diet of fresh water fish. A very peculiar burial from the 12th or 13th century involved an individual who had been partially cremated in a body sized pit, along with both animals and objects.
The results of the investigation are discussed along the three areas within which new and important knowledge has been gained:
• Human lives – Skeletons and burnt bones. The conditions of people’s lives, health and diet are studied.
• Aristocratic environments – The large mound and the rune stone are discussed to highlight social structures in the Uppsala area during the Late Iron Age.
• Religious conversion – Rituals in an era of change. The long period of use provides an opportunity to generate new and relevant knowledge about burial rituals and the Christian conversion progress, as well as testing currently held views on the conversion in the region.
Lilla Vi - En studie av en järnåldersbygd. Michael Dahlin och Jhonny Therus. Stadsmuseet Näktergalen. Årsskrift 2014, 2014
Bokens innehåll har sin utgångspunkt i en rik vapengrav som undersöktes vid Lilla Vi i Djursdala ... more Bokens innehåll har sin utgångspunkt i en rik vapengrav som undersöktes vid Lilla Vi i Djursdala socken, Småland, på 1950-talet. Graven kan dateras till 200-300-talet e.Kr. Utifrån graven och gravfältet ger vi en inblick i bygdens förhistoria och livet under denna tid. Studieområdet består främst av Vimmerby kommun, men med utblickar i omgivande landskap och Europa. Genom att studera gravarna på kullen Lilla Vi kan vi nämligen se hur denna del av Småland var en del av något mycket större, där politik och långväga kontakter varit avgörande för områdets utveckling där exploateringen av utmarksprodukter, bl.a. järn, varit viktiga.
Papers by Jhonny Therus
Luihin ja ytimiin - Tutkimuksia ja tulkintoja Euran Luistarin kalmistosta / I märg och ben - Studier och tolkningar kring Luistari gravfält i Eura. Etu-Sihvola, H., Moilanen, U. & Therus, J. (Eds). 2023. Turku: Sigillum., 2023, 2023
This paper, written in Swedish and Finnish, explore the complexities of authenticity in the diffe... more This paper, written in Swedish and Finnish, explore the complexities of authenticity in the different forms of historical reenactment or living history that are becoming more common, both the world of museums and as a hobby among the public.
An integral part of the Luistari web-project was the use of photography in cooperation with the public interested in reconstructing, and experience, parts of the past. This article discusses both the use of photography and the tangible effect of increased well-being among the participants in different forms of historical reenactment.
Luihin ja ytimiin - Tutkimuksia ja tulkintoja Euran Luistarin kalmistosta / I märg och ben - Studier och tolkningar kring Luistari gravfält i Eura. Etu-Sihvola, H., Moilanen, U. & Therus, J. (Eds). 2023. Turku: Sigillum., 2023
This article presents a survey of a particular kind of exclusive 11th Century bead and its distri... more This article presents a survey of a particular kind of exclusive 11th Century bead and its distribution around the Baltic Sea and the Scandinavian inland. The bead type is blue, often rectangular, with added rhomboid metal foil pieces and research shows it being produced in Byzantium, maybe even in Constantinople.
The survey is a pre-study concerning the possibility of using small artifacts, of this kind, to map trade networks and contact nodes in the landscape. It uses the Luistary cemetery, and its cultural and historical context, as a starting point, as several beads of this type is found in one of the richest burials in the cemetery. Beads of this type are found at points along only one of the Eastern trade routes and in a few distinct trading hubs and cemeteries in Finland and Sweden, particularly in Luistari and Sigtuna. But also, in a few instances, in the Swedish and Norwegian mountainous inland, pointing to the conclusion that the rather exclusive bead type can be used as an indicator for mapping the fur and antler trade networks as well as its starting and end points. The areas exploited for fur and antler on one end and where the exclusive beads were produced on the other.
The article is written in Swedish and Finnish.
Gjallarhornet, 2023
This paper is part one of a two part paper describing the first ten years of excavations at Sandb... more This paper is part one of a two part paper describing the first ten years of excavations at Sandby borg, Öland, Sweden, conducted by Museiarkeologi sydost, Kalmar läns museum. This part gives an overview of the first five years, 2010 – 2014, of the excavations.
Gjallarhornet 2022:3, 2022
2022 publicerade Riksantikvarieämbetet en utredning, "Uppdragsarkeologi – nuläge och utvecklingsb... more 2022 publicerade Riksantikvarieämbetet en utredning, "Uppdragsarkeologi – nuläge och utvecklingsbehov", rörande det uppdragsarkeologiska systemet i Sverige. Utredningen bygger på intervjuer med representanter från samtliga länsstyrelser, 29 olika undersökare, företrädare för Sveriges kommuner och regioner, samt Trafikverket.
Arkeologisk forskning och forskare är både ramverket, och en av de tre uttalade målgrupperna, för svensk uppdragsarkeologi. Föreliggande artikel är en inventering av när, och i vilka sammanhang, orden forskning och forskare förekommer i utredningen. Syftet med inventeringen är att ge underlag för vidare diskussion kring utredningen.
Artikelns inventering understryker bl.a. att det uppdragsarkeologiska systemet lider av en forskningsparadox, samt att det finns en tydlig dissonans inom systemet, med problem som påverkar alla aktörer och i slutändan det arkeologiska källmaterialets användbarhet för framtida forskning.
HILLERDAL, C., & ILVES, K. (Eds.). (2020). Re-imagining Periphery: Archaeology and Text in Northern Europe from Iron Age to Viking and Early Medieval Periods. Oxford; Philadelphia: Oxbow Books., 2020
Rebooting the Gospel for a Germanic audience -The case of Heliand. Charlemagne’s wars against, a... more Rebooting the Gospel for a Germanic audience -The case of Heliand.
Charlemagne’s wars against, and forced Christianization of, the Saxons at the end of the 8th century was a long and bloody affair. One of its legacies is Heliand the Saxon Gospel, a retelling of the life of Christ reimagined in a Saxon context and written in the Saxon language and the alliterative style of a Germanic epic poem. Written by a monk in the early 9th century with the purpose of making the Gospel understandable for the new Saxon converts it is a remarkable document showing us how the change in religions was facilitated and what parts of the Gospel the 9th century Saxons found puzzling as well as familiar.
Heliand is also contemporary with Ansgar, the Apostle of the North, and produced in the very same monastic environment from which he set out on his mission to the Swedes. The version of the Gospel conveyed in the Heliand is therefor very likely the same Gospel that was introduced to them.
This paper is a structural analysis of the Heliand, from the viewpoint of the Journey of Civilization, the ideal transformative journey of a Germanic hero. The structural analysis shows how the 9th century author of Heliand effortlessly transformed Odin into Christ and Christ into a Germanic Hero. Moreover, through the construction of this poem the author gives us a unique glimpse of the Christianization process in the Viking Age.
Forntid längs ostkusten 4. Blankaholmsseminariet 2012-2014.
Åren 1955 och 1956 genomförde amanuens K. G. Petersson en räddningsgrävning och undersökte delar ... more Åren 1955 och 1956 genomförde amanuens K. G. Petersson en räddningsgrävning och undersökte delar av ett gravfält på en kulle vid Lilla Vi utanför Vimmery. Det påträffade
gravmaterialet vittnade om en 3000 år lång period av begravningar. Denna artikel visar vad en närstudie av gammalt och opublicerat material kan avslöja för detaljer. Detaljer vilka i detta fall gav överraskande information kring kommunikation och kontakter.
Artikeln presenterar först platsen och undersökningen övergripande och avslutningsvis presenteras tre urskiljningsbara faser i gravläggandet, och områdets generella utveckling, tillsammans med en närstudie av tre av gravarna.
Populär arkeologi 3/2013
A popular article about the mass/ship graves found at Salme, Estonia, dating to 650-750 AD. The s... more A popular article about the mass/ship graves found at Salme, Estonia, dating to 650-750 AD. The ship burials are unique as they contained more than 40 dead and the larger of the two ships seems to be the earliest sailing ship found in the Baltic Sea region. Much of the information in the article comes from rescue excavation reports written by Marge Konsa and others.
Om makt och offer. Röster om centralmaktens utveckling i tiden före historien. Red. L. Karlenby. Riksantikvarieämbetet., 2007
Talks by Jhonny Therus
This was a short presentation at the Yale Conference on Baltic and Scandinavian Studies SASS & AA... more This was a short presentation at the Yale Conference on Baltic and Scandinavian Studies SASS & AABS.
During the transition from the Viking age to the medieval era, when Sweden emerged as a Christian kingdom, we can observe a 300 year long period of acculturation or hybridity in the burial customs. At the advent of the 9th century A.D. the burial customs are distinctly pagan and cremation and burial grounds connected to individual farms are the norm, but around 1150 A.D. the area is fully incorporated into the European church structure.
Burial customs have always been a complex, and both inclusive as well as exclusive, practice in the Viking society. Today it is clear that during the transitional period a myriad of different burial customs exists side by side and that the change from a Pagan to a Christian church centered way is a decidedly local phenomenon where identity and the connection to the family ancestors were of the highest importance.
Only late in the Christianisation process did the “correct” burial custom become an important matter and how the change was handled varied widely. How far society had come in the adjustment to Christianity, as well as how the old burial practices was connected to the self-image of the local communities, came to influence the way in which the change took place profoundly. During this hybrid phase we can also observe how the grave changes from being a largely collective monument reserved for a selection of the population to storage places for individual bodies.
This paper aims to present ways in which this change took place.
This presentation focus on a structural analyses of Heliand, the old Saxon gospel, and its nature... more This presentation focus on a structural analyses of Heliand, the old Saxon gospel, and its nature as a acculturation poem. In Heliand the gospel is retold, and restructured, as a Germanic version of the journey of civilization and Christ portrayed as an ideal Germanic lord.
The presentation was given 2003.02.06 at Stefan Brinks SSESSoC-seminar.
A chronological and iconographic study of the runestones and early Christian grave monuments from... more A chronological and iconographic study of the runestones and early Christian grave monuments from Närke, Sweden, with the purpose of determine whether the stone material support the commonly held notion that Närke was culturally influenced from the Mälar Valley area during the Viking Age.
The presentation was given at the Hassle-seminar, arranged by the Riksantikvarieämbetet UV Bergslagen, 2004.
Archaeological Reports by Jhonny Therus
In 2019 an archaeological excavation was conducted at Snapperisskogen, west of Växjö, Småland. Th... more In 2019 an archaeological excavation was conducted at Snapperisskogen, west of Växjö, Småland. The area of the excavation was 35 acres and included 450 clearance cairns which were a part of a larger fossilized field with a length of about 1,5 kilometers. The site was typical for the Växjö area with prehistoric graves and settlements within the area of an agricultural system from Bronze and Early Iron Age.
The first visible traces of land use were from the Late Neolithic period when two gallery graves were erected. The stone cists contained grave goods as flint daggers, scrapers and other flint implements. After the Late Neolithic period the gallery graves were successively enlarged and transformed into grave cairns. The graves had been used for secondary burials during Bronze and Early Iron Age. The last burials and reshaping of the graves were made during the Migration period.
Other remains from the Late Neolithic period were scarce with only a few signs of settlement and possible agriculture. Pollen analysis showed that the area had been mostly covered by deciduous woods during this period, but with signs of grazing. The Late Bronze and the transition to Early Iron Age seems to have been a breakthrough period in the area. Many of the clearance cairns were dated to this period and hearths from this period were found in many parts of the excavation area. A post built long house with an adjacent smaller building was dated to this period. An unmarked grave close to the houses was also belonged to the same context. Pollen analysis confirmed agriculture and cattle breeding in the area. Finds of grains from the settlement and the grave showed that the composition of cereals was suited for both nutritious and poorer soils. Also, an analysis of stable nitrogen isotopes confirmed that some of the grains had grown on fertilized fields and other had been cultivated without fertilization.
The area was well used during the Late Roman Iron Age and the Migration Period. Five longhouses and one smaller building were dated to this period. Areas for cooking or preparation of food were found. The settlement activities were, compared to the earlier period, more concentrated to the vicinity of the houses. Remains of several houses were found close to one of the grave cairns. This probably marked the place of a stationary farmstead with three generations of longhouses. Two other longhouses were found in more distant and less cultivated parts of the area. A hypothesis is that the remains represent two farmsteads, one with a permanent location beside the grave cairn and one with a more mobile location. The farm with the distinct location close to the cairn may have had a socially superior position.
Very few finds or dating are connected to the time after Migration period. The building of new clearance cairns stopped even if the use of the arable land seems to have continued. Pollen analysis shows a change to a more open landscape dominated by grazing land. This change in land use is similar to other areas where farmland, settlements and gravefields are put into new positions within the frame of what is later known as an infield- outland system.
Keywords: prehistoric landscape, clearance cairns, gallery graves, Late Neolithic environment, grave cairns, Late Bronze Age settlement, Late Bronze Age agriculture, Late Roman Iron Age settlement, Migration period settlement, long term use of graves, long term change of land use.
Pukavikskogen. Gravar och boplatslämningar från stenålder, yngre bronsålder och äldre järnålder., 2014
This report documents the site Pukavikskogen, excavated as part of the E22 archaeological project... more This report documents the site Pukavikskogen, excavated as part of the E22 archaeological project in Blekinge, Sweden, 2011. The site contained settlement features, a small grave field with several low cairns and non burial constructions, cultural layers, and scattered artifacts and lithic material from the Mesolitic to the Early Iron Age.
It also contains a detailed investigation of the development of the Lake Vesan body of water from 9700 BCE to present day.
Arkeologisk rapport 2022:11. Museiarkeologi sydost. Kalmar läns museum, 2022
In the summer of 2020 Museiarkeologi sydost at Kalmar County Museum and Jönköping County Museum p... more In the summer of 2020 Museiarkeologi sydost at Kalmar County Museum and Jönköping County Museum performed an archaeological excavation at Nylanda/Öjaby, Öjaby parish, Småland.
The archaeological excavation concerned fossilised fields, settlements, graves and several large monumental stone constructions of a complex palimpsest nature. Four settlement areas and four burial and/or monumental areas were excavated, all of which lay within fossilised fields.
The first activities occur during the Early Neolithic period, including small grain cultivation. During the Neolithic two stone monuments are created, that are in use into the Late Iron Age. In the end becoming two large cairns, about 15 m in diameter, and 0.7–1 m high. Ending up as a burial cairn and a burnt mound. The burnt mound had few animal bones, pottery and stone objects, while the burial cairn contained glass beads, pottery and scattered bone material of both humans and animals. Both contained traces of ritual furrowing beneath the stone layers.
The excavation also encompassed a large scale mapping and analysis of the areas extensive fossilised fields, as well as a small grave field with stone settings from primarily the Late Bronze Age. Several of the graves contained urns with burnt bones. But this was often combined with scattered burnt bones. The grave field also had several visible construction phases, which in the end covered all the burials in an carpet of stones and scattered bones.
Language: Swedish
Authors: Andreas Emilsson, Kristina Jansson and Jhonny Thérus
With contributions by: Torbjörn Brorsson, Leif Björkman, Astrid Lennblad,
Sandra Lundholm and Tove Traneskog.
Gravar och boplatslämningar under Klinta radby. Arkeologisk rapport 2020:08., 2020
In January 2020 Museiarkeologi sydost conducted a trial trench evaluation on the properties Klint... more In January 2020 Museiarkeologi sydost conducted a trial trench evaluation on the properties Klinta 21:29 and 21:30 in Köpingsvik, Öland. The reason for the investigation was to find places on the properties where houses could be built without disturbing archaeological remains. Klinta village is situated on the ridge surrounding the Viking Age and Early Medieval trading site of Köpingsvik on the western coast of Öland. The site was an economic, religious and political center during the Viking Age and Early Medieval period, and much indicate that it was important long before that. The Medieval village of Klinta is situated on top of a large burial ground. Both cairns and standing stones are part of the visible monuments. At least two burials with a very exclusive content have been excavated in the Klinta area. One contained a double burial where a man and a woman had been cremated. The womans grave contained a large quantity of exclusive grave goods including a large bronze pitcher from the Middle East and a scepter or rod usually connected to the female priestesses or cult leaders known as vǫlva. The second exclusive burial was found on the property now being developed and contained the cremated boat burial of a female dressed in a garment decorated with gold thread. The boat burial dates to the Vendel Period. When it comes to the Late Iron Age and Early Medieval period, Köpingsvik and Klinta are among the most exclusive sites on Öland.
In the Western property, Klinta 21:29, containing three large standing stones, the search trenches revealed several post holes and stone features. Among them a large cairn-like stone packing, on top of which were found a rivet and a small led weight. In the Eastern property, Klinta 21:30, the search trenches revealed many distinct and stone lined post holes along with a terrace like stone feature stretching through several trenches in the areas Northern side. Metal detector surveying turned up a large amount of metal finds from the Medieval period and onwards. A few older artifacts were also found, among them a West Slavic knife sheath decoration in bronze. On the Western property a small area in the North-Western corner was found to contain few ancient features. On the Eastern property its North-Eastern corner and side was found to contain few ancient features.
Luihin ja ytimiin - Tutkimuksia ja tulkintoja Euran Luistarin kalmistosta / I märg och ben - Studier och tolkningar kring Luistari gravfält i Eura, 2023
Etu-Sihvola, H., Moilanen, U. & Therus, J. (Eds). 2023. Luihin ja ytimiin - Tutkimuksia ja tulkin... more Etu-Sihvola, H., Moilanen, U. & Therus, J. (Eds). 2023. Luihin ja ytimiin - Tutkimuksia ja tulkintoja Euran Luistarin kalmistosta / I märg och ben - Studier och tolkningar kring Luistari gravfält i Eura. Turku: Sigillum.
Den yngre järnålderns gravskick i Uppland. Framväxten av den arkeologiska bilden och en materialitet i förändring. Aun 50, 2019
Dissertation presented at Uppsala University, Tuesday, 11 June 2019 for the degree of Doctor of P... more Dissertation presented at Uppsala University, Tuesday, 11 June 2019 for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy.
Full text PDF Link: http://uu.diva-portal.org/smash/record.jsf?pid=diva2%3A1304837&dswid=3468
Abstract
Therus, J. 2019. Den yngre järnålderns gravskick i Uppland. Framväxten av den arkeologiska bilden och en materialitet i förändring.
Aun 50. 452 pp. Uppsala: Uppsala universitet. ISBN 978-91-506-2762-6.
This thesis examines archaeological approaches to burials and changing mortuary practices during the Late Iron Age (c. 500-1100 AD) in central Eastern Sweden. Understanding the change in mortuary practices is fundamental to the study of the Late Iron Age. Our knowledge of burial customs is largely colored by 20th century studies of burial monuments, in particular the large mound, boat and chamber burials, which was often combined with analyses of Eddic and saga material. More recent excavations, however, have shown that burials are much more complex than previously thought.
This thesis comprises two parts. The first considers eight formative publications, written between 1904 and 2005, in order to examine the historiography of Iron Age burial archaeology. It explores the changing perception of graves and the archaeological practices documenting them. The impact of Björn Ambrosiani’s two-part model is considered as influential in shaping the definition of burials and their typology.
The second part of the thesis addresses the changing mortuary practices of the Late Iron Age and highlights several burial types and practices, centered on cremated bones and stones, which have not been sufficiently studied. Two major changes are identified during the period. The first comprises a move from dispersed to individual burials, while the second consists of a change from cremation to inhumation practices that coincides with the Christianization process. This part of the thesis features a number of case studies that illustrate the change in mortuary practices. Among the phenomena discussed are the stone structures called hǫrgr, the amulet rings commonly found in cremation burials and at older cultic sites, and the hybrid nature of Late Viking Age burials.
The study found that from the late 900s to the late 1000s, cremation and inhumation are practiced side by side in many burial grounds. The discussion introduces the concept of “bridging practices” – memory practices consciously connecting the past and the future, as a key to understanding the burials of the period. These bridging practices served to facilitate and normalize processes of change, and are argued to be the defining trait of Late Viking Age mortuary behavior.
Keywords: Late Iron Age, Viking Age, burial practice, bridging practice, monument gravity, historical gravity, grave, memory, hǫrgr, amulet ring, cosmology, cremation, Christianization, settlement archaeology, mortuary behaviour, dispersed burial
Link: http://uu.diva-portal.org/smash/record.jsf?pid=diva2%3A1304837&dswid=3468
During the autumn of 2013 Upplandsmuseet, in collaboration with SAU (Societas Archaeologica Upsal... more During the autumn of 2013 Upplandsmuseet, in collaboration with SAU (Societas Archaeologica Upsaliensis) investigated Burial ground 62 as well as parts of 127 and 227, Danmark Parish, in the southeast outskirts of Uppsala. The excavated features included a very large burial mound dating from the late 6th century CE, cremations from 700 – 1000 CE, and inhumations from the 10th to 13th centuries CE. Apart from purely archaeological methods, a number of assisting sciences and methods were utilised. When excavating skeletons we adopted a system of field anthropology. Apart from radiocarbon dating, a number were sampled for stable carbon and nitrogen isotopes. Osteology as well as macro fossil, wood anatomy and phosphate analyses were used. In addition a careful analysis of the different layers making up the mound and GIS-analysis were used to achieve a new and relevant understanding about burial customs and rituals, as well as social and religions conditions, both local regional, during a period of political and religious change. In the southeast edge of Burial grounds 62/127 we excavated a large burial mound 18,5 metres wide and 3 metres high and dating from the late 6th century CE. The funeral pyre had contained a grown male, accompanied by several horses, dogs, birds of prey, pigs and sheep. Artefacts were extremely fragmented by cremation, but among 800 grams of bronze we also found gilded objects with mounted garnets. Parts of a helmet, sword, shield as well as elaborate horse equipment were identified. Among other objects were imported glass, ceramics and whale bone gaming pieces. The mound had been erected in three phases, using clay from marine deposits, presumably from the lake that existed south of the area at the time. This lake was an important communication route for access to the Baltic coast as well as the inland communities of Gamla Uppsala, Valsgärde and Vendel, via various river systems. In the following centuries, the area around the mound was used as a burial ground. Four cremation burials dating from 700 – 1000 CE were excavated and found to be severely damaged by modern landscaping. Burial customs influenced by Christianity included inhumations and began to appear in the 10th century. Up until the 13th century 28 individuals were buried within the excavated parts of Burial grounds 62/127. They were of all ages and biological sexes. In the 12th century a further 12 individuals were buried within Burial ground 227. These early inhumations display great variety in terms of burial customs, body posture and body orientation. Individuals were buried with or without coffins. Very few artefacts were found in the graves. Isotope analysis indicated a substantial diet of fresh water fish. A very peculiar burial from the 12th or 13th century involved an individual who had been partially cremated in a body sized pit, along with both animals and objects.
The results of the investigation are discussed along the three areas within which new and important knowledge has been gained:
• Human lives – Skeletons and burnt bones. The conditions of people’s lives, health and diet are studied.
• Aristocratic environments – The large mound and the rune stone are discussed to highlight social structures in the Uppsala area during the Late Iron Age.
• Religious conversion – Rituals in an era of change. The long period of use provides an opportunity to generate new and relevant knowledge about burial rituals and the Christian conversion progress, as well as testing currently held views on the conversion in the region.
Lilla Vi - En studie av en järnåldersbygd. Michael Dahlin och Jhonny Therus. Stadsmuseet Näktergalen. Årsskrift 2014, 2014
Bokens innehåll har sin utgångspunkt i en rik vapengrav som undersöktes vid Lilla Vi i Djursdala ... more Bokens innehåll har sin utgångspunkt i en rik vapengrav som undersöktes vid Lilla Vi i Djursdala socken, Småland, på 1950-talet. Graven kan dateras till 200-300-talet e.Kr. Utifrån graven och gravfältet ger vi en inblick i bygdens förhistoria och livet under denna tid. Studieområdet består främst av Vimmerby kommun, men med utblickar i omgivande landskap och Europa. Genom att studera gravarna på kullen Lilla Vi kan vi nämligen se hur denna del av Småland var en del av något mycket större, där politik och långväga kontakter varit avgörande för områdets utveckling där exploateringen av utmarksprodukter, bl.a. järn, varit viktiga.
Luihin ja ytimiin - Tutkimuksia ja tulkintoja Euran Luistarin kalmistosta / I märg och ben - Studier och tolkningar kring Luistari gravfält i Eura. Etu-Sihvola, H., Moilanen, U. & Therus, J. (Eds). 2023. Turku: Sigillum., 2023, 2023
This paper, written in Swedish and Finnish, explore the complexities of authenticity in the diffe... more This paper, written in Swedish and Finnish, explore the complexities of authenticity in the different forms of historical reenactment or living history that are becoming more common, both the world of museums and as a hobby among the public.
An integral part of the Luistari web-project was the use of photography in cooperation with the public interested in reconstructing, and experience, parts of the past. This article discusses both the use of photography and the tangible effect of increased well-being among the participants in different forms of historical reenactment.
Luihin ja ytimiin - Tutkimuksia ja tulkintoja Euran Luistarin kalmistosta / I märg och ben - Studier och tolkningar kring Luistari gravfält i Eura. Etu-Sihvola, H., Moilanen, U. & Therus, J. (Eds). 2023. Turku: Sigillum., 2023
This article presents a survey of a particular kind of exclusive 11th Century bead and its distri... more This article presents a survey of a particular kind of exclusive 11th Century bead and its distribution around the Baltic Sea and the Scandinavian inland. The bead type is blue, often rectangular, with added rhomboid metal foil pieces and research shows it being produced in Byzantium, maybe even in Constantinople.
The survey is a pre-study concerning the possibility of using small artifacts, of this kind, to map trade networks and contact nodes in the landscape. It uses the Luistary cemetery, and its cultural and historical context, as a starting point, as several beads of this type is found in one of the richest burials in the cemetery. Beads of this type are found at points along only one of the Eastern trade routes and in a few distinct trading hubs and cemeteries in Finland and Sweden, particularly in Luistari and Sigtuna. But also, in a few instances, in the Swedish and Norwegian mountainous inland, pointing to the conclusion that the rather exclusive bead type can be used as an indicator for mapping the fur and antler trade networks as well as its starting and end points. The areas exploited for fur and antler on one end and where the exclusive beads were produced on the other.
The article is written in Swedish and Finnish.
Gjallarhornet, 2023
This paper is part one of a two part paper describing the first ten years of excavations at Sandb... more This paper is part one of a two part paper describing the first ten years of excavations at Sandby borg, Öland, Sweden, conducted by Museiarkeologi sydost, Kalmar läns museum. This part gives an overview of the first five years, 2010 – 2014, of the excavations.
Gjallarhornet 2022:3, 2022
2022 publicerade Riksantikvarieämbetet en utredning, "Uppdragsarkeologi – nuläge och utvecklingsb... more 2022 publicerade Riksantikvarieämbetet en utredning, "Uppdragsarkeologi – nuläge och utvecklingsbehov", rörande det uppdragsarkeologiska systemet i Sverige. Utredningen bygger på intervjuer med representanter från samtliga länsstyrelser, 29 olika undersökare, företrädare för Sveriges kommuner och regioner, samt Trafikverket.
Arkeologisk forskning och forskare är både ramverket, och en av de tre uttalade målgrupperna, för svensk uppdragsarkeologi. Föreliggande artikel är en inventering av när, och i vilka sammanhang, orden forskning och forskare förekommer i utredningen. Syftet med inventeringen är att ge underlag för vidare diskussion kring utredningen.
Artikelns inventering understryker bl.a. att det uppdragsarkeologiska systemet lider av en forskningsparadox, samt att det finns en tydlig dissonans inom systemet, med problem som påverkar alla aktörer och i slutändan det arkeologiska källmaterialets användbarhet för framtida forskning.
HILLERDAL, C., & ILVES, K. (Eds.). (2020). Re-imagining Periphery: Archaeology and Text in Northern Europe from Iron Age to Viking and Early Medieval Periods. Oxford; Philadelphia: Oxbow Books., 2020
Rebooting the Gospel for a Germanic audience -The case of Heliand. Charlemagne’s wars against, a... more Rebooting the Gospel for a Germanic audience -The case of Heliand.
Charlemagne’s wars against, and forced Christianization of, the Saxons at the end of the 8th century was a long and bloody affair. One of its legacies is Heliand the Saxon Gospel, a retelling of the life of Christ reimagined in a Saxon context and written in the Saxon language and the alliterative style of a Germanic epic poem. Written by a monk in the early 9th century with the purpose of making the Gospel understandable for the new Saxon converts it is a remarkable document showing us how the change in religions was facilitated and what parts of the Gospel the 9th century Saxons found puzzling as well as familiar.
Heliand is also contemporary with Ansgar, the Apostle of the North, and produced in the very same monastic environment from which he set out on his mission to the Swedes. The version of the Gospel conveyed in the Heliand is therefor very likely the same Gospel that was introduced to them.
This paper is a structural analysis of the Heliand, from the viewpoint of the Journey of Civilization, the ideal transformative journey of a Germanic hero. The structural analysis shows how the 9th century author of Heliand effortlessly transformed Odin into Christ and Christ into a Germanic Hero. Moreover, through the construction of this poem the author gives us a unique glimpse of the Christianization process in the Viking Age.
Forntid längs ostkusten 4. Blankaholmsseminariet 2012-2014.
Åren 1955 och 1956 genomförde amanuens K. G. Petersson en räddningsgrävning och undersökte delar ... more Åren 1955 och 1956 genomförde amanuens K. G. Petersson en räddningsgrävning och undersökte delar av ett gravfält på en kulle vid Lilla Vi utanför Vimmery. Det påträffade
gravmaterialet vittnade om en 3000 år lång period av begravningar. Denna artikel visar vad en närstudie av gammalt och opublicerat material kan avslöja för detaljer. Detaljer vilka i detta fall gav överraskande information kring kommunikation och kontakter.
Artikeln presenterar först platsen och undersökningen övergripande och avslutningsvis presenteras tre urskiljningsbara faser i gravläggandet, och områdets generella utveckling, tillsammans med en närstudie av tre av gravarna.
Populär arkeologi 3/2013
A popular article about the mass/ship graves found at Salme, Estonia, dating to 650-750 AD. The s... more A popular article about the mass/ship graves found at Salme, Estonia, dating to 650-750 AD. The ship burials are unique as they contained more than 40 dead and the larger of the two ships seems to be the earliest sailing ship found in the Baltic Sea region. Much of the information in the article comes from rescue excavation reports written by Marge Konsa and others.
Om makt och offer. Röster om centralmaktens utveckling i tiden före historien. Red. L. Karlenby. Riksantikvarieämbetet., 2007
This was a short presentation at the Yale Conference on Baltic and Scandinavian Studies SASS & AA... more This was a short presentation at the Yale Conference on Baltic and Scandinavian Studies SASS & AABS.
During the transition from the Viking age to the medieval era, when Sweden emerged as a Christian kingdom, we can observe a 300 year long period of acculturation or hybridity in the burial customs. At the advent of the 9th century A.D. the burial customs are distinctly pagan and cremation and burial grounds connected to individual farms are the norm, but around 1150 A.D. the area is fully incorporated into the European church structure.
Burial customs have always been a complex, and both inclusive as well as exclusive, practice in the Viking society. Today it is clear that during the transitional period a myriad of different burial customs exists side by side and that the change from a Pagan to a Christian church centered way is a decidedly local phenomenon where identity and the connection to the family ancestors were of the highest importance.
Only late in the Christianisation process did the “correct” burial custom become an important matter and how the change was handled varied widely. How far society had come in the adjustment to Christianity, as well as how the old burial practices was connected to the self-image of the local communities, came to influence the way in which the change took place profoundly. During this hybrid phase we can also observe how the grave changes from being a largely collective monument reserved for a selection of the population to storage places for individual bodies.
This paper aims to present ways in which this change took place.
This presentation focus on a structural analyses of Heliand, the old Saxon gospel, and its nature... more This presentation focus on a structural analyses of Heliand, the old Saxon gospel, and its nature as a acculturation poem. In Heliand the gospel is retold, and restructured, as a Germanic version of the journey of civilization and Christ portrayed as an ideal Germanic lord.
The presentation was given 2003.02.06 at Stefan Brinks SSESSoC-seminar.
A chronological and iconographic study of the runestones and early Christian grave monuments from... more A chronological and iconographic study of the runestones and early Christian grave monuments from Närke, Sweden, with the purpose of determine whether the stone material support the commonly held notion that Närke was culturally influenced from the Mälar Valley area during the Viking Age.
The presentation was given at the Hassle-seminar, arranged by the Riksantikvarieämbetet UV Bergslagen, 2004.
In 2019 an archaeological excavation was conducted at Snapperisskogen, west of Växjö, Småland. Th... more In 2019 an archaeological excavation was conducted at Snapperisskogen, west of Växjö, Småland. The area of the excavation was 35 acres and included 450 clearance cairns which were a part of a larger fossilized field with a length of about 1,5 kilometers. The site was typical for the Växjö area with prehistoric graves and settlements within the area of an agricultural system from Bronze and Early Iron Age.
The first visible traces of land use were from the Late Neolithic period when two gallery graves were erected. The stone cists contained grave goods as flint daggers, scrapers and other flint implements. After the Late Neolithic period the gallery graves were successively enlarged and transformed into grave cairns. The graves had been used for secondary burials during Bronze and Early Iron Age. The last burials and reshaping of the graves were made during the Migration period.
Other remains from the Late Neolithic period were scarce with only a few signs of settlement and possible agriculture. Pollen analysis showed that the area had been mostly covered by deciduous woods during this period, but with signs of grazing. The Late Bronze and the transition to Early Iron Age seems to have been a breakthrough period in the area. Many of the clearance cairns were dated to this period and hearths from this period were found in many parts of the excavation area. A post built long house with an adjacent smaller building was dated to this period. An unmarked grave close to the houses was also belonged to the same context. Pollen analysis confirmed agriculture and cattle breeding in the area. Finds of grains from the settlement and the grave showed that the composition of cereals was suited for both nutritious and poorer soils. Also, an analysis of stable nitrogen isotopes confirmed that some of the grains had grown on fertilized fields and other had been cultivated without fertilization.
The area was well used during the Late Roman Iron Age and the Migration Period. Five longhouses and one smaller building were dated to this period. Areas for cooking or preparation of food were found. The settlement activities were, compared to the earlier period, more concentrated to the vicinity of the houses. Remains of several houses were found close to one of the grave cairns. This probably marked the place of a stationary farmstead with three generations of longhouses. Two other longhouses were found in more distant and less cultivated parts of the area. A hypothesis is that the remains represent two farmsteads, one with a permanent location beside the grave cairn and one with a more mobile location. The farm with the distinct location close to the cairn may have had a socially superior position.
Very few finds or dating are connected to the time after Migration period. The building of new clearance cairns stopped even if the use of the arable land seems to have continued. Pollen analysis shows a change to a more open landscape dominated by grazing land. This change in land use is similar to other areas where farmland, settlements and gravefields are put into new positions within the frame of what is later known as an infield- outland system.
Keywords: prehistoric landscape, clearance cairns, gallery graves, Late Neolithic environment, grave cairns, Late Bronze Age settlement, Late Bronze Age agriculture, Late Roman Iron Age settlement, Migration period settlement, long term use of graves, long term change of land use.
Pukavikskogen. Gravar och boplatslämningar från stenålder, yngre bronsålder och äldre järnålder., 2014
This report documents the site Pukavikskogen, excavated as part of the E22 archaeological project... more This report documents the site Pukavikskogen, excavated as part of the E22 archaeological project in Blekinge, Sweden, 2011. The site contained settlement features, a small grave field with several low cairns and non burial constructions, cultural layers, and scattered artifacts and lithic material from the Mesolitic to the Early Iron Age.
It also contains a detailed investigation of the development of the Lake Vesan body of water from 9700 BCE to present day.
Arkeologisk rapport 2022:11. Museiarkeologi sydost. Kalmar läns museum, 2022
In the summer of 2020 Museiarkeologi sydost at Kalmar County Museum and Jönköping County Museum p... more In the summer of 2020 Museiarkeologi sydost at Kalmar County Museum and Jönköping County Museum performed an archaeological excavation at Nylanda/Öjaby, Öjaby parish, Småland.
The archaeological excavation concerned fossilised fields, settlements, graves and several large monumental stone constructions of a complex palimpsest nature. Four settlement areas and four burial and/or monumental areas were excavated, all of which lay within fossilised fields.
The first activities occur during the Early Neolithic period, including small grain cultivation. During the Neolithic two stone monuments are created, that are in use into the Late Iron Age. In the end becoming two large cairns, about 15 m in diameter, and 0.7–1 m high. Ending up as a burial cairn and a burnt mound. The burnt mound had few animal bones, pottery and stone objects, while the burial cairn contained glass beads, pottery and scattered bone material of both humans and animals. Both contained traces of ritual furrowing beneath the stone layers.
The excavation also encompassed a large scale mapping and analysis of the areas extensive fossilised fields, as well as a small grave field with stone settings from primarily the Late Bronze Age. Several of the graves contained urns with burnt bones. But this was often combined with scattered burnt bones. The grave field also had several visible construction phases, which in the end covered all the burials in an carpet of stones and scattered bones.
Language: Swedish
Authors: Andreas Emilsson, Kristina Jansson and Jhonny Thérus
With contributions by: Torbjörn Brorsson, Leif Björkman, Astrid Lennblad,
Sandra Lundholm and Tove Traneskog.
Gravar och boplatslämningar under Klinta radby. Arkeologisk rapport 2020:08., 2020
In January 2020 Museiarkeologi sydost conducted a trial trench evaluation on the properties Klint... more In January 2020 Museiarkeologi sydost conducted a trial trench evaluation on the properties Klinta 21:29 and 21:30 in Köpingsvik, Öland. The reason for the investigation was to find places on the properties where houses could be built without disturbing archaeological remains. Klinta village is situated on the ridge surrounding the Viking Age and Early Medieval trading site of Köpingsvik on the western coast of Öland. The site was an economic, religious and political center during the Viking Age and Early Medieval period, and much indicate that it was important long before that. The Medieval village of Klinta is situated on top of a large burial ground. Both cairns and standing stones are part of the visible monuments. At least two burials with a very exclusive content have been excavated in the Klinta area. One contained a double burial where a man and a woman had been cremated. The womans grave contained a large quantity of exclusive grave goods including a large bronze pitcher from the Middle East and a scepter or rod usually connected to the female priestesses or cult leaders known as vǫlva. The second exclusive burial was found on the property now being developed and contained the cremated boat burial of a female dressed in a garment decorated with gold thread. The boat burial dates to the Vendel Period. When it comes to the Late Iron Age and Early Medieval period, Köpingsvik and Klinta are among the most exclusive sites on Öland.
In the Western property, Klinta 21:29, containing three large standing stones, the search trenches revealed several post holes and stone features. Among them a large cairn-like stone packing, on top of which were found a rivet and a small led weight. In the Eastern property, Klinta 21:30, the search trenches revealed many distinct and stone lined post holes along with a terrace like stone feature stretching through several trenches in the areas Northern side. Metal detector surveying turned up a large amount of metal finds from the Medieval period and onwards. A few older artifacts were also found, among them a West Slavic knife sheath decoration in bronze. On the Western property a small area in the North-Western corner was found to contain few ancient features. On the Eastern property its North-Eastern corner and side was found to contain few ancient features.
Fiskväg förbi Torsrums damm. Arkeologisk rapport 2010:16, 2010
This report presents the results of a limited archive and field survey of the area centred around... more This report presents the results of a limited archive and field survey of the area centred around Torsrum dam and the 200 m around the area affected by the suggested construction of the fish migrating facility in “Alternativ 1, inlöp till torrfåran, Framtida förhållanden” in Bilaga 3. The purpose of the study is to decide whether the proposed construction will impact negatively on the cultural and historical values of the site. The surveyed area touches several areas of cultural and historical value, areas with prehistoric, medieval and early industrial links. Among others the church village Ålems old site and an area with several remains of mills, saws and walls with medieval roots. Construction according to “Alternativ 1” should, under certain conditions, be able to proceed without harming the cultural and historical values severely. Some remains and values will be damaged by the construction, but these are judged to be of minor importance and no further permissions and antiquarian actions should be necessary. The remains in the water could not be properly judged during the study.
The earlier research on Swedish conversion period burial practises had a simple view of the issue... more The earlier research on Swedish conversion period burial practises had a simple view of the issue. Largely influenced by the 19 th-century colonial mission and the burial practises of the high-and late Medieval periods the conversion was presented as one event which transformed the burial practices and the religion, almost instantly, as well as presenting the people of the time as passive recipients. Today we know that this is not the case. The period 900 – 1150 is now seen as a several hundred years long hybrid period of negotiations and reciprocal change affecting both religion and burial practises in different ways. By studying the burial practises of central Uppland, Sweden, we can see that the people of the time changed their practises slowly, with big local differences, and rather than being passive receivers they acted like picky consumers. The burial practises, which probably were seen as a private form of religious practise and not of immediate concern during the conversion, appear to be some of the last to change. This paper will present some interesting problems that are connected to the study of burial practices during this period, like the problem of the missing bones and the problem of the agency of the dead. It has long been a fact that during the Viking Age not all dead were given a burial we can identify today. And when archaeologists started to pay attention to cremated bones it became obvious that most burials never contained all the bones of the cremated individual, or accompanying animals, even if accidental loss was accounted for. The reason these bones are missing might be found in cosmogonic and ancestor venerating rituals. Also, the written sources inform us that some of the dead continued to have agency and their interaction with the living could be both beneficial and problematic. The ability of the dead to interact with the living seem to depend on the treatment of the body, giving rise to a problem growing with the increasing number of inhumations. This paper will also show some examples of how the change in burial practices took place. How what we would call a Christian inhumation burial practice slowly was introduced and normalised through the use of older practices anchoring the new in the past.
During the transition from the Viking age to the medieval era we can observe a 200 year long peri... more During the transition from the Viking age to the medieval era we can observe a 200 year long period of acculturation or hybridity in the burial customs. At the advent of the 10 th century A.D. the burial customs are distinctly pagan. Cremation and burial grounds connected to individual farms where the norm, but around 1150 A.D. the area is fully incorporated into the European church organisation. During the transitional period different burial customs exists side by side and the change from Pagan to Christian ways was a decidedly local phenomenon where identity and the connection to the family ancestors were essential. Only late in the Christianisation process did the " correct " burial custom become an important matter. How far society had come in the adjustment to Christianity, as well as how the old burial practises were connected to the self-image of the local communities came to influence the way in which the change took place profoundly. During this hybrid phase we can also observe how the grave changes from being a largely collective monument reserved for a selection of the population to a storage place for individual bodies.
It has long been a fact that during the Viking Age not all dead were given a burial we can identi... more It has long been a fact that during the Viking Age not all dead were given a burial we can identify today. When archaeologists started to pay attention to cremated bones from the visible burials it became obvious that most burials never contained all the bones of the cremated individual, or accompanying animals, even if accidental loss was accounted for. The reason these bones are missing might be found in cosmogonic and ancestor venerating rituals. This presentation looks at East Swedish cremation burials during the Viking Age and the problem of the missing bones. Scattered bones are suggested to be used to create a kind of monumental, or historical, gravitation creating a reciprocal entanglement between the living, the dead and the landscape as well as transforming space into place. It also questions two common archaeological notions, that burials are foremost containers for a dead body and that inhabited areas contain a random scatter of cremated bones.
Burial archaeology usually approaches graves as expressions of different traditions, cultures or ... more Burial archaeology usually approaches graves as expressions of different traditions, cultures or religions. Graves and burials may be classified as types within chronological sequences, and the phenomena which do not fit in these types are often regarded as deviant or disregarded completely. Today, there is an increasing interest in previously overlooked phenomena and a questioning of the older models regarding what burials are supposed to be. The burial customs of the Viking World are often described as homogenous, but at the same time they are considered to be influenced by local practices. Mortuary customs are complex, incorporating a wide range of practices representing commemoration, necromancy, divination, and sociogenic rituals.
In this session the focus will be on the complexity of burial practices in the Viking World and the new ways to find, analyze, and interpret them, as new approaches and methods may shatter old pre-conceptions of what a grave should be like in a certain context. How can the deviant or previously disregarded phenomena be explained, why can we not find all the burials or bones in the graves we find, and what other factors affected the burial than religion or belief systems? The emphasis is on how burial customs change, and are used to facilitate change, in the meeting between religions, between cultures and in new environments. We welcome papers dealing with Scandinavian material as well as research on contemporaneous burials in the geographical areas influenced by the Nordic cultures: Finland, Baltic countries, Russia, and the British Isles.
Gjallarhornet, 2023
This paper gives a summary of the seminar on digital documentation in a contract archaeology exca... more This paper gives a summary of the seminar on digital documentation in a contract archaeology excavations context hosted by the Swedish National Heritage Board (Riksantikvarieämbetet) on April 27, 2023. It also presents some of the conclusions reached during the days discussions.
![Research paper thumbnail of Tuokiokuvia rautakaudelta: Menneisyyden elävöitys, ennallistukset ja autenttisuuden ongelmat [Ögonblicksbilder från järnåldern: Reenactment, rekonstruktioner och problemet med autencitet]](https://attachments.academia-assets.com/120789189/thumbnails/1.jpg)
](Luihin ja ytimiin - Tutkimuksia ja tulkintoja Euran Luistarin kalmistosta [I märg och ben - Studier och tolkningar kring Luistari gravfält i Eura], 2023
Moilanen, U. & Therus, J. 2023. Tuokiokuvia rautakaudelta: menneisyyden elävöitys, ennallistukset... more Moilanen, U. & Therus, J. 2023. Tuokiokuvia rautakaudelta: menneisyyden elävöitys, ennallistukset ja autenttisuuden ongelmat [Ögonblicksbilder från järnåldern: Reenactment, rekonstruktioner och problemet med autencitet]. In: H. Etu-Sihvola, U. Moilanen & J. Therus (Eds.) Luihin ja ytimiin - Tutkimuksia ja tulkintoja Euran Luistarin kalmistosta [I märg och ben - Studier och tolkningar kring Luistari gravfält i Eura]: 381–398. Turku: Sigillum.