Awesome study trip today ¤3¤/
Sep. 10th, 2012 08:48 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
stalkerbunnyWe went to various locations at Adelsö, which is an island in the Lake Mälaren. Our guide was an archaelogist, who had actually found some of the things on the sites we visited, and had very definite theories on things he talked about, which I'm going to take with a grain of salt (though they were quite convincing theories, as far as I can tell).
First site was Stenby hillforth from younger Roman iron age/migration period. It was a large-ish forth built on top of a hill, with walls made of piled up stones surrounding it, with a gateway on both sides. These hillforths were previously (and still by some) believed to be defensive structures, but your guide said it's more likely they had a more symbolical function.
Apparently, they're often not actually very good as a defensive structure, and in excavations offerings have been found just outside the front gateway. According to this theory, the hillforths were meant to be a sort of a model of Asgård, with Roman influence showing in the wall building. They might have been used to gather together men who were about to leave on a journey to make war in far away countries, both to help them bond together (possibly by working together in building the aforementioned wall), get into an appropriate mindset and feel that the gods were on their side.
From inside the hillforth.
These forths are also often built in places with an impressive view of the surrounding area, which would be suiting for a gathering place.
Ourside the forth, there is a (partially much later) grave field from both older and younger iron age (so called Viking age), filled with grave mounds. In the graves from the time of the Asa beliefs, there is often found only a part of cremated remains, the theory being that the other parts were scattered into other elements (water, air etc.) to reflect the earth's creation from the slain body of Ymir. Not all the dead were cremated or got grave mounds, however, it might have been only the most important people/ancestors of families.
There were some differences in the mounds from different eras. If I understood right, one change is that older grave mounds are often lower as their main purpose was to bind the forces in the mound inside it, whereas later the mounds came to be used as proof of the continuity of families and the land they owned.
In part because of this, grave mounds continued to be made even some time after most of the people had converted to Christianity. Conversely, as the habit waned and the dead were instead buried on church yards, the Church eventually became one of the biggest land owners via donations from families who could no longer prove their ownership.
Grave mounds were especially important to kings who were starting or continuing a dynasty. The next site we visited had (at least) four large mounds, which belonged to the royalty at Birka, which was an important trading site in 750-970 AD). On the other side of the road from both mounds there is a more lower but otherwise as large mound, one of which has a round stone in the middle. This indicates that the lower mounds are likely the graves of the queens of the kings buried in the mound next to them. Previously, one was believed to be a gathering mound, whereas the other had not been noted, until our guide found the round stone in the middle of it. We noted that the queen's mounds weren't mentioned on the information board at the site, but apparently our guide has a friend in an appropriate place so that might change at some point.
According to him, the grave mounds of important women are usually found next to the graves of their husbands, and while men's graves are often decorated with a raised stone, women's graves instead have a round stone on them. Asa belief was centered around a belief that opposing forces (male vs. female, Asa Gods vs. Giants etc.) should be in balance, mixing them was dangerous, and one winning over the other would mean the end of everything. There are indications that at one point Freya was a goddess of war, Odin's female equivalent. Dead warriors could find their final destination either at Freya's åker or Odin's sal as his warriors.
Interestingly in later sites of Asa beliefs, especially in the area of Svear where Frey/r (not to be confused with Freya, this is a guy) was the most important deity, as opposed to Odin who was the main guy för Götar, have been found many small golden votive pictures portraying a male and female figure who are embracing. Sometimes the male figure seems to be standing on tiptoe. There is a theory that these are Freyr and giantess/jötunn Gerðr, whose marriage might have been a symbol of a unification or peace between Asa and Jötnar. Their son was also believed to be the forefather of the ruler of Svear.
Besides the grave mounds, at the second site there is also a runestone raised in 1060 by order of Jarl Stenkil who planned to make the site an important leidang harbour after it's importance had otherwise waned but was still in memory, but those plans fell through due to his death soon after, and the man who Stenkil had entrusted to see to the completion of them, Håkon, returned to Norway to demand the crown there, as the King, Harald Hårdråde had recently died while trying to take over England (as it turned out, Håkon was not of a good enough family to take kingship, but his wife was so their son could seek it).
Even later, in 1200s, a palace was built on the same place as a royal longhouse had stood in Birka era, a palace was raised to be used in a meeting where new leaders who had fought and won against the older, more traditional royalty, Folkungar, wished to establish their power (they also took their name, which seemed to be a thing in those days). This was called the Alsnö meeting and was in some ways a starting point for Sweden as it became to be. The old traditions were gradually abandoned for good, and the new capital, Stockholm, closed off the rest of the country from freely travelling for trade or war. Once the palace used for the meeting had served it's purpose, it was abandoned soon after, and the area was left alone again.
Views from the site of the roayal longhouse in 8th century and Palace in 1200s, and it's remains.
(Yes, there were cows walking freely all over the area. Sheep as well.)
Lastly, just some general pictures of the area.
A cafe/store.
The last site was at Helgö, which has remains/graves from the Bronze age sun cult, and later from Iron age, when it was both a burial and a handcraft site. Handcraft and medicine (surgical instruments have also been found) were considered to be magical and possibly even potentially dangerous endeavours (notably, in old Norse myths skilled craftsmen are often Dwarves or Jötnar). When the site was eventually abandoned, it was "closed up" by leaving sacrificial objects (precious foreign objects such as a Irish Christian carving, an Indian Buddha statue and and Egyptian scoop which were found later) and a triangle made of stones laid on the ground.
The grave mounds behind the area likely used for craftwork and/or ceremonies, there is a area with grave mounds (likely for craftsmen, and thus relatively small) and on the large hill behind THIS is situated the Bronze age burial hill. In that period, religion was centered on the sun, and the dead were often left outside at special places, first around or on/in circles or piles of stone (gravröse), often on the highest point of the hill such as here, and later on the entire hill, which was surrounded by a symbolical wall to keep the spirits on the other side of it.
Pile, on the highest point
circle, on the second highest point, probably later.
Remains of the wall.
All in all, it was a great trip. Maybe I just have an overactive imagination, but I find places like this fascinating, despite how little there is to actually see sometimes. Besides, if nothing else, the nature was very impressive, and the weather lovely. I also kind of got to know some people in my class better and got practice speaking Swedish. Excellent.
First site was Stenby hillforth from younger Roman iron age/migration period. It was a large-ish forth built on top of a hill, with walls made of piled up stones surrounding it, with a gateway on both sides. These hillforths were previously (and still by some) believed to be defensive structures, but your guide said it's more likely they had a more symbolical function.
Apparently, they're often not actually very good as a defensive structure, and in excavations offerings have been found just outside the front gateway. According to this theory, the hillforths were meant to be a sort of a model of Asgård, with Roman influence showing in the wall building. They might have been used to gather together men who were about to leave on a journey to make war in far away countries, both to help them bond together (possibly by working together in building the aforementioned wall), get into an appropriate mindset and feel that the gods were on their side.
From inside the hillforth.
These forths are also often built in places with an impressive view of the surrounding area, which would be suiting for a gathering place.
Ourside the forth, there is a (partially much later) grave field from both older and younger iron age (so called Viking age), filled with grave mounds. In the graves from the time of the Asa beliefs, there is often found only a part of cremated remains, the theory being that the other parts were scattered into other elements (water, air etc.) to reflect the earth's creation from the slain body of Ymir. Not all the dead were cremated or got grave mounds, however, it might have been only the most important people/ancestors of families.
There were some differences in the mounds from different eras. If I understood right, one change is that older grave mounds are often lower as their main purpose was to bind the forces in the mound inside it, whereas later the mounds came to be used as proof of the continuity of families and the land they owned.
In part because of this, grave mounds continued to be made even some time after most of the people had converted to Christianity. Conversely, as the habit waned and the dead were instead buried on church yards, the Church eventually became one of the biggest land owners via donations from families who could no longer prove their ownership.
Grave mounds were especially important to kings who were starting or continuing a dynasty. The next site we visited had (at least) four large mounds, which belonged to the royalty at Birka, which was an important trading site in 750-970 AD). On the other side of the road from both mounds there is a more lower but otherwise as large mound, one of which has a round stone in the middle. This indicates that the lower mounds are likely the graves of the queens of the kings buried in the mound next to them. Previously, one was believed to be a gathering mound, whereas the other had not been noted, until our guide found the round stone in the middle of it. We noted that the queen's mounds weren't mentioned on the information board at the site, but apparently our guide has a friend in an appropriate place so that might change at some point.
According to him, the grave mounds of important women are usually found next to the graves of their husbands, and while men's graves are often decorated with a raised stone, women's graves instead have a round stone on them. Asa belief was centered around a belief that opposing forces (male vs. female, Asa Gods vs. Giants etc.) should be in balance, mixing them was dangerous, and one winning over the other would mean the end of everything. There are indications that at one point Freya was a goddess of war, Odin's female equivalent. Dead warriors could find their final destination either at Freya's åker or Odin's sal as his warriors.
Interestingly in later sites of Asa beliefs, especially in the area of Svear where Frey/r (not to be confused with Freya, this is a guy) was the most important deity, as opposed to Odin who was the main guy för Götar, have been found many small golden votive pictures portraying a male and female figure who are embracing. Sometimes the male figure seems to be standing on tiptoe. There is a theory that these are Freyr and giantess/jötunn Gerðr, whose marriage might have been a symbol of a unification or peace between Asa and Jötnar. Their son was also believed to be the forefather of the ruler of Svear.
Besides the grave mounds, at the second site there is also a runestone raised in 1060 by order of Jarl Stenkil who planned to make the site an important leidang harbour after it's importance had otherwise waned but was still in memory, but those plans fell through due to his death soon after, and the man who Stenkil had entrusted to see to the completion of them, Håkon, returned to Norway to demand the crown there, as the King, Harald Hårdråde had recently died while trying to take over England (as it turned out, Håkon was not of a good enough family to take kingship, but his wife was so their son could seek it).
Even later, in 1200s, a palace was built on the same place as a royal longhouse had stood in Birka era, a palace was raised to be used in a meeting where new leaders who had fought and won against the older, more traditional royalty, Folkungar, wished to establish their power (they also took their name, which seemed to be a thing in those days). This was called the Alsnö meeting and was in some ways a starting point for Sweden as it became to be. The old traditions were gradually abandoned for good, and the new capital, Stockholm, closed off the rest of the country from freely travelling for trade or war. Once the palace used for the meeting had served it's purpose, it was abandoned soon after, and the area was left alone again.
Views from the site of the roayal longhouse in 8th century and Palace in 1200s, and it's remains.
(Yes, there were cows walking freely all over the area. Sheep as well.)
Lastly, just some general pictures of the area.
A cafe/store.
The last site was at Helgö, which has remains/graves from the Bronze age sun cult, and later from Iron age, when it was both a burial and a handcraft site. Handcraft and medicine (surgical instruments have also been found) were considered to be magical and possibly even potentially dangerous endeavours (notably, in old Norse myths skilled craftsmen are often Dwarves or Jötnar). When the site was eventually abandoned, it was "closed up" by leaving sacrificial objects (precious foreign objects such as a Irish Christian carving, an Indian Buddha statue and and Egyptian scoop which were found later) and a triangle made of stones laid on the ground.
The grave mounds behind the area likely used for craftwork and/or ceremonies, there is a area with grave mounds (likely for craftsmen, and thus relatively small) and on the large hill behind THIS is situated the Bronze age burial hill. In that period, religion was centered on the sun, and the dead were often left outside at special places, first around or on/in circles or piles of stone (gravröse), often on the highest point of the hill such as here, and later on the entire hill, which was surrounded by a symbolical wall to keep the spirits on the other side of it.
Pile, on the highest point
circle, on the second highest point, probably later.
Remains of the wall.
All in all, it was a great trip. Maybe I just have an overactive imagination, but I find places like this fascinating, despite how little there is to actually see sometimes. Besides, if nothing else, the nature was very impressive, and the weather lovely. I also kind of got to know some people in my class better and got practice speaking Swedish. Excellent.
