Recensioner Fornvännen 2013(108):1 S. 60-72 Ingår I: Samla.Raa.Se Rec

Recensioner Fornvännen 2013(108):1 s. 60-72 http://kulturarvsdata.se/raa/fornvannen/html/2013_litt_a Ingår i: samla.raa.se Rec. 60–72:Layout 1 13-03-06 14.32 Sida 60

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Hollingstedt an der Treene. Ein Flusshafen der Wi- nied by some minor test trenches in the dyke kingerzeit und des Mittelalters für den Transitverkehr foreland, systematic coring and geophysics. The zwischenNord-undOstsee. Ed. Klaus Brandt. Schrif- fieldwork uncovered two successive open piling tendesArchäologischenLandesmuseums10.Neu- platforms measuring c. 13 by 7 m and c. 8 by 5 m münster 2012. 416 pp. ISBN 978-3-529-01811-4. respectively, a c. 10 m wide moist river bank rein- forced partly with wickerwork and partly with This anthology deals with the so-called North gravel, and a shoreline fortification towards the Sea harbour of Hedeby and Schleswig: Holling- eastern river channel. The older of the two plat- stedt, the departure port at the portage across the forms – in preparation for whose construction an Schleswig isthmus at the base of Jutland. It sum- older cultural layer was moved – dates from the marises the main results of the research project winter of 1161–62. Interestingly, five mooring “Hollingsted – Schwabsted. Medieval Settlement poles along the western river channel were also Development in the Eider-Treene Area” (1995– recorded in one of the trial trenches (site 1995/5). 98), funded by the German Research Foundation The discussion of the water level, depth and shift- (DFG).Alsoitlargelycompletestheacademiclife’s ing channels of the Treene at the still tidal-influ- work of the excavator and former vice director of enced inland landing site is exemplary and indis- the Archaeological State Museum Schleswig-Hol- pensable for any interpretation of a harbour site. stein,KlausBrandt,whoretiredin2004.Thebook With these considerations a function for the ties in with another volume on Hollingstedt pub- platforms as jetties can be excluded: they must be lishedintheHedebyreportseries(Hoffmannetal. treated as solid accesses to landing sites. 1987, Hollingstedt – Untersuchungen zum Nordsee- Pieces of charcoal and burnt daub suggest the hafen von Haithabu/Schleswig, Neumünster). The existence of buildings on the platforms, though present publication contains five papers: one on quite how these were built on a detached piling the archaeological features of the river port, one bridge foundation is not clarified. On the higher on caulking cramps (sintels) used in the cog ship- part of the 1996 site were traces of two houses, a building tradition, one on the animal bones and well and wheel tracks from the later 11th century two brief Dutch contributions that round out the onward. The artefact finds from the 1995/1–2 site volume. The latter deal with a flood canal from are exclusively Medieval and Early Modern, but 1600 and with the post-Medieval surface lower- the 1996 site also yielded some Viking Period ing of the river valley due to damming and drain- material, e.g. a cubical padlock, a soapstone ves- ing. Each paper has an English summary. sel sherd and two glass beads. The oldest coin, a The central paper by excavator Brandt pres- stray find made in 1938, is a denier of the East ents the results of the first modern excavations at Franconian king Louis the Child (900–911). Hollingstedt after Herbert Jankuhn’s trial trench- The excavation at Fünf Schwaden on a minor ing in 1932/33 and a river regulation in 1938. It is brook emptying into the Treene was opened at a subdivided into excavations at Lahmenstraat on place where imported tuff from the Eifel region the shore of the River Treene in 1995–96, at Fünf had been found already in 1960/61: another point Schwaben at the brook Süderwiesenbach in 1998 of embarkation was expected here. The crucial and surveys in the apse of St. Nicholas’ church dur- survey map fig. 18 is unfortunately printed six ing construction work in 1995. The Lahmenstraat pages before the beginning of the relevant sub- excavation consisted basically of two main sitesof chapter. The main trench of 244 m2 (site 1998/3 253 & 260 m2 behind the Treene dyke, separated with trial trench 1998/1) uncovered a shallow by the eponymous street. They were accompa- backwater that would only have been navigable

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Recensioner 61 during flooding events, even with flat-bottom context it cannot be excluded that hybrid vessels lighters. Numerous finds of tuff and Rhenish such as the Kollerup cog may have been built in pottery indicate a rather muddy landing site of Schleswig. The crucial development from coastal the later 12th century located north of the trench. proto-cog to ocean-going ship may in fact have Though there were post holes and scattered tim- taken place there. bers – interpreted as catwalks – no harbour facil- Dirk Heinrich's paper on the animal bones ity was found here. treats finds from Lahmenstraat 1996 and Fünf The tuff-built church of St. Nicholas is situat- Schwaden 1998. It summarises and re-evaluates ed on the outskirts of the village of Hollingstedt the results of three theses presented at the zoo- in the immediate vicinity of the Lahmenstraat logical department at the University of Kiel site. 17th century sources refer to it as a “ware- between 2001 and 2003. These studies aimed to house of the English”. Nevertheless, surveys show- infer on-site activities: the supply of dockers, ed clearly that it was not a rededicated building, seamen and waggoners at the portage with meat, but built as a church on a c. 35 cm thick culture the question if animals were kept and slaughtered layer from its very beginning in the later 12th cen- on-site or imported as butcher products, and tury. It probably catered to the spiritual needs of whether draught animals can be identified. Both overseas seamen and merchants, while a second find complexes contained more than 99% domes- church served the local population. ticated mammal bones, of which more than half Eike Siegloff's paper is based on a diploma represent cattle. While an absence of calves indi- thesis presented at the university of Kiel in 2004. catesoff-sitecattlebreeding,thehighageatslaugh- It deals with sintels, ship caulking cramps, from ter suggests labour or milk production rather the isthmus of Schleswig. The finds from Hol- than meat supply as the main aim of the hus- lingstedt are by far the largest collection from a bandry. An interpretation of the cattle as draught settlement site in Germany. Apart from 56 iron animals is supported by a sex ratio of 17:10 in clench nails from clinker-built vessels in the Anglo- favour of bulls or oxen at Lahmenstraat, and by Scandinavian shipbuilding tradition, it is partic- certain pathological alterations due to heavy ularly the 191 sintels and fragments that docu- wear on the limb muscles etc. ment the presence of ships in the “Kollerup-Bre- It is a credit to the persistent dedication of the men tradition”, or put more simply, early cogs. excavator and editor that this book is now avail- On the basis of Karel Vliermann’s typology for able, adding important information on the mod- sintels, Siegloff develops a new refined one. The ern excavations in Hollingstedt and about the Viking Period phase in Hollingstedt is again sup- character of the site. It also rehabilitates Holling- ported by a high frequency of type 1A cramps, dat- stedt's recently questioned active status in the ing roughly from 900 to 1100. In the 10th centu- Viking Period. Note though that some of the ma- ry strata on the higher part of the Lahmenstraat terial has been available before through more com- 1995 site, rivets and sintels appear side by side. prehensive articles (in Haithabu und die frühe From c. 1100 the shipyard activities then shift to Stadtentwicklung im nördlichen Europa, 2002; and the lower-lying part of the site, and produce Es war einmal ein Schiff, 2007). Other important exclusively caulking cramps. However, the Scan- studies, such as Jörg Nowotny’s 1995 diploma dinavian boat-building tradition ended only in thesis on the chronologically important pottery the 12th century. A clever comparison with finds from Hollingstedt-Lahmenstraat, are referenced from Hollingstedt’s departure port Schleswig but did not make it into the volume. The same is (the Schleswig-Schild excavation of 1971–75) true for Hans Rudolf Bordemann’s 2008 master's shows that here – but notably not already in thesis that confirms that the Danevirke did not Hedeby – the typologically earliest sintels of the originally end at the village of Morgenstern in its Baltic sea appear. This suggests that about 1100 western extension, as it does today, but indeed the Frisian cog shipbuilding tradition entered once stretched all the way to Hollingstedt and the the Baltic via the Schleswig isthmus and the river Treene. Finally it is unfortunate that the portage from Hollingstedt to Schleswig. In this discussion of transit traffic across the portage –

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62 Recensioner laudably bringing up its western extension along språket är medeltida. Språket är en sentida bland- the river Eider towards the Wadden Sea, dis- ning av svenska, norska och engelska, med andra cussing settlement mounds, hoards and further ord sentida invandrarspråk. notional transshipment sites – almost disregards Vem hade då huggit in runorna? Forskningen structural comparison with its departure ports at har fortsatt eftersom en och annan – särskilt lek- the Baltic side of the isthmus (cf. Kalmring 2010, män – hävdar att inskriften är äkta. Mats G. Lars- Der Hafen von Haithabu; and Hilberg et al. 2012, son sammanfattar dessa studier i sin bok och läg- Zwischen Wikingern und Hanse, p. 69 f). ger upp den som en detektivgåta. Vi får steg för There is narrow-spectrum artefactual evidence steg följa hur gärningsmannen ringas in för att for a Viking Period phase of use at Hollingstedt. till slut bindas vid sin gärning med avgörande be- But the absence of Viking Period harbour facili- vis, nämligen sin egen skriftliga bekännelse, skri- ties there should be seen against the background ven med chiffer på själva stenen. Forskningsar- of massive harbour development in Hedeby in betet tog drygt ett århundrade. the 890s. Even assuming that different types of Öhman fanns givetvis bland de misstänkta vessels called at the two ports, one might con- från början. Han var lantbrukare men visade sig clude that in fact not all of the North Sea and ha varit bokligt bildad och intresserad av allehan- Continental trade headed for Hedeby can exclu- da. Inte minst ägnade han sig åt runor, som han ris- sively have gone through Hollingstedt. It proba- tade på väggar, fönsterbågar och magasinsbygg- bly arrived via other routes as well, such as Ham- nader. Tillsammans med den försupne prästen burg and the overland route Ochsenweg/Hærve- Sven Fogelblad och farmaren Anders Andersson jen. However, regardless of any criticism, the pub- bildade han en treklöver av märkliga män, som lication on Hollingstedt fills an important gap on hade det gemensamt, att de var besatta just av the bookshelf, and allows the site to step out of runor. Man hade alltså tre skäligen misstänkta. the shadows, as it were, of its overpowering con- Larsson har en lång utveckling att beskriva. temporaries Hedeby and Schleswig. As such it is Han skriver fängslande och medryckande. Fram- warmly appreciated! ställningen är lättfattlig men har ändå mycket att ge även åt forskare. Men hur är det nu med den Sven Kalmring skyldige? Det blev Larsson förunnat att efter drygt Arkeologiska forskningslaboratoriet ett århundrade kunna lägga fram de bindande be- Stockholms universitet visen. Wallenberglaboratoriet Han visar att ö-runan på stenen är ett vanligt SE–106 91 Stockholm ö med en n-runa inuti. Runan kan läsas som Ön, [email protected] namnet på det hemman som gav namn åt släkten Öhman. Den kan även läsas som Ö-n, en förkort- ning av släktnamnet Öhman. Med hjälp av in- skriftens många siffror får Larsson fram ett kodat Mats G. Larsson, Kensington 1898, Runfyndet som budskap: »Öhmans fann [underförstått stenen]. gäckadevärlden. Stockholm 2012. 189 s. ISBN 978- Vi vedade [d.v.s. högg eller skaffade ved] ved 91-7353-586-1. [d.v.s. vid] sten[en].» Efter drygt ett århundrade är Öhman bunden vid sin gärning. År 1898 visade svenskamerikanen Olof Öhman Kanske tycker man att det är beklagligt att (eller Ohman), bosatt i Kensington i Minnesota, lärda människor under ett århundrade har sysslat upp en runsten, som han skulle ha funnit under med forskning kring en uppenbar förfalskning. rötterna på ett träd på sina ägor. Inskriften berät- Den som läser Larssons bok får dock säkerligen tar att åtta göter och 22 norrmän skulle ha varit en annan syn på saken. Forskningen har tillfört på platsen under en upptäcktsfärd år 1362. Om mycken kunskap i allsköns ämnen vid sidan av detta hade varit sant, skulle inskriften ha varit en huvudämnet. Vi har fått en inblick i utvandrar- av de äldsta källorna till USA:s historia, men in- nas värld och deras ibland överraskande stora kun- skriften är en förfalskning. Varken runorna eller skaper. Olof Öhman är en intressant personlig-

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Recensioner 63 het i - eller kanske på grund av – all sin egensin- dence of the recent past offers scholars a perspec- nighet och oberäknelighet. Han är väl värd att tive on history that can differ considerably from lära känna. Forskningen kring stenen har gett oss that based on written documents and dominant ännu ett exempel på hur gamla misstag kan leva history-writing. The different nature or even con- vidare på grund av en tro trots allt, fastän sak- tradistinction of so-called “big” and “small” his- skälen redan från början var så starka att alla tories is critical here. Material evidence is frequent- klarsynta borde ha insett att detta var en förfalsk- ly the only way to reach the small narrative, that is, ning. Slutligen har vi fått lära oss tidigare okända the history experienced by individuals and fami- runor och tidigare okända sätt att skriva siffror. lies who did not play crucial roles in big history. Dessa runor från Kensingtonstenen var näm- Burström has particularly emphasized the abil- ligen tidigare okända för forskningen. De blev kän- ity of contemporary archaeology to provide inter- da från annan källa först 2002. Det är verkligen pretations with an emotional dimension. Things häpnadsväckande att svensk-amerikaner på Min- enable people to recall memories of their own nesotas landsbygd kände till runor som var okän- lives or those of their loved ones, they re-create da för de lärde och förblev så i ytterligare ett år- feelings, and can therefore even have a therapeu- hundrade. Hela denna historia är en påminnelse tic effect. Things can generate a special relation- om att vi bör forska mer om sentida runinskrif- ship between a person and his previous life, or ter. Även dessa har mycket att ge. Kunskaperna between him and his dear ones, thus acquiring a hör kanske hemma i kulturhistoriens utkanter, symbolic value considerably higher than ordi- men även där finns som synes lärdomar att hämta. nary memory. The phenomenon is well demon- strated by the cases in Burström’s book, where Lars Gahrn families have regained things that were once hid- Mölndals stadsmuseum den. SE–431 82 Mölndal Mostofthebookistakenupbyanintroduction [email protected] to recent Estonian history and narratives about buried artefacts. The overview of theoretical approaches is regrettably short, perhaps because Bur- ström published a proper handbook of contem- Mats Burström, Minnesgömmor. Berättelser om före- porary archaeology in 2007: Samtidsarkeologi:intro- mål gömda i jorden i Estland under andra världskri- duktion till ett forskingsfält. A greater concern, how- get. Lund 2012. 125 pp. ISBN 978-91-85509-72-0. ever, is the brevity of the final, analytical chapter. 23 stories of hidden treasures could have led up to Mats Burström is one of the the best-known scho- a much more thorough discussion than is given in lars practicing contemporary archaeology in Scan- the last nine pages of the book. It is largely left to dinavia. It is still a rather new approach in the the reader to reflect upon interpretations of the Nordic countries, although in other parts of the evidence presented. world, notably in the US and UK, it has been pur- An interesting aspect is the uneven distribu- sued for several decades. In Estonia, the country tion of knowledge about burying possessions, that Burström’s book deals with, the field is well- described in chapter 3. This demonstrates the un- known in theory but hardly practised at all. avoidable subjectivity of interpretations. Being The subject of contemporary archaeology is Estonian, I grew up knowing that in times of the material evidence of the recent past or nearly emergency belongings can be buried in the earth, our present day, viewed through the lense of and that this had been widely practised during archaeological attitudes. It is an approach over- and after World War II. I was surprised to learn lapping several disciplines – e.g. cultural history, from Burström’s book that such behaviour might traditional archaeology, ethnology – and is in my be considered unusual and even fascinating in opinion closest to studies of material culture in some countries or by some observers. The intrigu- socio-cultural anthropology. ing question is how such differences in cultural The study of archaeological (or material) evi- background might influence the interpretation

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64 Recensioner of archaeological material, especially when com- these belongings have a value contacted the re- paring academic discussion in different countries. searcher? Iwouldhaveexpectedatleastsomecom- Most of Burström’s informants have similar parative material and a discussion of these issues. backgrounds – an absolute majority fled Estonia Scholars in contemporary archaeology often at the end of World War II, and have since lived emphasise the independent character of their field in various Western countries. Owners of buried – it functions in its own right. The main aim is possessions who stayed in Estonia are represent- not to develop models for interpreting the more ed, but only with a few cases – although their distance past, as in ethno-archaeology. I however actual number was hardly smaller than that of do not entirely agree with this. Burström’s book those who fled. Many or even most of them could triggers associations and points to possible ways not dig up their belongings either, at least not of interpreting archaeological material that is much shortly after the war. During the Soviet occupa- older than the past few centuries. That is true even tion it was dangerous or impossible to search for without an obvious intention on the author’s part buried belongings in confiscated houses and lands, – one reference to the widespread interpretation and later it became complicated to locate the buri- of prehistoric hoards as ritual deposits being the ed goods. Houses were destroyed, sites became only exception. This line of reasoning is not devel- covered by new buildings or roads. In short, the oped further. obstacles were similar for both groups. I am one of those who often ponder parallels Although I am certainly also influenced by with recent times when interpreting much older my personal background (I too have tried to find archaeological evidence. Reading this book raised tableware buried by my family towards the end of a question about the selection of artefacts buried the last war, unfortunately without success), it when owners were fleeing. As the examples in does appear likely that much of what was hidden Burström’s book demonstrate, the belongings during the war, and was not accessible soon after- buried were in most cases not among the most wards, was never even looked for again. Particu- valuable of the family’s possessions. Jewellery and larly in cases when it was hard to find the exact money were normally brought along, presumab- spot. The main reason, however, seems to be that ly because of their high commercial and therefore the hidden belongings were rarely very valuable. also practical value, and their portability. Mainly, Even their emotional value was often probably things with great emotional significance or com- not great enough to justify the trouble of search- paratively high value but large size or weight were ing for them – which contradicts Burström’s con- buried. What new interpretive possibilities for clusions. However, small histories are charac- prehistoric and early historic deposits can we see terised by their great variability. here? Can it be that people escaping hostilities Thesymbolicvalueofburiedbelongings,how- tried, for practical reasons, to take with them valu- ever, might not be the same to someone living in ables like jewellery and coins, as well as weapons, Estonia as to someone living in exile. At least theo- but hid or buried other things of great value – retically, we might therefore ponder the connec- such as kitchen utensils, certain tools, textiles tion between the symbolic value of the hidden (carpets, blankets, clothes), and some food sup- belongings and the memory of a lost homeland. plies? This is what people did in one of the few of Things brought from the homeland usually have cases in the book involving informants who a much higher symbolic value to an exiled Esto- stayed in Estonia. Possible deposits of organic nian than similar things could ever have to one material would decay in the course of centuries, living in Estonia. The question is thus, has the but depositions of e.g. clay pots and iron kettles emotional value of the belongings treated in Bur- do not really occur in the Estonian archaeologi- ström’s book been increased by the fact that they cal record. And if we find deposits of valuables, were once buried? Or is their significance so great can it then be justified, at least in some cases, to mainly because their owners lived outside their believe that these did not number among the one-time homeland? Or should we perhaps con- most valuable belongings of the people who once sider a sample bias where only people to whom buried them?

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Recensioner 65 I would also like to question Burström’s sug- under 1800-talet och vad dokumentationen kan gestion in the final chapter of a special meaning ge oss för information idag. of earth for Estonians, who in the late 1930s still Som boktiteln antyder är det ostkusten som lived in a strongly agrarian society. Instead of a står i fokus. Läsarna får resa från södra Norrland deeply symbolic meaning for soil, it perhaps ner till Småland via Öland och Gotland. Flertalet makes more sense to point to the political cir- av artiklarna berör Småland vilket kan ha att göra cumstances, which forced innumerable people to med att seminariet hålls där och flera av före- leave their homes and hide their possessions. läsarna är yrkesverksamma i området. Därför är Estonians – as well as people in many other coun- bokens rubrik en aning missvisande: stora delar tries – found themselves in situations which forc- av ostkusten berörs inte alls. Förutom en större ed them to bury their valuables if they wanted to geografisk spridning hade jag också, med tanke hide them. på bokens titel, förväntat mig en tydligare kopp- Agoodbookisonethatstimulatesnewthoughts ling till de maritima miljöerna som dessa områ- – and that Burström’s book has definitely done. den faktiskt utgör. Hur har just vattnet påverkat Although I would have preferred more analysis on människors handlande och liv? Småland är ett av the author's part, it was an interesting read, and I Sveriges sjötätaste landskap: hur såg vattenväg- recommend the book to anyone who is interest- arna ut under forntiden och hur påverkade detta ed in human societies and material culture. människors rörelsemönster och produktionen av olika material? I några av artiklarna kan vi ana Marika Mägi vikten av kustmiljöerna för människors liv. Ett Institute of History, Tallinn University exempel är Sven-Gunnar Broströms och Kenneth Rüütli 6 Ihrestams artikel »Fyra skeppshällar i Casimirs- Tallinn 10130 borg». Här berättar författarna om hur de i sam- Estonia band med inventeringar i Gamleby socken hit- [email protected] tade ett stort antal tidigare okända hällristningar där det dominerande motivet som vanligt är skepp. Författarna sätter ristningarna i relation till hamnlägen, men där saknar jag en vidare dis- Forntid längs ostkusten 3. Blankaholmsseminariet år kussion om skeppets betydelse för bronsålderns 2011. Red. Kenneth Alexandersson, Michael Dah- människor. lin, Veronica Palm, Ludvig Papmehl-Dufay & I Roger Wikells och Mattias Petterssons arti- Roger Wikell. Västerviks museum, Tjustbygdens kel är de maritima miljöerna i fokus när de be- kulturhistoriska förening, Studiefrämjandet, Sam- skriver delar av sitt projekt »Skärgård i 10 000 hällsföreningen Blankaholm-Solstadström 2012. år». De menar att man ifrån forskningshåll har Västervik 2012. 213 s. ISBN 978-91-979639-2-3. fokuserat på inlandsfjärdmiljöerna i Stockholms skärgård, på jordbruk och boskapsskötsel, varvid Sedan några år är Michael Dahlin den drivande stora delar av skärgården har glömts bort. Länge kraften bakom det årliga arkeologiseminariet ansåg man att öarna koloniserats först i historisk »Forntid längs ostkusten» i Blankaholm i Väster- tid och än idag framställs området som en sent viks kommun, Småland. Seminarierna riktar sig koloniserad vildmark. Jag tycker att delar av de- till yrkesverksamma och studenter samt andra ras kritik är befogad, men det är på väg att för- intresserade av lokalhistoria och ostkustens his- ändras. Numera kan man exempelvis läsa marin- toria. Föreliggande bok innehåller tio artiklar ba- arkeologi vid Södertörns högskola, Sjöhistoriska serade på föredragen från seminariet 2011. För- museet har blivit bra på att förmedla sina forsk- fattarna är ömsom arkeologer och historiker och ningsresultat i media, Stockholms läns museum artiklarna handlar om allt från pågående forsk- har projekt som »Upptäck länet» där man upp- ningsprojekt om Norrlands stenålder i samarbe- muntrar länets invånare att besöka fornlämnings- te med andra nordiska länder samt Tyskland till miljöer bland annat i skärgården, och inte minst hur arkeologiska undersökningar kunde gå till författarnas egna projekt »Skärgård 10 000 år»

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66 Recensioner bidrar till att kunskapen om Stockholms skär- Något som jag skulle önska då är att redaktörerna gårds forntid ökar. Men som författarna skriver kastar ett extra öga på illustrationerna. I vissa får man sällan i turistbroschyrer vetskap om skär- bilder och tabeller är typgraden alldeles för liten, gårdens forntid, och tar man en titt på kommu- och några illustrationer är så pass svårtolkade att nernas hemsidor är det inte ofta man finner nå- man hade klarat sig utan dem. Det kan vara så att got om den äldre historien. Där har vi yrkesverk- bilderna gör sig bättre i färg men att trycka i färg samma mycket att göra. är dyrt. Beträffande bokens målgrupp är de yrkesverk- Överlag gav mig boken mycket trevlig läsning. samma lättpreciserade, men när man även vän- Michael Dahlin ska ha en eloge för sitt arbete med der sig till allmänt intresserade, vilket vi som ar- seminarierna då det krävs mycket tid och engage- betar med kulturarvet ofta gör, så blir det svå- mang att anordna dylika tillställningar. Att man rare. Vad har dessa för förkunskaper och vad fin- dessutom har lyckats publicera tre volymer med ner de intressant? Är bokens syfte att vara popu- artiklar som bygger på föredrag finner jag extra lärvetenskaplig eller syftar den till att hålla en glädjande. Det är viktigt att sådana skrifter ges ut vetenskaplig ton? Det är svårt att veta då de olika då den sortens texter utgör fina komplement till texterna har väldigt olika tonläge. I en får läsaren föredragen, med mera information än vad före- exempelvis veta vad en skålgrop är för något och dragshållarna hinner med på en halvtimme. Det hur man tror att dessa användes, medan man i en är även en tillgänglighetsfråga då människor tar annantextanvänderfamiljebegreppetsomensjälv- till sig kunskap på olika sätt och texterna kom- klarhet men inte klargör vad som menas med ter- mer även dem som inte kunde vara på plats i men. Detta begrepp är viktig att problematisera Blankaholmtillglädje. Artiklarna visarpå vadsom om man vänder sig till yrkesverksamma, men görs inom svensk arkeologi och äldre historia idag kanske ännu mer om man vänder sig till allmän- och varför exempelvis inventeringar är så viktiga. heten då det är författaren som förmedlar en bild Det var väldigt spännande att se hur mycket ny av forntiden och den bild som yrkesverksamma kunskap om forntiden vi får tack vare dessa. Bo- målar ofta blir en sanning i allmänhetens ögon. ken ger även exempel på exploateringsgrävningar Detta skulle kunna innebära att läsaren tänker och forskningsgrävningar samt vad man kan få ut sig exempelvis en kärnfamilj då det är den rådan- av historiska källor. Trots nämnda brister tycker de normen i samhället idag. I en tredje text får lä- jag att boken är ett välkommet bidrag bland böck- saren möta något som påminner väldigt mycket er om Sveriges maritima miljöers historia och jag om en grävrapport. ser fram emot nästa publikation. Vad har författarna fått för anvisningar när de skrev sina artiklar? Fick de veta vilka de skulle Jennifer Shutzberg skriva för? Kan man balansera en text så att det Stockholms läns museum både passar den som är mycket kunnig och den Järnvägsgatan 25 som kanske precis har börjat intressera sig för SE–131 54 Nacka ämnet? Jag tror det. Det är givetvis svårt att få tio [email protected] författare att skriva texter på samma nivå, men att texterna är väldigt olika i tonfallet behöver inte nödvändigtvis vara dåligt. Det finns något för alla i denna bok och det som jag tycker är det More than mythology. Narratives, ritual practices and bästa med den är just bredden, både i ämnesvalet regional distribution in pre-Christian Scandinavian och i vad som förväntas av läsaren. Den som har religions. Eds Catharina Raudvere & Jens Peter mindre förkunskaper utmanas och för den redan Schjødt. Lund 2012. ISBN 978-91-85509-71-3. insatta läsaren finns det flera artiklar i ämnen som 287 pp. ligger utanför den egna direkta intressesfären som kan ge en kompletterande bild av ostkusten. This book is an outcome of a conference in Co- 2013 hålls ett nytt seminarium och därefter penhagen a couple of years ago, which in turn took skulle det vara trevligt med en ny publikation. place as a consequence of the Nordic Network for

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Recensioner 67 Research on Pre-Christian Religion. The network tentative. On the other hand it is reasonable to was initiated by the editors of this volume and assume that as a complex and time-consuming intended to give historians of religion in Scandi- process,religiousconversionmusthavetakenplace navia an opportunity to exchange ideas, and to at different times in different places and have varied provoke further interest in pre-Christian Scandi- a great deal from region to region and even from navian religion in particular. The contributions individual to individual. It would have been essen- to the conference – presented as chapters in this tial to make Christianity meaningful to those of book – were made by specialists from different pagan origin by merging the new kind of thought areas of expertise outside the network and reﬂect with pagan elements. This means that blending the interdisciplinary approach of this meeting. of older and newer religious ideas must have been Each of them emphasises a specific perspective common,atleastatthestartoftheconversionpro- on the study of Old Norse religion. cess. The beliefs of the northern peoples of Europe In this light, the distinction between Chris- before the imposition by law of Christianity have tian religion and Norse pre-Christian belief sys- been a matter of endless speculation. Tales of god- tems is inevitably an artificial one. Combining the desses and gods are preserved in various Medie- various religious practices and cultures of differ- val manuscripts and have done a great deal to ent pre-Christian periods together and labelling shape current views of the beliefs of pre-Chris- them as an isolated religion called Paganism seems tian Scandinavia. Treatments of Old Norse reli- toolimited.Morethanthat,isanyreligion–pagan, gion are therefore often confined to mythology Christian or otherwise – ever static and uniform? and the most well-known gods. The earliest stud- The answer seems evident: religion is always ies in the history of religion of the Norsemen – changeable and affected by local cultures, men- mainly performed by philologists – were also talities and belief-systems – the environment dominated by mythology and the “romantic” within which it is embedded. This is visible in the aspects of the Vikings, a tendency which became endless contradictions and variations found in especially widely propagated during the 18th and the source texts – which at least in part must 19th centuries when scholars were searching for derive from the differing backgrounds of the be- an older and ostensibly purer belief system. Rem- liefs – as well as in references to belief in various nants of old traditions were frequently recon- small-scale protective spirits, apparently associ- structed in homogeneous form, applied to the ated with elements of individual worship until entire Germanic-speaking area, and set in clear fairly recent times. Any attempt to understand contrast to the new “invasive” religion. This crea- Old Norse religion thus definitely presupposes a ted a somewhat melodramatic picture of life and degree of flexibility in a variety of areas, openness religion in pre-Christian Scandinavia and of its to diversity and variation, as well as interdiscipli- sudden deterioration with the coming of Christi- nary co-operation, which are the underlying argu- anity. ments of the book under consideration. In more recent years scholars have increasing- Within the past three decades or so, an inter- ly emphasised regional, temporal and social varia- disciplinary approach has come to occupy a cent- bility, which means that the evidence we have ral place in discussions of Old Norse religion. must be interpreted more carefully than it has Despite this development, however, the subject is been in the past. On the one hand, we might still often overshadowed by the mythological re- argue that the earliest written evidence about life ferences and viewed – at least by general audi- in the North – penned by the Norsemen them- ences – as a static, supposedly homogeneous cul- selves and not outsiders – comes mainly from a tural system. More than Mythology integrates and time when Christianity had been widely accept- consolidates the interdisciplinary approaches, and ed, and when major changes had already taken fills the gap between general textbooks and more place in society. This, of course, makes attempts specialised monographs on specific topics. The at reconstructing earlier religious practices diffi- book covers all these important issues in an engag- cult, and our interpretations must always remain ing manner, providing informative and thought-

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68 Recensioner provoking examples that help convey a much modern Finnish folklore it covers almost every better idea of religion, the study of religion, and significant field that deals with and sheds much the study of Old Norse religion. light on Old Norse religious thought. The aim of The book offers insight into the problems, the book is clear and the consensus of the experts but also into the possibilities of new approaches. from different perspectives helps broaden one’s It is encouraging and helpful in providing an understanding of the problems. The full range of overview of the vast diversity of religious tradi- sources, whether literary, material, oral, linguistic tions in terms of gender, social status, ethnicity, or otherwise – no matter how revealing or prob- geography and a number of other factors. It is lematic they may appear to be – should be taken based on research that has been carried out by into consideration, although a dose of scepticism scholars in archaeology, history of religion and is required. I can only conclude that this book is folklore, among others, and covers a broad range a valuable contribution to the field of Old Norse of topics related to culture, language, religion, so- studies and relates to current issues and approach- cial structures and power, continuity, social inter- es in the many streams of on-going research. It action, and the problems with source materials, should be of interest and value to every reader to name a few. Personally, I think the greatest value interested in Old Norse religion, and in Viking of this collection is that the authors have succeed- societies more generally. The book achieves its ed in addressing most of the fundamental com- purpose: it demonstrates that Old Norse religion ponents of their vast, yet highly specific subject, is more than mythology, just as the title says. providing explanations and examples from many different areas of study to effectively get their Triin Laidoner point across to the reader. Moreover, the essays Centre for Scandinavian Studies range from more specific cultural analysis (pre- 50/52 College Bounds senting useful information that for reasons of King’s College language would not otherwise be readily acces- University of Aberdeen sible to everyone: see the chapters by DuBois, Aberdeen AB24 3DS Stark and Anttonen on Sámi and Finnish cultures), Scotland tobroaderandmoretheoreticaldiscussionsregard- [email protected] ing how to approach Old Norse religion and society with its manifold variations and dimensions of time and space (see especially Nordberg and Schjødt). Nor have more traditional research areas NyttljusöverLånghundraleden.Bygder,båtar,natur. been overlooked (see Jackson on comparative phi- ArbetsgruppenLånghundraleden.Vallentuna2011. lology), and some Eddic poems are analysed (see 180 s. ISBN 978-91-633-8925-2. e.g. Raudvere on V luspá). Sundqvist discusses ǫ socio-political formations in places with differ- Arbetsgruppen Långhundraleden står bag en fin ent historical backgrounds and conditions, and bog, der er en opfølgning på en tidligere bogud- Price offers an archaeologist’s point of view in his givelse fra 1993: Långhundraleden – en resa i tid och chapter on funerary practices. The issues discussed rum. Jeg har ikke læst den, men i forordet til den are described in simple and comprehensible lan- nye udgivelse beskrives den som omhandlende guage, and arguments are supported by examples. »allt». Den nye bog er mere fokuseret og opreg- This makes things easy to follow even for those ner seks områder, som behandles mere indgåen- who are not deeply involved in the branch of de: bådene, bebyggelsen, kulturlandskabet, land- expertise of a particular author. hævningen, vandet og vegetationshistorien. For- No book of this kind can fully address the fatterne til de ni artikler er for de flestes vedkom- richness of every issue, but More than Mythology, mende fagfolk indenfor de respektive områder. in my opinion, finds an agreeable balance between I den indledende artikel beskrives Långhund- depth and a variety of different perspectives. Rang- raledens geografiske udstrækning og dens rolle ing from ancient Indo-European influences to som vandvej i jernalder, vikingetid og tidlig mid-

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Recensioner 69 delalder. Fascinationen af denne fortid har inspi- +20 m, er sporene flere. Der redegøres for, hvor- reret til et mere end 30-årigt engagement fra dan Arbetsgruppen har kortlagt bebyggelses- hembygdsforeninger langs leden, der ville erken- miljøer fra bronzealderen ud fra nogle forudbe- de og dokumentere den tidligere vandvej mellem stemte kriterier, f.eks. røser, helleristninger, be- Østersøen og Uppland. Et samarbejde mellem liggenhed i kote +20 m eller mere, plads til ager amatører og professionelle fandt sin form i Ar- og eng samt tilstedeværelse af løsfund. Det an- betsgruppen, der bl.a. har til opgave at værne om føres, at det er sjældent, at alle kriterier kan påvis- kulturlandskabet og fortidsminderne. es, og at det ofte er vanskeligt at datere forekoms- I artiklen »På Långhundraleden med viksbå- ter som røser uden udgravninger. At de arkæolo- tar och kanot» afprøves den gamle vandvej, som giske spor er for få til at illustrere udviklingen fra den tager sig ud i vore dage. Forfatteren er bl.a. bronzealder til tidlig middelalder kompenserer gymnasielærer og bådbygger, og der er tale om en forfatteren for, ved at referere mere givende ud- meget personlig beskrivelse af turene, nærmest i gravninger og undersøgelser på Lovö i Mälaren. dagbogsform med et journalistisk snit. Man for- Långhundraledens rolle som gammel vandvej nemmer vandet, men også at vandvejen er en saga kommer for alvor i fokus i artiklen om både og sø- blott. fart, skrevet af en marinarkæolog. Fokus er rettet Den efterfølgende artikel er skrevet af en na- mod vidnesbyrd fra yngre jernalder til middelal- turgeograf og en kvartærgeolog. Den omhandler der, en periode som er repræsenteret af mange landhævningen og strandforskydningen, og re- bådfund (eller rester af både), der tilfældigt er duk- daktionelt kunne den med fordel være anbragt ket op ved markarbejde og grøftegravninger. Et først i bogen, for de iso- og eustatiske bevægelser eksempel på bådbyggertraditionen i slutningen er forudsætningen for at leden blev skabt og atter af vikingetiden og begyndelsen af middelalderen er forsvundet. Artiklen er en god indføring i det er Viksbåden fra Söderby-Karl, Uppland. Båd- vanskelige stof, og den er forsynet med gode og typen er tilpasset sejlads på søer og åer i Mellem- oplysende illustrationer. sverige, og dens beskedne størrelse (ca. 10 m lang Under overskriften »Kulturlandskapet» be- med seks par årer) gør den egnet til at blive truk- retter en kulturgeograf om de geologiske forud- ket over land, hvor vandet er sluppet op. Viksbå- sætninger for landskabets udseende og udvik- den er dendrodateret til midten af 11. årh., men ling. Långhundraledens basis er en sprækkedal i som fartøjstype sammenlignes den med bådene grundfjeldet, og dalens tværprofil er både smal/ fra Valsgärdegravene fra vendeltid og vikingetid. stejl og bred med en tilhørende lerslette. Land- En anden bådtype, som har været almindelig i hævningen har siden skærgårdens dominans i området, er den udspændte stammebåd. Fund af yngre stenalder gjort stadigt større arealer til tørt kløvede egestammer fra moser og søområder ved land med muligheder for landbrug. Forfatteren Långhundraleden antages at være råmateriale til peger på gamle træk i vore dages kulturlandskab både. Dateringen er dog ikke helt på plads, og og kritiserer myndighederne for manglende vilje kløvet egetræ kan benyttes til andet og mere end til at beskytte kulturhistoriske elementer som skibsbyggeri. Der refereres desuden til en stribe hegn, gærder, enge, sankmark og småbrugene af fund af trædele fra skibe, mulige spærringer og mod udviklingen. Som læser får man indtrykket efterretninger om iagttagelser. Långhundraledens af en forfatter, der har en ganske romantisk ind- betydning som forbindelsesled knyttes sammen stilling til, hvad et kulturlandskab skal være. Jeg med stednavne, der antyder helligsteder og kult, kan sagtens følge ham, men man skal erindre, at ligesom ældre ting- og markedspladser. selvom det moderne landbrugsland forekommer Middelalderen langs Långhundraleden bli- industrielt og ensidigt, så er det stadig et kultur- ver præsenteret af en middelalderhistoriker. Ar- landskab, uanset om man kan lide det eller ej. tiklen inddrager skriftlige kilder om ejendoms- En arkæolog har forfattet kapitlet om den forhold, runesten og stednavne med særlig be- forhistoriske bebyggelse. Der er kun få spor fra tydning i sig selv eller med efterled, der signa- yngre stenalder langs Långhundraleden, men fra lerer alder eller funktion. Efterledet -hamra/-ham- bronzealderen, hvor strandlinjen findes ved kote mar fremhæves som et farledsnavn. Den almin-

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70 Recensioner delige tolkning er, at navnet henviser til »stenet tag bliver gennemgået og fører læseren frem til bakke», men forfatteren mener, at der er tale om nutidens Långhundraleden efter den lange tur pejlemærker for sejlende. Jeg er på ingen måde gennem forhistorien og middelalderen. specialist i svenske stednavne, men umiddelbart Nytt ljus över Långhundraleden er en publika- er det vanskeligt at se nødvendigheden af pejle- tion, der med sit relativt snævre geografiske fo- mærker i en farled som Långhundraleden. Den er kus ind i mellem synes at få placeret sig mellem to netop kendetegnet af åer og langstrakte søer, som stole. Arbetsgruppens ønske om at dække et me- i sig selv anviser ruten. Forsøg på at udpege stor- get bredt spektrum af emner og tidsperioder er mandssæder eller godser tager typisk udgangs- forståelig, og når man har et så indgående kend- punkt i ejendomsforhold i højmiddelalderen, hvor skab til et lokalområde, kan man komme til at der projiceres tilbage ved brug af stednavne og overdimensionere betydningen og bæredygtig- store gravhøje. Det kan der være meget ræson i, heden af få og/eller vage oplysninger. Med andre men når en lokalitet med det sigende navn Ricke- ord er der en tendens til at lade det spekulative få by (krigerby) underbygges som særlig ved at hen- meget plads. Hér tænker jeg ikke så meget på, at vise til ejendomsforhold i første halvdel af 14. der flere gange gribes ud efter undersøgelsesre- årh., hvor tre generationer ejere var af »Gustav sultater udenfor Långhundraleden for at give mere Vasas farfarsfars mödernesläkt», bliver argumen- fylde. Det er der for så vidt ikke noget forkert i, tationen noget spekulativ. og det viser blot, at arkæologi og historie som fag Indføringen i det sydlige Upplands vegeta- nødvendigvis må beskue fortiden i et større per- tionshistorie er i gode hænder med Arbetsgrup- spektiv end Långhundraledens snævre dalgange. pens palæobotaniker. I relativt korte – men me- Når dette er sagt, er der tale om en bog med mange get informative – afsnit introduceres læseren til kvaliteter. Indtil jeg fik bogen i hånden, har jeg grundlaget for den tilgængelige viden (pollendia- været aldeles ubekendt med området. Det er jeg grammer), man følges en tur i skoven og til elle- ikke længere. Bogen er på fornemste vis et udtryk sumpen, og landhævningens påvirkning af for- for, at en levende interesse for lokalhistorie kan holdene forklares. Forfatteren bemærker den fag- samle amatører og professionelle om et fælles lige diskussion om den tidlige løvskov har været mål til fælles (og andres) gavn gennem mange år. meget tæt eller præget af en mere åben og lys skov, Min kompliment. som følge af uroksers, hjortes og visenters spise- vaner. Forfatteren hælder til den lukkede skov, Jens Ulriksen men andre synspunkter får plads. Pollendiagram- Roskilde Museum merne viser, hvordan behovet for græsningsarea- Munkebro 2 ler og agre medførte afbrænding af elleskov ved DK–4000 Roskilde begyndelsen af ældre jernalder, og samtidig bli- [email protected] ver grantræet en mere og mere almindelig vækst i skoven. Enen ses markant i pollenspektret fra 500 e.Kr., hvilket viser, at bøndernes behov for græsning til deres dyr kunne gå hårdt ud over Neglected Barbarians. Ed. Florin Curta. Turnhout vegetationen og give plads for andre arter. 2010. 629 pp. ISBN 978-2-503-53125-0. Bogens sidste kapitel er tilegnet topografi, geologi og vand og er skrevet af en tidligere pro- The “barbarians” in this book are peoples of Late fessor i agronomisk hydroteknik. Bag den tek- Roman and Early Medieval times, most of whom niske titel gemmer sig en formidler, som formår inhabited parts of Europe, especially its eastern at beskrive og illustrere sit stof på glimrende vis. and far western regions, but also including groups Der er enkle oversigtskort, som belyser teksten, in western Asia and northern Africa. The volume og længdeprofilerne af dele af leden giver en god consists of an introduction by the editor, 16 pa- fornemmelse af de tærskler og vandskel, som er pers by contributors, and an afterword by Peter blevet omtalt flere gange i de foregående artikler. Heather. As the editor notes in the introduction, Områdets afvandingsforhold og torrläggningsföre- most familiar books and films that concern “bar-

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Recensioner 71 barians” deal with Anglo-Saxons, Franks and The editor discusses this issue in the introduction Huns. The papers in this volume treat peoples and provides a good bibliography in the foot- less familiar to most readers, including Antes, notes, and Heather says more about it in the Astures, Balts, Cantabri, Frexes, Gepids, Heru- afterword, but given that the concept is the uni- les, Tetraxite Goths and Vascones, and therein fying feature of all of the papers, it would have lies its greatest strength. been useful to have more detail on exactly what The papers provide the reader with well writ- the writers understand by this term. The word is ten and often very well illustrated overviews of used much more readily by historians, who often both historical and archaeological information draw sharp distinctions between societies that about peoples of the eastern Baltic coast, the Bal- had writing and societies that did not, than it is kans, regions north and east of the Black Sea, cent- by archaeologists. An essay dealing with the idea ral northern Africa, and Iberia. Footnotes, gene- of the "barbarian" in relation to the papers in this rally copious, provide excellent bibliographies. volume, written from the perspective of modern Being an up-to-date overview in English of what anthropological archaeology, would have been a is known about these peoples and the regions welcome addition. they inhabited, this book is an excellent resource. In this connection, it would also have been Of particular value are some detailed discus- instructive to see more critical discussion of the sions of artefact typologies, which will be useful links between texts and archaeology. Many of the to readers who are not familiar with the archaeo- papers provide excellent treatment of both his- logy of these groups and regions. Treatment of torical sources and material culture concerning the historical sources is strong in many papers. A the different groups, but not often in terms of number of authors emphasize connections with critical theoretical thinking about how the sour- other parts of Europe. These papers will be par- ces might be integrated. ticularly useful for archaeologists and historians Overall, the volume is well illustrated. Precise concerned with western, central, and northern drawings of artefacts and distribution maps are regions of the continent. Among the many inter- important in a publication such as this one, and estingpapersisonebyRaduHarhoiutitled“Where many of them are excellent. Map 1, the first plate Did All the Gepids Go? A Sixth- to Seventh-Cen- at the back of the book, is a topographic map, in tury Cemetery in Bratei (Romania)”, which pro- colour, and it is marked with boxes that show the vides detailed treatment, with many illustra- regions covered by each of the papers. This is a tions, of the distribution of different burial prac- useful illustration to orient the reader geographi- tices and grave goods within this cemetery, as well cally to the different regions (it might have been as documentation of the systematic looting of even more helpful placed at the front of the the graves, complete with diagrams showing dif- book). It is followed by a series of 13 smaller maps ferent locations of the shafts dug by grave rob- that indicate where individual sites are situated bers. All too often in archaeological publications within each region. Unfortunately, the majority we read simply that a grave had been looted; yet of illustrations throughout the book are too small. in some cultural contexts, it appears that removal Although the outline of objects such as fibulae of objects from burials was part of a regular ritual and belt buckles can be seen, often their decora- practice.ApaperbyIgorO.GavritukhinandMichel tion, which is important with regard to a variety Kazanski on “Bosporus, the Tetraxite Goths, and of questions, is not readily made out. The num- the Northern Caucasus Region during the Sec- ber and size of illustrations that a book can in- ond Half of the Fifth and the Sixth Centuries” clude are always limited, and here it seems that a provides an informative and well illustrated dis- compromise had to be made between numbers cussion of several important types of brooches and sizes of figures. and buckles and their chronologies and distribu- A reader can always wish for more in a book, tions. and these observations should not detract from It would however have been helpful to read what is an important contribution to the litera- more consideration of the concept “barbarian” ture on the “barbarians” of Late Roman and Ear-

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72 Recensioner ly Medieval Europe. This book will be a valuable Peter S. Wells resource to archaeologists and historians work- Department of Anthropology ing in all regions of Europe and the greater Me- 395 HHH Center diterranean world. University of Minnesota 301 19th Avenue South Minneapolis, MN 55455 U.S.A. [email protected]

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