DEAD WARRIORS IN LIVING MEMORY DEAD WARRIORS IN LIVING MEMORY A Study of Weapon and Equestrian Burials in Viking-Age Denmark, AD 800-1000 ANNE PEDERSEN PNM Publications from the National Museum Studies in Archaeology & History Vol. 20:1 Copenhagen 2014 Dead Warriors in Living Memory – A Study of Weapon and Equestrian Burials in Viking-Age Denmark, AD 800-1000 Publications from the National Museum, Studies in Archaeology & History Vol. 20:1 1-2. Jelling Series. Vol. 20:1 1. Text Vol. 20:1 2. Catalogue © The author, University Press of Southern Denmark and the National Museum of Denmark 2014 All rights reserved PNM Editorial Board: Director of Research and Communication Lene Floris Head of Research and Collections Michael Andersen Senior Researcher, ph.d. & dr.phil. Mikkel Venborg Pedersen Senior Researcher, ph.d. Mette Marie Hald Research Coordinator Birgit Rønne Cover design and layout: Pia Brejnholt Plates and maps: Thomas Bredsdorff, Cille Krause English revision: James Manley, Gillian Fellows-Jensen Printed by Specialtrykkeriet Viborg Published by University Press of Southern Denmark Campusvej 55, DK-5230 Odense M ISBN: 978 87 7674 840 1 Funded by: The Bikuben Foundation The Danish Council for Independent Research | Humanities The Farumgaard Foundation Letterstedska Föreningen Cover: Stirrup from Ravnholt, Jutland; sword from Magleø, Zealand, Denmark (Poul Wöhliche, del.) CONTENTS PART 1. TEXT Burials with weaponry and horse furnishings 55 Burial traditions 60 PREFACE Weapons and mounds 61 Weapon burial in flat graves 66 1. INTRODUCTION Internal structures 68 Time and Space 15 Primary source material 17 A brief outline 18 4. WEAPONS, HORSE EQUIPMENT AND OTHER FURNISHINGS Swords 73 2. TWO CENTURIES OF ARCHAEOLOGY Axes 83 Antiquarian interest in burials 21 Spears 89 Towards a firm foundation 24 Arrows 95 Surveys and debate 28 Shields 96 The decades around 2000 – similarity and Spurs 101 difference 32 Stirrups (and saddles) 106 Points of departure 32 Bridles 117 Pagan/Christian practice 33 Wagon equipment 125 Social structure 34 Horses and dogs 127 Communication 35 Personal items 129 Tableware 133 Miscellanea 139 3. BURIAL SITES AND BURIAL TYPES Summary 140 Main criteria of selection 39 Burial sites in Viking-Age Denmark 42 Present-day Denmark 42 5. ARTEFACT AND BURIAL Schleswig 49 CHRONOLOGY Scania 51 A relative sequence 146 Conclusions 53 Weapon burials from the Early Viking Age 146 Burials with late types of weapons and Personal appearance 252 horse furnishings 149 A changing way of life 254 Tenth-century weapon and equestrian burials 150 Chronological results 153 Norwegian equestrian burials 154 8. BEGINNINGS AND ENDINGS Swedish equestrian burials 155 A custom emerges 258 A relative chronology for the tenth century 158 Monuments of a new era 261 Stylistic elements 163 Conclusions 264 Absolute dates 167 Coins in burials 169 Weapon burial through time 173 BIBLIOGRAPHY 269 SITE INDEX 289 6. WEAPON BURIAL IN THE TENTH CENTURY Equestrian burials 176 Incomplete / non-expertly recovered equestrian burials 181 PART 2. CATALOGUE Horse furnishings associated with wagons 185 Weapon graves 187 CHRONOLOGICAL ANALYSIS OF Non-expertly recovered weapon burials 193 DANISH AND NORWEGIAN General trends 197 EQUESTRIAN BURIALS 9 Full riding equipment 197 Spurs only 199 CATALOGUES AND FIND LISTS 21 Multiple sets of riding equipment 200 1. Viking-Age burial sites in Denmark, Weapon burials 200 Schleswig and Scania 22 Burials with shields 201 2. Viking-Age burials containing weapons Swords 202 and/or horse and wagon furnishings in Den- Axes 202 mark, Schleswig and Scania 68 Equestrian burial in Norway and Sweden 205 3. Selected equestrian burials in Norway 114 Norway 206 4. Selected equestrian burials in Sweden 119 Sweden 207 3a. Selected equestrian burials in Norway. Burial in a wagon body 209 Table of contents 123 Wagon bodies and their contents 211 4a. Selected equestrian burials in Sweden. Wagon bodies in time 218 Table of contents 125 1. Swords from burial contexts (map 5) 128 7. OLD TRADITIONS AND NEW IDEAS 2. Axe heads from burial contexts (map 6) 131 Events and dates in Europe 225 3. Spearheads from burial contexts (map 7) 134 Conflicts at the Danish-German border 226 4. Arrowheads from burial contexts (map 8) 137 Mission from Germany 228 5. Parts of shields from burial contexts (map 9) 137 Pagans and Christians 231 6. Spurs from burial contexts (map 10) 138 Religious symbols 232 7. Stirrups from burial contexts (map 11) 141 Accidental losses – gifts to the gods 237 8. Bridles from burial contexts (map 12) 145 Dead warriors? 240 9. Iron traces and harness bows from burial Tools of war – symbols of warriors 241 contexts (map 13) 147 Horses and horsemanship 249 10. Evidence of horses from burial contexts Banquets and feasts 251 (map 14) 147 11. Wooden buckets from burial contexts 17. Burials with weapons and horse furnish- (map 15) 149 ings of ninth or late eighth-century date 180 12. Copper-alloy basins from burial contexts 18. Burials with weapons and horse furnish- (map 16) 151 ings of late tenth or very early eleventh-century 13. Burials / probable burials with early Vi- date. 181 king-Age weapon types and horse furnishings 19. Selected equestrian burials in Norway 182 (map 17) 153 20. Selected equestrian burials in Sweden 183 14. Burials / probable burials with late Viking- 21. Graves with riding equipment, tenth cen- Age weapon types and horse furnishings (map tury until AD c. 1000 184 18) 155 22. Weapon burials from the tenth or early 15. Graves containing coins 156 eleventh century 185 23. Inhumation graves with wagon bodies 186 24. Graves and possible graves with riding MAPS 159 equipment of the main groups distinguished 1. Viking-Age burial sites in Denmark, in chapter 5 187 Schleswig and Scania 160 2. Burial sites with graves containing weap- ons and/or riding equipment and wagon PLATES 189 furnishings 163 1-46. Weapon and equestrian burials from 3. Mound burials with weapons and/or horse Denmark furnishings 166 46-54. Weapon and equestrian burials from 4. Flat graves with weapons and/or horse Schleswig, Germany furnishings 167 55-57. Weapon and equestrian burials from 5-16. Select artefact types: swords, axes, Scania, Sweden spearheads, arrowheads, shield bosses, spurs, 58-61. Equestrian burials from Norway stirrups, bridles, wagon equipment, horses, 62-70. Equestrian burials from Sweden wooden containers, copper-alloy basins 168 PREFACE This book has been a long time in the making. It from southern Sweden and Schleswig, and with the began as a three-year research project funded by revaluation of old finds such as the Ladby ship-bur- a grant from The National Museum of Denmark ial. Nonetheless, the original focus of the project, and The Research Academy in Aarhus, and now including the basic analyses, has been maintained finds its completion within the Jelling Series of the in this revised version. As many old burial finds and PNM – Publications from the National Museum, in part the most recent discoveries are often less Studies in Archaeology and History. The aim of the easy to access, I have chosen also to retain the basic project was to study society and religion in tenth- survey of Viking-Age burials and burial sites in the century Denmark, with archaeological finds – buri- hope that it may prove useful to both Danish and als with weapons and/or horse furnishings and those foreign readers. The catalogues provide a status as at with wagon equipment – as the principle source of 2006. New weapon burials have come to light since evidence. The find material was extensive and very without, however, significantly altering the general early in the process the need for a detailed analysis trends and patterns which emerged in the course of of the individual graves and their contents became the project and subsequent revision. The concluding clear, despite the fact that weapon burials and es- chapters have been slightly modified and updated. pecially equestrian graves have played a significant role in numerous publications and discussions of Many friends and colleagues have been involved on social structure and religious change in the Viking the way towards this publication. First and foremost Age since the nineteenth century, and indeed con- I wish to thank all the institutions and individu- tinue to do so. Thus, typological, chronological and als in Denmark, Schleswig and Scania who have geographical analyses formed a core element of my kindly granted me access to their archaeological col- Ph.D. thesis, and although the subject matter has lections, archives and excavation reports, both in the changed since then, object analysis still retains my early stages of the project and in the following years interest. when I commenced the revision. After completion The nature and availability of the archaeological of the Ph.D. project I had the opportunity to study evidence has to some extent changed in the interme- Norwegian and Swedish graves with riding equip- diate years with the publication of extensive surveys ment at Universitetets Oldsaksamling Oslo, Statens PREFACE 9 Historiska Museum Stockholm, and Museum Gus- the pitfalls involved in my attempts to clarify the tavianum at Uppsala University. My travels were chronology of the Danish equestrian burials. I made possible with support from Ingeniør Svend G. would also like to thank my supervisors Profes- Fiedler og Hustrus Legat and Letterstedska Förenin- sor Else Roesdahl and Professor Ulf Näsman for gen. Grants from the Nordic Centre for Medieval their valuable advice and comments on my thesis. Studies in 2008 enabled me to dedicate some time to Likewise, I am very grateful for comments and sug- complete the editing of the main text, and to discuss gestions from colleagues in the National Museum, equestrian burial finds with colleagues at Kulturhis- among them Poul Grinder-Hansen, Ulla Kjær, Per torisk Museum Bergen, Bohusläns Museum, Göte- Kristian Madsen and Michael Andersen who spared borg Stadsmuseum and Riksantikvarieämbetet UV the time to read the revised manuscript.