An Arena for Higher Powers Numen Book Series Studies in the History of Religions Series Editors Steven Engler (Mount Royal University, Calgary, Canada) Richard King (University of Kent, UK) Kocku von Stuckrad (University of Groningen, The Netherlands) Gerard Wiegers (University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands) Volume 150 The titles published in this series are listed at brill.com/nus An Arena for Higher Powers Ceremonial Buildings and Religious Strategies for Rulership in Late Iron Age Scandinavia By Olof Sundqvist LEIDEN | BOSTON Cover illustration: Stone coffin, Sanda, Gotland. Photo: Bengt A. Lundberg. ATA, Riksantikvarieämbetet Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Sundqvist, Olof. An arena for higher powers : ceremonial buildings and religious strategies for rulership in late Iron Age Scandinavia / by Olof Sundqvist. pages cm. — (Numen book series : studies in the history of religions : ISSN 0169-8834 ; Volume 150) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-90-04-29270-3 (hardback : alk. paper) — ISBN 978-90-04-30748-3 (e-book : alk. paper) 1. Scandinavia—Religion. 2. Religion and politics—Scandinavia—History. 3. Scandinavia—Kings and rulers—Religious life. 4. Scandinavia—Antiquities. I. Title. BL863.S85 2015 293—dc23 2015034775 issn 0169-8834 isbn 978-90-04-29270-3 (hardback) isbn 978-90-04-30748-3 (e-book) Copyright 2016 by Koninklijke Brill nv, Leiden, The Netherlands. Koninklijke Brill NV incorporates the imprints Brill, Brill Hes & De Graaf, Brill Nijhoff, Brill Rodopi and Hotei Publishing. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, translated, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior written permission from the publisher. Authorization to photocopy items for internal or personal use is granted by Koninklijke Brill nv provided that the appropriate fees are paid directly to The Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Suite 910, Danvers, ma 01923, usa. Fees are subject to change. This book is printed on acid-free paper. Contents Preface ix List of Figures xi Abbreviations xiii Part 1 Prolegomena 1 Introduction 3 1.1 Religious Ruler Ideology in Previous Research 7 1.2 Towards a Model for Analysing Religious Strategies for Rulership at Ceremonial Buildings 14 1.3 Approach and Methods 20 1.4 Outline and Hypotheses 29 Part 2 The Regional-Contextual Approach 2 The Three Areas of Investigation and their Political Leaders 35 2.1 The Kings in the Mälaren Area 35 2.2 The Earls in Trøndelag 46 2.3 The Chieftains of Iceland 53 3 Religious Strategies for Political Authorization—A Case Study 63 3.1 The Kings Called the Ynglingar 63 3.2 The Háleygja Kin (Hlaðajarlar) 80 3.3 The Þórsnesingar 86 3.4 A Contextual Interpretation 90 4 Ceremonial Buildings and Sanctuaries 95 4.1 The State of Research 95 4.2 The Problem of Terminology 104 4.3 Uppsala and other Sanctuaries in the Mälaren Area 110 4.4 Lade and Mære in Trøndelag 132 4.5 Hof Buildings in Iceland 147 vi contents Part 3 General Features 5 The Religious Leadership of the Sanctuaries and the Economic System 163 5.1 The Debate about Cultic Leadership and the Terminology 164 5.2 Chieftains (hǫfðingjar, hersar, goðar) as Cultic Leaders of the Sanctuaries 167 5.3 Kings and Earls as the Cultic Leaders of Sanctuaries in Trøndelag and Svetjud 186 5.4 The Financial System of the Public Cult at the Sanctuaries 192 5.5 Ideological Motives behind the Rulers’ Interest in Public Cult and Sanctuaries 197 6 The Ritual Structure of the Sanctuaries and Cosmic Symbolism 199 6.1 Cosmic Symbolism: Some Theoretical and Methodological Issues 200 6.2 The Location, Architecture and Decoration of Ceremonial Buildings 205 6.3 The Interiors: High-seat, High-seat Posts and Hearths 219 6.4 The Exterior Ritual Structure of the Sanctuaries 249 7 The Relation between Rulers and Cultic Images 264 7.1 Miniatures and Medallions 265 7.2 The Three Statues of Gods in the “Uppsala Temple” 266 7.3 Cultic Images in the Sanctuaries of Trøndelag and Northern Norway 272 7.4 Cultic Images in the Sagas of Icelanders and the Image from Eyrarland 282 7.5 Cultic Images and Religious Strategies for Rulership: Hypotheses 287 8 Sacred Sites, Ritual Restrictions and Religious Strategies for Rulership 290 8.1 Sanctifications of Places and Ritual Restrictions (Taboos) 291 8.2 The Enclosed Sacred Space 298 8.3 Violations against the Sanctity of the Sacred Space: The Example of Egils saga 303 8.4 The Ruler as the Protector of the Sanctified Space 305 8.5 Burning or Breaking Down the Ceremonial Building: An Attack against the “World” of the Ruler 307 contents vii 8.6 The Renovation and Ending of Ceremonial Buildings and Sanctuaries 311 9 Ceremonial Feasts as Ritual Strategies 316 9.1 Hákonar saga góða and the Ceremonial Feasts at Lade and Mære 316 9.2 Calendrical Religious Feasts 320 9.3 The Ruler as Sacrificer 325 9.4 Smearing Sacrificial Blood on the Sacrificial Platforms 331 9.5 Ceremonial Meals and the Custom of Eating Horse Meat 344 9.6 Ritual Drinking and the Reciting of Ritual Formulae 351 9.7 Gift-Giving Ceremonies 359 9.8 Excursus: The Central Role of Noble Women at the Ceremonial Banquets 363 10 Rulers, Rings and Rituals—From Svetjud to Iceland and Back Again 376 10.1 The Forsa Ring from Hälsingland—A Sacred “Oath-Ring” at a Sanctuary? 377 10.2 “Oath-Rings” and hof Sanctuaries in the Sagas of Icelanders 387 10.3 Ritual-Rings and Sanctuaries in Svetjud 391 10.4 The Custom of Swearing Oaths on Rings 398 Part 4 Regional Diversity 11 Golden Objects as Media of Power 407 11.1 Gold Foil Figures 407 11.2 The Gold Bracteates at the Hall of Helgö 418 11.3 The Golden Medallion from Inderøy 419 11.4 The “Golden Door Ring” of the hof Sanctuary of Lade 421 11.5 Golden Arm- and Neck-Rings 424 12 Ceremonial Buildings, Great Burial Mounds, and the Worship of Dead Rulers 430 12.1 The Distribution of Great Burial Mounds in the Investigation Areas 431 12.2 Great Burial Mounds as Part of the Aristocratic Sanctuaries 433 12.3 Great Burial Mounds as Symbols of Genealogy and Land Rights 444 viii contents 12.4 The Cult of Heroes at the Great Mounds 453 12.5 The Cult at the Burial Mounds of Freyr and Hǫlgi 466 13 The Arenas for Royal Funeral Feasts and Inauguration Rituals 476 13.1 King Ǫnundr’s Funeral Feast 476 13.2 Libations at Funeral Feasts 481 13.3 The Place for Drinking Beer at the Funeral Feast 485 13.4 The High-Seat and Inheritance 488 13.5 Royal Inaugurations, High-Seats and the Great Mounds 492 13.6 A Royal Rite of Passage 498 14 (Inter-)Regional Chief Sanctuaries as a Religious Strategy for Rulership 503 14.1 Cultic Organization 503 14.2 The Chief Sanctuaries of Trøndelag and Svetjud 508 14.3 The Cult of Many Gods at the Chief Sanctuaries as Strategy of Power 516 15 Valhǫll, Ceremonial Buildings and Warrior Lords 521 15.1 The Martial and Eschatological Valhǫll Mythology 521 15.2 The Warrior Halls in Late Iron Age Scandinavia and Valhǫll 523 15.3 The Distribution of Warrior Lords with Warrior Bands in Scandinavia 527 15.4 The Valhǫll Mythology as Part of Ruler Strategies in Svetjud and Trøndelag 533 Part 5 Epilegomena 16 Conclusions 539 Bibliography 547 Index 617 Preface The original aim of the present research project, which was financed by Riksbankens Jubileumsfond in Sweden (2008–2011), was to investigate the pre- Christian and medieval cultic buildings in Scandinavia from an ideological perspective. The specific purpose was to study how rulers used these buildings to express and reinforce their political power. The study involved a long-term perspective, AD 550–1200. The purpose of this long-term perspective was to investigate continuity and change in the context of the conversion from the pre-Christian halls and cultic buildings to their replacement by churches in Scandinavia. The project followed to a great extent the initial project plan, but some limi- tations were defined as work progressed. The empirical study was delimited to the Lake Mälaren area, Trøndelag and Iceland. The project also shifted focus somewhat. In the present monograph, the regional perspective has gained greater weight than the diachronic dimensions of the study. Focus has been placed on the pre-Christian contexts, specifically on the issue of regional simi- larities and differences/variations. The diachronic dimension of the study, i.e. the development from pre-Christian to Christian contexts, was published in an article at Brill 2011, with focus placed on the Mälaren region.1 I am indebted to many scholars for giving me valuable advice and construc- tive criticism during the preparation of the present book. First and foremost I express my gratitude to Professor Bo Gräslund (Uppsala), who has been standing by my side from the first manuscript of this work to the final produc- tion. Also my former “Doktor Vater” Professor Anders Hultgård (Uppsala) has offered me a great deal of good advice and encouragement, as well as my friend and colleague Professor Michael Stausberg (Bergen), who also convinced me to publish the results of my project in an international publication. My dear col- leagues, Associate Professor Torun Zachrisson (Stockholm), Professor Anne- Sofie Gräslund (Uppsala), Associate Professor John Ljungkvist (Uppsala) and Associate Professor Per Vikstrand (Uppsala), have all contributed with valu- able advice and comments, particular regarding archaeology and onomastics. They have indicated additional materials, described excavation sites, answered questions and discussed problems.