| 1. |
- Bornfalk Back, Anders
(författare)
-
Från stenkrigare till borgjarl : Befästningskonsten i östra Sverige, 375-750 e.Kr
- 2023
-
Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The main fortification tradition of pre-Viking Age eastern Sweden consisted of defensive walls built in an advanced dry-stone technique, some including internal timber-lacing and supporting earthen banks. Erected on mountain crests, hillocks, plains and shorelines, these constructions were part of the martial landscape of an immensely transformative period in Scandinavian Iron Age. However, inadequate temporal and spatial frameworks have long hampered any engagement with this phenomenon. In combination with the profound demilitarization of these walls and ramparts, which dominated Swedish archaeology from c. 1990 and two decades on, this has resulted in a state of knowledge of this tradition that is not on a par with the significance it once had.The thesis addresses these issues by establishing the chronology of this architectural tradition and, with this tool, by exploring the martial dimensions of the fortifications as well as the lifestyle of those behind the walls. Data from c. 80 excavations of various sizes, many of them carried out in the 20th century, are processed and combined with on-site analyses of the architecture and layout of the individual walls. Episodes concerning the concept of fortification in the Beowulf poem are examined and compared to the archaeological material. An approach is adopted which views the material culture of the fortifications as physical expressions of a complex network or system made up by the social, economic, religious and ideological elements that define the character of warfare and its participants. All members of a society are part of and influence such “war systems” practically as well as normatively, consciously or not.The study argues that the fortification tradition including the dry-stone technique was not static, widespread or an architectural monoculture. Instead, it was constantly evolving during the period AD 375/400-700/750 in relation to changing needs, ideals and skills according to regional conditions in the political and geographical landscape.
|
|
| 2. |
|
|
| 3. |
- Gustin, Ingrid, et al.
(författare)
-
Birkaborna med föremål från finska fastlandet, vilka var de?
- 2012
-
Ingår i: Birka nu. Pågående forskning om världsarvet Birka och Hovgården.. - 9789189176454 ; , s. 95-110
-
Bokkapitel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This article focuses on objects from mainland Finland retrieved in the graves of the Viking Age town Birka in the Mälalen valley, Sweden. The main questions posed in the article are what people were buried with these items and what can be concluded about their cultural identity. In the article the artefacts from mainland Finland are presented as well as their contexts. An examination of the find assemblages shows that the material culture in the graves had a heterogeneous origin. The graves in Birka with objects from the Finnish mainland can thus be said to display cultural hybridity.
|
|
| 4. |
- Gustin, Ingrid, et al.
(författare)
-
Elites, networks and the Finnish connection in Birka
- 2016
-
Ingår i: New Aspects on Viking Age Urbanism c. AD 750-1100 : Proceedings of the International Symposium at the Swedish History Museum, April 17-20th 2013 - Proceedings of the International Symposium at the Swedish History Museum, April 17-20th 2013. - 1102-1195. - 9789189338203 ; 12, s. 49-61
-
Bokkapitel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In research on Birka strong focus has since long been directed towards long-distance contacts with Western as well with and Northeastern Europe (todays Russia, Belarus and Ukraine). The great attention paid to west- and east European contacts has likely contributed to that contacts with Finland have fallen out of the discussions. However as seen from studies of the pottery in Birka the Baltic Finnish ware constitute the second largest group when it comes to imports to the town. In the graves on Björkö there are finds of this type of ware as well as of dress details deriving from or showing heavy influence from the Finnish mainland. Some of these finds derive from the most lavishly furnished chamber graves in Birka, indicating that the elite in the town were part of a network that was directly or indirectly connected to groups on the Finnish mainland. Besides Baltic Finnish pottery or dress details from Finland these graves also contained objects such as weights, scales and Islamic coins – items indicating an affiliation to groups involved in the sale and exchange of goods. Finds of standardized weights in south western Finland is a clear indication that this region was part of a supra regional network in the Viking Age just like Birka. Objects from Finland found in Birka on one hand and objects from Scandinavian and central Sweden found in Finland on the other confirm that there has been a close connection between the Mälaren region and south western Finland. Probably products such as furs distributed by the elite in Vakka Suomi attracted groups in eastern Sweden and Birka. However the elite in Birka might also have had other reasons for maintaining contacts with groups in south western Finland. People in south western Finland were linked to routes and networks spanning much further east and by extension also to the riches of the Caliphate.
|
|
| 5. |
- Harrison, Dick, et al.
(författare)
-
Vikingatidens Europa
- 2018
-
Ingår i: Birkas skepp : vikingatid på Östersjön - vikingatid på Östersjön. - 0349-019X. - 9789173291316 ; 2018/2019, s. 10-49
-
Bokkapitel (refereegranskat)
|
|
| 6. |
- Hedenstierna-Jonson, Charlotte, 1971-, et al.
(författare)
-
A female Viking warrior confirmed by genomics
- 2017
-
Ingår i: American Journal of Physical Anthropology. - : Wiley. - 0002-9483 .- 1096-8644. ; 164:4, s. 853-860
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- ObjectivesThe objective of this study has been to confirm the sex and the affinity of an individual buried in a well-furnished warrior grave (Bj 581) in the Viking Age town of Birka, Sweden. Previously, based on the material and historical records, the male sex has been associated with the gender of the warrior and such was the case with Bj 581. An earlier osteological classification of the individual as female was considered controversial in a historical and archaeological context. A genomic confirmation of the biological sex of the individual was considered necessary to solve the issue.Materials and methodsGenome-wide sequence data was generated in order to confirm the biological sex, to support skeletal integrity, and to investigate the genetic relationship of the individual to ancient individuals as well as modern-day groups. Additionally, a strontium isotope analysis was conducted to highlight the mobility of the individual.ResultsThe genomic results revealed the lack of a Y-chromosome and thus a female biological sex, and the mtDNA analyses support a single-individual origin of sampled elements. The genetic affinity is close to present-day North Europeans, and within Sweden to the southern and south-central region. Nevertheless, the Sr values are not conclusive as to whether she was of local or nonlocal origin.DiscussionThe identification of a female Viking warrior provides a unique insight into the Viking society, social constructions, and exceptions to the norm in the Viking time-period. The results call for caution against generalizations regarding social orders in past societies.
|
|
| 7. |
|
|
| 8. |
- Hedenstierna-Jonson, Charlotte, 1971-
(författare)
-
Birka
- 2016
-
Ingår i: Wikinger!. - Rosenheim : Koehler im Maximilian Verlag GmbH & Co. KG. - 9783782212472 ; , s. 68-71
-
Bokkapitel (populärvet., debatt m.m.)
|
|
| 9. |
|
|
| 10. |
|
|
