1,200-year-old Viking grave — with a shield and knives — found in a backyard in Norway
A backyard garden in Norway contained quite a bit more than the usual vegetables or flowers, archaeologists recently discovered.
Before construction of a new house could fully begin, archaeologists were brought in to excavate a site in the Holmen neighborhood of Oslo, the city’s antiquities authority, Byantikvaren i Oslo, said in a news release.
Those excavations revealed a rich burial site dating back to the Viking Age, archaeologists said. The grave contained numerous gravestones and the rounded centerpiece of a shield. Originally, an entire large wooden shield was buried in the grave, experts told NRK TV. However, the wood rotted away, leaving just its metal centerpiece.
The other grave goods were likely buried under the shield, experts told NRK TV. These items included a ring buckle, used to hold a cloak together.
The grave also contained knives, a sickle, and horse equipment, including a bell, a sleigh drag, and a hoof beat, according to the release.
Because Viking burial customs involved cremating the deceased on a bonfire, archaeologists did not find any human remains. The deceased’s ashes and possibly a few bones were likely buried in the grave about 1,200 years ago, researchers said.
“The grave was located directly under a thin layer of topsoil and turf right on the east side of the highest point on the site, with a fantastic view,” Marianne Bugge Kræmer, the archaeologist who uncovered the grave, told Science in Norway on Thursday, Dec. 22.
About 60 Viking-age graves have been found in Oslo, Science in Norway reported. However, most graves have been excavated by construction workers. This is the “first artifact-rich Viking grave in Oslo” to be excavated by archaeologists, experts told the outlet.
Holmen is a neighborhood on the western edge of Oslo.
Facebook Translate and Google Translate were used to translate the news release from Byantikvaren i Oslo. Google Translate was used to translate the piece by NRK TV.
This story was originally published December 23, 2022 at 11:58 AM with the headline "1,200-year-old Viking grave — with a shield and knives — found in a backyard in Norway."
