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Rescue excavation of a Vendel era boat-grave in Salme, Saarema

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RESCUE EXCAVATIONS OF
A VENDEL ERA BOAT-GRAVE
IN SALME, SAAREMAA
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the track, a large number of human bones were found near the border
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head, a sword blade, a knife, some gaming pieces, two dice1 and half a dozen
of iron rivets. The construction work was stopped, and rescue excavations
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Museum were initiated. The excavations directed by Jüri Peets (AI) and
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a 7th century ship. The workers digging the cable ditch had dug into the
stern of the ship.
ON BOAT-GRAVES IN ESTONIA AND ELSEWHERE
Burials in boats became more and more common among the elite of north
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noble social standing. There were different ways of conducting such burials.
The most common way was burying an unburned boat in a trench or placing
it on the ground with supports. The boats were either covered with wood
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Usually the body was placed in the middle of the boat, sometimes also into a
specially built chamber with rich grave goods – weapons, household items,
horses, dogs and other animals and birds. The most famous boat burials of
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ARCHAEOLOGICAL FIELDWORK IN ESTONIA 2008
MARGE KONSA
marge.konsa@ut.ee
Tartu Ülikool
(University of Tartu)
Lossi 3, 51003 Tartu
Estonia
RAILI ALLMÄE
raili.allmae@ai.ee
Tallinna Ülikool, Ajaloo Instituut
(Institute of History,
Tallinn University)
Rüütli 6, 10130 Tallinn, Estonia
LIINA MALDRE
liina.maldre@ai.ee
53
JÜRI VASSILJEV
jyri.vassiljev@gi.ee
Tallinna Tehnikaülikool
(
Institute of Geology,
Tallinn University of Technology
)
Ehitajate tee 5, 19086 Tallinn
Estonia
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following Viking Age, the cremation is dominant in such graves. All the Ven
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coastline and on the islands, where iron rivets have been found. Usu
ally, the number of rivets collected from a site is very small. The mini
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a number has been found. Among these sites, a remarkable one is Viltina
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than a thousand rivets were found, half of which were collected from a
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Regretfully, the shape and possible construction of the boat has remained
unknown. There were no artefacts or burials clearly related to the boat
and so the dating of the boat has remained uncertain as well.
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cog found from the Pärnu River has been dated to late 13th to early 14th
century. The Maasilinna shipwreck that was raised from the strait Väike
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LOCATION OF SALME SHIP-FIND
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is situated about 230 m away from the contemporary coastal line, and
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maa, based on the databases of shoreline and buried organic sediments
GDWD6DDUVH et al. 2003; 2006) indicate that the sea level in the 7th cen
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day sea level) was about 1.2 m above the sea level. Hence, the sea water
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To the east of the headland was Livonian Bay and to the west, the Gulf of
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schoolhouse, 200 m east from the ship.
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54
MARGE KONSA, RAILI ALLMÄE, LIINA MALDRE & JÜRI VASSILJEV
55
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which evidently had ideological and religious meanings. It has also been no
ticed, that the weapons, especially spears, have often been found from the
stern of the boat (Larsson 2007, 275). Considering similar examples, it is
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DATA ABOUT THE SHIP
When the excavations began, a part of the prow, about 7 m long and 1.3 m
wide, was extant. Digging the trench had destroyed the stern. Luckily,
a 35 cm piece of the sternpost had been spared in one side of the trench.
This piece made it possible to determine the length of the ship, and
the orientation of its horizontal axis. The endmost distance between the
rivets found from the prow and from the stern was 10 m. The amidships
had been preserved for about 0.5 m in height. The part of the ship above it,
as well as the stem, had been destroyed. In the sternpost part, untouched
by the construction workers, the rivets were situated right below the turf,
only a couple of centimetres deeper.
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some very thin strips of softwood planks and pieces of the support beam
of the frame made of pine2 had been preserved. Most of the data about the
shape and the construction of the ship were gathered by taking bearings
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UDQQDMRRQS.U
present road /
tänapäevane maantee
SUHVHQWFRDVWOLQH
UDQQDMRRQWlQDSlHYDO
1 km
0
14.0 m
12.5 m
10.0 m
7.5 m
5.0 m
2.5 m
0.0 m
– 2.5 m
– 5.0 m
Fig. 1. The location of the Salme
ship-find.
Jn 1. Salme laevaleiu asukoht.
Drawing / Joonis: Jüri Vassiljev
27KHVSHFLHVZDVGHWHUPLQHGE\5HJLQR.DVNIURP(VWRQLDQ8QLYHUVLW\RI/LIH6FLHQFHV
RESCUE EXCAVATIONS OF A VENDEL ERA
BOAT- GRAVE IN SALME, SAAREMAA
56
Fig. 2. View towards prow at
stern. The support beam
of the fifth frame in the
foreground.
Jn 2. Vaade väljapuhastatud
laevale ahtrist vööri
suunas. Esiplaanil on
näha viienda kaare
tugitala.
Photo / Foto: Maili Roio
MARGE KONSA, RAILI ALLMÄE, LIINA MALDRE & JÜRI VASSILJEV
57
of the outline of the ship and the placement of the
rivets in the site (Fig. 2).
Altogether, 275 rivets were found during the exca
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ed. Following the distance between the rows of the riv
ets, it can be said, that 30 cm wide planks were used, and
WKDWWKHVHZHUHMRLQHGZLWKLURQULYHWVE\FOLQNHUSODQN
ing, in which the edge of one plank slightly overlays the
other. The rivets were about 3 –4 cm long, which means
that the planks used were very thin, about 1.5 2 cm
in thickness. In the middle of the northern part of the
ship there was a keel, about 15 cm wide and narrowing
towards the prow. On both sides of the prow, planks
were riveted – a keel strake next to the keel and a side
strake added to it.
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struction of the vessel, came to a conclusion, that the
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mum width of 2 m (Figs. 3; 4). The sea gauge of the
ship, with a low skid keel, may have been 0.4 m and the
height of the boardside in the middle of the ship 0.75 m.
The rows of rivets on the upper edge of the side strake
showed that the ship had also had a third side strake,
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had eight frames and these were probably attached by
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ing ship, its sophistication ranging between the log boat
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characteristic to a military vessel – it was fast, light
and easily manoeuvrable. It can be considered to be an
H[DPSOHRIWKH%DOWLF6HDHDVWFRDVWVKLSEXLOGLQJWHFK
nology and tradition.
ARTEFACTS
Most of the artefacts and human bones were collected from
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gathered by shifting through the soil removed from the
trench, and so, the exact locations of the artefacts remain
XQNQRZQ7KH ZHDSRQ ÀQGV IURP WKH VWHUQ FRQVLVWHG RI
two spearheads (Fig. 5) and artefacts related to swords.
Fig. 3. Reconstruction of the
hull’s shape. Crosses mark
the location of rivets and
numbers mark the frames
at the excavated area.
Jn 3. Salme laeva kuju
rekonstruktsioon.
Ristidega on tähistatud
neetide asukohad ja
numbritega kaared
kaevatud alal.
Drawing / Joonis: Marge Konsa
1 m
0
1
2
3
4
5
RESCUE EXCAVATIONS OF A VENDEL ERA
BOAT- GRAVE IN SALME, SAAREMAA
58
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RWKHUZLWKDRQHHGJHGEODGH )URPWKHNQLYHV IRXQG
IURPWKHVKLSZHUHIURPWKHWUHQFKDVZHOODVÀYHRXW
of eight whetstones and three arrowheads out of six. The
two dice (Fig. 7: 1) and most of the gaming pieces were
also from the stern. The actual number of dice in the ship
remains unclear, but the preserved ones are elongated
and rectangular in shape, all of their sides marked with
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sphere shaped gaming pieces are made of bovine bone
and whalebone. The set of gaming pieces consists of 72
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an image of a man cut into it (Fig. 7: 2).
The exact location of the artefacts and bones in the
rest of the ship has been documented after its discov
ery. Prior to that, the upper horizontal layer of the ship,
about 20 cm thick, was dug off. Above the sixth frame
of the ship, in the bank of the trench, three skulls with
some bones of upper body had been left. An accumu
lation of human bones was also discovered in the area
between the third and the fourth frame. Above the third
frame, 26.7 cm from the bottom of the boat, a slab of
limestone (40 cm in diameter) with an unknown func
tion was discovered. There was a human skull next to it.
Fig. 4. The cross-section of the
ship at the third frame.
The height of the rivets is
in meters above sea level.
Jn 4. Ristlõige laevast 3. kaare
kohal. Neetide kõrgused
on meetrites üle mere
pinna.
Drawing / Joonis: Marge Konsa
Fig. 5. Spearhead from stern
found by the workers.
Jn 5. Teetööliste leitud odaots
laeva ahtrist.
(SM 10601: 1.)
Photo / Foto: Mirja Ots
Fig. 6. Sword hilt found from
stern.
Jn 6. Mõõga käepide laeva ahtrist.
(SM 10601: 228.)
Photo / Foto: Mirja Ots
1 cm
0
1 cm
0
MARGE KONSA, RAILI ALLMÄE, LIINA MALDRE & JÜRI VASSILJEV
59
During the excavation of the inside layer the ship (30 cm thick),
a 10–14 cm layer of gravel was discovered. It had settled into the bottom
of the boat and contained no artefacts. A thin dark brown layer of organic
matter overlaid it. The dark brown layer may have been the remains
of the boards of a burial platform. Above this layer, there was a gravel
layer, containing artefacts and animal bones.
The artefacts were situated in three zones. Two arrowheads were dis
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a knife from the port side. Next to the abovementioned limestone slab,
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third assemblage of artefacts was found amidships in the area between the
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15.7 cm in length, were discovered there. Near these, a piece of resin, 5.3 cm
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frame, port side, a small iron tool with a socket was found. Animal bones
were found in smaller or bigger accumulations in the bow, on an area about
2.5 m in length. There was also a clearer accumulation of animal bones near
WKHÀIWKIUDPHZKHUHWZRSLHFHVRILURQDQGDEURQ]HÀWWLQJZHUHIRXQG
In the sternpost of the ship, two knives were found from under
WKHWXUIDQG SLHFHV RI D FRPE  FP EHORZ WKHP ,W ZDV D WKUHHSDUW RQH
VLGHGFRPEZLWKZLGH MRLQLQJ SODWHV GHFRUDWHG ZLWK DQ H\H PRWLI DQG OLQH
ornament (Fig. 8).
6HYHUDOLWHPV OLNH WKH VZRUGVKDUSHQLQJVWRQHRU WKH VHWRIJDPLQJ
SLHFHVDQGGLFHDUHXQLTXHDPRQJWKHDUWHIDFWVIURP0LGGOH,URQ$JH(VWR
QLDEXWFKDUDFWHULVWLFWRWKHJUDYHJRRGVRIHOLWHERDWJUDYHVLQ6FDQGLQDYLD
HJ$UQH$UZLGVVRQ6WROSH$UQH:KLWWDNHU7KH
JUDYHJRRGVRIWKH6DOPHERDWJUDYHODFNDQ\KRXVHKROGLWHPVSRWWHU\RU
QDPHQWVKRUVHKDUQHVVHWFWKDWDUHFKDUDFWHULVWLFWRWKHERDWJUDYHEXULDOV
of the local elite. The whole assemblage of the artefacts can be related to the
equipment needed by armed seafarers.
PRELIMINARY RESULTS OF OSTEOLOGIC ANALYSES
Unfortunately during the rescue excavations the exact location of human
ERQHV ZDV QRW À[HG 7KXV PRVW RI WKH KXPDQ ERQHV ZHUH FRPPLQJOHG
Fig. 7. Dice (1) and game piece
with human figure (2).
Jn 7. Täring (1) ja inimese
kujutisega mängunupp
(2).
(SM 10601: 211, 222.)
Photo / Foto: Mirja Ots
1 cm
0
1 2
RESCUE EXCAVATIONS OF A VENDEL ERA
BOAT- GRAVE IN SALME, SAAREMAA
60
DQ\ZD\RQO\IHZSDUWVRIVNHOHWRQVZHUHLQWDFW,WLVGLIÀFXOWWRVD\ZKHQ
the skeletons were disturbed, because there have been several former
road constructions and cabling works carried out in the past. During
the archaeological excavations it was noticed, that human bones were
in somewhat higher level in comparison with animal bones, of course we
cannot say anything about the bones in the cable trench area, which were
collected before archaeological rescue excavations. The bone material was
mainly fragmentary; especially craniums and long bones were broken.
Preliminary osteologic analyses of the human bones collected main
ly from the cable trench and soil heaps were conducted on the 3rd of
November, 2008 on site (before the beginning of archaeological rescue ex
cavations). The results of preliminary osteologic analyses referred to at
OHDVWWKH VNHOHWDO UHPDLQV RI ÀYHSHRSOH /DWHURQ IROORZLQJWKH UHVFXH
excavation and in laboratory conditions, two additional skeletons were
determined.
Hence the results of osteologic analyses indicated the remains of
seven men inside the ship contour. The number of men was determined on
WKHEDVLVRIIDFLDOSDUWVRIFUDQLXPVKLSERQHVWLELDOERQHVDQGKHHOERQHV
The usual method of recurrent bone fragments was used, which is common
for analysing commingled bones.
The number of human skeletons – 7 – found inside one burial boat
LVH[FHSWLRQDO3ULRUWRWKH6DOPHERDWJUDYHWKHUHLVQRLQIRUPDWLRQDERXW
EXULDOERDWVZLWKLQKXPDWLRQVLQ(VWRQLD
8QWLO WRGD\ RQO\ WZR EXULDO ERDWV DUH NQRZQ LQ QRUWKHUQ (XURSH
ZKHUH WKH QXPEHU RI VNHOHWRQV IRXQG LQ LV PRUH WKDQ WZR 7KH ÀUVW LV
WKH ERDWJUDYH RI 1DEEHU|U GLVFRYHUHG LQ  RQ WKH LVODQG RI gODQG LQ
6ZHGHQ/DPP  ZKHUHVNHOHWRQVZHUH IRXQG LQVLGHWKHERDW
DQG WKH VHFRQG LV WKH 9LNLQJ $JH ERDW EXULDO IRXQG LQ 6FDU 2UNQH\
LQ6FRWODQGLQZKHUHWKHVNHOHWRQVRIWKUHHSHRSOHZHUHIRXQGLQVLGH
WKHERDWUHPDLQV*UDKDP&DPSEHOO%DWH\
7KHDQLPDOERQHVZHUHFROOHFWHGIURPWKHSUHVHUYHGSDUWRIWKH6DOPH
ship and from the cable trench area. No animal bones were found outside
WKHVKLSFRQWRXUQRULQWKHSURÀOHVPDGHDURXQGWKHVKLSWKXVZHPD\
con
clude that all the animal bones were originally inside the ship.
Fig. 8. Fragments of comb found
nearby sternpost.
Jn 8. Ahtertäävi juurest leitud
kammi katkendid.
(SM 10601: 272, 271.)
Photo / Foto: Mirja Ots
1 cm
0
MARGE KONSA, RAILI ALLMÄE, LIINA MALDRE & JÜRI VASSILJEV
61
7KH SUHOLPLQDU\ DUFKDHR]RRORJLFDO DQDO\VHV LQGLFDWHG PDLQO\ WKH
remains of domesticated animals: bovine (Bos taurus), sheep (Ovis ar-
ies), goat (Capra hircus) and pig (Sus scrofa domestica), but also bird
bones were present. The bovine bones dominated in the preserved part
of the boat, in the cable trench area (the disturbed area) the bones of
sheep / goat were most common. No complete skeletons of animals were
found, only the parts of skeletons, which indicated that the hashed car
casses were placed into the boat.
7KHUHLVDUHPDUNDEOHGLIIHUHQFHEHWZHHQWKHDUFKDHR]RRORJLFDOPD
WHULDOV RI 6ZHGLVK ERDWJUDYHV DQG WKH 6DOPH ERDWJUDYH ,Q QHDUO\ DOO
6ZHGLVK9HQGHODQG9LNLQJ$JHERDWJUDYHV²9DOVJlUGH$UZLGVVRQ
²$UZLGVVRQ²)ULGHOO9HQGHO6WROSH$UQH
cUE\ $UEPDQ² DQG7XQDLQ $OVLNH$UQH  ²
WKHERQHVRIGRJVDQGKRUVHVKDYHEHHQIRXQGLQWKH6DOPHVKLSUHPDLQV
the bones of dogs and horses are totally absent.
RADIOCARBON DATINGS
A piece of wood that had preserved of a plank on the port board of the
VKLSZDVGDWHGLQWKHUDGLRFDUERQ$06PHWKRG3 The results showed that
WKHSLQHXVHGIRUWKHSODQNZDVFXWGRZQEHWZHHQ² $' )LJ
7KHZHLJKWHGDYHUDJHRIWKHFDOLEUDWHGGDWHLV$'$QRWKHUVDPSOH4
was taken from a tibia of a bovine (Bos taurus), and dated to 656–773 AD,
ZLWKWKHZHLJKWHGDYHUDJHRIWKHFDOLEUDWHGGDWHRI$'$OVRWZRVDP
ples5RIKXPDQERQHVZHUHGDWHGE\WKH$06PHWKRG:LWKWKHSUREDELOLW\
RIERWKVDPSOHVLQGLFDWHGWKDWKXPDQEXULDOVGDWHGIURP
3+HOD
4+HOD
RESCUE EXCAVATIONS OF A VENDEL ERA
BOAT- GRAVE IN SALME, SAAREMAA
Fig. 9. Radiocarbon datings.
Jn 9. Radiosüsiniku dateeringud.
62
WKH SHULRG ² $' )RU ERWK VDPSOHV WKH ÀUVW SHDN RI FDOLEUDWHG
dating was of higher probability (41.4%; 51.8% respectively) in comparison
with the second and any later ones ( 26.8%; 16.4% respectively), thus the
most plausible calibrated dating of human bones is between 650–720 AD.
,Q FRQFOXVLRQ FRQVLGHULQJ WKH UHVXOWV RI FDUERQ GDWLQJ DQG WKH FKURQR
ORJ\RIWKHDUWHIDFWVWKH6DOPHERDWJUDYHRULJLQDWHVIURPWKH9HQGHO(UD
3UH9LNLQJ $JH SUREDEO\ IURP WKH SHULRG ² $' 7KH VKLS XVHG
IRU WKH EXULDO ZDV SUREDEO\ EXLOW LQ WKH ÀUVW KDOI RI WKH WK FHQWXU\
DQGKDGKDGLWVVKDUHRIYR\DJHVEHIRUHFRPLQJWRLWVÀQDOSRUWLQ6DOPH
Another sample6 was taken from outside the ship, from a coal found
in a thin layer of clay 20 cm below the bottom of the ship. The result was
2.–3. centuries AD, when shallow water covered the site.
CONCLUSIONS
&RPSDUHGWRRWKHUNQRZQERDWJUDYHVIURPWKH9HQGHO(UDDQGWKH9LNLQJ
$JHWKH 6DOPH VKLSÀQGKDV VHYHUDO GLIIHUHQWFKDUDFWHULVWLFV7KH PRVW
REYLRXV RQH LV WKH JUHDW QXPEHU RI KXPDQ VNHOHWRQV IRXQG LQ WKH ERDW
JUDYH$QRWKHULVWKHDEVHQFHRIDQLPDOVFRPPRQLQ6ZHGLVKERDWJUDYHV²
KRUVHDQGGRJ$OVRWKHDVVHPEODJHRIDUWHIDFWVLVVSHFLÀFDQGFDQEHUH
lated to the equipment used by a warship crew.
The events surrounding the men, who found their burial place in
6DOPHDUHXQNQRZQ:KHWKHUWKH\ZHUHORFDORUIRUHLJQHUVGLHGE\DFFL
dent, disease or violence, are questions not yet answered. The grave goods
UHVHPEOLQJ WKRVH IURP 6FDQGLQDYLD DV ZHOO DV WKH ZD\ RI EXULDO GLIIHU
HQW IURP RWKHU (VWRQLDQ ERDWJUDYHV RI WKH SHULRG FUHPDWLRQV LQ VWRQH
graves) may refer to people from overseas. At the same time, the boat
it
VHOIVHHPVWREHFRQVWUXFWHGPRUHDFFRUGLQJWRWKHVKLSEXLOGLQJWUDGLWLRQ
RIWKHHDVWHUQVKRUHRIWKH%DOWLF6HD$OVRWKHRFFXUUHQFHRI6FDQGLQDYLDQ
DUWHIDFWV LQ 6DDUHPDD LV LQ QR ZD\ H[FHSWLRQDO 7KH VRFLHW\ RI 6DDUHPDD
has had international characteristics and been related to different cultural
traditions for a long time. Thus the local origin of the deceased or mourners
can not be excluded. Hopefully, the results of ongoing analysis will soon en
DEOHXVWRVKHGPRUHOLJKWRQWKHP\VWHU\RIWKH6DOPHERDWJUDYH
Acknowledgements: this study was supported by
the European Union through the European
Regional Development Fund (Center of Excellence
CECT) and by the research grants from Estonian
6FLHQFH)RXQGDWLRQQRDQG
5+HOD+HOD
6+HOD
MARGE KONSA, RAILI ALLMÄE, LIINA MALDRE & JÜRI VASSILJEV
63
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6XRPHQ0XVHR/;;²
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RI6FLHQFHV*HRORJ\²
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9,²9,,(Manuscript in AI.)
Whittaker, H. 2006. *DPHERDUGVDQGJDPLQJ
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20, 103–112.
RESCUE EXCAVATIONS OF A VENDEL ERA
BOAT- GRAVE IN SALME, SAAREMAA
64
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erandlik.
SALME EELVIIKINGIAEGSE
LAEVAMATUSE PÄÄSTEKAEVAMISED
SAAREMAAL
MARGE KONSA, RAILI ALLMÄE, LIINA MALDRE ja JÜRI VASSILJEV
... Seven men were buried in the smaller vessel (Salme I) and 34 in the larger one (Salme II). In addition, weapons, gaming pieces, combs and other equipment along with the provisions which would be needed for the voyage, and also some sacrificed dogs and falcons were deposited as grave goods inside the ships (Konsa et al., 2009;Peets et al., 2011Peets et al., , 2013. Radiocarbon dates from the human bones and typo-chronology for artefacts tend to place the Salme ship burials between 650 and 770 AD, to the end of what is known in Estonia as the Pre-Viking Age, and in Sweden as the Vendel Period (Konsa et al., 2009;Luik et al., 2020;Margaryan et al., 2020;Peets et al., 2011). ...
... In addition, weapons, gaming pieces, combs and other equipment along with the provisions which would be needed for the voyage, and also some sacrificed dogs and falcons were deposited as grave goods inside the ships (Konsa et al., 2009;Peets et al., 2011Peets et al., , 2013. Radiocarbon dates from the human bones and typo-chronology for artefacts tend to place the Salme ship burials between 650 and 770 AD, to the end of what is known in Estonia as the Pre-Viking Age, and in Sweden as the Vendel Period (Konsa et al., 2009;Luik et al., 2020;Margaryan et al., 2020;Peets et al., 2011). ...
... Five of them probably spent their early life in Gotland, but the majority came from eastern-central Sweden . Comparative analysis of artefacts and burial rituals also suggests that these men had travelled to Saaremaa from the Mälaren region in Sweden (Konsa et al., 2009;Luik et al., 2020;Peets et al., 2011Peets et al., , 2013Price et al., 2016). Numerous antemortem injuries from sharp-edged weapons on the men's bones indicate that they died violently in armed conflict (Peets et al., 2013;Price et al., 2020). ...
Article
Two unique Pre-Viking Age ship burials were found from Salme village, Saaremaa Island, eastern Baltic Sea, containing remains of seven men in the smaller and 34 men in the larger ship. According to the archaeological interpretations, these ships belonged to a viking crew possibly from the Stockholm-Mälaren region, eastern Sweden. Geoarchaeological research was conducted in the area to reconstruct Late-Holocene relative sea-level (RSL) changes and shoreline displacement to provide environmental context to these burials. In this paper we present a Late-Holocene shore displacement curve for the Saaremaa Island and GIS-based palaeogeographic reconstructions for the Salme area. The curve shows an almost linear RSL fall from 5.5 to 0.8 m a.s.l. between 1000 BC and 1300 AD with an average rate of 2 mm/year. A slowdown in regression may be attributed to accelerated sea-level rise after the Little Ice Age and during the industrial period, being consistent with the tide-gauge measurements from the 20th century. Palaeogeographic reconstructions indicate the existence of a strait in the Salme area during the burial of the ships. The eastern part of the strait with water depth up to 2.8 m was about 80–100 m wide. The relatively steep and wind-protected shores in that part of the strait were probably the best places in the area for landing the viking ships. According to sedimentological evidence and diatom data, the narrowing of Salme palaeostrait occurred between 1270 and 1300 AD. Salme I and II ships were buried at 650–770 AD into the sandy-gravelly coastal deposits which had accumulated there in the open coastal zone about 710–450 years earlier. Reconstructions show that the ships were located about 2–2.5 m above coeval sea level and more than 100 m from the coastline. Thus, both ships were probably moved from the shore to the higher ground for burial.
... They contained over 40 men, many with evidence of sharp force trauma indicating a violent death. The equipment of the crew, including some 40 swords and other types of weaponry, were mainly of Scandinavian type, and recent strontium isotope analyses support an east Scandinavian origin for the expedition (Konsa et al. 2009;Peets et al. 2010;Peets et al. 2012;Price et al. 2016). The close parallels in burial custom and material culture between Salme and the boat burial cemetery of Valsgärde in Uppland, Sweden, suggests that the crew members of the two boats were on their way from, or back to the Lake Mälaren region. ...
... On basis of the many dozens of picture stones from Gotland that portray sailing ships, however, it seems likely that the use of these had become frequent by the late 8th century (Lindqvist 1941). This suggestion has been recently confirmed by the two spectacular mass burials of warriors found at Salme (Konsa et al. 2009;Peets et al. 2013;. The larger of the two vessels seems to have been a sailing ship, so it is likely that the Scandinavians had probably been practising their sailing skills for at least 50 years before they began exploring the Atlantic Ocean Peets et al. 2013). ...
... The setting for the Salme boat burials is likewise located in an extremely strategic point in the maritime landscape -in this case by a strait. There two boats 11 and burials in Uppland, Sweden, although it is worth noting that the Salme vessels contained many more individuals -as many as 34 and 7 respectively, all according to the osteological assessment males like at the three Upplandic boat burial sites (Konsa et al. 2009;Peets et al. 2011). Underpinning the relationship to central Sweden is the fact that the males seem to have been born and raised in the lake Mälaren region, as indicated by the levels of strontium in their teeth (Price et al. :1030(Price et al. -1032. ...
Book
Full-text available
In Relations and Runes a number of specialists from the fields of archaeology, numismatics and runology explore the complexity of developments and relations in the Baltic Sea region during the Late Iron Age and Early Middle Ages. The contributions in the book cover a wide spectrum of topics and approaches highlighting how islands functioned as nodes in interaction and commu�nication, while constructing and maintaining individual identities. With special focus on the islands of Öland, Gotland and Bornholm, in-depth studies of specific archaeological materials are set in a broader context of cultural development and change in the Baltic. This book is the outcome of a joint venture between two research projects – The Viking Phenomenon and Everlasting Runes, and Gotland Museum.
... Both the burials and the boat itself were partly destroyed, and the exact position of the skeletons thus remains a case of conjecture. Grave goods consisted of two spearheads, fragments of two swords, arrowheads, knives, garning pieces and some other items (Konsa et al., 2009). ...
... Both ships had been clinker-built, which was recognisable during excavation by rows of iron rivets. They had not been covered by people, but were left to silt up with natural marine sediments, carried there by storms over the years following the funerals, but before the ships had decayed and eollapsed (Konsa et al., 2009;Peets et al., 2011). The excavators at Salme dated the find to around AD 750 (Peets et al., 2011). ...
... The most striking of these is that spearheads were only reeorded in the first ve�sel. The spearhead published (Konsa et al., 2009: Figure 5) belongs to the same type found at Viidumäe some 20 krn away from Salme. The laek of spearheads in the Salme II vessel is conspieuous in eomparison with find material with other Estonian fi nd assemblages, where spears tend to be the most conunon weapon deposited, at least during the periods before and aft er the Salme fi nd (e.g. ...
... In 2008 and 2010−2012, two partly destroyed mass burials in ships (Salme I and Salme II) were discovered and investigated near Salme, on the Island of Saaremaa in Estonia. During the archaeological excavations, at least 41 wholly or partially preserved skeletons were discovered, and a large number of artefacts and animal bones were found, including bones of birds of prey − goshawk (Accipiter gentilis) and sparrowhawk (Accipiter nisus) (Konsa et al. 2009;Peets et al. 2011;2013;Maldre et al. 2018). Morphological study of weapons and other artefacts from both sites, together with radiocarbon dating confirms a date in the PreViking Period (about AD 600-800, also known as the Merovingian or Vendel Period). ...
... Both ships were clinker built; the Salme I ship was ca 11.5 m long, and the Salme II ship ca 17-17.5 m long. Human skeletal remains, animal bones, and numerous iron, bronze and bone artefacts dated to the PreViking Period were recovered from the ships (Konsa et al. 2009;Allmäe 2011;Allmäe et al. 2011;Peets et al. 2011;2013;Price et al. 2016). Both ships had been damaged by cable trenches, causing some of the skeletons Konsa et al. 2009, fig. ...
... Human skeletal remains, animal bones, and numerous iron, bronze and bone artefacts dated to the PreViking Period were recovered from the ships (Konsa et al. 2009;Allmäe 2011;Allmäe et al. 2011;Peets et al. 2011;2013;Price et al. 2016). Both ships had been damaged by cable trenches, causing some of the skeletons Konsa et al. 2009, fig. 1). ...
... Usually the boat contained a single individual buried with rich grave goods. The Salme burial ships are the first found in Estonia and a number of publications have covered various aspects of the excavations and analysis (Allmäe, 2011, Konsa et al., 2009, Peets et al., 2011. A preliminary report on the isotopic proveniencing of a few of the human remains from Salme appeared in Price et al. (2016). ...
... We consider the baseline values in Sweden, on Gotland, and in Estonia and on archaeological finds were found in soil heaps outside the ship outline, placed there by the construction workers. The finds included sword fragments, spear-and arrowheads, knives, a small socketed axe, fragments of an ornamented antler comb, and 75 gaming pieces of whale and cattle bone, belonging to at least two separate sets, together with dice (Konsa et al., 2009, Allmäe, 2011. ...
... On basis of the many dozens of picture stones from Gotland that portray sailing ships, however, it seems likely that the use of these had become frequent by the late 8th century (Lindqvist 1941). This suggestion has been recently confirmed by the two spectacular mass burials of warriors found at Salme (Konsa et al. 2009;Peets et al. 2013;Price et al. 2016). The larger of the two vessels seems to have been a sailing ship, so it is likely that the Scandinavians had probably been practising their sailing skills for at least 50 years before they began exploring the Atlantic Ocean (Price et al. 2016;Peets et al. 2013). ...
Chapter
Full-text available
It is not uncommon to describe Vikings as people who lived in a primitive society that ”suddenly” began exploring the world during the late 8th century, as they took on sea voyages that eventually transported them as far as Newfoundland in North America and to the Black Sea in the east (see for example Diamond 2011). Travelling across water, however, was nothing new for Scandinavians. Baltic Islands such as Gotland, located nearly 85 kilometres from the nearest shores, were colonised more than 9 000 years ago, and fleets from southern Denmark took part in the Anglo-Saxon migrations to England almost 400 years before the first Viking raids. The importance of maritime life, contacts and economies have been constant throughout the history of Scandinavia. The main difference between the Viking ocean travellers and their ancestors is that the former took the step to make extraordinarily long travels. Why they started those longer journeys is a matter of debate, but we do know that the story began centuries before the Viking Age.
... As a result, trade, naturally controlled by the south Scandinavians, could have blossomed. Let me recall here, apart from the well-known Scandinavian finds from Grobina (Nerman 1958), also the extraordinary find from Salme on Saarema, where a boat mass-grave of Scandinavian origin from the midseventh century was excavated lately (Konsa et al. 2008). Moreover, the next mass boat-grave (Salme II) an imprecisely dated (seventh century?) image of a ship engraved on a pebble from Karlby in Denmark (Crumlin-Pedersen 2010, Fig. 4.7), and the strongly castigated experiment (Gifford 1995) with a half-scale model of the Sutton Hoo boat furnished with a sail (Westerdahl 1995;Christensen 1996, pp.79-86;McGrail 2001, p.211ff;Crumlin-Pedersen 1997b, p.188ff;2010, pp.97-98). ...
Article
Full-text available
This paper presents the Elbląg group at its peak, that is, the late sixth and early seventh centuries. Imports are presented, namely Scandinavian (but also Merovingian) denominators of opulence (drinking horns, particular imported goods, seaxes in ornamental scabbards, and so on), and also the possible grounds on which local settlers thrived (the amber trade, maybe also the salt trade). The geostrategic position of the Elbląg group is analysed, as well as sea trade routes and boats used on the Baltic Sea during the Late Migration Period. Contacts between southern Scandinavia and the Elbląg group are described against the wider cultural and political background.
... This is supported by several mass graves that appear to have resulted from raids gone wrong. These include the Salme burials discussed earlier (Konsa et al., 2008;Peets et al., 2012), some 50 male skeletons from a late 10th century mass grave at Ridgeway Hill, England (Loe, 2014), and 37 male skeletons in a mass grave from St. John's College, Oxford (Falys, 2014;Pollard et al., 2012). However, there is evidence that women could also participate in raids (Raffield, Greenlow, Price, & Collard, 2016). ...
Article
Full-text available
In this paper we use a combination of evolutionary theory, ethnographic data, written sources, and archaeological evidence to develop a new explanation for the origins of Viking raiding. Our argument focuses on the operational sex ratio, which is the ratio of males to females in a society who are ready to mate at a given time. We propose that a combination of two practises—polygyny and concubinage—and the increase in social inequality that occurred in Scandinavia during the Late Iron Age resulted in a male-biased Operational Sex Ratio. This would have created a pool of unmarried men motivated to engage in risky behaviours that had the potential to increase their wealth and status, and therefore their probability of entering the marriage market. With high-status men looking to instigate expeditions to acquire plunder and develop their reputations as war leaders, raiding represented a mutually beneficial means of achieving social advancement and success.
Thesis
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This thesis examines the technological and social parameters for, and the social impact of, the introduction and implementation of locking into Norway in the Iron Age, based on analyses of locks and keys. The functional properties of locking devices and their practical applications as security mechanisms constitute the focal point of the study, and the basis for discussing how locking contributed to the ordering and organisation of life and society in the course of the first millennium AD. The main aims are to establish an empirical foundation for the study of locking devices and to understand locks and keys as a technological and social phenomenon which was affected by and had effects on the societies that created and used them. The archaeological material is approached from a conceptual framework centred on perspectives of entanglement and social boundaries, in which locking is considered a social practice. As material agents locks and keys are seen as involved in the physical protection of things and spaces, regulation of access, and manifestation of ownership rights, as well as the creation and negotiation of values and norms as part of social order. The analytical material is comprised by more than eight hundred locks and keys dated from the Roman Period to the Viking Age, deriving from burials, depositions, and settlements, as well as single finds. The finds are used in the construction of renewed classifications for Scandinavian locks and keys, which is based on their functional designs and their correlation to lockable containers, doors, and fetters. Through temporal, spatial, and contextual analyses of types the thesis outlines a complex picture of production, innovation, distribution, and application of locking devices. The results illustrate that locks and keys were introduced and developed in stages in Norway, and that their use expanded and diversified practically as well as socially. The analytical patterns are further discussed in terms of security, ownership, and order, arguing that locking from its introduction became gradually embedded into society during the Iron Age. This is suggested to result from the success of locks and keys in achieving order, and their close relationship with processes of hierarchisation, social differentiation, and social complexity. The thesis provides new insights into the practical functions and applications of diverse locking mechanisms, technological development, craft specialisation, exchange and contact networks, and the social impact of locking in terms of physical and social order. It also contributes to current debates concerning social organisation and transformations within Norway and wider Scandinavia and Northern Europe in the first millennium AD.
Boatgraves in Finland
  • G Anderson
  • H Arbman
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Kungliga Vitterhets Historie och Antikvitets Akademien, Arwidsson, G. 1942. funde von Valsgärde I. Acta Musei Antiquitatum Septentrionalium Regiae Universitatis Upsaliensis
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  • Arne Fornvännen
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Acta Musei Antiquitatum Septentrionalium Regiae Universitatis Upsaliensis, 4
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Arwidsson, G. 1954. funde von Valsgärde II. Acta Musei Antiquitatum Septentrionalium Regiae Universitatis Upsaliensis, 4. Uppsala.
gärde i Gamla Uppsala socken. -Fornvännen
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Fridell, A. 1930. gärde i Gamla Uppsala socken. -Fornvännen, 25, 217-237.
Investigation of underwater Estonian Archaeology, 1. Tartu
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Roio, M. 2006. Investigation of underwater Estonian Archaeology, 1. Tartu, 301-310.
Boatgraves in Finland. -Arbman, H. 1936. i Rasbokil socken
  • G Anderson
Anderson, G. 1963. Boatgraves in Finland. -Arbman, H. 1936. i Rasbokil socken, Uppland. -Fornvännen,
Kungliga Vitterhets Historie och Antikvitets Akademien, Arwidsson, G. 1942. funde von Valsgärde I. Acta Musei Antiquitatum Septentrionalium Regiae Universitatis Upsaliensis
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Arne, T. J. 1934. Das Bootgräberfeld von Tuna in Alsike, Uppland. Kungliga Vitterhets Historie och Antikvitets Akademien, Arwidsson, G. 1942. funde von Valsgärde I. Acta Musei Antiquitatum Septentrionalium Regiae Universitatis Upsaliensis, 1. Uppsala.