‘Unusual’ Viking burial ground with dozens of rare near-complete skeletons unearthed alongside mysterious ‘grave gifts’
A REMARKABLY intact Viking burial with roughly 50 near-complete human skeletons has been discovered in Denmark.
The forgotten cemetery was unearthed on the island of Funen during preparations to lay electrical cables underground.
Archaeologists from Museum Odense have been working to delicately uncover dozens of human remains, as well as rare artifacts over the past six months.
But what makes the discovery “truly unusual”, according to archaeologist Michael Borre Lundø, who was present at the dig, is that there were “so many well-preserved skeletons” in one place.
Finding any human remains from the Viking Age – between around 793 and 1066 AD – is rare.
Though it is especially rare to find such a well-preserved grave in Scandinavia, due to the typically high acid levels in the soil.
Areas where it is highly acidic will completely destroy bones.
“Normally when we excavate Viking graves, we’d be lucky if there were two teeth left in the grave besides the grave goods. But here we have the skeletons fully preserved,” Lundø told Reuters.
He added: “The skeletons are so amazing. They are so well preserved.
“There are five fingers, five toes. And that opens up a whole new set of possibilities for discoveries.”
The anomalous burial may even provide the first Danish Viking-age bones to undergo DNA testing.
Sarah Croix, associate professor of Archaeology and Heritage Studies at Aarhus University, explained: “The graves in Åsum are so well-preserved that it may be possible, for the first time, to conduct special aDNA analyses on most of the skeletons—meaning DNA analyses on ancient material.
“It will be incredibly exciting to learn where these people came from and whether the same families were buried here across multiple generations.”
It will also allow archaeologists to learn more about the general health, diet, and origins of those buried, according to Lundø.
He added: “The analyses might even reveal whether the buried vikings were related, which would be particularly significant, as this has never been examined in similar graves.”
Glass pearls and broaches
The burial ground covers roughly 2,000 square metres on the outskirts of village Åsum.
Most of the dead are understood to have been quite wealthy in their time.
Rare artifacts such as knives, glass pearls, and brooches dated between the years 850 to 970 AD were also found in the excavation.
These items are typically only associated with high-status individuals.
One woman was even buried in a Viking wagon, with the upper part of the cart used as a coffin.
“The woman was buried in the wagon she likely travelled in,” according to Lundø.
“We must imagine that she was buried with her finest clothes and belongings.”
She was buried with a glass bead necklace, an iron key, a knife with a silver-threaded handle and a small shard of glass that experts believe may have been an amulet.
Inside the Viking woman’s grave is a finely decorated wooden chest, which could have unknown treasures inside.
Archaeologists are yet to open the chest and analyse its contents.
Strange UK burials sites
Here are some of the weirdest...
Leicester car park: King Richard III’s remains
- In 2012, King Richard III’s skeleton was famously found under a Leicester car park.
- The corpse had a metal arrow in its back and severe trauma to its skull.
- The following February, lead archaeologist Richard Buckley, of the University of Leicester, said tests proved the remains were the king’s “beyond reasonable doubt”.
- Richard was killed in the Battle of Bosworth Field in 1485.
- His demise was dramatised by Shakespeare, who had the monarch calling out “a horse, a horse, my kingdom for a horse” before he died on battlefield.
Dartmoor: Grave of ‘Bronze Age princess’
- Its beautiful moor attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors every year, but in 2011, remains thought to belong to a Bronze Age princess were discovered on Dartmoor.
- The bones – thought to date back over 4,000 years – were found in a peat bog on White Horse Hill alongside a number of remarkable items, including around 150 beads, an animal pelt, a delicate bracelet and a woven bag.
- The picturesque National Park’s archaeologists were stunned to uncover the grave, which was described at the time as one of the most significant historical finds ever at the site.
- It is speculated that the grave was that of a young, royal woman.
Rare Oxfordshire stream: 26 human skeletons
- A beautiful stream in Oxfordshire might look like an unlikely place to find 26 human skeletons – but that’s what happened recently near the precious Letcombe Brook.
- The skeletons, believed to be from the Iron Age and Roman periods, were discovered during a £14.5 million Thames Water project to ease pressure on the rare chalk stream.
- Archaeologists believe some may have been victims of ritual human sacrifice.
- The skeletons are thought to be about 3,000 years old.
- Evidence of dwellings, animal carcasses and household items, including pottery, cutting implements and a decorative comb, were also unearthed.
- Cotswold Archaeology removed the items for forensic examination, which meant Thames Water could start laying the six-kilometre pipe.