Offa 71/72 2014/15 • Offa Berichte und Mitteilungen zur Urgeschichte, Frühgeschichte und Mittelalterarchäologie Band 71/72 • 2014/15 Wachholtz Verlag – Murmann Publishers, Kiel/Hamburg Herausgegeben vom Institut für Ur- und Frühgeschichte der Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel und dem Archäologischen Landesmuseum der Stitung Schleswig-Holsteinische Landesmuseen Schloss Gottorf, Schleswig sowie dem Archäologischen Landesamt Schleswig-Holstein, Schleswig durch CLAUS von CArnAP-BOrnHeIM, Schleswig, JOHAnneS MüLLer und ULrICH MüLLer, beide Kiel Gedruckt mit Unterstützung durch den Verein zur Förderung des Archäologischen Landesmuseums e.V., Schleswig Die wissenschatlichen Beiträge in der Ofa-Zeitschrit unterliegen einem Peer-review durch auswärtige Gutachter. redaktion: Anke Wesse, Kiel Technische redaktion und Umschlagentwurf: ralf Opitz, Ines reese, Kiel ISSn 0078-3714 ISBn 978 3 529 01265 5 Das Werk einschließlich aller seiner Teile ist urheberrechtlich geschützt. Jede Verwertung, die nicht ausdrücklich vom Urheberrechtsgesetz zugelassen ist, bedarf der vorherigen Zustimmung des Verlages. Das gilt insbesondere für Vervielfältigungen, Bearbeitungen, übersetzungen, Mikroverilmungen und die einspeicherung in und Verarbeitung durch elektronische Systeme. © Wachholtz Verlag – Murmann-Publishers, Kiel/Hamburg 2018 www.wachholtz-verlag.de InHALTSVerZeICHnIS Ina-Isabelle Schmütz Grube-Rosenfelde LA 83, Kreis Ostholstein – Ein Funktionsplatz der akeramischen Ertebølle-Kultur in Schleswig-Holstein . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Binnie Feierabend Hammelev, Haderslev Kommune, Sønderjylland. Eine Studie zu rituellen Gruben der Einzelgrabkultur . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57 Sönke Hartz und Johannes Müller Spätneolithische Transformationsprozesse: Die Bedeutung von Quern-Neukirchen LA 28 (Tegelbarg) für die Rekonstruktion einer Übergangszeit. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149 Wencke Höfgen Der spätneolithische Muschelhaufen von Quern-Neukirchen LA 28 (Tegelbarg), Kreis Schleswig-Flensburg . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155 Katharina Fuchs Die menschlichen Skelettreste aus dem spätneolithischen Grab von Quern-Neukirchen LA 28 (Tegelbarg), Kreis Schleswig-Flensburg . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217 Luise Schaller und Wiebke Kirleis Die subfossil-feuchten Großreste aus dem spätneolithischen Fundplatz Quern-Neukirchen LA 28 (Tegelbarg), Kreis Schleswig-Flensburg . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221 Jens Ulriksen A Völva’s Grave at Roskilde, Denmark? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 229 Sven Kalmring in collaboration with Lena Holmquist Hedeby Hochburg – heories, State of Research and Dating. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 241 Henrike Effenberger Zur planzlichen Nahrungswirtschat der frühmittelalterlichen Siedlungen Gönnebek LA 109 und Högersdorf LA 54 im Kreis Segeberg, Schleswig-Holstein . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 293 Philip Lüth Frühe Slawen in Ostholstein. Archäologische und palynologische Untersuchungen zu Landnahme und Konsolidierung im westlichsten Ausdehnungsbereich der slawischen Hemisphäre. . . . . . . . . . 309 Per-Ole Pohl Das Erbe vom Reinbothschen Grundstück. Die archäologischen Befunde und Funde der Grabung Schleswig, Rathausmarkt 17 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 327 3 Uelzener Gespräche 3 Rassenwahn, Ersatzverzauberung und Pagan Metal – Archäologie zwischen Metaphysik und Wissenschaft Ulf Ickerodt und Fred Mahler Editorial zum 3. Uelzener Gespräch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 369 Ulf Ickerodt Weltliche Inbesitznahme: Archäologie zwischen Wissenschat, fortschrittsreligiöser Überhöhung und pseudoreligiöser Ersatzverzauberung . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 373 Winfried Henke Religiosität aus evolutionsanthropologischer Perspektive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 405 Dirk Mahsarski Das Ahnenerbe der SS und die Archäologen – Die Prähistorische Archäologie zwischen wissenschatlichen Großprojekten, NS-Ideologie und religiöser Neustitung . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 423 René Gründer Geschichte als ,Steinbruch‘ religiöser Sinnstitung – Rezeption und Relevanz historiograischer Wissensbestände bei Anhängern germanisch-neuheidnischer Glaubensvorstellungen . . . . . . . . . . 445 Martin Langebach Pagan Metal und neues Heidentum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 459 Buchbesprechungen Søren H. Andersen, Tybrind Vig. Submerged Mesolithic Settlements in Denmark (Svea Mahlstedt) . . . . 475 Barbara Scholkmann u. a., Archäologie des Mittelalters und der Neuzeit. Grundwissen (Felix Biermann) . . 478 Marcin Wołoszyn, heophylaktos Simokates und die Slawen am Ende des westlichen Ozeans – die erste Erwähnung der Ostseeslawen? (Felix Biermann) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 481 Dariusz Adamczyk, Silber und Macht: Fernhandel, Tribute und die piastische Herrschatsbildung in nordosteuropäischer Perspektive (800–1100) (Donat Wehner) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 482 4 Ofa 71/72, 2014/15 (2018) 229–240. A Völva’s Grave at Roskilde, Denmark? By Jens Ulriksen Introduction Studying Viking Age graves it soon becomes clear that funeral rites not only varied in time and from one Scandinavian region to the other but within the same cemetery as well. hus, one could get the impression that the burial rites were random or at least not ixed in an obvious cosmological framework. However, a closer study of the furnishing of the graves and the treatment of the interred indicates quite complex burial rituals some elements of which can be identiied throughout Southern Scandinavia1. Among the remarkable features is the presence of more than one individual in a grave, either as a double or triple burial or as a secondary burial. Furthermore, except for the interred a grave can contain parts of additional individuals, for example a hand or a skull of both children and adults. Burials with more than one person are not exceptional in Viking Age Scandinavia. A recent study has pointed out 38 cemeteries within the borders of present day Denmark where eleven cemeteries cluster in Northeast Zealand (Christensen 2013, 53). Evidence from two Viking Age burial grounds, Kirke Hyllinge Kirkebakke and Trekroner-Grydehøj, both from the area around Roskilde Fjord and excavated in the 2000s, shows that 14 % and 22 % of the graves respectively enclosed two or three persons and adding graves with parts of extra individuals the number augments to around 29 % (Ulriksen 2011). his particular practice does not mean that the graves are similar. On the contrary, they prove to be as diverse in the treatment of the deceased and the furnishing of the grave as the single graves. he complex and enigmatic ritualized furnishing of a multiple grave was revealed during an excavation at Trekroner-Grydehøj. Amongst other things the burial A 505 contained two women, half a man, a stallion, a dog cut in two halves, a foetus of a sheep, a small menhir and large boulders, all covered with a carpet of stone. he Necropolis at Trekroner-Grydehøj, Roskilde Grydehøj is the name of a small hill in the now developed area of Trekroner some 4 km east of the town centre of Roskilde, Denmark 2 (Fig. 1). he hill has been a necropolis for more than 3,000 years. Beginning in the Late Neolithic Period (c. 2000– 1700 BC) three stone cists covered with one or more mounds were situated on the summit. In the Early Bronze Age (c. 1700–1100 BC) a mound was built 1 his article is based on a presentation of the traces of rituals in Danish Viking Age inhumation graves and published in the Danish periodical Kuml 2011 (see Ulriksen 2011). I am grateful to Roskilde Museum for the permission to use excavation plans and photographs in the article. 2 Since the city council of Roskilde in the late 1990s began developing more than 70 hectares of farming land east of the town centre, the local archaeological museum successively in short distance to the west of the stone cists. Later this mound was expanded to facilitate a new Early Bronze Age grave and a ditch was dug around the eastward foot of the mound, in order to make it appear larger in contrast to the neighbouring Neolithic mounds. In the Late Bronze Age or in the beginning of the Pre-Roman Iron Age (c. 600–400 BC) three urn graves were buried at the western foot of went ahead digging many kilometres of trial trenches before the construction of roads and main sewers began. During this process several single farms of the Late Bronze Age and Early Iron Age were excavated. hen, in 2005 the necropolis was found, and during spring 2007 the excavation took place. he excavation was carried out by Roskilde Museum and conducted by the author. 229 100 km SWEDEN DENMARK GERMANY Fig. 1. he Viking Age burial ground Trekroner-Grydehøj is marked with a black dot. the hill. hen more than a thousand years passed until the late 8th or early 9th century AD when a Viking Age burial ground was established. he 27 inhumations were primarily found on the western slope of the hill with the old cluster of mounds as a point of departure (Fig. 2). Of the 27 graves 20 % were oriented E-W, some with a slight deviation towards N-W, while 80 % had a N-S to NW-SE orientation. Not all the graves had preserved skeletal remains. All together 23 skeletons were registered, 13 in a supine position, and ten placed in a crouched position. Two single graves enclosed additional burned human skeletal material, while ive graves contained two persons. In four of these burials even parts of at least one more individual were present. he graves with two individuals could be separated in two groups: double burials, where the bodies have been interred at the same time in the same pit, and primary/secondary burials characterized by a primary grave with one individual and a secondary grave dug within the limits of the irst one. A505 N 20 m Fig. 2. Trekroner-Grydehøj. he lay-out of the prehistoric necropolis, excavated area with contour lines at 0.25 m intervals at the level of the excavated surface. Light grey: Late Neolithic stone cists; dark grey: the stone lined perimeter of the Early Bronze Age mound in two phases; black: cooking pits connected with the mound; stars: Late Bronze Age/Early Pre-Roman Iron Age urns; hatched: Viking Age inhumations. Illustration by author. 230 Two women, half a man, a stallion and a dog in two parts he most complex feature among the burials was grave A 505. When unearthed it had an oblong shape, 182 × 280 cm, oriented N-S. In the top ill there were stones and lint with white cortex in sizes around 10– 15 cm. One of the stones was scorched and another had a partly polished surface, probably a piece of a quern stone. Among the stones lay a few pieces of bones of varying size, some being from a dog. Along the eastern side and to the north three large boulders were visible (Fig. 3). Some 10–15 cm into the grave the pit was narrowed to 140 × 240 cm and an oblong patch of dark brown soil (c. 55 × 175 cm, 25 cm deep) packed with stones of lint, chalk and granite became visible. he dark patch was limited by two large boulders to the east, one large boulder to the north and a smaller boulder to the west. In the patch the remains of two humans were found (Fig. 4). Individual I was a woman, her head in the north and legs towards south, 35–40 years of age, the remains being parts of the skull, ribs, a shoulder blade, a forearm, pelvis, lower extremities and a knee cap3. Both hip joints were severely afected by rheumatism and she has had a gumboil by the front teeth in the lower jawbone. he skeletal remains were very fragmented and were not found in strict anatomical order. he skull was partly covered by a heavy boulder and was turned 180 degrees, so that the top of the head pointed to the south. Underneath the skull lay fragments of a shoulder blade, ribs and a forearm. Whether the turning of the skull is due to post-depositional movements because of decomposition or whether the head was cut of before the burial is not clear. No cervical vertebrae were preserved to be examined for cut marks. he lower jaw bone was more or less in the correct position in relation to the skull, so if the displacement of the woman’s head is due to the mechanics of decomposition this happened while the ligaments of the jaw were intact. Together with the woman lay parts of Individual II. he remains present were the right hand, part of the pelvis and let and right femur. heir size and shape suggest that they belong to a man, 35–45 years of age. here were no artefacts in the upper grave, but parts of a medium-sized dog were scattered among the stones above the human remains4. he third Individual III rested at the bottom of the grave. he body was arranged in a supine position with the head to the north. he ill around the skeletal parts was pale brown clayish humus and the Fig. 4. Trekroner-Grydehøj. Upper level of grave A 505 with skeletal parts from Individual I and Individual II (green) covered by stones of lint (light blue) and chalk (light grey). Boulders are grey, bones from a dog are yellow. he inner dark patch is marked with a black line. Illustration by author. 3 4 he analysis of the human skeletal remains was conducted by Dr. Pia Bennike, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen. Fig. 3. Trekroner-Grydehøj. he top of the unearthed grave A 505 seen from south. Photo Birgitte Borby Hansen, Roskilde Museum. N 1m he analysis of the faunal remains was conducted by conservator Kristian M. Gregersen, Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen. 231 N 1m N 1m Fig. 5. Trekroner-Grydehøj. Lower levels of grave A 505. Blue: Individual III; light purple: horse; yellow: dog; red: sheep or goat; grey: boulders. Illustration by author. Fig. 6. Trekroner-Grydehøj. Bottom of grave A 505. Blue: Individual III; yellow: dog; red: sheep or goat; black: artefacts; grey: boulder (menhir). Illustration by author. amount of stones was considerably smaller than in the upper burials. hough the bones were fragmented it could be established that the interred person had been a woman, 166 cm tall and 25–30 years of age when she died. he skull was out of its anatomical correct position and stood upright on the foramen magnum facing west in a ‘nest’ of hand sized stones. A large boulder covered both the skull and parts of the torso (Fig. 5–6). heoretically the combination of the weight of the boulder and the decomposition of the body may have caused the dislocation of the cranium, but considering its preservation and position in relation to the rest of the skeleton and the boulder it is more likely that the head was removed from the body before or during the burial ceremony. Along with this woman more objects were found. Close to the head lay the iron handle of a small bucket. At the same spot was a 2 cm long wire nail of iron and at her right arm were the closing device of a wooden box, a heavily worn knife, the handle of another knife, a slight copper alloy rivet and a substantial iron eye, both with some wood attached. At her right hand lay an 11 cm long and massive copper alloy piece cast together with a short iron blade or point (Fig. 7). In the abdominal area was found a tiny iron nail with a round head and along the let leg were occasional pieces of minute iron rods. Nearby the right thigh lay a poorly preserved cranium from goat or sheep and a dog’s jawbone while an iron hinge was situated alongside the tibia. At the feet of the woman rested a dog the size of a pointer, the body cut in two halves beforehand. By its neck were three links of an iron chain5, and partly on top of the hind part of the dog was a small angular menhir. Beside the dog lay a hind limb from a sheep, and by the menhir were two front teeth from a foetus, probably a sheep. Ater the arrangement of these elements an old stallion has been placed on its belly along the east side of the grave-cut. he 5 A chain of a similar type was found in grave 944 at Birka (Arbman 1940, pl. 30) 232 Fig. 7. Trekroner-Grydehøj, grave A 505. Copper alloy piece with an iron point. Photo Cille Krause, Roskilde Museum. stallion’s body partly covered the interred woman, while the head rested on the hind part of the dog next to the menhir (Fig. 8). By the horse’s neck were two massive eyed pins of iron, most likely used for securing packing on a saddle (Cosack 2005, 424 f.). None of the artefacts had chronological signiicance, while an AMS 14C analysis of a tooth from the stallion suggests a dating between AD 720 and AD 9706. he description above is almost like playing a movie backwards. Step by step the conduct of the burial may have been as follows: he original grave-cut was 260 × 157 cm and dug 42 cm into the subsoil. According to the cross section of the grave-cut it has been illed up with a mix of top soil and subsoil (Fig. 9). It was not possible to ind out whether a person, an animal or objects were buried at this point. Ater a while a re-opening of the grave-cut made way for the body of a woman (Individual III) placed in the mid-axis with her head in the north end, probably cut of before the interment. To her right hand side were a bucket, knives, a wooden box and a wooden staf with a composite metal point. At the southern end of the grave a sacriiced dog cut in two halves, a part of a sheep and a sheep foetus were arranged and partly covered with a 32 cm tall and angular menhir. At this point a stallion has been sacriiced and placed along the east side of the grave-cut partially covering the woman and the dog. Finally four boulders were placed in the northern half of the grave-cut, two of them resting on top of the horse while a third boulder was placed over the cut of head and torso of the woman. hen the grave was illed. Ater an uncertain time span the grave-cut was re-opened once again, 172 cm wide and 32 cm deep, but this time a little displaced to the east. he boulders on top of the woman and the stallion were visible and untouched. he reason for this episode is not clear, but in the central part of the grave the cross section witnessed a disturbed area right to the bottom of the original grave-cut. Studying the section the disturbance was later than the burial of Individual III, but it was impossible to ind out to which of the later episodes it belonged. Somewhat later a grave-cut was dug between the large boulders. From top to bottom this secondary grave was illed with a mix of top soil, stones of granite, chalk and lint, the latter dominating in the upper 20 cm of the ill. Between the stones were placed the body of an older woman (Individual I) and above her the pelvis and femur of a man (Individual II) and parts of a medium sized dog. hereater the deceased presumably rested in peace. A Black Magic Woman? A grave of such a complex character with more than one individual, sacriiced animals, a stone carpet and several boulders is not exclusive in Viking Age Denmark. Nevertheless grave A 505 included some attributes that separates it from most other inhumations of that époque. Together these attributes suggest that one or more of the individuals interred were considered out of the ordinary. 6 Double graves are oten interpreted as the master and his/her slave, the latter executed at the time of the funeral to accompany the irst (i. e. Ramskou 1963– 65; Skaarup 1976, 178; Christensen 1981, 26 f.; 1997, 34; Andersen 1993, 98; Svanberg 2003, 93 f.; Price 2008, 266 f.). However, it has also been suggested that this explanation of the phenomenon – sacriiced slaves – may not be the only one. In his monography, AAR-10742: 14C age 1178±36 BP, AD 720–970 (2σ), AD 770– 900 (1σ). 233 Fig. 8. Trekroner-Grydehøj. he south part of grave A 505 with the stallion’s head in front and its body to the right. he front part of the dog is visible to the let of the menhir. Photo Birgitte Borby Hansen, Roskilde Museum. West East Individual I bones Individual III (animal/human not spec.) secondary grave-cut a later opening original grave-cut boulder upper dark patch containing Indvidual I and II flint re-opening for Individual III chalk Fig. 9. Trekroner-Grydehøj, cross section of grave A 505. 234 0.5 m he Viking Way (2002), Neil Price argued that some of the graves with more than one individual could represent a völva, i. e. a seeress and sorceress, accompanying a deceased person to the Otherworld. he identiication of the völva rested on a staf-like object of iron, previously interpreted as either a whip shank (Brøndsted 1936, 196), a linear measure (Arbman 1943, 320) or as a roasting spit (Roesdahl 1977, 92). Later, Leszek Gardeła (2009 a) suggested that other types of staf-like objects such as spear heads may be connected to the völva. his brings the peculiar metal point in grave A 505 into consideration (cf. Fig. 7). he copper alloy piece with the iron blade is unique. he rear end has a thorn for a shat and copper alloy wire curled around it. Altogether the object resembled an arrowhead but it weighs twice as much as an average Viking Age arrow head of iron, and is by no means suited to be used as a projectile7. It has been considered that the object was a scalpel, while surgical instruments with iron blades and copper alloy handles are well known in the period of the Roman Empire. Nevertheless no instruments of a similar shape have been found, neither from Roman times nor from the Early Medieval Period (Kirkup 2006, ig. 26; ig. 234)8. he combination of a brass or bronze body amalgamated with an iron blade is unusual both for a tool and a weapon in a Scandinavian Viking Age context. Instead this pointed object may have been a part of a seiðr staf (Price 2002, 175 f.; Gardeła 2009 a). In pagan Scandinavian ritual practice of seiðr the völva played the central role. In Old Norse völva (vǫlva) means staf-bearer and a staf (Old Norse vǫlr) seems to have been the ‘insignia’ of the völva9. In Old Norse texts there are references to several diferent names of stafs, but accurate descriptions of their design and the context in which they played their part are missing (Price 2002, 180; Gardeła 2009 a). In this particular case the staf may be what an Old Norse term refers to as a gandr or gǫndull. No actual description of the object exists, but the gandr/gǫndull may have consisted of a wooden shat with a sharp point (Price 2002, 179; 181). Purpose and handling of this object has been disputed. It may be understood as a stick of magic associated with divination and sexual magic (ibid. 177 f.). he gandr/gǫndull is also thought to have been used by the völva in a phase of ecstasy as a means of travelling for the released soul or spirit (ibid. 178; Steinsland 2005, 322). Yet another implication has been suggested concerning the seiðr stafs, namely as a symbol of Odin, the master of seiðr (Motz 1996, 84; Gardeła 2009 a, 200; 210 f.). One of Odin’s attributes was a spear, and the staf with the composite point from grave A 505 may well be associated with a symbolic spear. Besides the assumed pointed staf of magic the presence of the stallion attracts our attention. Intact skeletons or parts of skeletons of sacriiced horses have been recorded in a limited number of Scandinavian Viking Age graves, showing some regional variation regarding frequency and cremations compared to inhumations10. In Danish context sacriiced horses are generally found in male graves, oten combined with pieces of riding gear, weaponry and other high status objects. Sacriiced horses are less frequent in female graves, where the equipment related to the horse typically will be draught harness. Chronologically, graves with riding gear and/or a sacriiced horse are uncommon before the 10th century (Pedersen 1997, 125). Grave A 505 is – at least for the time being – one of three inhumation burials with a sacriiced horse on the island of Zealand. In addition to the scarcity of this kind of graves the AMS 14C dating indicates a 65 % chance that the interment took place between AD 770 and AD 900 (see p. 233 note 6). he horse resting alongside and partly upon the woman was an old stallion of at least 15–16 years of age with a measure of withers of about 124 cm. It is unlikely to have served as a splendid steed by the time of its death11. his is emphasized by the lack of objects connected with riding or draught of a wagon. Only the eyed pins of iron may be connected to the horse as tackle for securing luggage to a saddle. Comparable inhumations in other parts of Denmark and in Sweden have the horse placed at the narrow side of the grave-cut, typically at the foot of the grave and combined with either riding gear or harness tackle. Furthermore, where osteological surveys have been conducted the horses had a measure of withers about 127–140 cm and were in 7 sprog” (www.ordnet.dk/ods/). Clive Tolley (2009, 536 f.) argued that etymologically völva means a seeress and plays down the connection between the word vǫlva and staf. 10 Brøndsted 1936; Arbman 1943; Müller-Wille 1976; 1987; Gräslund 1980; Kleiminger 1993; Eisenschmidt 1994; Svan berg 2003; Børsheim 2002/03; Stylegar 2007. 11 he determination of the horse’s age by the time of its death is an estimation based on the wear of the teeth and the joined centrotarsale 1–5. Pers. comm. conservator Kristian M. Gregersen, Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen. he point weighs 31.6 g, while an average Viking Age arrow head of iron weighs c. 15 g. 8 Dr. Ralph Jackson, curator of Romano-British Collections, British Museum, London, and specialist in ancient Greek and Roman surgical instruments, has valuated photographs of the object in question. With reservations, because he did not have a close look at the original object, Dr. Jackson stated that it is not a scalpel. I am grateful for his kind support. 9 Vølve (modern Danish); vǫlva (gen. sing. vǫlu, nom. pl. vǫl(v) ur, dat. pl. vǫlum), derived from vǫlr, stav (staf), tryllestav (magic wand); considering Scandinavian prehistory: spåkvinde (fortune teller), see “Ordbog over det danske 235 their prime by the time of death, meaning 4–8 years of age (Brøndsted 1936, 154; Eisenschmidt 1994, 224 f.; Price 2002, 132)12. hus, the evidence from grave A 505 difers in several ways from most other inhumations with a person and a horse in Viking Age Denmark. Traditionally horses in burials are taken as a sign of the high status of the person interred. Considering the wooden box, the bucket and the knives, the woman at the bottom level of grave A 505 was not without means compared to other burials of the period. Nevertheless, the position of the sacriiced horse in the grave-cut, the absence of riding gear and draught tackle combined with the assumed staf of magic may point to another kind of high status than the ordinary. In Old Norse mythology the horses Skinfaxi and Hrímfaxi were dragging the sun and the moon across the sky, and Sleipner, the eight-legged steed, was one of Odin’s most renowned attributes, enabling him to travel to the Otherworld. he horse also appears to have had an important role in the blót, a ritual practice that could include the sacriice of a horse, and subsequently the eating of its lesh by the participants as described in Saga Hákonar góða (Sørensen 1991). It also appears that horse’s lesh was taboo as food at any other time (Näsström 1999, 168; 2001, 23 f.), and the speciic ban for Christians to eat the meat of horses, initiated by Pope Gregory III in 732, may very well be related to the special status of the horse in pagan rituals of Northwestern Europe. hus, the horse served a number of important roles both among humans and Gods, but most important in the present context is that the horse seems to have been a psychopompic animal, that could take the dead spirit to the next world (Tolley 2009, 544). his may be the reason for the presence of the stallion in grave A 505: an escort for the woman’s spirit more than a means of transportation in a temporal sense. Furthermore, following the trace of the völva the stallion could be symbolizing a connection to Oðin, the master of seiðr. Yet, a certain part of a stallion seems to have played a signiicant role in a seiðr ritual known from the poem Vǫlsa ϸáttr. he origin and age of the composition of these verses are disputed, but even though the oldest known written account is from the late 14th century Norway, the poem has original elements from the Viking Age concerning ritual performance of seiðr (Price 2002, 217 f. with further references). he poem refers to a ritual of fertility performed by the household of a farm, where especially 12 Early Anglo-Saxon and Continental inhumations containing horses and dating from mid 5th to mid 7th century show a similar picture considering the age of the sacriiced animals, primarily stallions with a typical measure of 236 the women are chanting lyrics of unequivocal sexual character while holding the dried, preserved and linen-wrapped phallus of a slaughtered draught-horse. here are speciically references to female masturbation using the phallic object, and ritualized masturbation seems to have been connected to the völva’s performance of seiðr. he völvas’ stafs of magic are actually perceived as phallic symbols, and the gandr/ gǫndull, probably the type of staf in grave A 505, may have served as an epithet for ‘penis’ (ibid. 217). Furthermore, it is worth pointing out the extraordinary elements of the treatment of the woman’s body. Her head seems to have been intentionally removed from the corpse, probably cut of post mortem and deliberately placed on the foramen magnum facing west. Both in Old Norse texts and in the archaeological evidence from Sweden and Denmark there are a few examples of executions by decapitation or the removal of the head of a buried person by re-entering the grave, the latter presumably to prevent the deceased from haunting the living (Gardeła 2013). his has also been the conviction in Anglo-Saxon England (Reynolds 2009, 78). he woman in grave A 505 has no signs on the cervical vertebrae of a decapitation or post mortal beheading, so it is likely that the head has been cut of with a knife prior to the burial. he reason may have been her position as performer of seiðr. his has also been suggested as the cause to place large boulders and stones on the deceased, keeping a malicious soul or spirit from leaving the grave (Christensen 1981; Gardeła 2009 b; Reynolds 2009, 93). In all, the precautionary measures against haunting emphasize the supposed magic power of the woman in grave A 505. Neil Price’s (2002, 127 f.) study of Scandinavian graves of possible female sorcerers identiied a limited number of burials by the presence of a staf-like object. he graves, most of them dated to the 10th century, are not at all alike but nevertheless include comparable elements. Beside the ‘staf’ a common feature is a rather comprehensive furnishing of the graves with imports, luxury objects, buckets, boxes, amulets and jewellery indicating a high social status13. Comparing the contents of grave A 505 with these burials in order to support the assumed presence of a völva’s grave there is no clear answer. Indeed, the supposed ‘staf’, the bucket and the wooden box are present, while jewellery, amulets, imports or luxury objects are absent. Equally, the dominant features of grave A 505 such as the stallion, the menhir, the boulders and the stone carpet – not to mention the additional 13 withers between 130 and 140 cm (Fern 2012, 170). he graves in question are Birka grave Bj. 660, Bj. 834 and Bj. 845; Klinta grave 53:2 and 53:3; Aska; Fyrkat grave 4 (see Price 2002, 127 f.). human bodies and the severed dog – are no typical traits of the burials in question. However, even though double burials and sacriiced horses are scarce among the völvas’ graves under consideration, an intriguing example including both features is grave Bj. 834 from Birka, where a woman was buried sitting on the lap of a warrior resting in a chair and accompanied by two draught horses (Arbman 1943, 304 f.; Price 2002, 132 f.). In another optional völva’s grave from Birka, Bj. 660, a woman rested at the bottom of the 1.8 m deep grave-cut with her jewellery, a wooden box, a bucket, a cruciix and a ‘staf’. About 60 cm from the top of the grave-ill, corresponding with the roof level of the chamber, a human skull and a bent arrowhead of iron was found (Arbman 1943, 231 f.). Even though grave A 505 did not contain jewellery, indeed it was abundantly furnished in a local and regional perspective. here were no female graves in the cemetery at Trekroner-Grydehøj that contained jewellery other than occasional beads of glass in limited numbers. As a matter of fact female graves richly supplied with jewellery or imports are infrequent in Zealand, and burials with the almost iconic set of oval brooches, which are found in nearly all of the ‘stafgraves’, rarely exceed 5 % of the total number of burials at any cemetery in the region, if present at all14. he example of grave A 505 underlines the signiicance of taking the complexity of the interment into consideration when interpreting its social value. he efort invested in the burial is by no means trivial and without a doubt one or more of the persons interred held an important social position when living. Fig. 10. Trekroner-Grydehøj. he völva in her grave. Reconstructed by Mirosław Kuźma. Illustration copyright Leszek Gardeła and Mirosław Kuźma. Conclusion At this point archaeological facts, circumstantial evidence and comparative examples have been presented claiming that grave A 505 contained a Viking Age seeress and sorceress, i. e. a völva (Fig. 10). he facts are an extraordinary complex burial ritual including some re-entries into the grave, two presumably decapitated women and half the skeleton of a man, several sacriiced animals all covered with large boulders and a carpet of stones of granite, chalk and lint. Admittedly, complex burials with more individuals, animals, boulders and/or stone carpets are known in the archaeological record without being connected to völvas. However, in this particular case some of the features have a twist pointing in the direction of the extraordinary. he old 14 In this survey Viking Age cemeteries from Zealand with more than 20 burials including graves containing oval brooches are Tollemosegård, Græse Parish: 4 %; Snubbekorsgård, Sengeløse Parish: 2 %; Trelleborg, Hejninge Parish: 1 % (Nørlund 1948); Ottestrup, Ottestrup Parish: 2 % (Eriksen 1991); Lejre, Allerslev Parish: 2 % (Andersen 1993); Trekroner-Grydehøj: stallion being way beyond his prime combined with the absence of riding gear or draught harness is peculiar opposed to ‘normal’ burials with man/woman and a well equipped horse. Add to this the exceptional bronze piece amalgamated with an iron blade and indisputably having been mounted on the end of a shat or stick. Interpreting the object as part of a völva’s ‘staf’ is indeed circumstantial. Nevertheless, it has proven diicult to establish any comparative profane tool or weapon of the same size and manufacture. herefore, the combination of the pointed object, the other contents of the grave and the handling of the interred compared with the suggested völva graves from Scandinavia, grave A 505 from Trekroner-Grydehøj may very well be one of this kind. none (Ulriksen 2011); Kirke Hyllinge Kirkebakke, Kirke Hyllinge Parish: none (ibid.); Forlev, Vemmelev Parish: none (Brøndsted 1936). Considering Snubbekorsgård and Tollemosegård, I thank museum’s curator Lotte Reedtz Sparrevohn and Dr. Søren A. Sørensen respectively for the permission to use the unpublished data from their excavations. 237 Summary In a period of increased focus on combining Norse mythology, cosmology and archaeology a complex burial from the Viking Age was excavated at Trekroner-Grydehøj in the outskirts of present day Roskilde, Denmark. Grave A 505 was an inhumation demonstrating a ritualized furnishing. Amongst other things the burial A 505 contained two women, half a man, a stallion, a dog cut in two halves, a foetus of a sheep, a small menhir and large boulders, all with a stone covering of granite, lint and chalk. Double graves are oten interpreted as the master and his/her slave, the latter executed at the time of the funeral to accompany the irst. However, it has also been suggested that some graves with more than one individual could represent a völva, i. e. a seeress and sorceress, accompanying a deceased person to the Otherworld. he identiication of a völva rested on a staf-like object of iron. his brings a peculiar metal point of bronze and iron from grave A 505 into consideration. It is suggested that the point is a part of a magic wand and consequently identiies the woman interred as a völva. Besides the pointed staf of magic the presence of an old stallion attracts the attention. here were no riding gear or draught tackle and in the present context the horse may have been a psychopompic animal that could take the dead spirit to the next world. he treatment of the woman’s body also witnesses extraordinary elements. Her head seems to have been cut of post mortem and deliberately placed on the foramen magnum. Both in Old Norse texts and in the archaeological evidence there are a few examples of executions by decapitation or the removal of the head of a buried person by re-entering the grave, the latter presumably to prevent the deceased from haunting the living. he reason may have been her position as performer of seiðr. his has also been suggested as a reason to place large boulders and stones on the deceased, keeping a malicious soul or spirit from leaving the grave. So considering the pointed object and the other contents of the grave as well as the handling of the interred, in comparison with the suggested völvas’ graves from Scandinavia the deceased in grave A 505 from Trekroner-Grydehøj may very well have been a female shaman and seer. Zusammenfassung In einer Zeit, in der vermehrt ein Schwerpunkt auf der gemeinsamen Betrachtung von nordischer Mythologie, Kosmologie und Archäologie liegt, ist das wikingerzeitliche Grab von Trekroner-Grydehøj in der Nähe von Roskilde, Dänemark, ausgegraben worden. Das Körpergrab A 505 zeigt eine rituelle Ausstattung, unter anderem enthielt es zwei Frauen, die Hälte des Skeletts eines Mannes, einen Hengst, einen in zwei Hälten zerlegten Hund, den Fötus eines Schafes, einen kleinen aufrecht stehenden Stein und große Steinblöcke – alles bedeckt mit einem Steinmantel aus Granit, Flint und Kreide. Doppelgräber werden häuig als Bestattung von Herrin/Herr und Sklavin/Sklave angesehen, wobei die/der Bedienstete getötet wurde, um Herrin/Herr in das Jenseits zu begleiten. Es wird allerdings auch vermutet, dass in einigen Gräbern mit mehr als einem Individuum eine völva – eine Seherin und Zauberin – bestattet wurde, um die/den Toten in das Jenseits zu begleiten. Die Identiizierung als völva beruht auf einem stabähnlichen Objekt aus Eisen. Ein derartiges Stück fand sich auch in Grab A 505: Die Spitze wird als Teil eines Zauberstabs angesehen und identiiziert somit die Bestattete als völva. Auch 238 der alte Hengst, bei dem sich kein Reit- oder Fahrzubehör fand, weist in spirituelle Richtung: Er könnte die Aufgabe gehabt haben, die Seele der Verstorbenen in das Jenseits zu bringen. Die Behandlung des Körpers der Toten ist ebenfalls außergewöhnlich. Ihr Kopf ist ofenbar nach dem Tod vom Körper abgetrennt und bewusst auf dem Foramen magnum abgesetzt worden. Sowohl altnordische Texte als auch archäologische Befunde liefern einige Beispiele für Exekutionen durch Enthauptung oder die Verlagerung des Kopfes eines Bestatteten bei einer erneuten Graböfnung. Letzteres erfolgte vermutlich, um zu verhindern, dass Tote die Lebenden heimsuchen. Der Grund könnte in ihrer Stellung als Ausführende des seiðr sein. Vermutlich führte dies wiederum dazu, dass große Felsblöcke und Steine auf den Verstorbenen platziert wurden, um böswillige Seelen oder den bösen Geist nicht aus dem Grab entkommen zu lassen. Verglichen mit den beschriebenen Gräbern von völvas in Skandinavien lässt das stabähnliche Objekt in Grab A 505 und der weitere Inhalt sowie die Behandlung der Bestatteten von Trekroner-Grydehøj vermuten, dass hier das Grab einer völva vorliegt. REFERENCES Andersen 1993: S. W. Andersen, Lejre. Skibssætninger, vikingegrave, Grydehøj [Lejre. Ship settings, viking graves, Grydehøj]. Aarb. Nordisk Oldkde. og Hist. 1993 (1995) 7–142. Arbman 1940: H. 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Jens Ulriksen <ju@museerne.dk> Museum Southeast Denmark Sankt Peders Kirkeplads 14 DK-4700 Næstved, Denmark 240