Jens Jacob Asmussen Worsaae

“ A short description of the monuments of Sweden and Norway will illustrate the difference of the graves in the three kingdoms of the North.
As soon as we penetrate from the completely Danish districts of the south-west of Sweden, with, a new aspect of nature, new memorials of antiquity also meet us. Instead of wide, extended, and fertile plains, we see only rocks, which are either altogether unproductive, or grown over with scanty trees, and with them innumerable masses of stones which have rolled down. ”

“ Such a desire would seem of necessity to be called forth by a sea-faring life, which developes a high degree of openness of character, since the man who has constantly been tossed upon the sea and has struggled with its dangers, would naturally cherish a dislike to be buried in a corner of some shut up spot, where the wind could scarcely ever sweep over his grave. ”

“ The external form and in some measure the internal structure of the tombs are in particular very similar, while they differ most with regard to the mode of interment, the tombs of the stone-period usually containing unburnt corpses, while those in the barrows of the bronze-period have, generally speaking, been burnt. It is true it was the custom in Sweden and Norway, in the iron-period, to consume the remains of the dead by fire, but of such a practice we find no vestiges, or at least very faint ones, in the tombs of Denmark belonging to the same period. ”

“ The number of Runic stones in Denmark is not very considerable; and in order to obtain the desired result from their investigation, it will not only be necessary to keep a watchful eye over the preservation of those already known to exist, but attention must, in like manner, be directed to the discovery of others. There are undoubtedly numerous Runic stones still existing, either buried in the earth, or standing in places where the inscriptions are not seen; at all events, such stones have constantly been discovered from time to time, several of which have been very remarkable. ”

“ From the fact that bodies during the bronze-period were burned, it may be conceived that the bronze-period is later than the stone-period, in which it was the general custom to bury the dead without burning. This latter method of interment is peculiar to uncultivated nations, and is unquestionably the most simple and the most natural; the custom of burning the dead supposes a certain developement of religious feeling which is only to be found among such nations as have acquired some degree of civilization. ”

“ Barrows composed of mounds of earth are henceforth considerably lower than in Denmark, while those which chiefly consist of stone are the most prevalent. An object almost unknown among us is the cairn (steenrör) , as it is called, which frequently lies on the highest rocks, and by which are indicated barrows which are destitute of any covering of earth, and are composed of a heap of stones piled together, on the floor of which an oval stone cist is usually found. They are occasionally of very considerable size, for instance more than twenty feet in height and fifty paces in diameter. ”

“ The tumuli, therefore, fully accord with the antiquities, since they shew that the stone and bronze periods do not apply to Norway and Sweden as they do to the ancient Danish districts, and that the later period of the iron age comprises all three kingdoms; that Norway and Sweden, however, were immediately its home, whence it perhaps extended itself at a later period over Denmark. This fact clearly indicates that in very ancient times Denmark was more fully peopled than the other nations of the North. ”

“ For, to cite an example, if we can prove that there exist in certain districts, barrows and structures of stone of the same form and the same contents, and that, beyond these districts, other and opposite relations exist, we certainly have a valid reason for concluding that such districts were inhabited in ancient times either by the same races of men, or at all events by races very nearly related. ”

“ An examination of the most remarkable and striking cromlechs and giants' chambers, cannot fail to excite our surprise that the aboriginal inhabitants of Denmark were able to erect such stupendous monuments. How the large cap-stones were brought to lie on the supporting stones is indeed not quite incomprehensible. It might have been effected by forming steep paths or inclined planes composed of earth and stems of trees, from the upper part of the supporting stones to the surface of the surrounding field, and by forcing the stones up these paths by means of levers. ”

“ Since it is further known from history that, in ancient times, one language was spoken throughout all Scandinavia, a circumstance which is confirmed by the fact that the inscriptions on the Runic stones in the three northern kingdoms, are written in one and the same language, with merely casual variations caused by peculiar circumstances, it can scarcely be doubted, that a thorough investigation into the collective Runic memorials of the North will afford important assistance towards a knowledge of the Danish tongue in its most ancient form ”

“ It is still more remarkable if, being destitute of tools of metal, they were in a situation so to split the large roofing and supporting masses of stone, that they are completely flat on the side which is turned towards the chamber. For it is highly probable that many or most of them have been artificially split. Their number is too great to allow of the supposition that they all possess the natural form, whilst it is quite evident that the small flat fragments which fill up the interstices between the supporting stones have been split by artificial means. ”

“ The Danish grave-hills are, like the early antiquities, generally divisible into three classes, namely, those of the stone, of the bronze, and that of the iron-period, which last includes the inscribed monumental stones, or Runic stones, as they are termed. ”

“ Even in the chambers which now remain open, and bear evident traces of having been before explored, we meet, on thorough investigation, with pieces of earthen vessels, single stone implements, and human bones, which plainly shew that these chambers do not preserve their original form, but that they were applied to the same purpose as those which are still partially covered with earth. ”

“ In several places in this country, for instance in the parish of Herfölge, at Himlingöie, in the domain of Vallö, at Sanderumgaard, and at Aarslev in Fühnen, there have been discovered in sand-banks where no artificial barrows were perceptible, unburnt bodies, trinkets of gold and glass, together with a buckle with a Runic inscription, mosaic birds, in short, objects which with reference both to the shape and the material, are undoubtedly to be referred to the latest period of paganism. ”

“ The diameter of the ornaments of iron plated with copper, and varnished green, which had encircled the nave as a kind of rim, was very nearly six inches. The circumference of the wheel, on the western side, had been forced much out of its shape, evidently by pressure of the earth. Each of these wheels had originally rested on a horse, the bones of which were found under or adjoining to them: the head of each horse being not far from that of the charioteer on opposite sides. ”

“ Thus along the sides of the stones forming the walls are found the bones of a number of bodies, which certainly cannot have been placed in the usual recumbent posture, for the space would not admit of it. On the contrary, the position of the remains seems to indicate that the bodies were placed in a compressed or sitting posture; by which means, the advantage of depositing many of them in a small space was obtained [7] . This is peculiarly evident in the single giants' chambers, which were divided into small quadrangular spaces, one for each separate corpse. ”

“ For these chambers, and even the entrances, which are from sixteen to twenty feet in length, are filled with trodden earth and pebbles, the object of which doubtless was to protect the repose of the dead in their grave. The same objects are discovered in these giant chambers as are found in the cromlechs, namely, unburnt skeletons, which were occasionally placed in sand on a pavement of flat or round stones, together with implements and weapons and tools of flint or bone, ornaments, pieces of amber, and urns of clay. ”

“ The principal object of this appears to have been to bestow on the mighty dead a tomb so remarkable that it might constantly recall his memory to those living near, while probably the fondness for reposing after death in high and open places, may have been founded more deeply in the character of the people. ”

“ The giants' chambers, like the chambers of the cromlechs, are round or oval. In those tumuli which contain round chambers, two such have several times been found near each other, each with a separate entrance. Those which are circular are from five to eight feet in diameter, and about that height. A grown man can usually stand upright in the apartment, when the earth with which it is filled is removed. ”

“ V. Runic Stones.
Antiquarian remains and barrows would convey much more trustworthy information of the past if they were in all cases furnished with inscriptions. From the languages in which such inscriptions were composed, we should then be able to form conclusions as to the descent and connection of the earliest inhabitants of the North; since, it is sufficiently clear that men who belong to the same stock, speak languages which are, at all events, allied to each other. ”

“ Although many of them have been removed or destroyed for the sake of the stones, they still exist in Denmark in very considerable numbers. They are most frequently met with on the coast, particularly on the north and west coast of Seeland, on the coasts of Fühnen, in the north of Jütland at the Lümfiord, particularly in the domain of Thisled, as well as along the east coasts of Jütland, Sleswig, and Holstein. They occur more rarely on the west coasts, and still more seldom in the interior of the country. ”

“ To prevent misunderstanding it must here be observed, that many persons are of opinion, from the appearance of the barrows when opened, that the different modes of interment of the periods of stone and bronze, the placing bodies in cromlechs and the burning them, prevailed universally at one and the same time. ”

“ It is worth observing, that the same mode of interment which prevailed in Denmark in the later part of the iron- period, viz., that of burying the dead unburnt in large burying places, without raising tumuli or barrows over the graves, also prevailed both in the north and south of Germany, in Mecklenburg, Bavaria, Baden, in Switzerland, Alsace, France, and in England. ”

“ As they also date from a period in which, particularly towards the close of it, a connection with other countries, and by this means the opportunity of learning and adopting their manners and customs, was opened, which could not of course be the case during the stone-period, it will as little surprise us that they occasionally differ in structure and arrangement, as that, without exception, they contain corpses unconsumed by fire. ”

“ The number of them, often from thirty to seventy, probably results from the circumstance of many poor persons having by degrees deposited their urns in the barrows of the rich. Since cinerary urns are not unfrequently dug up both in open fields and in beds of peat, the poorer classes have probably been obliged to select this simple mode of interment because they had no opportunity of placing the ashes of their relatives in a barrow. ”

“ They commonly fit close to each other, the small openings which, from the nature of the material, may occur between them, being stopped up with flat pieces of stone placed one upon the other. The usual height of the supporting stones is from six to eight feet, and their breadth from two to three feet; their number depends on the height of the chamber; they are usually from four to five, but occasionally about fifteen have been met with in one of those structures; whence it follows that such a chamber must have had more than one roofing stone. ”

“ For this reason there are traces that the upper surface of several considerable heights, for instance Boobierg in Jutland, and Skamlingsbanken in Sleswig, were used as burial-places by those who were too poor to construct barrows of their own. The cinerary urns here are merely placed about a couple of feet deep in the earth, and without any other protection than a circle of small stones. ”

“ It was a totally different matter however, when towards the close of paganism in the North, cultivation having attained a higher grade, men once more adopted the custom of interring their dead without first burning them. ”

“ They are found chiefly on the coast and in distinct districts; for instance in the parish of Rachlov near Kallundborg there are more than a hundred of these long and round cromlechs, while in Jellinga and other well-known parishes of very remote antiquity we do not meet with a single monument of this kind, a fact which is quite inconsistent with the idea of such monuments being altars or places of judgment. ”

“ We learn beside, which is of equal importance, that such traditions can only be received with the greatest caution, even when they relate to particular spots and barrows, and when the reference dates some hundred years back, unless peculiar circumstances confirm the date and authority. ”

“ In the description of this discovery, which is quite peculiar of its kind in this country, it is not mentioned that any remains of an unburnt corpse were observed, which appears singular, because the stem was so far hollowed out that the corpse of a grown man could be placed in it. ”

“ The other barrows, which are somewhat more numerous, and are partly mixed with earth, are considerably smaller, since they are constructed of very small stones heaped together, and hence they but seldom rise more than from three to five feet above the surrounding surface. ”