Norwegian detectorists discover rich Viking cemetery

In 2023, rare early medieval jewellery was discovered on Skumsnes Hill near the Norwegian town of Fitjar using metal detectors. The detectorists reported everything to the authorities; archaeologists discovered a Viking burial site with at least twenty graves. Now the first results have been announced.

"A group of detectorists was searching the top of Skumsnes hill when they discovered some jewellery from the late Iron Age," said Søren Diinhoff, an archaeologist at the University Museum of Bergen. The archaeologists began excavating last autumn. The first grave discovered was located in a natural rock outcrop. It is about 1 150 years old and belonged to a woman, probably the wife of a farmer. Although it had been looted in the past, archaeologists still found part of a Norse brooch, fragments of a metal bowl and a triangular buckle. All originally from what is now England or Ireland.

"The second grave turned out to be even more remarkable," Diinhoff said. It was 1,160 years old and belonged to an elite woman. It contained stones arranged in the shape of a four-foot boat. In the center was a stone used as a marker for the ship's mast: "It had a clear vulva shape, most likely symbolizing the deceased woman," Diinhoff explained. The stone suggested that the woman "was to her family and household what the mast is to the ship," he added.

In the grave were textile-making tools such as a loom and a spindle. There was also a house key and "jewellery of the highest class". The items discovered symbolize the position of the deceased: she was probably the leader of the farm and her textile work was an important source of income. The grave goods also included 46 glass beads and 11 silver coins originating from Central Europe and Scandinavia.

"One coin is probably a rare example of the Hedeby type; it is one of the oldest Scandinavian coins," Diinhoff said. It was minted in the early 9th century in southern Denmark. It highlights the extensive Viking trade networks. Other coins are from the Carolingian Empire. "Both of these women had contacts outside of Norway with Europe. This is probably no coincidence. Maybe they came from abroad and brought themselves into the local community," Diinhoff speculates.

A third burial has not yet been fully excavated, but it has provided beads and fragments of silver jewelry. Archaeologists had planned to explore other graves at Skumsnes, but winter has set in. They expect the remaining graves to contain a number of interesting and rare artefacts: 'In terms of research, it's a small treasure trove. Many of the buried individuals were adorned with fine jewelry. It is remarkable to find a burial site with such well-preserved artifacts," he concluded.

Roman Nemec

Sources: arkeonews.net, miamiherald.com

• Metal detector finds from the early Middle Ages.

1150-year-old grave

Bronze key

a stone in the shape of a vulva as a symbol of a ship's mast and a woman in the family

triangular brooch with glass mosaic, gilding and enamel

archaeologists at a Viking burial site

glass beads

mosaic glass bead

Originally a Carolingian sword belt endpiece turned into jewellery