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Kaupang in Skiringssal: Excavation & Surveys at Kaupang & Huseby, 1998-2003 — Background & Results: 1
Author(s): Dagfinn Skre (Author)
- Publisher: Aarhus University Press
- Publication Date: 31 Mar. 2007
- Language: English
- Print length: 502 pages
- ISBN-10: 8779342590
- ISBN-13: 9788779342590
Book Description
In this, the first of six volumes, the main results of the excavations which the University of Oslo carried out at Kaupang 1998-2003 are presented. A completely new picture is put forward of the port that the adventurer Ohthere visited in c. 890. It is now clear that Kaupang was one of the four Scandinavian towns that were founded around the year 800. Kaupang is connected to the power centre of Skiringssal, to the Ynglings – the legendary Norwegian royal lineage, and to the King of the Danes – the dominant political actor in south-west Scandinavia. Kaupang is shown to have had several of the same features revealed in Birka, Hedeby and Ribe – i.e., a compact permanent settlement, divided into small plots, each with a dwelling. The town could have had 400-800 inhabitants. Substantial traces of trade and craftwork are proof of the main areas of occupation. Advanced geo- and environmental-archaeological analyses have played a large role in interpreting the finds. Documentary sources indicate that Skiringssal was an important royal seat in the 700s and 800s. In the book these sources are put together with the archaeological and toponymical sources which, united, show a centre of power with a clear likeness to similar places in Denmark and Sweden. A hall or sal building, presumably the Skirings-sal itself, was excavated at Huseby, near Kaupang. Nearby, a thing site is situated by a holy lake. In this, the Yngling kings’ centre of power, to which many people came to attend thing meetings and sacrificial feasts, the town Kaupang was founded. In nine of the book’s 20 chapters, the excavations’ finds, analyses and results are presented. In three chapters, 200 years of research on Kaupang and Skiringssal are summarised, while in the remaining eight chapters an endeavour is made to re-establish the holistic approach to Skiringssal which dominated research during the first 100 years.
Editorial Reviews
Review
“…this volume offers huge insights on an especially rich region in the Viking Age and as such is a majestic contribution to the study of urbanism in this period.” — Richard Hodges, Journal of Medieval Archaeology, Volume 51, November 2007. “In this study of Kaupang, Dagfinn Skre has given us a master-class in how to approach, research and publish a site of international archaeological significance. … [the book] is that rare thing: an approachable and enjoyable excavation report, which also makes a major contribution to our understanding of the Viking Age. This book will be essential reading for students and scholars of urbanism and the Viking Age for many years to come.” — Olwyn Owen (Historic Environment Advisory Council for Scotland), Antiquity, June 2008.
About the Author
Dagfinn Skre is professor of archaeology at the University of Oslo and director of the Kaupang Excavation Project. Authors are: Mark Blackburn, Birgitta Hardh, Kenneth Jonsson, Christoph Kilger, Unn Pedersen, Lars Pilo, Gert Rispling and Dagfinn Skre.
