<< Our Photo Pages >> Galteland Runestone and Verksmoen Barrow Cemetery - Carving in Norway in Aust-Agder
Submitted by kenntha88 on Sunday, 02 November 2014 Page Views: 2736
Early Medieval (Dark Age)Site Name: Galteland Runestone and Verksmoen Barrow Cemetery Alternative Name: EvjemoenCountry: Norway
NOTE: This site is 5.142 km away from the location you searched for.
Fylke: Aust-Agder Type: Carving
Nearest Village: Bygland
Latitude: 58.581057N Longitude: 7.787107E
Condition:
5 | Perfect |
4 | Almost Perfect |
3 | Reasonable but with some damage |
2 | Ruined but still recognisable as an ancient site |
1 | Pretty much destroyed, possibly visible as crop marks |
0 | No data. |
-1 | Completely destroyed |
5 | Superb |
4 | Good |
3 | Ordinary |
2 | Not Good |
1 | Awful |
0 | No data. |
5 | Can be driven to, probably with disabled access |
4 | Short walk on a footpath |
3 | Requiring a bit more of a walk |
2 | A long walk |
1 | In the middle of nowhere, a nightmare to find |
0 | No data. |
5 | co-ordinates taken by GPS or official recorded co-ordinates |
4 | co-ordinates scaled from a detailed map |
3 | co-ordinates scaled from a bad map |
2 | co-ordinates of the nearest village |
1 | co-ordinates of the nearest town |
0 | no data |
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I have visited· I would like to visit
CharcoalBurner89 visited on 13th Aug 2023 - their rating: Cond: 4 Amb: 4 Access: 4 Beautiful replica of the original was built on the original site. Behind is a large tumulus.
XIII visited on 13th Jun 2023 - their rating: Cond: 3 Amb: 4 Access: 5
Average ratings for this site from all visit loggers: Condition: 3.5 Ambience: 4 Access: 4.5
This runestone is one of the most important historical documents from the iron age since it is believed to mention King Knuts (Canute) attack on the British Isles in 1015. The stone has been dated to around 1016. The original was found here in later medieval times and then brought to a nearby village called Galteland where it was kept for 700 years. That is why the stone has the name the Galteland Runestone. The original was bought and brought to Universitetes Oldsakssamling in Oslo and a copy of the original runestone was erected here in the barrow cemetery at Verksmoen.
The stone is was originally found in a small stone circle consisting of 10 stones with the runestone in the centre of the circle. The stones in the original stone circle has long been lost, the stone circle was restored when the copy of the runestone was made. The stone circle consists of 10 stones, they are around 60-70cm in height and around 40-50cm wide and 10-15cm thick. There is around 1,5 to 2 metres between the stone and the stone circle is around 18 metres in diameter. All the stones in the circle today are copies or the original. Today the cemetery and the stone circle is covered in high grass while the stone circle itself have been cleared of grass.
The runestone is around 2,2 metres in height, around 60cm wide at the baste and around 20cm wide at the top and around 20cm thick. The runic inscription runs from top to down along one of the larger flat sides of the stone. The runic inscription has been translated and means "Arnstein made this stone in memory of Bjor his son. He died in the army when Knut attacked England." This Knut is believed to be King Canute and shows some christian influence even before Olaf Haraldsson. The stone is today located in the south corner of the barrow cemetery.
While the stone is from 1016, the barrow cemetery at Verksmoen is dated back to the age of migration, around 400-500AD and it believed to have been placed in an older cemetery in according to old traditions.
The Verksmoen barrow cemetery once consisted of 45 barrows. Before the construction of the local factory it was one of the largest barrow cemeteries in Setesdalen valley. Excavations have shown the cemetery was in use from 350AD to around 550AD. The oldest barrows are from the iron age period while the youngest are from the age of migration.
The largest barrow is called the King's Barrow and is around 30 metres in diameter and around 2,5 metres in height. It is believed it is the oldest barrow while the other barrows have been built in circles around the largest barrow in the following years.
The other barrows range in size from 6 to 12 metres in diameter and from 0,5 to 1 metre in height. Most of them are burned burials. The grave goods mostly consisted of burned bones and ceramics. The barrow cemetery is inside a forest with spread around leaf trees and only small vegetation on the forest floor. The cemetery has a information sign and a parking lot.
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