Gannholm, S. 2017. English title: The grinding grooves on the island of Gotland A spatial analysis The grinding grooves on the island of Gotland are mysterious. They are distributed all over the island. Archaeologists a century ago claimed them to be the results of manufacturing of Stone Age tools. Later the perception of shore displacements made it impossible that they could be Stone Age remnants. Also grooves on some picture stones from the Iron Age seemed to prevent an earlier dating than the Iron Age. But new results on shore displacements can change the view of dating. Closer investigations of those picture stones will prove that the grooves were already grinded on them when they were cut. Comparison between the locality of grooves and Iron Age houses does not show an equal good pattern as the comparison between grooves and Stone Age artifacts. Most grooves are between a half-meter to one meter in length and between 1 cm and 10 cm deep and the width is between 5 cm and 10 cm. Grooves situated close to each other on the same stone may have very different depth and can also intersect as if they have been forced to go in a certain direction. The alignments of the grooves are not randomly but may rather be oriented in some important astronomical direction. Many places where groves are found are situated close to former lakes or what once probably was the seashore and some also on heights. It is suggested the typical grooves may have been involved in some sort of a cult rather than a practical aspect in the making of tools. Keywords: Gotland, grinding grooves, Stone Age artifacts, cult, alignments.

A considerable amount of vessel glass of the period 1200 to 1500 has been excavated in England, particularly since the 1960s. This thesis conducts a survey of the vessel glass from museums and archaeology units, from over two hundred sites across England. The glass includes goblets, beakers, bowls, jugs and other decorative vessels, lamps, some liturgical vessels, flasks, urinals, distilling and other 'industrial' vessels, from England, Europe and the eastern Mediterranean. The glass was catalogued, and the functions, dates and production areas of the vessels were examined, to provide a basis for further research. Other sources of evidence used include documentary, iconographical, furnace site and scientific evidence. The use of glass in medieval society was then examined. The sites where glass was excavated were investigated, to establish who used glass. They were found to be high-status castles, manors and palaces; monastic and other ecclesiastical sites; and affluent urban residences. Surprisingly, no glass was found to have been used on less wealthy sites. The social situations in which glass might have been used were proposed. The use of glass vessels as 'symbols of power', suitable for 'conspicuous consumption' were examined. The reasons for the high status of the glass, which was not intrinsically valuable, and much of which is utilitarian, were considered. The forms and decoration of tablewares often emulated other highly valued metal vessels. The goblet and the medieval banquet made use of religious symbolism. Table vessels were used communally in the 13th and 14th century, but some evidence suggests that they were used individually by the 15th century. Changes in the use of glass throughout the period were outlined, showing how the quantities of each form change, from the dominance of tablewares in the 13th and 14th centuries, to that of utilitarian wares by the 15th century.

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