This essay is about the stone circles Norrby Stenar and Smålandsstenar. I will discuss them and their meaning from different angles. By doing that, I hope to understand the stone circles in relation to the society and landscape that surrounds them. These places are unique because there are only stone circles as a burial form there. It is also more then four stone circles on both grave sites. In order to understand these places I will compare them with each other and by others research. I will interpret the monuments through an identity perspective, in relation with the norse mythology.

<p>The main purpose of this thesis has been to study the ritual remains from the Sámi region, over an extended period of time. An analysis of when and why they first appeared, followed by a discussion of the changes and the continuity that occurs during this period of time which then is placed in relation to other social, economical and political processes that took place in northern Fenno Scandinavia during the iron age. </p><p>The archaeological remains included in this study are Scree graves, lake graves, sacrificial sites, silver hoards and dwellings. Ring-shaped sacrificial sites and labyrinths are also discussed to some extent. The remains are firstly discussed on an individual basis and then in relation to each other and various other dimensions of community development in northern Scandinavia. From 300 BC – 400 AD, several of the ritual remains associated with developing Sámi identities appear for the first time, followed by a period with few discovered sites. There is an increase of archaeological finds from the Viking and Early Middle Ages, including many new ritual forms which can be linked to neighbouring societies increased economic interests in the region. There is a decrease in the number of sites from the 12th century AD and imported metal disappears from the ritual context. During the 14th century AD there is once again an increase in ritual activity, primarily in northern Norway, that appears to have moved to locations in the vicinity of dwelling sites. During the 17th century AD the ritual remains decrease over large parts of northern Scandinavia. One exception is the southern Sámi area, where numbers of characteristic Sámi ritual remains are seen to increase. Bear graves from as late as the 19th century AD have been found. The results demonstrate how rituals have been an important tool in not only creating and maintaining social and ethnical identities, uniting societies, creating opposition and causing change but also establishing bonds with other cultures or communities. Many of the changes that have taken place in the different ritual activities in the Sámi area have occurred at similar periods of time in other geographical regions of Sápmi.</p>

The main purpose of this thesis has been to study the ritual remains from the Sámi region, over an extended period of time. An analysis of when and why they first appeared, followed by a discussion of the changes and the continuity that occurs during this period of time which then is placed in relation to other social, economical and political processes that took place in northern Fenno Scandinavia during the iron age. The archaeological remains included in this study are Scree graves, lake graves, sacrificial sites, silver hoards and dwellings. Ring-shaped sacrificial sites and labyrinths are also discussed to some extent. The remains are firstly discussed on an individual basis and then in relation to each other and various other dimensions of community development in northern Scandinavia. From 300 BC – 400 AD, several of the ritual remains associated with developing Sámi identities appear for the first time, followed by a period with few discovered sites. There is an increase of archaeological finds from the Viking and Early Middle Ages, including many new ritual forms which can be linked to neighbouring societies increased economic interests in the region. There is a decrease in the number of sites from the 12th century AD and imported metal disappears from the ritual context. During the 14th century AD there is once again an increase in ritual activity, primarily in northern Norway, that appears to have moved to locations in the vicinity of dwelling sites. During the 17th century AD the ritual remains decrease over large parts of northern Scandinavia. One exception is the southern Sámi area, where numbers of characteristic Sámi ritual remains are seen to increase. Bear graves from as late as the 19th century AD have been found. The results demonstrate how rituals have been an important tool in not only creating and maintaining social and ethnical identities, uniting societies, creating opposition and causing change but also establishing bonds with other cultures or communities. Many of the changes that have taken place in the different ritual activities in the Sámi area have occurred at similar periods of time in other geographical regions of Sápmi.

This thesis explores how the spade-shaped currency bars of central Norrland were used in different contexts and what significance they held. Spade-shaped currency bars give us a glimpse of a world-view different than our own where the intermediary form the bars represented bestowed upon them a much fuller significance than did their place in the production process. Spade-shaped bars do not work especially well as a general intermediary form in the iron production process. They are time-consuming to produce and their shape is clearly unsuitable for forging most objects, apart from cauldrons. It is likely that the shape of the bars was chosen from social, rather than technological considerations. It is suggested that the bars got their shape from the socketed axe because of its practical as well as symbolic importance. The spade-shaped bars thus became associated with ideas about the origins of society; opening up the landscape, clearing forest for farming and iron production. The bars symbolic meaning was so broad as to appeal to people in totally different parts of Norrland. It was possible, through the lens of the currency bar, to conciliate these different ways of life to a single narrative of origins and identity. Most spade-shaped bars are found in hoards on the periphery of the settled areas, in the forest. The placement of the hoards suggest that the burial of bars is most likely part of ritualized activities intended to promote fertility in the fields and in the forests. The hoards are found on boundaries in the landscape, often in the places where the boundary could be crossed.

The Iron Age cemetery at Tuna in Badelunda parish, Västmanland, is a complex and unique burial ground used for only 69 graves during a period of roughly 700 years, between 300 - 1050 AC. The individuals buried at Tuna show an impressive variety of gravegods as well as stonesettings formed above the grave. Who where these people that were cremated at Tuna, among the mysterious women in the boats and the rich women in grave X? As we study the graves of the cremated individuals we reach a new understanding of the cemetery; from its social structure down to every individual. Through the analysis of the stonesettings, gravegods and bones we see a how these subjects, when analysed, show a picture of the individuals and social structure of the cemetery. It was a cemetery for the higher society and unique individuals rather then the average people.

When the Iron spirals investigated in this paper saw the light again no one looked at them as nothing more than decoration. It was first during the 2011 excavation in Old Uppsala that the symbolism of the items no longer could be ignored. The spirals of Old Uppsala lay along the walls of the great hall, which stood upon one of the human constructed plateaus in the area. The hall had been burned down and then cleared of all lumber. Then the iron spirals had been placed in the positions and then everything was sealed with a layer of clay. A study of the artifact began with the purpose to contextualize and interpret the iron spiral. Several others iron spirals were investigated and compared. The others comparing context were found in boat graves or boat contexts. With a new perspective on the spirals as active agents I soon realized the symbolic value of the artifact. The spiral contexts were clearly sym-bolic and connected with the belief about the Hall and Ship symbolism. Several evidences indicated that the hall in Old Uppsala was meant to look as a boat and the iron spirals helped the hall doing so as well as reinforce the symbolism of the ship. The hall and the ship stood for power and structure on land respectively on water. The spiral symbol itself may well be a symbol connected with law, power and structure. / Gamla Uppsala - framväxten av ett mytiskt centrum

As to now, no study has been made of the mica tempered pottery found along side the asbestos tempered pottery in Norrland during the Bronze Age and Early Iron Age. Its occurrence has previously only briefly been noted in a few published works and the dating and geographical distribution of mica tempered pottery in the north of Sweden has to a large extent been unknown. This paper aims to compile the available information about this type of pottery and the locations where it has been discovered in order to date and explain the occurrence of mica tempered pottery in Norrland. It's also suggested that the occurrence of mica tempered pottery is connected to the spread of the early metalwork from the east to areas that today makes up the north of Norrland.

The aim of this thesis is to make a comparison between solitary graves and graves in grave fields from the Roman Iron Age on Gotland, Sweden. Differences in burial customs, morphology, dating, gender, age, grave-goods and social status are compared between 19 solitary graves and graves in three different grave fields in different parts of Gotland. An attempt is made to explain these differences and to discuss which functions the solitary graves had. Discussions about whether it is possible to distinguish social status and gender with the help of grave-goods are also made in connection to the determination of status and sex.

Decapitated Vs. Stomach buried – A study of decapitated people and stomach placed people in Iron Age in Sweden and Denmark. This essay is about decapitated persons in graves and those buried on their stomach in the Iron Age in Sweden and Denmark. The analysis is to compare these graves by six perspectives; location of the grave, construction of the grave, grave goods, sex, age and interpretations of the grave. Out of this I found out if there are any different patterns of these graves, except that they are decapitated and places on their stomach. I compare between fifteen graves located on their stomach, nine decapitated graves, four graves that involve both and eight graves that do not contain any of it.

This essay is about two areas called Hackås and Myrviken, situated in the middle of Sweden around the lake Storsjön. In Hackås we can see traces after an early agrarian settlement, and in Myrviken we find Jämtlands largest concentration of ironmaking sites from around 400 AD. There are no clear evidence of the agrarian settlement in Myrviken, and only two ironmaking sites in Hackås. These two economies functioned at the same time, but were clearly separated. My purpose is to discuss if it was the farmers of Hackås who made iron in Myrviken, or if it was somebody else.