This study analyzes the appearance of the myth of Heracles and the Nemean lion on a lekythos from the Uppsala University Museum Gustavianum collection in Uppsala. The lekythos is a small oil vessel generally associated with fifth century B.C. burials. Heracles and the Nemean lion’s commonly found depiction in this context is not obvious on a superficial level, requiring further analysis to answer the question how the motif can be related to the object’s specific context. To investigate the complex relationship between myth and object the study uses the theoretical approach of a myth’s depiction on object’s being highly relevant to how the myth is viewed and consumed, being determined by its context and observer. The thesis approaches the individual artifact through an iconographic analysis and analyzes additional black-figure lekythoi produced between 550–475 B.C. to establish a chronological context of progression in the motif. The study uses ancient literary sources to further establish a societal context. Through the analysis the examination can determine a probable date of the lekythos and a context surrounding its production. Furthermore, the study concludes that the relevance of Heracles is partly based on his relevance in society overall and his role as a figure representing the male ideal and immortality.

The Gothic people enter European history during the Roman Iron Age. Several groups of Goths come under the power of the Huns while other Gothic groups seek refuge within the borders of the Roman Empire. Groups fleeing across the Danube River defeated Roman troops at the Battle of Adrianople in 378. These Goths will later migrate further and eventually form the Visigothic Kingdom in present-day Spain and France under King Alaric I. In the 5th century, the Goths gained their freedom from the power of the Huns and formed the Ostrogothic Kingdom under King Theodoric the Great in present-day Italy. Finally, the Ostrogothic Kingdom was defeated by the Eastern Roman Empire in the 6th century and the Visigothic Kingdom was conquered by the Umayyad Caliphate in the 8th century. What remains are the Gothic historical texts that claim a Scandinavian origin. Ever since these times, this origin has been debated by historians, archaeologists, and linguists. This essay investigates the support of this Scandinavian origin in four source materials. The ancient textual sources, linguistics, material culture and DNA-studies and then analyze and compare the results. The DNA-studies show that parts of the gothic people had a connection with Scandinavia and parts of them had a genetic diversity. This together with the results of the ancient texts, linguistics and material culture indicate a strong connection between Scandinavia and the gothic people and a probable Scandinavian origin at least amongst the gothic elite.

This bachelor thesis examines changes in the spatial organization of iron production sites and charcoal pits, in the county of Dalarna during the period 1-1050AD. The purpose is to try to gain an understanding, about how the spatial changes reflect changes in the importance of the iron production in the iron age society, by discussing the iron production and its importance through a biographical perspective. 14C dates of 81 iron production sites and 32 charcoal pits have been analyzed in GIS. The analysis indicates that the early iron production sites, before 550AD, were in close connection with graves, while the later sites, mainly during the Viking age, had a close connection to waterways. This change could reflect a transition in the importance of the iron production, in the iron age society. During the early phase, the importance was mainly seen from the symbolical aspects of the iron production, while during the later phase, it was mainly seen from the economic aspects. The analysis also indicates a change in the spatial organization of the charcoal pits, during the later part of the iron age. During the period 790-1000AD they were positioned in close connection to the iron production sites, and after 1000AD, they were instead positioned in close connection to the water ways. This change could indicate a change in the functional organization of the iron productions process. The charcoal started to get shipped along the waterways to iron production sites, instead of positioning the charcoal pits close to the iron production sites. Not all the iron production sites were however located at rational economical positions in the landscape, during the later phase. At certain locations, iron was produced during a long period of the iron age, even though the locations had no connection to the waterways. This could indicate that some sites had special meanings, which stretched far back in time. In other words, their own biographies.

This thesis aims to explore the various forms of healing magic; seiðr, galdr, and herbal medicine, of the Late Scandinavian Iron Age. I aim to analyse how magic can be found in the medicinal empirical material, who used these objects, and, on whom. The analysis is limited to physical sickness and what caused said diseases. The empirical material is limited to objects of clear magical medicinal use in order to dive deeper into the analysis of how the magic can be found, why, and who used said object or herb. Magic and medicine are two sides of the same coin and have walked hand in hand all through history. In fact, the two are so deeply ingrained in each other that medicinal practices were long thought to derive from magic. The empirical material and theoretical framework in this analysis reflect that belief. I developed my own theoretical framework expanding from existing theories by building on cognitive approaches to shed new light on magic as a means to manipulate this world with powers deriving from another. This framework will help with addressing hitherto unexplored aspects of magical medicine in the Late Iron Age Scandinavia. / Syftet med denna uppsats är att utforska de olika former av läkemagi; seiðr, galdr, och herbal medicin under sen-Skandinavisk järnålder. Jag försöker analysera hur magi kan hittas i det medicinska empiriska materialet, vem som använde dessa och mot vem. Analysen är begränsad till fysiska sjukdommar och vad som orsakade dessa. Det empiriska materialet har begränsats till material som har tydliga magiska medicinska egenskaper för att kunna djupdyka i hur magi kan finnas, av vem och varför detta objekt eller ört användes. Magi och medicin är två sidor av samma mynt och har gått hand i hand genom hela historien. De två principerna är så djupt inrotade i varandra att medicinsk praxis har länge antagits härstamma från magi. Det empiriska materialet och det teoretiska ramverket reflekterar denna tro. Eftersom inget existerande teoretiskt ramverk kan helt svara på de frågor jag ställt inför denna analys har jag valt att uteckla ett nytt ramverk som bygger på kognitiv evolutions teori och magi som ett sätt att manipulera världen med krafter från en annan. Denna teori kommer hjälpa med att tilltala hittils outforskade aspekter av magisk medicin under den sen-Skandinaviska järnåldern.

The purpose of my investigation is to shed light on why people chose to settle in a specific location during the Bronze Age, in this instance Lund municipality. I have restricted my investigation to eight settlements as these are the ones that have written sources. Many Bronze Age settlements are situated by the sea, although not the 8 I have highlighted in my investigation. The settlements in Lund municipality were therefore not dependent on the sea for their livelihood or transport routes. The selected source material includes written sources in the form of archaeological reports, course books and dissertations.        My investigation reveals significant similarities in the factors determining the choice of settlement. The theories to be tested were the key factors I have set out as probable reasons for settling here. The settlers came to be dependent on having access to water and fertile soil as well as shelter from the wind. Almost without exception, the settlements were close to one another, at most 1.5 kilometres from the nearest neighbour. These clusters suggest cooperation in providing daily food supplies and also indicate a peaceful coexistence. It also seems that areas for socialising have been important. Another common factor is that people chose a settlement that had been previously occupied. The reasons for this may have been twofold: the very favourable conditions and the presence of ancestral graves that people felt the need to visit.

The aim of this thesis is to see how three different places in Europe have made their mark on some of Visby’s profane buildings and how it compares to the archaeological material. The three places of interest will be Germany, Denmark and Sweden and the historical period will be around 1200–1600. This will be made possible through comparing buildings with respective country that had a role in the city’s history. The buildings and the archaeological material will also be compared to see if they tell the same history. The location of cities the buildings and material will also be analysed to see how they are connected. To help with this the theory of this thesis is based on Bourdieus thoughts on habitus and how it can affect the mind of people. The thesis will only focus on profane buildings and not on others like churches or Visby’s town wall. The period will be through the 13th century to the end of the 17th. Germany, Denmark and Sweden are the three mainly countries that this thesis will focus on. Other places like England may be referred to if they have a very strong connection to the material. The results of the thesis showed that Germany had made the biggest mark on the cities profane buildings and archaeological material and they both showed the same history. Via the location of the material it was clear that the place that showed most of the influences was on Strandgatan and Visby’s main square and the space between these two places.

The ritual practice of concealing animal bones and other objects in buildings has a long continuity, and occurs in both prehistoric as well as in late modern buildings. There is however a discrepancy between the prehistoric material and the later archaeological material, where there are a lot of signs of ritual concealments in Iron Age houses but a lack of archaeological sources from historical buildings. There are no written sources that mentions the custom of concealing objects in buildings during prehistoric times. However, folkloristic sources tell us of a practice during historical times, much like the prehistoric building concealments. This study aims to make use of different sources to gain a better understanding of the custom during multiple time periods. This could help to fill in the knowledge gaps concerning the practice of building concealments in both prehistoric times as well as in later historical times. The analysis is based on three case studies of Swedish archaeological investigations; two concerns primarily Iron Age material and the third one concerns Early Modern and Pre-industrial material. All three are delimited by the fact that concealed animal remains, as well as other objects, have been recovered. Swedish folkloristic sources are used to make analogies to the different archaeological contexts found in the case studies. The main concern of this study is not on the symbolism of the action, but rather on the actual practice and the ritualization that underlies the archaeological material. This means that contextual aspects such as spatial contexts, the treatments of the objects or choice of species are important to take into account, and could also be interpreted as distinguishing aspects in the ritualization. This study shows how the use of multiple sources can help create new knowledge and give different perspectives on the ritual practice of building concealments in both prehistoric and historical times. It also illustrates similarities of the practice between different time periods, and how we can relate the Iron Age custom to the concealments made during much later times.

The Neolithic site Hedningahällan has, with its large amount of mixed ceramics and unique location on top of a steep rock face, been subject to a number of studies. This paper explores factors that may have motivated the location choice based on the landscape features. To investigate Hedningahällan from a landscape perspective could assist to provide a base for more directed and broader research questions alike. The main focuses of location choice factors that are the advantages of an elevated position. This is examined via Individual Distance Viewshed analysis which measures the ability to recognise and identify humans in a given topography, potential overview and availability of game animals and fish found. The study recreating the plausible past environment as well as the phenomenological experience of the landscape in combination with viewshed-analysis. The outcomes of the GIS-results are compared to four other Neolithic coastal settlements with finds of ceramics. Hedningahällan was located on a headland in a small, protected archipelago. The environment was likely an excellent habitat for many marine animals and fish as well as some land animals, however the elevated location of Hedningahällans does not seem primarily got get a good overview of game habitat. It does on the other hand provide a good overview of the surrounding landscape, especially towards the ocean, and that could have facilitated to identify humans that was closing in from the sea. Several Neolithic coastal settlements occur in connection to distinct rock formation such as erratic blocks or eye-catching cliffs, and although Hedningahällan is located upon exposed bedrock, its appearance is like that of a large erratic block. The area included in its viewshed also contains several impressive cobble fields. Phenomenological, contemporary, and ethnological analogies show that distinct rock features can hold emotional, mythological, and practical meanings.

This paper aims to increase knowledge about how discourse is represented in the evaluation and management of tangible cultural heritage by a comparative analysis of the management of two of UNESCO’s World Heritage Sites located in Sweden. By examining the motivations for inscription and the sites’ management plans through critical discourse analysis, this study approaches questions regarding how heritage is constructed and managed. Through a comparison of the case studies and a subsequent discussion of their relation to Laurajane Smith’s concept of Authorized Heritage Discourse, this paper highlights some issues that the cultural heritage sector is facing today regarding social and political dimensions of cultural heritage.

This thesis is a study of four cities and their city-plans. The purpose of the paper is to understand similarities and differences between cities in northern Greece during the Classical period. This is done with a comparative method and Kevin Lynch’s theory of the image of the city. The method and the theory are the foundation for the study. The research question used to be able to fulfil the purpose of the paper is Which similarities and differences exist in the construction of Classical cities in northern Greece and why does these similarities and differences exist? The general plans of the chosen cities are studied, not individual buildings and remains. Aspects such as roads, the placement of city walls, agora, public buildings, and residential areas are compared in the paper. The four cities that were studied in the paper were Amphipolis, Olynthus, Pella, and Thasos. All located in Macedonia or on Chalcidice and Thasos. They were selected based on a few criteria. All were known cities from the Classical period, had been excavated to quite a large extent and were not only religious places or burial grounds. The cities are not exact copies of each other. Olynthus and Pella are built after the Hippodamian plan, but Amphipolis and Thasos are built over time with an organic city-plan. Buildings, structures, and central places are the same in the different cities but how the cities are structured and how buildings are placed vary. The terrain, the landscape, traditions, philosophical ideas could all be part of the cause why the four compared cities have been structured differently. The land the cities have been built on vary which affect how a city can be planned and built. The result of the thesis is that the cities in northern Greece have similarities in what types of buildings and structures can be found in them. How the city is structured and organized are the differences in the city-plans and to which degree depends on multiple factors.