Guide to Northern Archaeology/2

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How undeniable soever the proposition that no history of a country, that is, a narrative of events and actions connected and chronologically arranged, can be conceived which shall be independent of written materials, or, as they are called, immediate sources, it is not less certain that monuments and remains of antiquity, other than literary, have a just claim to be considered as indirect sources for the same historical result. Even if such may not avail to make us acquainted with new positive facts, if they fail to certify a list of sovereigns, or to fix a series of dates, they may yet serve, collectively considered, to give us a clearer perception of the religion, the culture, the external life, and other particulars of our forefathers than can be supplied even by the written sources, to which latter no such high antiquity can be ascribed, in which old traditions are mixed up with newer, and which, as they have been committed to writing in later times, must have been liable to many corruptions of their text. The other remains of which we speak, form, some of them, a complement to the literary, extending our knowledge beyond the periods when the latter begin to descrve belief, and sometimes awakening and fortifying conjectures as to emigrations and connexions of nations respecting which history is silent. But even the mute memorials have a still higher significance for us. They lead us back to the original population of our northern country, they make us live again our fathers' life. A grave mound, a lonely circle of stones, a stone implement, a metal ornament excavated from the covered chamber of death, afford a livelier image of antiquity than Saxo or Snorre, the Eddas, or the Germany of Tacitus. And will not the explorer of the past contemplate a work of the arts of the middle ages, with an interest which no record can excite.

Accordingly there never has been a period since our history began to be cultivated and studied but these monuments ​have formed an object of attention and investigation, although often viewed in a false light and though the subject has been treated in a tasteless and unscientific manner. Who can reflect without regret on the number of objects of this nature which in the course of the last two centuries have become irretrievably lost to us in despite of the exertions of our antiquaries Ole Worm, Bure, Resen and Rudbeck to transmit an account of them for the use of posterity, exertions not the less praiseworthy although now felt to be inadequate to their object. It must be so much the more gratifying to every one who takes an interest in the olden time to know that at no period were its monuments less exposed to the risk of being undervalued and destroyed than they are now. The interest in the study of Northern antiquity, and consequently in that of its monumental remains, has hardly been at any period more diffused or more active than at present. Discoveries relating to it are ever sure. of being received with sympathy by the public. As in other educated countries, collections have been established here for the preservation of the remains of former ages. The parties connected with these hold profitable communication with each other. Scientific travellers in remote regions keep a watchful eye on the remains scattered over them.

But again the remains of the past requite the attention bestowed on them by assisting other scientific pursuits than the strictly historical. They assist to answer questions as to the natural history of our northern countries, their people, changes of climate and the like. To instance one subject, the interest of which has been lately revived, the solution of the problem of the ancient colonization of Greenland, and the position of the Icelandic settlements in that quarter, would appear to depend quite as much on the objects of antiquity lately discovered, particularly on Runic inscriptions, as on written documents and nautical evidence.

We may in pursuance hope that the following summary which has for its object to set forth what has been regarded as ​the best authenticated and most worth knowing on the subject of the memorials of northern antiquity, may be found not unworthy the notice of the educated public.

In the North, as in almost all other countries, the tomb is the oldest memorial of the past. The desire to preserve the loved and lost, in remembrance at least, is so deeply implanted in human nature, that we find evidence of it even among the most savage tribes. In the North the fashion of the grave has greatly varied with different periods. One of the reasons for this is the difference which has from time to time occurred in the mode of dealing with the corpse. At some periods the body was deposited in sand in a chamber or a large stone chest; at others it was burnt, and nothing but the ashes or burnt bones were preserved in urns or smaller stone coffins; sometimes it was interred in a sitting posture. Sometimes the same receptacle contained not a single corpse, but whole families, or many warriors fallen in a battle; sometimes not only the human dead, but his caparisoned horse, his dog and other animals which it was wished should accompany him to another world. It is obvious that customs so varied required arrangements equally diversified. In almost all the districts of the North we meet with a number of mounds greater or smaller, the work of human hands. Experiment proves that most of them have served for burial, and that they are not inaccurately termed grave mounds. As a general remark we may observe that the greater number of them is met with on the coast, and in positions which command a view of the ocean, or at least of an arm of the sea, but that they are very seldom found in what is now morass or meadow land. On the other hand they are found in considerable number on the sandy heaths of our country. Some of these mounds, we must here remark, may have had another purpose; they may have served for signal stations, or what were formerly called Baunehöie, spots for ​the kindling of fire beacons to warn against invasion. Others may have served for sacrificial and religious purposes. A third kind of far more recent date, and which have usually retained the name of gallowshills, were intended for places of execution, though we must observe that to save trouble, burial mounds of a preceding period were not unfrequently selected for this purpose. Generally speaking we may safely assert that these three latter varieties are exceptional, and that the great majority of the mounds which bear evidence of human construction are sepulchral. They have been called by many appellations, as Ættehöie, mound of a family or race, Jættestuer, giant’s chamber, Troldestuer, goblin's chamber, Jynovne, Steenkister, Dysser, Kuml, and other names implying stone heap, or chamber, sometimes with an addition implying either a memorial of the name of the occupant, as Rolf’s mound, Iother's mound, or the purpose of the construction, as Blothöi, hill of sacrifice, or its quality, as Maglehöi, great hill, Sortehöi, black bill, or situation, as the hillocks of the black brook, the hills of the cloister etc. Many lying near together have often one name, as the Troldrække, the Goblin's Group, the Brothers, the Six Hills. It is obvious that when the name identifies the dead, or the purpose of the mound, it becomes of importance, and equally so that the appellation more recently applied and founded on the accidents of fashion or position, is of no further use than so far as it serves to distinguish from others the particular mound in question.

These elevations may be classed as the round, the oblong, stony, and low grave mounds.

1. The round grave mounds are the most common. We meet with them every where in Scandinavia. Some of the most considerable are surrounded at their bases with one or more circles of large stones. Higher up on their sides they are sometimes ornamented with similar circles. These circles are not in every instance to be recognized, some of the stones being occasionally covered with earth, and others having often been removed. It would appear however that the ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/53 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/54 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/55 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/56 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/57 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/58 ​stones in honour of fallen heroes. Where many are found together it has been conjectured that they were erected to many warriors who fell in the same battle. They are nearly all without inscriptions; but if we may judge from their shape, it would seem that some stones subsequently inscribed with Runic characters, had originally been Bautastones.

8. Rocking stones. This name is given to certain large stones which are found placed on the point of a rock, or on some artificially pointed stone in such a manner that even although of very considerable height they may, by means of a very slight force, nay in some cases, by a mere touch of the hand be made to rock or oscillate from one side to the other. It is obvious that a stone, to admit of such oscillation must be poised on a point at, or very near its centre. When thus set in motion an obtuse sound may sometimes be heard. In many countries such stones have been found and there are various legends concerning them. One opinion is that they served for oracular purposes. Caution is necessary to avoid confounding them with accidents of nature which have sometimes produced similar results.

In a collection of Northern Antiquities stone objects must have the first place, as belonging to the earliest ages. They may be classified as follows:

1. Whetstones, used for fashioning other stones; they are either flat or club-shaped, more rarely of oval or other forms.

2. Wedges or quoins, which, almost without exception, have been intended to be set in wood. They are sometimes without any back, being thinned off at either end; sometimes ​with a back, and sometimes flat and thin. These three varieties are sometimes rough-hewn, in other cases polished on the broad sides, or on their whole surface. They are usually of flint. There are some other varieties, which are scarcely ever of flint, as round and thick, and round and sharpheaded, some of them with a small round hole perforated in the end opposite the edge; and others having a shoulder in the middle to prevent the wedge from entering too far into the wooden handle or socket.

3. Chisels and gouges, of which there are several varieties, the narrow gouge, the flat gouge, the round gouge, and finally with a hilt or handle, which latter is not of flint.

4. Knives and lance heads. As it is generally speaking impossible to distinguish these two sorts from each other, we deem it most expedient to notice them under one head, merely observing that the very long pieces of flint when used as lance heads would be very apt to snap across; whereas if they were inserted into handles of a shorter length, they would be less liable to the risk of breaking. But we may observe that if once the point of the lance had penetrated, the destructive effect would be produced with equal certainty, even if the point broke off in the wound. Stone articles of this description have been classified according to the tang, or that part designed for insertion into the wood; in some this part is hardly discernible, in others it is of a flat or square shape, the latter with the edges notched for the purpose of retaining the cord or ligature which was wound about it; in others again it is of an accurately defined shape adorned with ornaments cut in the flint, and forming thus a complete handle which was evidently not intended to be inserted in a haft. It is worthy of notice that these articles of flint are scarcely ever ground smooth, but merely rough hewn, which is the more remarkable from their being frequently found along with wedges of ground flint, a circumstance which clearly shows that the art of grinding implements of that material was not unknown at that period. If we assume that the knives were at a somewhat later period chiefly ​used at sacrifices and funeral ceremonies, we might perhaps suppose that they had retained a form, and were wrought after a fashion that was commemorative of a very remote age, in which the more artistical process of grinding was less generally known, since experience shows that the forms which continue unvaried for the greatest length of time, are precisely those which are used in religious rites, there being something venerable in the very notion of antiquity. Thus it is worthy of remark that, like the Egyptians of yore, the Jews themselves in certain countries do still, in imitation of Abraham, continue to employ a stone knife in the operation of circumcision.

As a specimen of one of the most remarkable implements of flint, unique of its kind, we may here notice and present our readers with a delineation of a knife in the form of a sickle, with a projecting point for the handle, which is narrower and more slender than the blade, but hewn from the same piece of stone. The knife and handle together are 14 inches in length. With respect to the purpose for which this knife was intended, we cannot venture to offer any conjecture; it would seem however to have been employed rather as an attribute, or as a baton of command, than designed for actual use, seeing that it was very liable to be snapped across. We may here farther make mention of a notched or dentated implement resembling a pointed saw or rasp, whereof only a few have been found, and of a similar but still rarer variety without notches or teeth, of which delineations on a reduced scale are here given:

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5. Semilunar implements of flint, found like the knives, only hewn, but never ground; some of them are curved on the outer edge only, and either without teeth, or with teeth on the inner edge only, or with teeth on both edges; these are supposed to have been used as saws; others are curved on both the outer and inner edges and may have been used as tanners' knives.

6. Flint flakes and arrow heads. The latter were set in wooden shafts. The mode in which the flint arrow heads were wrought will be seen more clearly from the annexed wood cut. We have here represented a piece of flint from which flakes have been struck off. In juxtaposition with this is a side view of a flake; next follows a front view of the same flake, showing its natural surface; and next to that again a flake half wrought into an arrow head, still exhibiting obvious traces of the

original surface; and finally the trilateral arrow head in the ​

finished state with two of its sides notched. Besides the above mentioned, being what are most frequently met with, there are occasionally found lanceolate and heart-shaped specimens, like the one here delineated, generally speaking of very small size, and exactly similar to those which are still used by savage nations; they are inserted in a shaft, commonly a reed or cane, and fastened by means of cross ligatures. Here may also be noticed bone heads with very minute flint flakes inserted into them, which it would seem, ought also to be referred to the class of arrows and harpoons. The flakes are of exactly the same description as those above delineated, but are extremely thin and minute, being fixed with a kind of cement into a groove cut along the edge of the piece of bone, as here delineated:

7. Axes, having the aperture for the handle near the back, which is either square or rounded. We occasionally meet also with cruciform specimens, which are, however, very rare.

8. Ax-hammers. This name has been given to some very finely wrought axes, having the orifice for the handle near one of the extremities, but in other respects approximating in shape to the hammer. Several varieties of them are met with, viz: ​those which have a square back; those with a bulge instead of a back; those shaped like boats; and those which have the edge bent downward, with a knob instead of a back.

9. Hammers, having the orifice for the handle at, or near the middle. They are found with a semicircular edge and back, or, instead of the latter, they have occasionally a round straight projecting knob, or one slightly drawn downward. They are also found wedge shaped, with a projecting shoulder and a round flat back without a knob; occasionally with the edge and back bent downward; and finally with a sharp edge and rounded back. Axes and hammers have been found in a half finished state which had either no orifice for the handle, or one which was only half perforated; others again which had been broken at the orifice first formed, and then perforated anew.

10. Sling stones, either with a groove cut round the middle, or with two grooves cut crosswise; in the latter case they have the shape of a ball somewhat flattened.

11. Shuttle shaped stones with a groove cut in their edge, usually of the shape represented in the annexed cut, and bearing traces of being worn in the middle of the sides. A specimen has been found having the groove on its edge cased with bronze.

12. Nuts or knobs, which are perforated and whereof some are round above and flat beneath, some pointed, and others rounded on both sides. In Germany the name of Spindelsteine has been given to them. Similar articles of glass or burnt clay are occasionally found in urns.

​13. Disks or sheaves, having a hole in the centre, either flat with a flat edge. or round edged with a raised rim round the central orifice.

14. Balls, fashioned with great care. but not usually polished. most frequently of the size of an orange. occasionally much smaller.

15. Anchors, of which one star-shaped specimen has been found with a hole in the centre.

16. Corn crushers, used previously to the introduction or general use of handmills, and consisting of a large block of stone having its upper surface flat, and in the centre a circular cavity into which a smooth ball of stone was made to fit.

17. Touchstones, as they have been denominated, made out of a black close-grained species of slate, and apparently designed to be worn pendent. They are now often met with in very ancient graves, in which no traces of metal are dis- cernible, for which reason the above appellation may not be the most appropriate.

It is probable that articles of stone may have been used also at a somewhat later period by less wealthy individuals. Stone anvils are believed to have been found on which articles of metal had been hammered, and which are consequently to be referred to a later period.

These belong to a much more extended period than the articles of stone. and were used from the most remote down to the most recent periods of heathenism, even in times when it was customary to inter the corpse without cremation. Although the attempts hitherto made to classify them according to their age have not been without success. still the complete deve- lopment of such a mode of classification would too much ex- ceed our limits, so that we find it on the whole more conve- nient to arrange them according to the materials of which they are composed. These consist of:

​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/66 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/67 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/68 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/69 ​small for such a purpose. After glass has lain a long time in the earth a crust frequently forms over it which gives it the appearance of mother of pearl.

5. Wood, consisting chielly of small buckets, the bottom being of one entire piece, and the rest composed of staves like cooper's work of the present day, but much thinner and finer. They were mounted or girt with metal hoops and had metal handles. In many cases all that is now found in a state of preservation is the handle and part of the mounting, the rest having entirely mouldered away. Occasionally however in the stone sepulchres of Norway principally, and in the sandhills of Denmark, they have been found so entire as to enable us to form a distinct notion of them.

We may as a supplement to this class add divers specimens of skeletons and charred bones found in sepulchral mounds and in morasses, and indicating the races of the human family to which the ancient inhabitants of the North belonged. They morcover show that it was no unfrequent practice to inter animals along with the bodies of the deceased, not merely horses and dogs, but occasionally stags, nay even birds. In some funereal vessels peculiar substances are met with, which merit being preserved for the purpose of ascertaining what they originally were by means of chemical analysis.

1. Small figures, which are conjectured to have been a kind of idols, and are of very rare occurrence. It is possible, however, that some of them were merely ornaments. They have been found of bronze, of a mixture of zinc and other metals, of bone and of baked clay. The best accounts which we possess of the temple idols, show that they were made of wood, and occasionally arrayed in garments, wherefore we can scarcely expect to find any such remaining in a state of preservation; on the other hand there have been found ​ornaments, for instance a girdle of gold, so constructed that we cannot suppose them to have been designed for human beings, but for the decoration of an idol. In some sepulchral mounds, more especially in Norway, small figures of animals have also been found, such as horses, rams etc.

2. Large rings, which are supposed to have been sacred.

It would not appear that they could have been worn round the wrist, for the two opposite knobs which form the uniting point of the ring render them ill suited for such a purpose. They are moreover too small to have been worn round the head or neck. To exhibit their shape a delineation of one of them is given above of the full size. As they are besides often of pure gold and very massive, so that in ancient times they ​must have been very costly, it has accordingly been conjectured that in them we may recognize the sacred rings which are often mentioned as having been employed in administering oaths in the pagan times.

3. Symbolical matters, chiefly found in urns near the top, such as rings of the same shape as the ones above mentioned, but much smaller, being of the size represented in the annexed cut, consequently much too small to have been worn round the wrist, and too large for the finger; further, swords which exactly resemble those of bronze, but are only four or five inches in length; likewise daggers like the one here represented of the full size; moreover miniature models or imitations in amber, of stone axes and hammers, which, however, it is very possible, may have been used as trinkets or ornaments. As these articles have been found in graves, it seems probable that they had a special import and were symbols of the originals, which it was perhaps deemed desirable to retain; we know the importance and value that was attached to weapons. It is not articles of the later ages of paganism that we find thus imitated, but objects from what may be called the bronze age.

4. Large flat dishes or vessels of bronze, which are usually furnished with a foot of turner's work. They are supposed to have been the so called Offerboller (sacrificial bowls), into which the blood of the victims was poured.

5. Strainers of metal fitted into vessels of clay, or other corresponding vessels of bronze.

6. Incense cakes and incense, the former being round with a hole or perforation in the middle.

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1. Axes, either of copper, or of copper with an iron edge, belonging most probably to the period when iron was dearer than copper; or of iron, which latter are the most recent. Metals being, as is well known, very expensive, stone continued for a long time to be used for heavy articles such as axes, at the same time that the knife and sword were of copper, for which reason there have been found comparatively few axes of metal.

2. Ax-hammers of bronze. A delineation of a massive one of a considerable size and weight is here annexed. A weapon such as this, it has been supposed, was worn by the leader.

Another specimen still more splendid and of a larger size is here

​delineated. It is inlaid with gold, but the ax itself is cast over a

curious form of clay, is very thin, and could not, like the preceding, be fit for use in battle. It has been conjectured accordingly that this sort of elaborately wrought axes must either have been designed for idols, or employed as badges of dignity.

3. Swords of bronze or of iron, specimens of which are here exhibited. The former are of course, the most ancient. The hilts were of various kinds. The most ancient are supposed to be those of bronze into which the blade was fastened merely by two rivets; subsequently the rivets were increased in number and applied in a similunar form, as is shown in the annexed delineation. by which means the fastening was rendered more secure. The hilts were occasionally of wood, bone, or buck's horn, in which cases they were almost always found to be entirely mouldered away, nothing, in most instances, being left in a state of preservation, but the tang on which they were fastened. No guard is found on the more ancient swords, but a transition to it may be seen on such as are of iron. In regard to the hilts of iron swords, they have been found partly of silver, or inlaid with silver, or with gold chains attached to them. Along with the sword we may notice the sheath and belt, which in most instances are decayed, being usually of wood or leather, as also the ferrule and other mountings.

4. Daggers and poniards of bronze and iron.

5. Spears of bronze and iron. It is on the iron spears ​that we first discern hooks. The shaft is never found, as it was made of wood, but the ferrule is met with, and its distance from the spear enables us to determine the length of the shaft itself. There is a particular sort of spear, called “Skæpteflætter”, so termed from the extremity of the shaft being split so as to admit the insertion of the spear head. Here we may add the weapon called morning star", of which a bronze specimen has been found.

6. Arrowheads, of bronze or iron. The most ancient were so made as to be inserted in the shaft; subsequently they were so constructed as that the shaft might be inserted into them. Hitherto no bows have been found belonging to the pagan times of Scandinavia.

7. Shields have occasionally been found consisting entirely of bronze, of a round shape, with the edge or rim bent over a thick wire. But as they were generally made of thin layers of wood and leather, all that we usually find is the metal mountings and ornaments appertaining to them, more especially a large, round umbo, or boss with a projecting point, which was placed in the centre of the shield. They were of various descriptions: The long buckler, which was used for protection against arrows and javelins, or when scaling a wall or rampart, was of large dimensions. The pointed shield was pointed at the lower end; The target, or parrying shield (to which class belong the above mentioned round ones of bronze) was used in close combat; it was not usually of large dimensions, being held in the outstretched hand and not borne on the arm. To make room for the hand there was generally placed in the centre a boss or bowl-shaped piece of metal, across which was applied a band or hoop by way of handle, being in most cases of wood.

8. Helmets and coats of mail with other articles appertaining to armour are very rarely found. Fragments of bronze helmets have however been occasionally discovered overlaid ​with gold. Instead of a vizor there is often found on the helmet a prolongation of that part which fitted over the forehead, by means of which the nose was protected. On a piece which covered the chin there have occasionally been found two upright pieces of metal, somewhat resembling large tusks, which served to defend the cheeks. Remains of coats of chain mail made, of bronze have also been found. Here may also be mentioned:

9. Horns or war trumpets of bronze, of a very large size, and consisting usually of two parts, whereof one was inserted into the other and of the appearance of which an idea may be formed from the annexed cut. They are generally found along with bronze swords and belong consequently to the more ancient period of paganism, as is also indicated by the ornaments. The inferior extremity is adorned with a circular disc, the anterior side of which is ornamented; from the mouthpiece depend ornaments of bronze and on some of them there are contrivances for the insertion of cords. On one specimen a long metal chain is preserved. ​They have been found in bogs in several parts of Denmark so well preserved that they may still be sounded.

10. Pommels of bronze representing the heads of animals.

11. Spurs, having no rowels but only with a goad; those made of bronze are very small, those of iron larger.

12. Bridles, commonly consisting of two rings and a cross bar for the bit. They are found both of bronze and of iron; also,

13. Stirrups; these are usually with narrow irons; the straps belonging to them were on the contrary very broad.

1. Gold bracteates, that is, pieces of gold having the shape of coins, stamped on one side and furnished with rings, and which were occasionally used as amulets. Some of them have runic inscriptions. They have been found varying in diameter from nearly four inches to half an inch; sometimes a number are found on one spot together with beads, or fitted to necklaces of gold. Instead of these, real coins were occasionally used after having been furnished with a rim and an eye.

2. Beads and necklaces. Beads have been found of glass mosaic and of glass paste. A peculiar kind of these was intended to imitate gold beads, and consists of a nucleus of glass, over which is laid a thin coating of gold and over that again a shell of glass; they have also been found of rock crystal and other species of hard stone; of a kind of fine burnt clay of various colours; of gold or other metals; the last mentioned are very thin and internally filled up with clay for the purpose of economizing the metal and rendering them lighter; they are also frequently found of amber, in which case they are often mixed with others of glass mosaic. Along with beads have often been found metal spirals of the same thickness and appearance as the one here delineated. Chains for the neck arc found of various patterns curiously plaited of gold, silver and ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/78 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/79 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/80 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/81 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/82 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/83 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/84 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/85 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/86 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/87 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/88 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/89 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/90 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/91 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/92 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/93 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/94 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/95 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/96 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/97 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/98 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/99 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/100 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/101 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/102 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/103 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/104 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/105 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/106 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/107 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/108 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/109 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/110 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/111 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/112 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/113 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/114 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/115 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/116 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/117 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/118 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/119 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/120 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/121 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/122 ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/123 ​frequently that of the particular saint whose name in the calender is affixed to the day on which the individual was born; for in catholic times it was often customary to call the child by the name of such a saint, and we are thus furnished with a means to assist us in discovering the individual in question, viz. we look for a person in that family having the same name as that of the saint. Agreeably to a practice which was general in ancient times, and which even in our days has been retained throughout Iceland and among the common people of the rest of the North, it naturally happens that in many inscriptions we find the son named merely by the prænomen of his father with the addition of the word son, in which cases the coat of arms, or the landed property if mentioned, must guide us in discovering to what family the individual belonged. The circumstance of being descended from an illustrious family was not only highly prized, but it was also wished to exhibit clear evidence of such a descent. This gave rise to genealogical tables and quarterings. Generally speaking, 16 quarterings were demanded, viz. 8 on the father's side and 8 on that of the mother, or in other words 4 descents. Such tables have been framed in various ways, but naturally in such a manner as to proceed from, or terminate in the individual concerned.

Experience has shown that many specimens of antiquity have been destroyed by the inattention or carelessness of the finder. When excavations and other researches are not conducted with the requisite knowledge and executed according to a well concerted plan, they are just as likely to injure as to enrich antiquarian science. We have therefore thought that a few hints on this subject may not be without their use.

​Excavations of sepulchral mounds do not in general corre- spond to the ideas which the common people entertain of them; for many of such mounds, especially the richest of them, have been previously explored, and many belong to those very re- mote periods when the metals were not as yet in general use, and consequently contain only articles of stone or burnt clay, all very similar in shape. In case however the formation of roads, or the operations of agriculture should furnish occasion for the exploration of any such mounds, we think it right to solicit attention to the following remarks. The interior con- struction being, as we have already observed, very various, no general rules for their exploration can be given, but we must in all cases be guided by circumstances. In regard to such mounds as have one or more chambers constructed of large un- hewn stones, the entrance is generally through a passage, which, in most cases fronts the East, and must be sought for on a level with, or a little above the surface of the surrounding soil. This passage at its exterior extremity is generally found marked with two rows of stones, which, in proportion as they approach the chamber, become larger, and at the end nearest to the chamber have stone imposts placed over them. By this passage the mound must be entered. In many cases it will be found filled up with mould. In not a few cases such passages have been also found to contain urns and skeletons. At the entrance to the chamber, and sometimes also in the passage itself, it was most commonly the practice to place a door or a shutter, which, if still remaining, must be carefully drawn up or out of the grooves into which it was inserted; however, in cases where it was not made of stone but of wood. it will generally be found to have mouldered away entirely. As the objects contained within, owing to the long lapse of time, are almost always covered, or half concealed by dust, the greatest caution must be exercised so as to be able to notice the rela- tive position of the different articles deposited (the knowledge. of which is often of more importance than the articles ​themselves) and to follow up the traces of things that have wholly or in part perished, for example, the wooden shafts of spears, the length of which we may thus be enabled to ascertain. In the case of skeletons we must endeavour to note whether they are male or female, which is best ascertained from the pelvis; and also to note in what manner the articles found along with them were arranged. There is another reason why skeletons. merit attention and conservation, and that is that they are supposed, particularly from their size and the conformation of the head, to furnish evidence of different races of men. Not unfrequently the bones of animals have been found in pagan graves. Allowing that they are mouldered, or even charred, still single fragments, especially the teeth when found, may show to what animal they belong, which of itself may be interesting in a scientific point of view. Urns are generally found deposited in the end facing the South. They are often so completely saturated with moisture that the surest way of moving such an urn is to try and set it, along with the earth most closely adhering to it, on a board, and place it in a position where there is a current of air. After the lapse of some hours, the clay acquires consistency again, and then the earth still adhering to it may without difficulty be removed. It is always desirable for us to get the urn along with the bones found in the same with the lid appertaining to it, and when found standing on a small separate stone, to get the stone also on which it so stood. In addition to the proper grave chamber which is generally in the middle and a little clevated above the surrounding earth, urns and other antiquities are often placed in the upper parts of the mound, at the sides, and in the corners.

Under large stones lying by themselves in the fields it has often happened that very rare and valuable antiquities have been found. In blasting, lowering, or removing such stones care should be taken to examine if there be any inscription on that part of the stone which lay undermost; for in this way many of the most important Runic stones have been discovered. ​Page:Guide to Northern archaeology (IA b29313144).pdf/127 ​Silver and copper coins are often found adhering together in masses. When you wish to separate them, this may be effected by steeping them in vinegar; but you must not attempt by breaking them off, or by boiling, to effect their separation.

Gold possesses the property of not contracting rust, but when found has the same appearance as if new. Almost all other substances suffer more or less from the influence of time, or of the locality where they were deposited. Silevr has generally a blackish appearance and resembles iron. Copper and bronze after lying in bogs, generally contract a reddish or blackish rust; but they also very often contract a green rust, which accommodates itself so exactly to the surface as to give the articles the appearance of being enamelled, and make even the minutest ornaments more distinctly discernible. This noble rust, as it is called, ought to be sedulously spared, and should not be injured by shaking the article roughly. Iron gets much corroded by the common reddish rust, and it is only in such sepulchral mounds as consist of sand, in graves formed in rocks, and occasionally in bogs, that articles of this metal have been found. Lead becomes oxidized. Amber preserves its appearance when found in water or in damp places; on the other hand it has a dull appearance when found in sand; in the earth it assumes the external appearance of resin, for which it is not unfrequently taken. Glass has generally a dull appearance, and occasionally, as already remarked, it gets covered with a crust which gives it the appearance of mother of pearl. Bones are calcinated when found in the earth; they are found in better preservation in sand, and best of all in bogs, where they, however, acquire a brownish hue. Wood is found best preserved in bogs. It is seldom met with in sepulchral mounds; on articles found in other places may occasionally be discerned minute remains thereof, which the finder should be cautious not to remove; and in general the finder of objects of antiquity ought to avoid any attempt at cleaning or polishing them, as they may thereby easily be exposed to receive injury.