Iron Age building offerings : A contribution to the analysis of a die-hard phenomenon in Swedish preindustrial agrarian society

Abstract

This paper deals with the interpretation of prehistoric offerings in relation to houses and buildings. Records of such building offerings are, so far, few in Swedish archaeology. Presumably this is due to the contextuality of the offerings combined with the humble character of the offering gifts. Further knowledge of the structure of the idea behind the offerings is required to increase the understanding of their importance in the mental culture of Scandinavian prehistoric agrarian society. A similar phenomenon is described in folk belief records from Nordic preindustrial agrarian culture, offerings which sought to effect success and protection for the inhabitants of the farm buildings. An attempt is here made to interpret the existing Iron Age offerings in relation to those performed in historic times. The similarity between the archaeological and the historical records seems to support historic continuity, which confirms the importance of the phenomenon in Scandinavian agrarian culture in premodern times. This investigation mainly concerns building offerings of an osteological nature. A number of Swedish Iron Age offerings are discussed in relation to the general building offering tradition. Some circumstances indicating offering are presented, intended as guidelines for future excavators.

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