Viking - Sources - Archaeology - Burial Sites

Burial Sites

There are numerous burial sites associated with Vikings throughout Europe—in Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Germany and other North Germanic regions. As well as providing information on Viking religion, burial sites also provide information on social structure. The items buried with the deceased give some indication as to what was considered important to possess in the afterlife. Some examples of notable burial sites include:

• Gettlinge gravfält, Öland, Sweden, ship outline
• Jelling, Denmark, a World Heritage Site
• The cemeteries of Birka, Sweden, a World Heritage Site. The Hemlanden cemetery located here is the largest Viking Period cemetery in Scandinavia.
• Oseberg, Norway.
• Gokstad, Norway.
• Borrehaugene, Horten, Norway
• Valsgärde, Sweden.
• Gamla Uppsala, Sweden.
• Hulterstad gravfält, near the villages of Alby and Hulterstad, Öland, Sweden, ship outline of standing stones
• Trulben, by Hornbach, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany
• Port an Eilean Mhòir ship burial, Scotland.
• Scar boat burial, Orkney Islands, Scotland.