Björkö - Birka

In lake Mälaren just west of Stockholm, you will find the island Björkö. During the Viking era, this was a very important trade centre called Birka - it was probably the first real town in Sweden. Even if Birka had a, seen from a historical point of view, short life span (approx 790-970 a.c.) the town has still left enormous amounts of untouched information about the every day life during the Viking era. The excavations continue yet today and will probably go on for decades to come. Since 1993, Birka is found on UNESCO's list of World Heritage and as such it is considered a protected ground. http://whc.unesco.org/

The Castel Mountain. At the highest point of the town, a large castle or fortress was built with a generous view overlooking both land and sea. Today, no visible trace of the fortress is seen by the visitors, but in 1834 at the mountains top, a large stone cross was erected in memory of Ansgar's first visit to Birka (see below). To the left of the cross in the panorama, you will see a vast green meadow. That is where Birka's town centre once laid. In the forests behind the meadow you will find the "Homelands". (2 Mb)

The Homelands. Just outside the northern gates of the town Birka, you will find the Homelands - a vast area with a large number of Viking graves. Pretty much every little hill you see is a grave. In those days this was a wide grave area, nowadays it is a forest with a lot of soft hills, a beautiful example of untouched Swedish nature. (3 Mb)

 

Excavation. The surface layer is being removed and the archeologists can gently brush themselves down through the layers of earth to find what the people of Birka left behind them. The dug out earth is screened so that any possible bone fragments, clay pieces and other ancient remains wont be lost. (2,3 Mb)

 

Higher view. The same dig site but seen from higher up in the terraine, outside the closed-off area. On the mountain top you will see a glimpse of the great Stone Cross. (2,1 Mb)

 

Ansgar's Chapel. The monk Ansgar worked for years trying to spread Christianity among the inhabitans of Birka. To some extend he succeeded, even if a lot of them remained true to Thor, Odin, Freja and all the other gods in the Scandinavian Mythology. In 1930, this chapel was built in memory of Ansgar's hard work. The chapel has a somewhat special architechture. (2 Mb)

 

Inside the Chapel. A mimimal floor is compensated by the gigantic doors wich allow the outside visitors to take part of the services held inside the chapel. At the horizon you see the faint silhuette of the Castle Mountain. (1,7 Mb)