Askahögen

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The Askahögen ( German  "Aschenhügel" ) in the hamlet Aska ( German  "Asche" ) in Hagebyhöga , east of Vadstena in Östergötland was a center of power in the Viking Age (800-1050 AD) in Sweden . The Großhügel ( Swedish Storhög ), which was long thought to be a burial site, turned out to be the remains of a large Viking hall in 2013 .

Research into the halls or central plaza is primarily carried out by the archaeological side. Your analyzes show that many halls burned down (e.g. the hall in Uppåkra discovered in 2009 ). This indicates that halls were not abandoned or relocated like courtyards, but only lost their importance when they were destroyed. In Högom , a burial mound was built over the burned down hall. At the same time, halls in written sources ( Nibelungenlied ) are set on fire with a striking frequency. A fire also destroyed the hall on Askahögen.

Freyja amulet

The approximately 3.0 m high Askahögen measures approximately 55.0 × 18.0 m and has an oval shape. A hall about 47.5 meters long and 14.0 meters wide was discovered using georadar. The hall, placed on the flat top of the hill, had double walls, four entrances and possibly a hearth in the center. The piles were about 1.0 meter in diameter. There are similarities with Fornsigtuna (also known as Signhildsberg ) near Mälaren and with Lejre in Denmark. Most of all, however, the layout is similar to the recently partially excavated great hall in Gamla Uppsala . The distance between the double walls was less than in Gamla Uppsala. The similarity points to contacts between the two places, but in some ways the architecture also resembles the Trelleborg-type Viking castles.

Askahögens Hall was built in the Vendel period (650–800 AD). It may have been the seat of a king of Östergötland in the 9th century. South of Aska near Götala is one of Sweden's two Odin shrines . One kilometer from Aske, in Klåstad, the remains of a wooden church ( stave church ) with early Christian tombs and a later round church were found . The wooden church from the first half of the 11th century is Östergötland's oldest.

In 1920, near the Askahögen - in the grave of Aska , a richly decorated women's grave that also contained bridle parts - gold-plated jewelry such as the Freyja amulet and an oriental bronze jug were found. In the 2000s, with the help of metal detectors, brooches, a necklace and a silver filigree bead dated to the 10th century were found. A silver pendant represents a Viking.

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Coordinates: 58 ° 27 '4.4 "  N , 14 ° 58' 43.6"  E