Sacrificial moor

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Site and place of sacrifice in Thorsberger Moor

A sacrificial moor is an archaeological site that existed in prehistoric times in a boggy or swampy context. Sacrificial moors are known from Denmark , Germany, Great Britain , Ireland , Scandinavia and the Netherlands . The sites in Northern Europe are related to the Germanic cultures ; individual sites have been used since the Neolithic . A sacrificial moor can also be a body of water that marshes up later; so that the sacrificial moors are scientifically assigned to the spring sanctuaries and spring victims.

The designation of these places as sacrificial moor is based on archaeologically determined objects that were recognized there as sacrificial goods and on the basis of the special find situations of an intentional disposal . These situations in combination with the material finds establish the relationship to the religious-cultic sphere of the depositors or the objects in the respective cultural environment.

In Germanic tribes, sacrifices were a central means of contacting the gods. By the underlying principle of do the ut ( "I give that you may give") were in addition to the sacrifice that some Moor places than wooden idols , found a variety of deposited objects from everyday culture and crafts as well as remains of food were found. Whole animals or parts of them consumed or laid down as part of a sacrificial meal.

Weapons or armaments in particular were usually rendered unusable before being laid down, sometimes with short runic inscriptions . Since these were deliberately deposited or sunk, the booty was apparently sacrificed to thank the deity for a success achieved or to consecrate victory to her. In this context, bog bodies were suspected to be human victims. However, only a few of the 500 or so bog corpses found clearly demonstrate a sacrifice. Prisoners of war and slaves, however, were sunk in moors, as generally sacrificed in a war context.

Sacrificial bogs are a particularly informative source for archeology , as a very large number of objects were sunk in the waters and many organic objects have been well preserved . Since most of the sacrificial moors were in use for a longer period of time, the layering of the submerged objects allows the chronological sequence of the deposits as well as their relative dating to be reconstructed.

Known sacrificial moors

Well-known and scientifically significant sacrificial moors are:

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