Vimose bog find
Vimose is one of the richest weapon sacrifices from the early Iron Age . It is a bog about 10 km northwest of Odense on the Danish island of Funen . The moor, originally a glacial lake, lies within a 600 m long valley system that is surrounded by moraine hills . The finds come mainly from the southern part of the moor.
The name Vimose is derived from the word vid = "willow" and not, as in the 19th century, from vi = "sanctuary". The second part of the name Moses means “moor”.
The finds
In the years between 1848 and 1858, weapons and parts of army equipment were repeatedly found during peat cutting , which were brought to the Danish National Museum in Copenhagen. In 1865, systematic excavations by the Danish archaeologist Helvig Conrad Engelhardt found 2,200 objects in an area of 600 m². But also later numerous objects were recovered. Most of the total of around 5,000 objects are partly in the National Museum of Copenhagen, partly in the Museum of Odense. They only form part of the originally sunk objects.
The items were originally destroyed before laying down and then deposited in a lake. As the lake silted up , they were gradually covered by a layer of gyttja . This led to different conservation conditions between the basic Kalkgyttja and the acidic peat. Some items show traces of burns.
The objects were deposited in several separate phases and cover a large time frame. There are ceramics from the pre-Roman Iron Age and wood carvings with ornaments in animal style from the Germanic Iron Age. There are three large laying down of arms (Vimose 1–3) and two smaller sacrificial sites.
- The oldest finds (Vimose 1) are shield humps and lance tips from the B2 period .
- Vimose 2 dates from a somewhat later time, although it is not clear whether it is a single or several deposits. These include pole and shield bosses, shield shackle fittings , lance and spear tips.
- The reference Vimose 3 is even more recent and is assigned to period C1b .
- An oak shield board could be dendrochronologically dated to the year 205.
A total of 180 shield bosses, 100 iron, eight bronze and three bone shield shackles were recovered. There are also 70 wooden handles, shield edge fittings made of bronze and decorative fittings. In addition, there were many single-edged swords in the older dumps, and double-edged swords and 20 shaft axes in the dumps of the Roman Empire. Among the many fittings were both Germanic and Roman products believed to be imported goods. Furthermore, 5 longbows made of softwood, some pieces of bow and 20 arrow shafts mostly made of pine, some made of ash, were found. A complete ring armor and some pieces of ring armor were also recovered, but they could not be assigned in time. In addition to weapons, there were also tools, planes, drills, hammers, anvils, pliers and files, harness, knives, also for surgical purposes, punch lighters and 70 combs.
The two sacrificial sites contained bones of humans and animals (horse, pig, cattle, sheep / goat). They cannot be classified in terms of time. It is believed that the sacrifices took place in the pre-Roman Iron Age.
The origin
The origin of most weapons cannot be determined more precisely because of the wide distribution of the types. This applies in particular to the finds from Vimose 1. In Vimose 2, many objects, especially belt components, could be assigned to a Funen-Jutland context. The ridges could be assigned to southern Jutland and northern Germany, some southern Sweden. The lighters found in Vimose 3 enable a more precise spatial allocation. They point to Scandinavia. Vimose 3 also shows a clear hierarchical structure of the former owners of the finds. The harnesses in particular reflect significant differences in rank.
Runic inscriptions
The rune-carved items were mostly discovered during excavations in the middle of the 19th century. A total of seven items have been preserved that bear runes or similar symbols. Except for a comb with a runic inscription, the objects seem to come from Norway and western Sweden and belong to the latest Vimose 3 deposit.
Comb
The crest, however, belongs to the earlier period Vimose 2 and is dated to approx. 150–160. It is a two-ply comb made of antler, 5.6 × 4.9 cm. Since it is a mobile object, there is no certainty about the origin of the rune carving. However, comparable two-layer ridges are limited to Funen, Jutland and Northern Germany. The rune incision is approx. 1.3 cm high and 2.9 cm long and takes into account the triple perforation.
The right-hand inscription can be read as harja . This sequence can be interpreted in two ways: 1. as a derivation with the suffix urgerm, which forms individualizations. * - n - from urgerm. * χari̯a - "army" meaning "warrior" (probably an epithet); 2. as a short form with the suffix urgerm. * - n - to a two-part personal name with the element urgerm. * χari̯a - "Army" in the first member, thus as Harja .
Ortband I
Another rune article is a disk-shaped Ortband bronze with runes on both sides. One line contains two lines that are written in opposite directions. The other has only one line written from left to right. There is no agreement on the correct reading of the runes and the meaning of the text. Two examples of the interpretation are "keep the sword that belongs to the highly praised" (as a salutation to the sword scabbard) and "sword, sailor traveling around". There is only agreement on the word "sword".
Bronze buckle
The bronze buckle originally belonged to a warrior's defensive hanging. The runes are placed in two rows with the feet facing each other on the back of the buckle. You don't know in which order the lines should be read. Reading and interpretation are also controversial here. One of them is aadagas (u) | laasauwija or aadagast | laasauwija . Some see the name "Andagast" in the first part, others read a [n] sula = "buckle" and in the second part the word "consecrate". Overall, however, the inscription is completely puzzling.
Planer
The plane is made of ash wood and is in fragments. Runes are carved into it in three groups. Some runes are blurred from conservation. The current text is “ talijo | gisaioj: wiliR ?? lao ??? … / T ?? is: accelero: an ?: regu ”required. Usually, talijo is translated as “planer”. Otherwise this inscription has not yet been unraveled either.
Lance tip
In 1984 the very indistinct inscription wagnijo in large runes was recognized on the tip of a lance . This inscription can also be seen on two other lance tips from a find in Illerup Ådal . It is believed that it is a manufacturer name. The same troops seem to have fought in both places. They are said to have come from Norway or West Sweden.
Sheath fitting
In this find it is unclear whether the carvings represent runes or whether they are rune-like decorations. There is an attempt to reconstruct a left-hand text: awŋs . But this attempt did not prevail; it met with rejection.
Ortband II
In 1979, scratches were discovered on a further chape which are regarded as rune-like, at most as ttnþþ without any linguistic meaning.
literature
- Helvig Conrad Engelhardt : Vimose found. Copenhagen 1869
- Jan Bemmann, Güde Hahne: Ancient Iron Age sanctuaries in northern Europe according to the archaeological sources. In: Germanic Religious History. Sources and source problems. Supplementary volumes to the Reallexikon der Germanischen Altertumskunde. Vol. 5. Berlin 1992, pp. 29-69.
- Jørgen Ilkjær: Vimose archeology. In: Reallexikon der Germanischen Altertumskunde . Vol. 32. Berlin 2006, pp. 402-410.
- Robert Nedoma: Personal names in South Germanic runic inscriptions (= studies on old Germanic onomatology, vol. 1,1,1). Heidelberg 2004, pp. 328-331.
- NL Nielsen: Vimose on name . In: Reallexikon der Germanischen Altertumskunde . Vol. 32. Berlin 2006, pp. 401-402.
- Karsten Kjer Michaelsen: Politics bog om Danmarks oldtid . Copenhagen 2002 ISBN 87-567-6458-8 pp. 56-57, 138, 281, 302.
- M. Stoklund: Vimose runological. In: Reallexikon der Germanischen Altertumskunde . Vol. 32. Berlin 2006, pp. 410-414.
Coordinates: 55 ° 23 ′ 55.3 " N , 10 ° 23 ′ 30.9" E