Virkelsborg

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The Virkelsborg near Bitterna is an approximately 35 × 40 m large fornborg surrounded by a rampart on a hill near Vara in Västergötland in Sweden .

The complex dates from the early Bronze Age around 1300 BC. BC and was probably around 400 BC. Used. Older oral traditions speak of a castle or a town. Later theories suggest that it has a connection with the old road from Lödöse to Skara .

Virkelsborg is surrounded by low ramparts and was previously interpreted as an Iron Age castle . A small archaeological investigation was carried out between 2008 and 2010. Early dating begs the question of what Virkelsborg really was. Similar systems from the older Bronze Age exist in Scandinavia and Europe, but they were not known in western Sweden. Instead of a castle to defend against enemies, Virkelsborg may have been a place of worship, a kind of ritual meeting place for the people of the area. The stone walls are about 2.0 m high and wide with an entrance to the east. There is a ditch outside the north wall.

During the excavation, mainly simple pottery items were found. Burnt clay and loam, pieces of flint , slag, and burned bones were other findings. 175 meters from Virkelsborg there were also a number of post holes with supporting stones and a bronze melt .

The area is rich in relics from the Stone, Bronze, Iron and Viking Ages . Eleven Neolithic stone boxes , several bronze axes, menhirs , a broken rune stone and numerous burial sites were found.

Nearby is Hallebergs fornborg , Scandinavia's largest prehistoric castle at 20 square kilometers .

literature

  • Marita Sjölin: Virkelsborg - en fornborg från äldre bronsålder: RAÄ nr 34 i Västerbitterna socken, Vara kommun, Västergötland. Arkeologisk förundersökning 2008. In: Västergötlands museum , 2009.

Web links

Coordinates: 58 ° 7 ′ 54 ″  N , 12 ° 55 ′ 18.6 ″  E