Archaeologists are mystified by the discovery of dozens of Bronze and Iron Age children’s graves in southern Norway.
The burials, each marked by carefully placed stone circles, were found by a team from the Norwegian Museum of Cultural History last year near Fredrikstad, about 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Oslo, near the Swedish border.
“They stayed here as a secret until we found them,” museum archaeologist Guro Fossum said Science Norway. “We discovered one after the other and ended up with 41 round stone formations.”
The stone circles, which are up to 2 meters wide, were laid together like road cobbles, but buried a few centimeters below the surface.
Several circles were placed around a large central stone, and further investigation revealed cremated bones and pottery shards beneath those stones.
Connected: The burial of the baby ‘Neve’ may be the oldest of its kind in Europe
Now, a new analysis shows that almost all the burials contained children who died between 800 and 200 BC. Many of the children were infants and others ranged from 3 to 6 years old.
“The dating shows that the burial site was used over a long period, so they couldn’t have all died in the same natural disaster or disease outbreak or epidemic,” Fossum said.
image 1 e 2
Unique site
Such a concentration of ancient children’s graves is unique in Europe, according to a statement from the museum.
The area around the burial site is filled with rock carvings depicting travel and sun worship, according to the statement.
Experts noted that the infant mortality rate was probably high at the time, but otherwise, they have no explanation for the child graves.
After securing important samples from the site and photographing it extensively, the archaeologists sealed off their excavations, the website reported. However, one of the stone formations will soon be displayed in an exhibition entitled “In memory of the children” at the Cultural History museum in Oslo.
Archaeologists also plan to analyze artifacts from the site, which include pottery shards and what may be a metal pin.
“Analysis of pottery fragments can tell us a lot,” Fossum said. “It does not appear that all the vessels were containers for cremated remains; some were placed between graves and we are very curious as to what was inside them.”
image 1 e 2
Accidental discovery
Archaeologists discovered the burial site after investigating a Stone Age settlement nearby, Fossum said.
During the Nordic Bronze and Iron Ages, it was common to burn the dead at the stake and either bury or scatter any bones that remained, Fossum said. A flat layer of stones in a spiral or wheel pattern was then built over the cremation site, she said.
But the burial site in Fredrikstad is unusual. “The graves are very close together,” Fossum said. “They must have been in an open landscape, with roads nearby, so everyone would have known about them. The cooking pits and hearths around the site suggest that gatherings and ceremonies were held in connection with the burials.”
In addition, the tombs were meticulously crafted. “Each stone was taken from a different location and placed right in the formation,” said Fossum. “We wonder who put in so much effort.”
The answer came with the discovery that most of the dead were children. “They were graves of small children,” she said. “It was done with so much care.”