// Workers AI · dad joke modeIs The King's Grave royal rest? It's a grave concern.
| The King's Grave | |
|---|---|
 Kiviksgrave burial site near Kivik, Sweden | |
  Location within Sweden | |
| 55°41′N 14°14′E / 55.683°N 14.233°E | |
| Location | Scania, Sweden |
The King's Grave (Kungagraven i Kivik, Kiviksgraven) is an archaeological site. It is situated near Kivik in the southeastern portion of Scania, Sweden. The site is what remains of an unusually grand Nordic Bronze Age double burial dating from circa the 15th century BC.[1][2] [3]
Site
[edit]The site is located about 320 metres (1,000 ft) from the shore of the eastern coast of Scania. These two burials are unique. In both construction and in size—it is a circular site measuring 75 metres (250 ft) in diameter—this tomb differs from most European burials from the Bronze Age.
Discovery
[edit]The site was used as a quarry for construction materials until 1748, when two farmers discovered a 3.25 metres (11 ft) tomb, with a north–south orientation, constructed with ten slabs of stone.[4][5] Still, the quarrying continued and some of the stones disappeared.[4] In 1756 the site was analyzed by antiquarian and archaeologist Nils Wessman (1712–1763). Wessman had undertaken extensive trips to Scania in the 1740s and 1750s for archaeological investigations.[5]
The site was excavated by archaeologist Gustaf Hallström (1880–1962) starting in 1931. From 1925 until his retirement in 1945, Hallström worked as an antiquarian at the Swedish National Heritage Board (Riksantikvarieämbetet). Between 1931 and 1933, a thorough excavation was undertaken and the remains of a Stone Age settlement was found under the massive cairn, including a great deal of flintstone shards.[6][7]
The mound contained two cists. On the left side of the cist's southern end, there were raised slabs of stone from a 1.2 metres (3.9 ft) long and 0.65 metres (2.1 ft) wide cist.[7] It was named the King's Grave due to its size, long before it was known to contain two burials.[5][7]
Petroglyphs
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The principal cist is formed from ten upright stone slabs, eight of which are decorated with petroglyphs on the surfaces facing the burial chamber. The carvings were first recognised in 1756, eight years after the cist was opened during quarrying in 1748. They are among the best-known examples of Nordic Bronze Age art.[7][5][4]
The carvings depict people, ships, birds, fish, horses, axes, circular symbols and figures playing lurs. They also include a chariot drawn by two horses and fitted with four-spoked wheels.[5][8][7]
After most of the original grave goods were lost, the carved slabs became the principal focus of archaeological study. During the 19th century, Swedish zoologist and archaeologist Sven Nilsson (1787–1883) argued that the carvings reflected the presence of Phoenician settlers in Scandinavia. British archaeologist John Lubbock (1834–1913) supported Nilsson's theory in his book Pre-Historic Times (1865), suggesting that the human figures represented on the carvings "may fairly be said to have a Phoenician, or Egyptian appearance."[7][9] Nilsson's interpretation was later rejected as archaeological knowledge of the monument and the Bronze Age developed.[7]
Human remains
[edit]Only a small quantity of human remains survived within the principal cist because the monument had been looted before archaeological excavation. During excavations between 1931 and 1933, Swedish archaeologist Gustaf Hallström (1880–1962) recovered several teeth and fragments of bone from the chamber.[6][7][4]
A reanalysis of the remains by Swedish archaeologist Joakim Goldhahn found that they came from at least five people: four adolescents and one adult.[7] Radiocarbon dating showed that the burials took place during at least three separate periods between approximately 1400 and 800 BCE. This indicates that the principal cist remained open and continued to receive burials for about 600 years.[7][10]
The adult dated to the 9th century BCE, several centuries later than both the decorated stone cist and the associated bronze objects. These findings challenged the traditional interpretation of the monument as the burial place of a single Nordic Bronze Age ruler.[7][11]
Restoration
[edit]After the excavation, the tomb was restored, but no one knows whether it looks similar to its original state.[7][4][12] A comparison with other contemporaneous graves suggests that the site might have been three times higher than the 3.5 metres (11 ft) as restored.[7][12] The restoration was based on etchings from the 18th century and conjecture.[4][7][12] A new chamber was constructed out of concrete and a tunnel extended into the cists.[7][4][12]
Exhibition
[edit]Today, it is possible for visitors to the site to enter the tomb and to see the engraved stones.[13]
Gallery
[edit]
Aerial view of the Kivik grave
Reconstructed entrance to the tomb
One of ten slabs of stone shows a horse drawn chariot with two four-spoked wheels
One of the slabs of stone shows people (eight in long robes)
The stones of the grave facing the grave of Kivik
Stones within the cairn of Kivik
Stones within the cairn of Kivik
Drawings of one of the petroglyph slabs within the grave (see: Golden hats)
.JPG)
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ↑ Kristiansen, Kristian; Larsson, Thomas B. (2005). The rise of Bronze Age society. Cambridge University Press. p. 193. ISBN 9780521843638.
- ↑ Bredarör i Kivik (Joakim Goldhahn, Department of Archaeology, University of Gothenburg)
- ↑ "Kiviksgraven". kiviksgraven.se. Retrieved December 1, 2019.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Alesmark, Caroline. "Kiviksgraven – expressive rock carvings under mountains of stone". Österlen.se. Retrieved 4 August 2026.
- 1 2 3 4 5 "Kiviksgraven – Sveriges största bronsåldersgrav" (PDF). Swedish National Heritage Board (in Swedish). Retrieved 4 August 2026.
- 1 2 "Gustaf A Hallström". Svenskt biografiskt lexikon. Retrieved 4 August 2026.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Goldhahn, Joakim (2009). "Bredarör on Kivik: a monumental cairn and the history of its interpretation". Antiquity. 83 (320): 359–371. doi:10.1017/S0003598X00098483.
- ↑ "Kiviksgraven". Statens fastighetsverk (in Swedish). Retrieved 4 August 2026.
- ↑ Lubbock, John (1872). Pre-Historic Times, as Illustrated by Ancient Remains, and the Manners and Customs of Modern Savages (2nd ed.). New York: D. Appleton and Company. p. 71.
- ↑ Kristiansen, Kristian; Larsson, Thomas B. (2005). The Rise of Bronze Age Society: Travels, Transmissions and Transformations. Cambridge University Press. p. 193. ISBN 9780521843638.
- ↑ "Kiviksgraven". Statens fastighetsverk. Retrieved 4 August 2026.
- 1 2 3 4 "King's Grave, Kivik, Sweden". SpottingHistory. Retrieved 4 August 2026.
- ↑ "Kiviksgraven (Kungagraven)". sydsverige.dk. Retrieved December 1, 2019.
Other sources
[edit]- Baudou, Evert Gustaf Hallström: arkeolog i världskrigens epok (Stockholm: Natur & Kultur. 1997)
External links
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