Gjellestad

A newly discovered ‘central place’ in south-east Norway

Bibliographic Data

ID7659583
AuthorsLars Gustavsen (0000-0003-2442-2921, Norwegian Institute for Cultural Heritage Research, corresponding author), Per Erik Gjesvold (Hordaland County Council), Sigrid Mannsåker Gundersen (Hordaland County Council), Alois Hinterleitner (0000-0001-7037-8779, Ludwig Boltzmann Institute for Age Research), Erich Nau (0000-0002-1573-3544, Norwegian Institute for Cultural Heritage Research), Knut Paasche (0000-0002-1618-3230, Norwegian Institute for Cultural Heritage Research)
Year2020
Volume94
Issue378
Pages1520-1537
Publication date2020-12-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueAntiquity (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0003-598X • E-ISSN: 1745-1744
PublisherAntiquity Publications (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.15184/aqy.2020.39
OpenAlexW3105770898
LanguageEN
Citations received8
References cited12

The Late Nordic Iron Age (AD 550–1050) was characterised by significant change in political, military, judicial and religious structures across Scandinavia, most clearly manifested in the appearance of high-status ‘central places’ in the landscape. Recent ground-penetrating radar surveys at Gjellestad in Norway have revealed a site comprising several large burial mounds—one of which contains a ship burial—in addition to a possible cult house and a feasting hall. This combination of features suggests that Gjellestad was part of a hitherto unknown central place on the eastern shores of the Oslofjord. If correct, the authors’ interpretations demonstrate that the layouts of these sites were formulaic, and that central places may be more common than previously thought

Ancient history · Archaeology · Cult · East-Central Europe · Geography · Political science · Politics · Shore · Viking Age · Ancient Mediterranean Archaeology and History · Archaeology and ancient environmental studies · Geology · Historical and Archaeological Studies · History · Law · Oceanography

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