A house for the dead
Surrounding the grave were four holes, all of which had held robust poles. These were free-standing, with no indication of a wall from a grave chamber between them. It is hard to explain the posts as anything other than a roof-bearing superstructure.
Coffin and grave goods
Between the posts were the remains of a coffin. Wedged along the outside of the coffin there was an ornate sword on one side, and outside the other a large broadaxe. No human remains where observed within the perimeter of the coffin, but fragments of two silver coins was found as well as tiny pieces of iron and a four-centimetre ball of pitch (possibly birch bark pitch) with fingerprints impressed during its shaping.
![](/tema/fagomradene/konservering/langeid/grav8/bilder/oks-660.jpg)
The dating of the grave
Beyond the typology of weapons the dating of the grave is based on a C14 sample from one of the post holes dated AD 990–1040 (TRa-3791, 1010 ± 30 BP), and also a coin fragment determined to be an Anglo-Saxon penny from Æthelred II, AD 978–1016. Together these seem to point towards a dating of grave 8 at Langeid to the first half of the 11th Century.
Literature
- Wenn, Camilla. Glørstad, Z. Loftsgarden, K. (2016) Rapport arkeologisk utgravning Rv.9 Krokå - Langeid, del II: gravfelt fra vikingtid. (Langeid excavation report, part II. Grave 8: page 42-54).
- Stylegar, Frans-Arne (2006) En vikingtidsgravplass på Senum i Setesdal.
- Løken, Trond (1971) Dødehus over vikingtids flatmarksgraver. Nicolay nr 9, s.17-21.
- Magnussen, Jens Peder (2013) Den gløymte gravskikk? ein diskusjon til dødshusgravskikken i jernalderen (master's thesis).