Burial Layout, Society and Sacred Geography - A Viking Age Example from Jämtland

Abstract

ln the Viking Age cotnmunity in the Lake Storsjön district in central Jämtland the landscape, the society and the religion formed a conceptual totality. The political power had religious overtones and was legitimized through the topography of the district, which was comprehended by the inhabitants as god-given. This result has been achieved through structural analysis of two different source materials. One is an analysis of the sacred place-names in the district. The other analysis has used the richly furnished Viking Age cemetery of Röstahammaren, in particular its most well-equipped grave, male grave IV. There are structural parallels between these materials,