In Borremose in Himmerland was in Celtic Iron Age a village surrounded by banks and moat. A 70 m long and 3 m broad paved road led from the moor through the village. The latest examinations have showed that the village and the bank were built in the same period ab. 300 BC. There were about 50 small houses, but only 10-12 were contemporary. This is the same size village, which is known from other places with ab. 100 residents. The village was used in 2-300 years, and during that time the city-plan was changed, the village street is the last phase.
Iron Age House, reconstruction, Moesgård Museum, Århus.
The swamp was first formed after the village was built. The question is, why they built a village out here, quite different from other villages. It has been suggested that the fortification was symbolic (the bank was no more than 1,5 m high) - that the bank might have fenced the central village of the Cimbrers, their administrative and religious center. The village was burnt down, and the moat was filled back. This indicates that this was not an ordinary village. In this connectiont is is interesting that from the same time only 3 km north of the village were found 3 bog mummies and 2 magnificent kettles, the Mosbæk-kettle and the famous Gundestrup-kettle.
Borremose, pretty Jersey cows and apple blossoms
In the moor are found numerous clay-vessel sacrifices and the leather for an oblong shield from Celtic Iron Age. Vesthimmerlands Museum, Års has a fine collection of textiles also from other moors and from a moor between Års and Ålestrup origin the famous Vesteris-leather bag, dated to Celtic Iron Age.
Borremose
The earliest known of the bog mummies is a Bronze Age woman found in Borremose in Himmerland. She was 20-35 years of age and rather fat. She lay flat on her stomach in the moor, naked, but covered with a woolen skirt. Cause of death is not known, but her face had been crushed by a terrible blow from a wooden club. She had died in the 8th century BC.
Blanket from bog mummy in Borremose
Bog mummies (also photo of the Borremose woman)
Source: Ingrid Falktoft Andersen, Vejviser til Danmarks Oldtid, 1994.
photo Borremose: grethe bachmann
2 comments:
Beautiful photos, and a very informative post. Celtic culture strikes a chord in me, as my ancestors were from that area.
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I just found your blogs and I want to thank you for all the informative posts on Danish Nobility that you have. I was born in Norway, am now in the USA and am descended from the Galtung Family (Katrina b.1635) in Hordaland.It seems that a great many of my ancestors are of Danish Nobility(Lung,Friis,Bugge,Vendelbo, and Thott).Thanks!
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