Introduction
The pillars of Nature’s temple are alive and
sometimes yield perplexing messages: forests of
symbols between us and the shrine remark our
passage with accustomed eyes.
(Baudelaire 1857)
For south-west Skåne (Scania), the new millennium has seen large-scale
expansion in construction activity. The building of railways, bridges, and
roads, together with the construction of new housing and industrial
estates, has changed the face of the landscape at an increasing speed. In
the area south of Malmö where I spent my childhood, the landscape has
been transformed almost beyond recognition in less than a decade.
Landmarks large and small have changed a once familiar setting into
something new and, for me, alien. My old school, with all its new
buildings, is now spread over the arable fields and the marl pit that used
to be the scene of secret meetings; on the countless vacant plots that were
once the very best playgrounds, luxurious villas have been built; and
what for us was then the “eternally wild” neck of clay called Lernacken
has been transformed into a bridge abutment which once again, in a
physical sense, links Skåne in Sweden with Sjælland in Denmark. The
changeable landscape in my immediate surroundings, and the absence of
familiar monuments and symbols from my childhood, has made me
palpably aware of the significance of the social landscape. Personal
memories are closely connected to the landscape, and well-known places
are linked to bygone events and relations. When these frequently visited
places were transformed, part of my childhood history ceased to exist.
In recent years, archaeological studies of man and his surroundings
have increasingly focused on the idea that the landscape should be
regarded as a social and semantic construction and that its meaning
changes over time and place. It has been noticed that landscapes are
shaped by the work of earlier generations, and the way people perceive
their surroundings is therefore dependent in large measure on the special
conditions prevailing at a certain point of time in a particular area.
Today’s Scanian landscape does not have very much in common with the
landscape that existed just 200 years ago – and even less with what
existed 5,000 years ago. There are few areas today that are not cultivated
or built on; mechanized agriculture has levelled out small bumps in the
terrain, and the majority of the former wetlands have been drained. Not
least important is the dramatic change in the soundscape since the
triumph of industrialism. Few places are not affected by the noises of
modern society. Silence is rare in our world. The accelerating
metamorphosis of the world around us has not just affected our
perception of space; technological development also means that concepts
of time have taken on a different meaning.
1
The intention behind the infrastructure investments of recent decades
has been to improve communications, with a well-functioning network of
roads and railways offering a free choice of types of transport. The
investments in western Skåne, with the West Coast Line, the Outer Ring
around Malmö, and the Öresund Fixed Link, are an important part of the
national and international communication network. Regions are linked
together and the physical distance between people is reduced. The aim is
that we should be able to move as quickly as possible between two
places. At the same time, our perception of the landscape is reduced to
blurred images flashing past us without giving us time to register any
details. We lose the sense of the road, that is, the social and physical
connections between places, which can give us an understanding of the
localization of various phenomena. Distances that in pre-industrial
society could take weeks to cover with the means of transport available
then, can today be travelled in just a few hours. The relationship between
great distance in space and great distance in time is no longer selfevident. This is accentuated even more by the emergence of the IT
society, with information about events on the other side of the globe
reaching us virtually instantaneously. The effects of this globalization are
scarcely possible for us to survey today. In the modern world that
emerged during the nineteenth century there were clear divisions between
different spheres of society, with distinctly demarcated political,
economic and social spheres. This was also the period when the social
sciences were split up. The most distinctive feature of the society of
which we see the contours today is instead the dissolution of boundaries
between countries, cultures, economies, and political systems. In this
respect we may soon be reaching a stage where – perhaps as in
prehistoric times – there is no clear distinction between economic, social,
and religious categories.
Recent years’ interventions in the landscape have simultaneously
given us archaeologists the opportunity to document formerly unknown
parts of our prehistory. The Southern Excavations Department (UV-Syd)
of the National Heritage Board (Riksantikvarieämbetet, RAÄ) was given
the task of managing the excavations in connection with the construction
of the new West Coast Line by the National Rail Administration. In
several cases the railway line was given a completely new course, which
involved a change in the immediate environment for many people in
western Skåne. There was sometimes heated debate about the most
suitable route for the new line. Regard had to be paid not only to cultural
history and the natural environment but also to purely personal interests.
In accordance with the provisions of the Act concerning Ancient
Monuments and Finds, the overall aim is to preserve ancient remains.
Only if they constitute an obstacle or a nuisance that is not in reasonable
proportion to the importance of the remains may they be removed. In
connection with the expansion of the West Coast Line it was considered
necessary to remove the archaeological remains, and excavations were
therefore ordered. I was attached to the project in connection with the
preliminary archaeological inquiries started in autumn 1995, and I was
given responsibility for the part of the line just north and south of
Glumslöv. It was this in this magnificent hummocky landscape that my
2
interest in the relationship between man and his landscape seriously
began. The visible antiquities that set their stamp on this landscape today,
in the form of burial mounds and megalithic tombs, were supplemented
during our investigations with formerly concealed remains of dwelling
sites and special ceremonial places such as the area of hearths north of
Glumslöv (Andersson, M. 1996). Here I gained a glimpse of the link
between different places that must have existed for prehistoric people,
and how, through more or less conscious choices, and based on their
experiences, they organized and divided up the landscape, with each
activity being given its specific place. This impression followed me over
the subsequent years when I had the opportunity to take part in the largescale excavations of various Stone Age sites in the valleys of the Saxån
and Välabäcken. Several of the places covered by our investigations were
unusually well preserved – by comparison with the diffuse remains that
often characterize Stone Age dwelling sites – and of varying character.
Along the planned course of the railway line through the valleys, we
excavated sites that can be said to correspond to different aspects of
Neolithic society, such as settlements, graves, a palisaded enclosure, and
finds in wetland contexts. As a participant in the subproject “Neolithic
Space”, I had the opportunity to conduct a study of the organization of
Early and Middle Neolithic settlement and society in these valleys, based
on the archaeological material from the West Coast Line excavations.
Earlier studies have shown that there is a concentration of megalithic
tombs, Neolithic settlement remains, and wetland deposits in the area
around the valleys of the Saxån and Välabäcken and in the valley to the
south with the rivers Lödde Å and Kävlingeån (Hårdh 1982, 1990b;
Karsten 1994). It therefore felt natural to let the study comprise that
valley as well (fig. 1).
One of the purposes of the investigations should of course have been
to recreate prehistoric settings. The view stated above that man’s
relationship to the changing landscape is specific to each time and place
should make us aware of the difficulty of this task. How people act in
each particular situation depends on the prevailing culture-historical
context. Our way of life and our perception of the west Scanian landscape
thus differ significantly from how people in the Neolithic perceived and
moved in the same area. Just as what is interpreted was once part of a
specific context of meaning, we who make the interpretations are also
shaped by the values of our own times. Although it cannot be regarded as
a deliberate strategy, every interpretation is steered by the underlying
norms that constitute the foundation for our perception of man and
society. The past and the present are mutually related to each other.
Contemporary values steer the questions we ask about the past, our
choice of study object, and the process of interpretation, but the finds we
turn up can in certain cases be used to criticize, challenge, or legitimate
the prevailing conditions, and – of course – stimulate us to formulate new
problems.
What, then, can we say about prehistory? Although we are steered in
our interpretation by our various backgrounds, it is our life experiences as
humans that enables us to understand other people’s life experiences –
even if they happened in prehistoric times. The material remains in the
3
valley landscape of the rivers Saxån-Välabäcken and Lödde ÅKävlingeån exist in time and place in a relationship to other
archaeological remains. Through a study focusing on the local and
specific culture-historical context, where the different mutual
relationships of the remains are made clear, I believe that one can come
closer to an understanding of prehistoric activities. It should be a crucial
advantage that I spent a long time in this landscape in connection with the
excavations and thereby developed a feeling for it. The results that can be
achieved are of course not absolute truth, just interpretations, and it is
therefore important to state one’s premisses. A scholarly interpretation of
the historical and social contexts requires a presentation of the scholar’s
source material and scientific outlook. In this way the interpretation
process can be followed and it can be permitted to put forward alternative
explanations of the same material. This means that there can in fact be
several competing pasts which are dependent on contemporary social and
ideological values. Probably one of the most important tasks of the
humanistic disciplines is to study past cultures and thereby perhaps
contribute to an increased understanding of the distinctive features of our
own culture. The fact that our different backgrounds and varied source
material lead to a large number of suggested interpretations illuminates
the importance of understanding cultural diversity. Several diverging
theories about our prehistory are a confirmation of divergent conceptions
in our own time – and in bygone times. Objective long-term studies of
man and his conceptual world are valuable precisely for the aim of
understanding the different expressions that human activity can take.
Aim and outline
The overall aim of my work is to study the emergence, organization, and
change of the Early and Middle Neolithic societies in the valleys of the
Saxån-Välabäcken and Lödde Å-Kävlingeån in western Skåne. Several
excavations and surveys have shown that the area has extensive remains
of Neolithic activities – in the form of settlements, graves, wetland
deposits, and special assembly places – ranging in time from the earliest
to the latest phase of the Funnel Beaker culture and the Battle Axe
culture. These categories are parts of a greater whole which, taken
together, elucidates the social, economic, and spiritual conceptions of the
local Neolithic communities.
The investigation will be conducted on three different spatial levels:
How did the people organize their activities in the different places?
How were the different categories of place related to each other? Can
man’s perception and use of the landscape be understood through the
function and meaning of the places and through their topographical
location and spatial relations? By studying the arrangements at
different Neolithic places in the investigation area and their
distribution in the landscape, the aim is to understand the form of
social organization. Previous ethnographical research has often drawn
attention to the ordering of spatial patterns in settlement and in the
4
landscape according to rules that reflect the social organization
(Whittle 1996). How and why did spatial perception change over time,
and how can this be related to the organization of society?
What similarities and differences can be discerned in the organization
of settlement and society vis-à-vis other well-investigated Scanian and
Danish areas?
In my study I have been greatly assisted by the work of my colleagues
on the West Coast Line Project “Neolithic Space”. Their results
concerning Neolithic houses, pottery, and votive finds, which have been
published in a special collection of articles (Svensson 2003), have been
important contributions to my conclusions.
A survey of research history with the focus on Skåne and Denmark is
presented in chapter 2. I have considered it important to describe the
background on which Neolithic research rests. Since my own
argumentation is naturally based on previously presented results and
hypotheses about Neolithic social organization, the reader should be
offered the necessary basis on which to follow the reasoning. Here I also
give a closer presentation of the topography and geography of the
investigation area and previous archaeological research on the region. In
chapter 3 there comes an account of the theoretical stances that I advocate
in my endeavour to understand parts of our prehistory. The emphasis is
on people’s relationship to the landscape. A source-critical discussion of
the representativeness of the archaeological material in the investigation
area follows in the next chapter. It should be stressed that the intensity of
investigation varies between different areas. The excavated sites with
material and features that can be dated to the Early and Middle Neolithic
in the investigation area is presented after this discussion. The major part
of the book is chapter 5, in which I present my interpretation of the Early
and Middle Neolithic societies around the Saxån-Välabäcken and Lödde
Å-Kävlingeån on the basis of the archaeological evidence and my basic
stance on theory of science. Since these societies are in no way isolated
units, the region is placed in a broader geographical perspective in
chapter 6. Finally, the threads are tied together and the findings are
summed up.
5
2. History of research
The advance of knowledge is an infinite
progression towards a goal, that for ever recedes.
(Frazer 1890)
A study of Neolithic social organization presupposes insight into the
history of research and a grasp of the various approaches and theories that
have dominated research. The present account of Early and Middle
Neolithic archaeology does not claim to be comprehensive, aiming only
to describe the most important trends – mainly in the Danish and Scanian
sphere. In the different chapters of the book I go into greater depth in
connection with discussions of specific themes.
The great significance of the Funnel Beaker and Battle Axe cultures in
north-west Europe is obvious from their extent in time and place.
Material that can be linked to the Funnel Beaker culture has been found
in large amounts from today’s Netherlands in the west to Poland in the
east, and from southern Scandinavia in the north to Bohemia and Moravia
in the south (Midgley 1992:32). The Battle Axe culture or the Corded
Ware culture are frequently used umbrella terms for the groups with
related features that peopled a very large part of Europe, from its
westernmost areas to the Black Sea region (Malmer 1962). Because of
the large distribution area, the different research fields and interests, and
the varied material, the cultures have rarely been studied as a unit. It is
instead special regions or themes, such as megalithic tombs, pottery, or
flint objects, that have been in focus.
During the Middle Neolithic there were three partly different material
cultures in Skåne. Besides the Funnel Beaker culture and the Battle Axe
culture, there is the Pitted Ware culture. Recent years’ research has
shown that these were presumably partly contemporaneous (Larsson, L.
1989b, 1992a). The Battle Axe culture occurs over virtually the whole of
Skåne, with the centre of gravity in the core areas of the Funnel Beaker
culture (Malmer 1962). The Pitted Ware culture is certainly represented
in north-east Skåne. Whether the north-west Scanian dwelling sites
around Jonstorp should be regarded as belonging to the Pitted Ware
culture, however, is problematic since they show similarities to material
from the Funnel Beaker culture (Carlie 1986). In the investigation area
flint craft showing features of Pitted Ware culture has been found at
Stävie and elsewhere, together with pottery whose closest parallels are
with MNA V/Valby in Denmark, which is traditionally regarded as
belonging to the closing phase of the Funnel Beaker culture (Becker
1955; Davidsen 1978:10; Larsson, L. 1982).
Up to the mid-1970s, Neolithic research was dominated by two
questions: the Neolithization process and Neolithic chronology. These
problems are still being considered, but as a result of new theoretical
approaches in archaeology in recent decades, other questions have also
been raised.
6
Typology and chronology
The earliest Neolithic research aimed, broadly speaking, at ordering the
material, specifying the general features of development, and ascertaining
the relationship between different cultures. Archaeology applied
traditional empirical presentations of material, and the interpretations
were dominated by attempts at objective observations rather than
theoretical aspects. From the end of the nineteenth century onwards,
researchers and museum workers built up increasingly detailed
chronological networks. Evolutionistic links between ancient artefacts
and chronologies were put forward, often with art-historical
argumentation about the chronological development of stylistic groups.
This approach assumed that a style arose and evolved towards perfection,
which was then followed by retardation, after which the style ceased to
exist. Typological series were worked out, in accordance with theories of
stylistic evolution in art history, which was also considered to be
chronological (Petersson 1999).
The scholar who polished the methodology of compiling types and
combinations of objects, Oscar Montelius, also studied megalithic tombs
and arranged them typologically. He divided the Neolithic into four
periods – the pre-dolmen era, the dolmen era, the passage grave era, and
the dagger or stone cist era (Montelius 1905). Sophus Müller was the one
who made the first serious classification of the pottery from megalithic
tombs. He divided Funnel Beaker pottery into nine styles and constructed
a chronology on this basis. By the term “style” he meant a combination of
ornamental techniques, patterns, and vessel forms. Müller’s styles
correspond to special stages in the development of a culture. He saw the
emergence, flourishing, and decline of megalithic culture reflected in the
development of pottery (Müller 1918). Müller’s classification of ceramic
styles was slightly revised by John Elof Forssander in connection with his
publication of the material from the passage grave at Västra Hoby in
western Skåne (Forssander 1936). A number of large settlement sites and
passage graves were excavated from the mid-1920s until the mid-1940s,
resulting in the elaboration of a Middle Neolithic chronology for the
Funnel Beaker culture. The five large Danish settlement sites,
Troldebjerg, Blandebjerg, Trelleborg, Bundsø, and Lindø, were
considered to represent a chronological sequence (Mathiassen 1944).
Therkel Mathiassen believed that his chronology was preferable to the
old system which sought to date the often mixed finds in the megalithic
tombs. In contrast, he thought that the settlement sites were homogeneous
finds from relatively short occupations. The sites are all on the Danish
islands, that is to say, in a relatively limited geographical area.
Mathiassen was not sure whether the system was applicable to the whole
of Denmark (Mathiassen 1944:97). The division of the Middle Neolithic
into five phases on the basis of settlement site pottery is still the
foundation for the chronological system that applies today, although it
has been adjusted on various occasions. Carl Johan Becker argued that
Blandebjerg and Trelleborg should belong to the same phase (Becker
1947). Axel Bagge and Lili Kaelas reached the same conclusion in their
studies of material from Scanian megalithic tombs (Bagge & Kaelas
7
1950). The phases came to be numbered MNI (Troldebjerg), MNII
(Blandebjerg/Trelleborg), MNIII (Bundsø), and MNIV (Lindø). The
Klintebakke style was added to the system by Hakon Berg in 1951. He
thought that the Klintebakke material represented an independent phase
between Troldebjerg and Blandebjerg, calling the period MNIb. Berg
suggested that the Klintebakke style coincided with the construction of
the first passage graves and that the Troldebjerg phase went together with
the earlier mortuary practice of dolmens (Berg 1951:16ff). In 1955
Becker supplemented the system with a fifth phase, MNV (Store Valby)
(Becker 1955). To distinguish the Middle Neolithic cultures, the Funnel
Beaker culture has been given the designation MNA and the Battle Axe
culture MNB (Nielsen, P. O. 1979). This division is not without
problems, however, since material which has traditionally been placed in
MNB also occurs, in certain contexts, in the late Funnel Beaker culture.
In addition, the Pitted Ware culture seems to exist during both the late
MNA and MNB. It is above all the thick-butted flint axes of types A and
B that are found in the same context. Type A has traditionally been
assigned to the late Funnel Beaker culture, while type B seems to belong
to the Battle Axe culture and the Pitted Ware culture (cf. Nielsen, P. O.
1979; Svensson 1986; Larsson, L. 1992a).
At the end of the 1940s there was a change to an approach that was to
last until some time into the 1960s. A detailed study of the material on a
firm empirical basis prevailed. Finer and more detailed typological
classifications of earlier scholars’ division into culture groups were
developed. These were then used to create accurate chronologies.
Archaeologists continued with their comprehensive and careful
presentations of finds placed in their cultural context (Petersson 1999:31).
Becker’s work, which was published in 1947, meant a breach with
categorization on artistic grounds. According to Becker, chronologies
could only be established on the basis of a homogeneous body of material
in which chronological changes could be distinguished. Efforts to build
chronologies through the morphology of the graves were far too crude, in
his opinion, and the flint tools were only suitable for regional division. A
true chronology could only be established through analyses of pottery.
The view that increased stylistic variation was synonymous with
chronological development survived in his division of the Early
Neolithic. With the aid of pots found in bogs, Becker divided the Funnel
Beaker culture into five phases, A–E. The first three phases (A, B, and C)
correspond to the Early Neolithic while D and E represent two phases of
the Middle Neolithic. Settlement sites and graves containing these types
of pottery were also considered so that an all-embracing chronology
could be achieved (Becker 1947).
In the 1970s several works were published in Denmark, chiefly by
Karsten Davidsen and Klaus Ebbesen, which dealt with Middle Neolithic
chronology based on ceramic analyses (Davidsen 1975, 1978; Ebbesen
1975, 1978, 1979). Davidsen based his studies on dwelling site pottery.
He drew up a chronology (1975) for the clay discs of the Funnel Beaker
culture, based on their ornamentation. In a later work (1978) he
concentrated on pottery from the last phase of the Funnel Beaker culture
(MNA V). Ebbesen worked with Middle Neolithic pottery from
8
megalithic tombs. He presented a list of ornamental details in an
endeavour to define styles and develop chronological systems. Both
Davidsen and Ebbesen followed, by and large, Mathiassen’s
chronological schema, and 14C dating was not used to any great extent.
Interest in landscape archaeology grew during the 1970s. One aim was
to gain a broad view of the development of Neolithic society. The new
studies also resulted in the elaboration of several new ceramic
chronologies (Koch 1998). The following decade thus saw changes in
Becker’s Early Neolithic ceramic classification from 1947. This should
be viewed as a revision of the existing classification rather than a new
chronology. Since new studies show that the ceramic material consists of
two types, the Early Neolithic has been divided for the sake of simplicity
into two periods by means of 14C datings: EN I (5100–4800 BP) and EN
II (4800–4650 BP) (Larsson, M. 1988b; Liversage 1992). These have
been divided into several regional groups, mainly through studies of
ceramic decoration on rims. The Oxie group is an east Danish/Scanian
group which is dated to Becker’s period A or EN I. The Svaleklint group
also has an eastern distribution and is compared with Becker’s period B
and EN I. A distinct western spread to Jutland is seen in the Volling
group, which seems to have existed over a fairly long time. This group is
compared with Becker’s periods B and C and thus seems to occur in both
EN I and II. Virum and Fuchsberg are later groups which are placed in
EN II, with Fuchsberg being found chiefly in Jutland, whereas Virum has
a broader distribution (Ebbesen & Mahler 1980; Andersen & Madsen
1978; Madsen & Petersen 1984). Mats Larsson’s studies of the Early
Neolithic in south and south-west Skåne have resulted in the distinction
of four groups here: the Oxie, Svenstorp, Mossby, and Bellevue groups.
The first three are considered partly contemporary and dated to EN I. The
Mossby group is regarded as a south and east Danish local group with
parallels on the island of Bornholm. The Bellevue group is later, placed
in EN II. The Svenstorp group parallels the Svaleklint group in Sjælland.
The Bellevue group is comparable with the Virum group in Sjælland and
the Fuchsberg and Volling groups in Jutland (Larsson, M. 1984, 1992;
Kihlstedt et al. 1997). The new classifications elaborated during the
1980s should possibly be regarded as locally or regionally distinctive
groups which have been named after certain type sites. The view that
style and material culture were expressions of social affiliation meant that
the Early Neolithic became socially diverse. Some of the groups are more
clearly geographically demarcated than others, and some of the styles
lasted longer than others. In the investigation area, however, there are
ceramic styles which can be placed in both the Oxie and the Svenstorp
group on the same sites. Obviously, the two ceramic groups here cannot
be considered to represent different population groups; instead the
differences in ornamentation and vessel forms should perhaps be
attributed to different functions and meanings of the pots (LagergrenOlsson 2003).
The chronological divisions of the Early and the Middle Neolithic
have their defects. They reduce the material at our disposal far too much.
The chronology of the Middle Neolithic Funnel Beaker culture is
inadequately defined. Only its latest phase, MNA V, has been studied
9
thoroughly (Davidsen 1978; Larsson, L. 1982, 1985). The other phases of
the Middle Neolithic have not been subject to any comparable modern
revision. Despite the extensive typological studies in the twentieth
century, then, there are still question marks. The Danish Middle Neolithic
chronology, for example, cannot automatically be transferred to Skåne
(Svensson 1998). It should also be stressed that the dividing line between
the Early and Middle Neolithic is an artificial construction which cuts
through a continuous development in the pottery and other material
culture of the Funnel Beaker culture. The division is based on
Montelius’s early classification of grave forms. In a recent work,
published in 1998, Eva Koch divides the Funnel Beaker culture into four
phases: (1) a short transition period, (2) EN I, (3) EN II–MNA II, and (4)
MNA III–V. Her typology is based on the shape and decoration of pots
found in bogs. It differs in part from previous classifications, for
example, in that the later part of the Early Neolithic is grouped together
with the early part of the Middle Neolithic (Koch 1998).
One of the earlier general works dealing with the Battle Axe culture
was published in 1933 by Forssander. Here he presented the first proper
classification of the Swedish boat axes. Forssander based his studies on
160 Swedish graves, including secondary burials in megalithic tombs
(Forssander 1933). In 1952 Andreas Oldeberg presented a refinement of
Forssander’s classification of battle axes (Oldeberg 1952). The present
chronological division of the Swedish-Norwegian Battle Axe culture is
largely based on Mats Malmer’s works (1962, 1975). His analyses of the
pottery resulted in a division into 14 groups and a total of 29 variants. His
material came from 244 graves in Sweden, Norway, and Bornholm.
Based on the pottery, he divided the culture into six periods. Each of
them begins with the introduction of pottery of types A, B, G, H, J, and C
in Skåne-Blekinge. In a study of the Scanian Battle Axe culture,
Christopher Tilley presents a classification of the pottery in which the
form and decoration of the vessels serve as a foundation for a slightly
different division from Malmer’s. Tilley argues that Malmer’s different
ceramic groups overlap and that it is difficult to draw clear dividing lines
between them. Using above all the position of the decorative elements on
the pots, he claims that only a division into three periods is possible, as
follows: (1) A, B, and D pots; (2) G and H pots; (3) J, K, L, O, and C pots
(Tilley 1982a).
In Denmark the culture is called the Single Grave culture because of
the mortuary practice. Scattered over Jutland, especially in the middle
and western parts of the peninsula, there are hundreds of small barrows
from this period. Müller investigated several of these barrows in the late
nineteenth century. He noted that they contain inhumations and that they
were used over a long period. The oldest burials were found lowest down,
under the original ground level, known as under-graves. The slightly later
graves were placed at a higher level, known as bottom graves. The latest
graves were those placed in the filling of the grave, known as over-graves
(Müller 1898). Later works have shown that there are great regional
differences in Denmark. By dividing the archaeological source material
into four categories of finds – grave finds, settlement site finds,
hoards/votive finds, and unsystematic finds – Ebbesen concludes that
10
three different areas with different traditions crystallized during the early
Single Grave culture: (1) north-east Jutland and the northernmost parts of
the islands where the influence of the Pitted Ware culture made itself felt;
(2) north Jutland, east Jutland, and the islands, where dolmens and
passage graves were used to a large extent during the Single Grave
culture as well, and where flint axes dominate as grave goods; (3) the
classical areas of the Single Grave culture in central and western Jutland,
where low barrows dominate, with battle axes and amber beads as the
most common grave goods (Ebbesen 1986).
The Pitted Ware chronology is largely based on Becker’s works. In
western and southern Sweden the culture has mostly been defined on the
basis of special key artefacts, which include the cylindrical blade core
and blade arrowheads of types A, B, and C. The A-arrowhead has been
considered to belong to the earliest part of the culture, while B and C
belong to the later phases (Becker 1951, 1954, 1980; Malmer 1973).
The organization of society
Explanatory models for the origin of the Funnel Beaker culture and the
introduction of agriculture to southern Sweden were initially dominated
by evolutionist and diffusionist perspectives. An evolutionist attitude was
expressed in discussions concerning matters in the Funnel Beaker culture
and its relation to the earlier Mesolithic cultures. The tendency was to
describe the development from a “lower” (Mesolithic) to a “higher”
(Neolithic) stage.
Few questions in archaeological research have seen such intensive
debate as the problem of Neolithization in southern Scandinavia. Two
fundamentally different opinions dominated the discussion during the
1950s and 1960s. Becker claimed that the farming population were
immigrants from the south. The immigrants who introduced the A-beaker
came from the east while those who brought the B-beaker with them
arrived from the west. The bearers of the C-beaker were divided into a
megalithic and a non-megalithic population group. The immigrants
gradually replaced the Ertebølle population (Becker 1947). Jørgen TroelsSmith argued an opposite view. He believed that Neolithization arose
locally through a change within the Ertebølle culture (Troels-Smith
1954).
Although some large settlement sites were excavated, it was mainly
typological and chronological issued that were discussed. A change in
archaeological research was nevertheless noticeable during the 1970s.
The growing amount of chronological data and cultural complexity
opened the way for new discussions. Under the influence of the “New
Archaeology”, whose supporters claimed that changes in society are
chiefly the result of external influence, questions such as economy,
population pressure, ecological adaptation, site-catchment analysis, and
social organization became relevant. This affected the discussion about
the transitions between the Mesolithic and the Neolithic and about
societal development in the Early and Middle Neolithic.
11
The idea that it was immigrants who introduced agriculture was
relegated to the background. Instead the focus was on changes in the
environment inhabited by the Ertebølle population. Carsten PaludanMøller (1978) believed that increased sedentism in the Ertebølle together
with a plentiful supply of resources led to population growth. Marginal
areas, less rich in resources, were now claimed, which forced an
adaptation to agriculture. Marek Zvelebil and Peter Rowley-Conwy
argued that the introduction of agriculture was the result of changes in
climate (Rowley-Conwy 1983, 1984, 1985; Zvelebil & Rowley-Conwy
1984). In the Late Mesolithic a decrease in the marine salt content is said
to have had a negative effect on marine resources. The consequence was
that the inhabitants were forced to change their subsistence strategies, and
cultivation gradually became the predominant economic activity.
The new interest in economic and to some extent social processes in
the 1970s and 1980 is noticeable in some of the major works dealing with
the pattern of settlement and subsistence in different parts of southern
Scandinavia. Influences were also derived from anthropological studies
of historically known “primitive” societies. Discussions of social
organization have tended to see a development from simpler to more
complex societies (e.g. Service 1958, 1962; Sahlins 1968, 1972). The
theories were applied to prehistoric societies, suggesting that population
growth led to increased specialization and a more complex social
structure.
Two regions in Skåne have been the subject of intensive studies, the
areas around Malmö and Ystad. Mats Larsson (1984) applied sitecatchment analysis to understand changes in the pattern of settlement
during the Early Neolithic in south-west Skåne. The earliest Neolithic
settlements (the Oxie and Svenstorp groups) were small, located on sandy
heights in the hummocky landscape. The ecological variation there meant
that different resources could be used. In the later part of the Early
Neolithic (the Bellevue group), when the population is assumed to have
increased, these areas were abandoned. Settlements became denser and
more permanent, and they were concentrated in areas of till soils around
Malmö. This may have meant that more permanent units arose, with the
megalithic tombs marking territories. The dwelling sites were still
relatively small, however.
The Ystad Project, which was an interdisciplinary venture, sought to
study the cultural landscape in southern Skåne over 6,000 years. The aim
was to investigate the relationship between man and the environment.
The studies conducted in the Ystad area in the 1980s paint a picture that
agrees in large measure with conditions in the Malmö area, with small
dwelling sites located on light, sandy soils. The dwelling sites are of
family size, centred around the fixed institutions of the society – the
megalithic tombs (Larsson, M. 1992; Larsson, L. 1992a). The studies
conducted by the Hagestad Project in south-east Skåne likewise suggest
that settlements, at least in the Early Neolithic, were small (Strömberg
1988a, 1988b, 1988c).
Development during the Middle Neolithic follows on that of the Early
Neolithic, at least up to MNA III, when a structural change in seen in the
12
Malmö area, with a seeming concentration of dwelling sites in a large,
strategically located site in the Hindby area (Svensson 1986, 1993).
The results of studies conducted in various regions of Denmark partly
resemble what has been found in Skåne. In Torsten Madsen’s landscapearchaeological investigations in central Jutland he describes three phases
in the development of the Funnel Beaker culture. The first phase
(Volling) is characterized by small dwelling sites with seasonal hunting
stations. The middle phase (Fuchsberg, MNA I and MNA II) saw the
construction of the megalithic tombs (as territorial markers) and the
enclosed central places. Dwelling sites, which were surrounded by
temporary hunting stations, were slightly larger and more permanent than
in the preceding phase. During this phase there was an increase in
ceramic production, and pottery was an important component of ritual
activities such as offerings at megalithic tombs and central places. The
last phase (MNA III–V) consists of large and permanent dwelling sites
where several different activities – hunting, fishing, cultivation – were
combined (Madsen 1982, 1988). The opinion that the EN II/MNA I
transition was a time of extensive ritual activity agrees with the findings
of Ebbesen (1975). He believes that the large deposits of axes can be
associated with the period when the megalithic tombs were built. The
Middle Neolithic Funnel Beaker society, according to Ebbesen, was
organized in a complex way. There were long-distance trading
connections, with amber, pottery, and copper being important
commodities. The society included specialized groups such as craftsmen
and merchants. In his comprehensive study of Neolithic votive finds in
Skåne, Per Karsten (1994) shows that the period EN II–MNA II was
characterized by a higher frequency of votive deposits than the preceding
period and the subsequent period. One explanation for the noticeable
growth in votive finds could of course be a change in votive practices.
The objects selected for sacrifice in other periods may have been of
material which has not been preserved in the same way as flint. The
votive finds from MNB are essentially a repetition of the votive practice
of EN II–MNA II and thus seem to be based on similar beliefs (Karsten
1994). In the material from the islands south of Fyn, Jørgen Skaarup sees
a distinct difference between EN and MN. The Early Neolithic is
characterized by small dwelling sites. At the end of this period the
megalithic tombs were built as territorial markers. At the transition to the
Middle Neolithic the number of dwelling sites increases and they also
become bigger. There are no longer any hunting stations. Fishing and
hunting expeditions proceeded from the big dwelling sites. The hunting
stations, however, return during MNA V (Skaarup 1985). Nils H.
Andersen’s excavations in the area around Sarup in south-west Fyn have
shown a similar pattern. Several small settlements at the end of the Early
Neolithic and the start of the Middle Neolithic seem to have been
concentrated into a larger settlement on the Sarup peninsula in MNA II–
IV. During MNA V there seem once again to be more settlements with
specialized activities together with larger base settlements (Andersen
1997:116ff).
There have been few attempts to understand the internal organization
of sites. Research has mainly been geared to describing the distribution of
13
settlements in the landscape as elements of an overall economic system.
One of few exceptions is Mac Svensson’s study (1986) of the settlement
at Hindby, where he can see in the material a division of the site into two
parts.
In the problematization of how Neolithic society was organized,
several scholars have taken the megalithic tombs as their starting point.
Through the influence of New Archaeology and the processual tradition,
general patterns and functional explanations prevailed for a long time.
This made itself felt particularly in studies of the megalithic tombs, which
were considered to reflect a special society. The interpretations put
forward have mostly been connected with models of territory, power, and
control of social relations (e.g. Fleming 1973; Renfrew 1973, 1976;
Randsborg 1975; Hårdh 1982; Larsson, M. 1988b). Klavs Randsborg
(1975) related the graves to population pressure. He believed that the
areas where megalithic tombs occurred had a larger population, while the
flat-earth grave was the predominant form of grave in more sparsely
populated parts. The difference in mortuary practice was due to social
relations and indicated a non-egalitarian society. Andrew Fleming (1973)
argued that the grave had the function of confirming the leader’s status in
the following ways: (1) the grave was a forum for ceremonies
emphasizing the social position of a leader; (2) the grave marked a
territory; (3) the grave had a position as an impressive monument. Colin
Renfrew (1973, 1976) believed that the megalithic tombs, which were an
expression of territorial consciousness, were built in a segmented and
egalitarian society. This society was characterized by small groups
consisting of not more than a few hundred people. The groups were of
roughly the same size, and no group had supremacy over any other. They
were not subordinate to any larger central power, instead functioning as
independent economic and political units. In small-scale societies,
belonging to a group is defined by kinship, which can nevertheless
indicate a clear territorial behaviour. The spread of megalithic tombs as
territorial markers, according to Renfrew, can be explained by social
stress provoked by population growth.
The interpretations described above are valuable, but through the
concentration on describing settlement site patterns and social conditions,
scholars have sometimes overlooked the symbolic and ideological aspects
of society. In the 1980s and 1990s, through the influence of the
postprocessual school, there was a noticeable tendency to an increased
interest in more ideological and critical social angles and a toning down
of scientific problems. Archaeologists used a contextual approach to try
to study all parts of the society in order to understand its structure and
organization. Ian Hodder (1990) tried to integrate and elucidate both the
practical and the symbolic function of the society in a new way. He
argued that there was cultural continuity over a large area and for a longer
time when the first Neolithic monuments were erected. Rather than being
the result of diffusion, this is due to the principles behind the construction
of houses, graves, and central places. Economic transformations are
connected with, or preceded by, a social and symbolic change. For
hunter-gatherers the home was a secure point in life. The home (domus)
was the safe world in relation to the untamed and wild nature (agrios).
14
The idea of the safe domus led to a desire to tame the wild agrios. The
structural preconditions thus existed for domesticating and farming the
soil. The surplus production thereby generated meant that larger units
were formed, which meant that more labour- and time-consuming
projects could be implemented. The control of the wild (agrios) led to
control of the relationship between individuals in society, and certain
dominant interest groups were favoured. To be able to maintain the
symbolic power of the domus principle required more communal projects
to be undertaken (Hodder 1990).
In a survey concerning the Early and the Middle Neolithic in southern
Scandinavia, Christopher Tilley applies a post-processual approach. He
makes no distinction between the functional on one hand and the
symbolic and stylistic on the other hand. Animals and cereals are not
primarily food and secondarily of symbolic meaning; they are both
simultaneously. He supports those who believe that cultivation originated
in social and ideological considerations (cf. Jennbert 1984a; Thomas
1991), with grain and domesticated animals being used for ritual
ceremonies. A system of ownership emerged whereby grain and cattle
were produced and exchanged. This led to greater competition between
groups and the growth of social differentiation. Monuments, pottery, and
axes were intimately associated in these strategies between rival groups.
They were not just purposeful objects, but components in a symbolic
system with a meaning beyond their functional value (Tilley 1996). In his
dissertation Pär Nordquist deals with the problem of power structures and
the emergence of social inequality from the perspective of historical
materialism. He says that the earliest phase of the Early Neolithic in
southern Sweden was characterized by a low degree of social integration,
as is evident from the limited deposition of offerings and the absence of
monumental graves. The coming of single farms may to a certain extent
have meant the origin of private property. Some households achieved
greater success in their economic production, which may have been
associated with their being particularly favoured in the sacral sphere. A
hereditary élite therefore grew up gradually, institutionalizing and
marking its power visually through megalithic tombs. Nordquist further
claims that the strategy of the social élite, to achieve a higher degree of
real integration and economic control by their ideologically manifest
megaliths, was partially unsuccessful in Skåne. The system of single
farms during the Funnel Beaker culture shows, in his opinion, that an
ideology of the autonomy of the household seems to have continued to be
reproduced in the course of the megalithic phase. This structural and
ideological opposition, finally, led to the dissolution of the Funnel Beaker
culture and the rise of the Battle Axe culture with its social system geared
to prestige and competition without hereditary ranking (Nordquist 2001).
Nordquist’s reasoning falters slightly, since he ignores that, during MNA
III in Skåne, there seem to have been larger settlements where several
farm units may very well have coexisted, as at the Hindby site in Malmö
and the Dagstorp settlement in the Välabäcken valley.
A controversial topic in south Scandinavian Neolithic archaeology is
the relationship between the three material cultures: the Funnel Beaker
culture, the Battle Axe culture, and the Pitted Ware culture. These
15
relations have been interpreted in both chronological and economic
and/or social terms. The earliest research was dominated by diffusionist
interpretations concerning the origin of the Battle Axe culture. The new
elements in Middle Neolithic material culture were explained as being
solely a consequence of immigrations (e.g. Müller 1898; Almgren 1914,
1919; Rydbeck 1930; Forssander 1933; Glob 1944). Linguistic
hypotheses formed a basis for theories about the expansion of the IndoEuropean peoples gradually penetrating southern Scandinavia. The new
population was thought to have lived side by side with the old Funnel
Beaker culture until the two populations gradually blended. 14C datings
have shown, however, that the Battle Axe culture more likely followed
the Funnel Beaker culture, perhaps with a brief period of coexistence
(Tauber 1986).
The few and small dwelling sites have sometimes been interpreted as
showing that the Battle Axe population consisted of nomadic herders.
Malmer, however, says that the Battle Axe culture in Skåne had the same
relationship to the good soils as the Funnel Beaker culture and believes
that this indicates similar economic strategies. He claims that the rise of
the Battle Axe culture should rather be viewed as changes in socioeconomic organization rather than in ethnic terms (Malmer 1962, 1975).
In recent years, studies of distribution maps have changed the picture for
southern Skåne slightly. 14C datings indicate that the Funnel Beaker
culture existed parallel to the earliest phase of the Battle Axe culture.
Lars Larsson (1989b) sees the spread of the Battle Axe culture in the
form of a missionary movement representing a new ideology with
powerful religious overtones. He argues that the supporters of the Battle
Axe culture were initially forced to occupy marginal areas and later
expanded into the core areas of the Funnel Beaker culture. The
immigration hypothesis was raised once again at the start of the 1990s by
Kristian Kristiansen (1991). His argument in favour of migration was
based in part on the claim that it was a seemingly “fully developed”
Battle Axe culture that appeared in southern Scandinavia, and that there
are no clear indications of contacts between Battle Axe and Funnel
Beaker populations in Denmark.
Of the Middle Neolithic cultures, the Pitted Ware culture has been
most difficult to describe and define since the source material varies
greatly between different regions. This is above all reflected in the forms
of artefacts and the ceramic tradition, but the environmental and hence
the ecological conditions differ between the different regions where the
culture is represented (Carlie 1986). Research into the Pitted Ware culture
has mainly been concerned with its origin and relation to the
contemporary Middle Neolithic cultures. Since the Pitted Ware material
differs so much between different parts of Scandinavia, it is doubtful
whether the Pitted Ware culture should really be regarded as a unit over
the large area in which it occurs. Perceptions of how the varied material
should be interpreted have also diverged. One theory has claimed that the
Pitted Ware people are groups who stuck to the Mesolithic way of life.
They carried on the traditions of Ertebølle, Nøstvedt, and Fosna and
developed them into a common Pitted Ware culture but with regional
differences (Malmer 1969). Others have asserted that the origin of the
16
Pitted Ware culture in southern Sweden may have taken place
simultaneously with a general deterioration in the climate during the
Middle Neolithic. This had consequences for the Funnel Beaker
populations, who had hitherto based their economy on simple agriculture.
As a result of the fall in temperature, they were forced increasingly to
switch to a hunting economy. This explains why blade arrowheads are
not uncommon as finds on Funnel Beaker sites. From this point of view,
Pitted Ware sites should be regarded as the hunting stations of the Funnel
Beaker culture (Nielsen, S. 1979). In the same way, some scholars think
that the Pitted Ware settlements are the hunting stations of the Battle Axe
culture. Similarities between the two material cultures, above all the
pottery, have been highlighted. In addition, the blade arrowhead also
occurs in the Battle Axe culture (Malmros 1980). Bozena Werbart, on the
other hand, has demonstrated similarities with the eastern Combed Ware
culture (Werbart 1999). As a consequence of the great variation shown by
the Pitted Ware culture over large geographical areas, several scholars
have also suggested that one should define a number of local groups
(Bagge & Kjellmark 1939; Bagge 1951; Welinder 1973; Wyszomirska
1975; Nielsen, S. 1979; Edenmo et al. 1997). Stig Welinder would see the
different types of Pitted Ware sites as an adaptation to the differing
resources of the regions. He questions whether they should be regarded as
a common culture when the only real similarity is that they have an
economy based on hunting and fishing (Welinder 1973).
The investigation area
Defining an archaeological region is always arbitrary, mostly proceeding
from purely geographical factors. Since cultural phenomena operate
within spatial areas whose size varies through time, these “phenomena”
cannot be simply placed in a special unit or region. The Early and Middle
Neolithic remains in the two valleys, the Saxån-Välabäcken and Lödde
Å-Kävlingeån, represent just a small geographical area within the
northern European complex of the Funnel Beaker and Battle Axe
cultures.
The distribution of settlements, votive sites, and megalithic tombs
nevertheless suggests that the valley landscape of western Skåne can be
regarded as a Neolithic region which is appropriate for study. A
frequently used distribution map shows five areas of megalithic tombs in
Skåne (fig. 2) (Strömberg 1980; Tilley 1999a), as follows:
1. The valley landscape around the Saxån-Välabäcken and Lödde ÅKävlingeån;
2. The Råån valley just south of Helsingborg;
3. The Segeån valley outside Malmö;
4. The Österlen area;
5. The lake system around Hammarsjön and Ivösjön with the Vramsån in
north-east Skåne.
17
Through archival studies, the second survey, in the years 1985–87, has
supplemented this picture of distribution with data on removed
megalithic tombs and shown that they were spread along virtually the
whole coastal region (Holmgren & Tronde 1990; Sandén 1995). Clear
concentrations are noticeable, however, in the five areas stated above.
The accumulated votive sites likewise display a geographical distribution
concentrated in the coastal zone with its areas of megalithic tombs, with
only a few examples in the interior (Karsten 1994). The survey of ancient
monuments, together with the excavations of recent decades, has
demonstrated that the area around the Saxån-Välabäcken and Lödde ÅKävlingeån moreover contains a large number of Neolithic sites besides
the megalithic tombs and votive finds.
Archaeological distribution maps, however, always involve problems
of source criticism. The areas most thoroughly affected today by
agriculture and housing have the largest number of remains of settlements
and votive finds. It is naturally within these areas that most
archaeological excavations have been conducted in connection with
building, and it is here that most stray finds have been discovered during
work with the earth. The absence of remains in the inland is thus in large
measure due to the shortage of archaeological excavations in combination
with the museums’ scant interest, from the 1930s onwards, in these
inland areas. On the other hand, today’s distribution of megalithic tombs
in Skåne is regarded as giving a representative picture of the prehistoric
situation. Since development has been heaviest in the coastal regions, the
absence of megalithic tombs in the inland is probably not due to their
having been ploughed away.
Although archaeological distribution maps naturally are not always a
complete reflection of prehistoric conditions, it cannot be denied that they
are at least a partial reflection of the prehistoric situation.
Topography
The geographical area included in my study comprises 29 parishes with a
total area of about 320 km². It is bounded on the west by the Öresund
strait, and the area then follows the system of ridges just over 20
kilometres inland to the east, towards the small towns of Marieholm and
Igelösa. In north–south direction the area extends almost 20 kilometres,
from Teckomatorp in the north to Flädie in the south (fig. 1).
Virtually all parts of the landscape of western Skåne today are either
cultivated or built on. Human action has thus reshaped nature. The
expansion of agriculture in recent centuries, for example, has levelled the
ground and removed small irregularities from the terrain. It is thus not
possible to undertake a full reconstruction of the prehistoric landscape of
the valleys. Although palaeobotanical studies allow a partial
reconstruction of vegetation, we cannot know exactly where trees and
bushes stood in relation to the dwelling site. On the other hand, the rough
outlines, such as cliffs, heights, valleys, and watercourses, are the same.
The powerful processes of the ice sheet have shaped the topography.
The area, which is gently undulating, is broken up by only three major
rises. In the north, between the Saxån and Välabäcken in Dagstorp parish,
18
a section of elevated landscape extends from south-west to north-east,
reaching a height of up to 65 m a.s.l. South of the Välabäcken are the
hills of Karaby Backar, whose highest point is 50 m a.s.l. In the southwest of the investigation area, in Barsebäck parish, a hill rises steeply in
the otherwise flat coastal landscape, reaching a height of 25 m a.s.l. The
region can be described as framed by the areas of higher terrain to the far
north-east and south-east (fig. 3).
In topographical terms the landscape is dominated by the valleys of
the Saxån and Lödde Å-Kävlingeån. Between these larger rivers is a
stream called the Välabäcken, which flows into the Saxån in its broad
valley at Dösjebro. The course of the rivers has varied through the ages,
and nutrient-rich alluvial deposits have grown at its banks. The
Välabäcken today is a stream measuring one or two metres across in a
valley that is 200–300 metres wide. The Välabäcken valley is at a
relatively high altitude in its eastern part, 25–30 m a.s.l., while it is about
10 m a.s.l. where it flows into the Saxån, which then falls evenly down
towards the Öresund coast in the west. The Lödde Å-Kävlingeån runs
east–west through the investigation area. The river is on average about 50
metres wide and the valley is roughly a kilometre wide. The valleys of
the Välabäcken and Kävlingeån are linked by the broad, flat Dösjebro
valley, which used to be a large, continuous area of wetland. Centrally
located between the Kävlingeån and Välabäcken is a large plain which
gives way in the west to Karaby Backar and is demarcated to the east by
the Dösjebro valley. At Västra Hoby, just east of Kävlinge, there is a
valley extending to the south, marking the course of a large river. Today
only a small stream runs through the valley. After a kilometre or so, the
valley swings towards the west-south-west and once again joins the
Kävlingeån at Furulund (figs. 1 and 3).
Wetlands and watercourses had a much larger extent in prehistoric
times than in today’s modern cultural landscape. The reconnaissance map
of Skåne, which was drawn in 1812–1820 by the military field survey
brigade with the aim of charting the terrain, probably gives a truer picture
of the relations between firm ground and wetland during the Neolithic
than the well-drained, fully tilled landscape that is Skåne today (fig. 4).
This map shows that, in the last 200 years, almost 90% of all lakes,
watercourses, and wetlands have been drained dry (Wolf 1956). We see
from the map that extensive areas within the region were formerly
wetlands. Studies in the area have shown that the sea level was two to
three metres higher at the start of the Early Neolithic than it is today. At
the end of the period the level rose further, and at the transition to the
Middle Neolithic it reached a transgression maximum of almost five
metres over today’s level (Regnell, M., pers.com.).
Soils
The investigation area is a mosaic of different soil types. Generally
speaking, it may be observed that the land on the coastal strip mainly
consists of sand or glaciofluvial sand, while the heavy clay soils tend to
be further inland. The sandy soils, however, form wedges extending
inland (fig. 5).
19
Vegetation
Reconstructions of vegetation in the area are mainly based on pollen
diagrams from the bog of Barsebäck Mosse (Digerfeldt 1975). The results
there agree in large measure with analyses performed in other parts of
Skåne. The general picture is that the proportion of elm pollen decreases
at the start of the Subboreal. At the same time or slightly later, a tendency
is observed for other stands of deciduous woods, such as oak, ash, and
lime, to decline in favour of grass pollen. Many explanations have been
suggested for the elm decline. Several scholars think that the most likely
cause is changes in climate (Nilsson 1948; Iversen 1949; Göransson
1988; Whittle 1988). Others believe that the reduction in the stock of elm
was due to human activity. The people in the farming communities
supposedly cut off twigs and branches from elm trees to use the foliage as
cattle fodder. This prevented the elms from flowering and producing
pollen (Troels-Smith 1960). The most reasonable explanation, however,
should be sought in elm disease. The chief support for this theory is that
the elm decline took place at roughly the same time over a large
geographical area. The increase in cereals and grass pollen can probably
be attributed to human impact on the environment, which began in the
Late Mesolithic (Friman 1996). In the final phase of the Early Neolithic
and the start of the Middle Neolithic, the proportion of forest pollen in the
diagrams increases once again; this is known as the regeneration phase
(Berglund 1969, 1999). This need not necessarily reflect a reduction in
the intensity of the agrarian economy; it could instead be the result of
coppice woods growing up in the wake of forest clearance. Coppice
woods are a type of vegetation that is suitable for animal husbandry, both
as pasture and for harvesting foliage as fodder (Göransson 1996). In the
latter part of the Middle Neolithic, the pollen diagrams once again
suggest that larger areas than before were transformed into cultural
landscape (Welinder 1998).
History of research in the investigation area
A survey of previous research shows that the areas around the SaxånVälabäcken and Lödde Å-Kävlingeån have seen several archaeological
investigations. Knowledge of Neolithic settlement and its development
here is still limited, however. There has been no synthesis of the region’s
Neolithic society comprising all the categories of remains, of the kind
performed for the areas around Malmö, Ystad, and Hagestad in the southwest and south-east parts of the province (e.g. Strömberg 1971, 1988a,
1988b, 1988c, 1990; Larsson, M. 1984, 1985, 1992; Larsson, L. 1985,
1992a, 1998; Svensson 1986, 1991). One reason for this could be that
these valleys have not previously seen anything comparable to the largescale rescue excavations conducted by Malmö Museums within their
region in the last few decades. The results in south-west Skåne have since
proved useful in research (Larsson, M. 1984, 1985). Nor has the area
been the subject of any large interdisciplinary research projects like the
Ystad Project which began at the start of the 1980s (Larsson, L. 1992a) or
the Hagestad Project, which began back in the 1960s (Strömberg 1990).
The work that has been done in the valleys of western Skåne has
20
therefore been mainly geared to individual categories of remains; as a
result there has never been any attempt at an all-round perspective.
Several of the megalithic tombs in the area have undergone excavation
on various scales (Hansen 1919a, 1919b, 1923, 1926, 1930, 1931, 1932;
Forssander 1930, 1936, 1937; Petré & Salomonsson 1967; Hårdh 1982,
1990a, 1990b). In some cases the amount of ceramic material from the
excavated megalithic tombs is extensive. In the passage grave at Västra
Hoby an estimated 50,000 potsherds were documented, and 30,000
sherds at Hög (Hansen 1932; Forssander 1936; Petré & Salomonsson
1967). It is the megalithic tombs and the material retrieved from them
that have been the main focus of archaeological research in the area.
In the 1930s Forssander, as we have already seen, used the ceramic
material at Västra Hoby to set up a typological sequence. He used the
sherds found in the layers in front of the passage grave, where he was
able to distinguish a horizontal stratigraphy. He thought that the layers
with pottery could be the result of repeated clearances of the chamber.
Based on this material, he discerned four different styles which combined
several of Müller’s previously defined ceramic styles. In the layer closest
to the grave he observed earlier pottery with line and whipped cord
decoration, while the later pottery, in the outer part of the area, was
dominated by tooth-stamped decoration (Forssander 1936).
Based on the megalithic tombs, Birgitta Hårdh has studied the
organization of society in the Middle Neolithic in the Lödde ÅKävlingeån and Saxån-Välabäcken region. To ascertain contacts within
the area and contacts with other regions in Skåne, she investigated the
extensive corpus of pottery from excavations of megalithic tombs. Hårdh
believes that the relatively free choice of patterns on the pottery, despite a
certain fundamental norm, indicates that there was no central pottery
manufacture; instead, production was locally based. The pottery
deposited at the graves shows that they were used over a long time and
that they served as a place of assembly for a small area. An examination
of the size of the territories around each grave and a study of the natural
environment provide the background to the pattern of contacts that can be
discerned in the pottery. By dividing the area into territories, she shows
that the megalithic tombs are evenly spread and the hypothetical
territories were of roughly equal size. A site-catchment analysis
demonstrates that the graves were related to a resource landscape along
watercourses and on soils suitable for “primitive” agriculture. Hårdh
thinks that the graves as territorial markers must have been fully visible
from the settlement and the resource area that they were set up to mark
(Hårdh 1982, 1986, 1990a, 1990b). It is above all, in accordance with the
theoretical perspective of the time, a physical and economic landscape
that is used and stressed in the study, without any specific social and
ideological functions.
Within the investigation area, a number of Neolithic settlements have
been excavated (see chapter 4). In most cases these have been rescue
excavations, conducted under the auspices of the National Heritage
Board’s Southern Excavations Department, resulting in technical reports.
The discussion has rarely been continued with specially focused
questions. Up until the start of the 1990s, the basic tasks of a rescue
21
excavation were primarily defined as documentation and fact collection.
It was not until the second half of the decade that the excavating
institutions formulated a clear strategy both for the production of
knowledge and for making this knowledge visible (Säfvestad & Ersgård
1999). Moreover, settlement site excavations in Skåne in the 1970s and
1980s, in some cases with large areas stripped by machine, were above
all geared to studies of the more distinct remains of earlier periods. In
most excavations, the often diffuse occupation layers and features that
usually characterize Stone Age settlement were ignored or given low
priority.
One of the exceptions, however, is the material from the Löddesborg
site on the coast of the Öresund. Based on the material from here,
Kristina Jennbert discusses in her dissertation questions about the origin
of agriculture and animal husbandry. She sees on the site a continuous
transition from the Ertebølle culture to the Early Neolithic Funnel Beaker
culture. She considers the produce of agriculture and animal husbandry to
have been luxury commodities, the real significance of which was in the
social rather than the economic sphere. The population on the Öresund
coast lived in favourable ecological circumstances and probably had no
economic need to change their mode of production. Instead, cereals and
livestock were important constituents in the exchange of goods and thus
in the maintenance of contacts between groups (Jennbert 1984a, 1999).
The frequency and distribution of votive sites in the region, several of
which were used repeatedly over a very long time, have been surveyed by
Karsten in his study of Scanian Neolithic votive finds. The results show a
striking concentration of votive sites in the landscape around Lödde ÅKävlingeån and Saxån-Välabäcken (Karsten 1994).
22
3. Space, time, and social interaction
Every condition promulges not only itself,
It promulges what grows after and out of itself
(Whitman 1855)
A society contains a number of different fields of knowledge – everything
from tool production and ceramic craft to familiarity with legends and
origin myths. Despite this, in studies of prehistoric societies, as the above
survey of research has shown, it is usually the individual phenomenon,
such as parts of the material culture, the settlements, or the graves that
have been studied. Since the Neolithic in much of north-west Europe is
associated with the construction of large monuments in the form of
megalithic tombs, research in many places has focused on this
phenomenon. In actual fact, however, grave monuments are just one
aspect of society. In the Neolithic landscape there were many places with
differing meanings and functions – settlements, graves, votive sites, and
places of assembly – each of which represents a part of social life, but
which together give a more complete picture of people’s daily, seasonal,
and annual activities. The places are closely linked and cannot be
separated without losing the whole. Burials are best understood through
their contextual relationship to contemporary settlements and votive sites.
I therefore believe that it is difficult to obtain any idea of the organization
of society solely by examining a part of a culture. In the present work I
try to maintain a holistic perspective by dealing with categories of Early
and Middle Neolithic places from both synchronic and diachronic
perspectives. The places are parts of a system that acquires its meaning
through mutual relationships in a social and historical perspective.
Conditions in the valleys of the Saxån-Välabäcken and Lödde ÅKävlingeån are favourable in the sense that there is continuity in the area
from the earliest Funnel Beaker culture into the Battle Axe culture, with
the various components of Neolithic society – settlement, graves, votive
sites, and places of assembly – represented in the archaeological material.
I believe that these categories make up parts of a whole which together
reveals the society’s social, economic, and spiritual composition. The
study consequently deals with the Early and the Middle Neolithic within
a limited geographical zone during a period of time comprising about
1,500 years.
The two valleys and the surrounding area were thus used intensively in
the Neolithic. The adoption of agriculture did not mean that people lived
a stationary life in one place throughout the year. Neither houses,
cultivation, nor animal husbandry tied people to just one place. Hunting,
fishing, and collection were probably significant in varying degrees
throughout the Neolithic and required movement in the landscape. In
addition, other special ritual or social activities were performed in places
which were not always attached to the actual settlement. The remains in
the landscape should be regarded as the traces of different activities of
23
differing intensity, meaning, and duration. These different traces in
different places in the landscape may be regarded as signs to be brought
together and read by archaeologists in order to give meaning to
prehistory. How these signs are to be interpreted depends in large
measure on the view of the landscape within the prevailing social
organization. The form of the settlement is associated with the character
of the landscape with its special natural formations – watercourses,
valleys, heights, rocks, and vegetation.
I intend to consider three aspects in my study: space, time, and social
interaction. Neither time nor space are regarded in this study as passive
objects; they are profoundly involved in the shaping of social behaviour.
Landscape
The relation between man and the surrounding landscape has for a long
time interested archaeologists and anthropologists. Research has usually
focused on the ecological conditions, and the changing vegetation, fauna,
and climate of the landscape has been reconstructed in this way. These
parameters have then been related to demography, technology, and
territoriality in the prehistoric society. This view has meant an
understanding of how the external circumstances have affected people
and the organization of society. Actions and activities were, however,
conceptually and physically separated from the landscape, which was
considered to be universal, with a cross-cultural influence on individuals
and society. The advantage of this method is the possibility to make
comparative studies of artefacts, settlement sites, and so on, and to study
the flow of information between different regions. Everything can be
systematized in maps; distances can be measured and expressed
according to the same quantitative scale. It may be questioned, however,
whether it is relevant to separate different categories of studies such as
“economic archaeology” or “environmental archaeology” since the
understanding of why a society applies a special mode of production
cannot solely be read out of the osteological or palaeobotanical material.
Ecological factors are just one explanation of why a group of people
chose to set up a dwelling site or a monument in a particular place. How
people reacted to environmental circumstances and the form in which
they chose to arrange their lives in accordance with these depended on
more or less conscious social and cultural choices. It is in fact also
necessary to understand the inner dynamics of a society (Hodder 1982,
1986; Thomas 1999b). Ecological conditions are significant in the
analysis, but our knowledge of human capacity shows that this influence,
both during the Neolithic and in later periods, should not be
overestimated. In the past few decades, other perspectives than the purely
functional and adaptive aspects of human relations to the landscape have
been considered (e.g. Bradley 1993, 1998, 2000; Ingold 1993; Tilley
1994; Nash 1997; Cooney 1999, 2000).
In an alternative outlook, the landscape is regarded as a medium for
action. Rather than being a background to human activity, the landscape
has a special meaning in every specific culture-historical context and
24
hence also a dynamic, meaning-bearing role in interaction with the people
who live in it. Alongside – and as part of – the ecological conditions, the
landscape is filled with social memories and meanings created by the
actions of former generations. I therefore support the idea that the
landscape should be defined on the basis of how it is perceived by those
who live in it. The meaning of the landscape thus depends on those who
perceive and experience it, but the landscape is not substantial in itself,
instead acquiring its meaning in the relations created between people and
places. Cultural and personal identity are associated with different places
which can be monuments, meeting places, camps, settlements, or special
natural formations. However, people did not just move within settlements
or at monuments; they occupied areas which acquired integrity, structure,
and symbolic meaning (Hodder 1982; Tilley 1994). It is through the
relationship of places to each other that I believe that separate “landscape
spaces” existed in people’s consciousness. Knowledge of geography
starts with places, and other places are reached through space, and in this
way – through human movement – landscape spaces are created. The area
that is relevant for a group of people is therefore much larger than the site
and what is archaeologically observable. The focus of studies should
therefore not be confined to what happened at individual places, but also
consider events within a larger space. In the valley landscapes of the
Saxån-Välabäcken and Lödde Å-Kävlingeån we find a concentration of
Neolithic settlements, megalithic tombs, votive sites, and places of
assembly in relation to surrounding regions. These places with different
meanings are associated with each other. To understand the social
construction of the landscape, the distribution of the settlements must be
related to the megalithic tombs and votive sites, and in this way I believe
that different Early and Middle Neolithic landscape spaces can be
discerned. The landscape spaces are socially constructed and culturally
conditioned, and it is important to be aware that their mental and physical
distribution and demarcation are vague and can vary over time.
In the Western world there is a special, historically constituted way of
perceiving the world around us, and this impairs our understanding of
how prehistoric people perceived their surroundings (Bender 1999). Since
the same physical landscape can be perceived in different ways by
different people, we cannot hope to view the landscape in the same way
as prehistoric people did. On the other hand, we can reconstruct an image
of the elements that made up a special landscape and then try to
understand what the elements meant to the people who inhabited this
landscape (Cooney 1999; Layton & Ucko 1999).
Even though the most important source for understanding a prehistoric
society must be the remains of the material culture, this is not always
sufficient. Correlations between material culture and human behaviour
hint at what happened, but it is difficult to understand the causal
connections. Explanations of human reactions to challenges from the
environment, to pressures exerted by neighbouring peoples and tensions
within the community must be partly sought in what the archaeologist
knows about human logic and human decision making. Ethnographic
comparisons of various kinds can thus be very rewarding (Dodgshon
1987). Although one cannot make direct comparisons and transfers
25
between different objects of study, one can use ethnographical parallels to
obtain new approaches to handling different questions and knowing what
one ought to look for in the archaeological evidence. A large number of
ethnographical studies of “small-scale” societies, both hunter-gatherers
and farmers, have shown the mutual relationship between myths, rituals,
and the landscape. Categories which they use to describe their
surroundings often reflect symbolic codes or beliefs (Descola 1994;
Hviding 1996; Darvill 1997). The landscape is regarded as a room or a
framework, which many small-scale societies divide into different zones
such as dark–light, pure–impure, back–front. This clearly illustrates that
the landscape is socially produced and different groups, individuals, and
societies perceive the landscape in different ways (Tuan 1979; Ingold
1993; Tilley 1994).
The idea that the landscape is not “neutral” but instead ideologically
constructed is therefore significant for an understanding of the social
organization and structural changes of prehistoric societies.
Long-term perspectives
From this standpoint, I believe that the long-term perspective is another
important component to consider. Neither the geographical region nor the
people who live there should be regarded as stable units. The landscape
should not be viewed as an object; it is a living process in that places,
regions, and identities are products of people operating within a network
of power relations and exchange of knowledge, which in turn are
historically constituted (Ingold 1993). Culture and cultural identity are
both the result of this process and the medium through which it is passed
on. An area of land has a long development, with many successive
episodes leaving their traces. Earlier human activities are represented in
the landscape in that different places – natural formations or artificial
structures – are well-known and recall bygone events. The places and
landscape places are inherited in the social and individual memory. In
small-scale societies, geographical knowledge is based on the
accumulated observations of generations. They constitute norms which
guide people in the annual use of all the parts of the landscape (Allison
1999).
An illustrative example can be cited from the Aborigines in Australia,
for whom land use and personal identity are closely associated with the
landscape. As regards people’s perception of the landscape in the
Barunga region of Northern Australia, Claire Smith writes:
“The socialised landscapes of the present have their genesis in the
dreaming, the creation era during which ancestral beings travelled
throughout the land, creating its topographic features through their
actions. Thus, every facet of the landscape became imbued with
ancestral associations…
In the Barunga region, social identity is constructed and
reconstructed in relationship to place and ancestral associations,
as people live in and move through their landscapes. An integral
26
part of the process of growing up is that of each community
member learning their unique complex of relationships to place. As
people move through their lands, not only do they learn about
relationships between place and their ancestors, they also learn
about themselves and their particular rights and responsibilities in
this land-based scheme of existence. As Rowley (1986:86) points
out, the separation of land, kinship, inheritance and religion in
Australian Aboriginal societies is simply a western intellectual
exercise. Moreover, this sense of being bound to land is a major
force behind the mobility of the Barunga population.” (Smith
1999:193)
The historical landscape must therefore be read, interpreted, and
perceived not just in terms of different patterns in space but also in the
form of the temporal perspective. What links goal-directed human
behaviour is not just the presence of special natural conditions but the
existing network of cultural traditions and social memories which
together make up the context within which people act (Thomas 1996,
1999a). The landscape is thus not just multifunctional but also
multiperiodic. The Early and Middle Neolithic comprise a period of about
1,500 years, during which time people’s perceptions of different places
and the landscape changed. By following the development of society over
a long period, we have a greater chance of understanding the interaction
between the different parts of society.
Social interaction
The community to which people belong is ordered and regulated by
social norms. As we have seen, time and place are active in this process,
with a series of underlying structures and arrangements which are forces
in the shaping of the social organization. How people behave when they
find themselves in a new place or visit a familiar place is closely
associated with their earlier experiences. It is therefore a matter of finding
evidence for the underlying structures as they are expressed in the
material remains. Once these have been identified, a bridge has been
created which gives access to the specific meaning that characterizes a
prehistoric culture (Lévi-Strauss 1970). A distinction must be made
between structures and social formations or organizations. I use the
concepts in accordance with the belief that structures are used in the
creation of social organizations but they do not constitute them. The
actions of individuals and groups within the social organization are
communicated and given meaning through the different structures. There
cannot be structures that are common to all cultures; each structure is
limited in both time and place. The social organization consists of the
total relations between individuals and groups and their relationship to
the natural and social order (cf. Tilley 1982b; Giddens 1984).
The problem of identifying the underlying structures and social
organization of a society is that these are not determined by the natural
environment. Several conceivable cultural systems and social relations
27
can exist within the same ecological space, and none can be predicted as
a whole or specifically on the basis of the ecological conditions (Hodder
1984, 1986). The construction of monuments or other significant
transformations of the landscape can only be partly explained in terms of
theories of adaptation. A complete view should therefore include a
description of the significance of the action to be performed. People lived
in different ways in different parts of southern Scandinavia. There were
shared traditions and activities, but these could differ in appearance. The
challenge is to understand the meaning of these different regional
identities. In addition, we should be aware that this regional identity
changes in the course of the Neolithic. We cannot expect the way of life
to have been fixed for 1,500 years.
Even though a prehistoric world of ideas leaves only diffuse traces in
the environment, I believe that social, ritual, and economic activities can
all be read in the landscape. The performance of social actions which lead
to or prevent change can manifest itself archaeologically in the form of
material culture. Different customs leave traces in the landscape since the
maintenance of the social order must be ensured through repeated actions
and rites. The meaning is transferred from one generation to the next
through social relations, house designs, and rituals (Bourdieu 1977; LéviStrauss 1977:210). When a persistent cultural tradition is handed on from
generation to generation, patterns are formed which become sufficiently
ingrained to be perceived by the archaeologist. If references to objects
and places become visible as a recurrent custom, the distinctive aspect of
prehistoric communication can still be clear (Miller & Tilley 1984;
Fairclough 1999; Layton & Ucko 1999).
Social organization, however, is not fixed and unchanging. There is
constant interaction between actions and the underlying structures or
norms. Some structures seem to be constant over a long period while
others change. Sociology and anthropology have developed theories of
action which are useful instruments for studies of societies in long-term
perspective (e.g. Bourdieu 1977; Giddens 1979, 1981, 1984). Anthony
Giddens and Pierre Bourdieu have both propounded theories dealing with
the relationship between social actions and underlying structures. The
crucial feature of Giddens’s structuration theory is the structural dualism
which attempts to explain the dialectic between action and structure. To
the same extent that structures function as a series of rules and resources
which steer, initiate, or prevent action, the structures are in turn a product
of action: they are constantly created, reproduced, and changed by action.
The actions of the individual are influenced by the underlying structures,
which in turn are influenced by the individual’s actions. The structures
therefore do not function independently of the individual; they are both
the medium and the result of his social actions (Giddens 1979, 1981,
1984). Through the routine of daily activities, the prevailing structures
are reproduced and continuity is created in social life. Recurrent festivals
or rituals, such as rites of passage in which individuals or groups are
transferred from one stage to another within the social sphere, likewise
have the character of routine and constitute the structures of society. In
my work I wish to regard ritual as an action that reproduces the structures
and constitution of society, and we may suppose that rituals involved
28
tasks and actions at every level. The difference between ritual and nonritual can therefore sometimes be insignificant and difficult to distinguish
in the archaeological material. Ritual is often an action that exemplifies
the ordinary and the everyday, and therefore cannot always be placed in a
pigeonhole separate from other activities. The distinction between ritual
and everyday activities could be that ritual is a stereotyped, formalized,
and repeated action with a specific purpose (cf. Bell 1992; Rappaport
1999). At the same time, it cannot be ignored that that it is precisely the
repetition and routine that characterize everyday activities and which
therefore also reproduce the prevailing structures.
The inherent dynamic in the structuration process is the shape of social
relations, which are the forces that steer people’s actions and can thereby
change the underlying structures. It is therefore important to analyse the
construction of social relations and power structures in relation to the
development of society. Giddens distinguishes two forms of exercise of
power which he calls “allocative” and “authoritative” resources. The first
refers to control of the material world while the other refers to control of
the social and cultural world. The social actor is thus always involved in a
power game (Giddens 1984:258f). Conflicts and antagonisms occur even
in smaller types of society where the asymmetry is based on unequal
relations between e.g. men and women, children and parents, old and
young, or between social groups such as clans, kindreds, etc. Even in socalled classless societies there are of course interests in reproducing the
prevailing social and political conditions, and it is ideology that is the
foundation for social reproduction (Meillasoux 1972; Tilley 1984;
Giddens 1984).
I have tried above to clarify how essential relations of time and place
are in the analysis of all social interaction. People spend most of their
time in places which are fundamental for establishing their personal and
group identity. It is here that actions take place, and the meaning of place
can be detected in the physical remains. Places are therefore important for
defining the character of social relations and actions. It is well known
from ethnographical sources that spatial patterns on the habitation site
and in the landscape are often shaped in accordance with rules which
reflect the social organization (Whittle 1996). Special attention must
therefore be paid to spatial patterns which recur repeatedly in the
archaeological record. Reconstructions of the surroundings and dwelling
sites in time and place, as revealed by excavated archaeological and
palaeobotanical material, in combination with investigations of soil,
geology, and topography, must be supplemented with studies stressing
the mutual influence of the physical surroundings and the people living in
them, as individuals and groups (Barber 1997). One method for gaining
some idea about the underlying ideas and structures in Neolithic society
in the valley landscapes is, in my view, to examine each place separately.
Detailed studies of, above all, the excavated sites, seek to understand the
meaning of the individual place. An understanding of the organization of
the place is dependent on an ability to identify the type and date of
individual features and to ascertain their mutual spatial relations, to
analyse the composition of the material, and to chart the topographical
location of the place and its relation to contemporary surrounding
29
remains. The aim is to distinguish separate processes on the site, such as
dwelling areas, production, burials, and so on, and to distinguish
continuity and discontinuity on the site. Can the function of the place be
linked to a single occasion, or was it used over a long period, and if so,
was the meaning of the place the same? Which elements vary and which
are constant in each phase of the Early and the Middle Neolithic?
Unbroken continuity, in the sense that a place has been constantly
occupied, cannot be verified in the archaeological material. In my study it
is not necessary to prove any such unbroken continuity. It is sufficient to
confirm that people returned to the same place and that in all probability
they knew about the former use of the place. There is thus continuity
even if there was an interruption in the use of the place for several
hundred years, provided awareness of the place was kept alive through
the oral tradition or via myths of origin and the cosmology. Discontinuity
is what we have when those who inhabit a place are unaware of its earlier
history. At the same time as there can be a continuous awareness of a
place, however, there can be discontinuity in that the meaning of the
place changes over time. Former main settlements, for example, can
change to become sites associated only with seasonal activities.
Local, regional, and interregional levels
To accomplish the study thus requires investigations at different levels:
the local level (the place itself), the regional level, and the interregional
level.
The local level
Just as individuals and material objects obtain an identity over time,
places have a narrative identity. A locality becomes a place as soon as we
are aware of it and use it. When people change a place, something
significant happens. When a building is erected, an interaction arises
between people and the world around them. The act of building illustrates
how people exist in the world in a special way. Architecture creates a
relationship between person and place and simultaneously manifests the
relationship. Building involves a change to the place, but mostly by
strengthening its meaning rather than rejecting its previous meaning
(Thomas 1996).
A strict division of different categories of archaeological remains, such
as dwelling site, burial place, and so on, is – at least in part – irrelevant.
We can expect that prehistoric people did not distinguish between
different concepts such as economic, social, and spiritual. Setting up a
camp or erecting a monument no doubt had what we define as social,
economic, and spiritual meanings, but for prehistoric people these
categories were probably indistinguishable. We also see in the same
places traces of activities which we could consider to be of both sacred
and profane nature. The occurrence of human bones both on dwelling
sites and in votive settings, for example, indicates that the graves were
not the only “storage places” for the dead. In the same way, votive
30
deposits are found in habitation contexts. Places constitute a “specific
landscape” with a series of socio-economic activities, a network of
meanings and rituals, all interwoven. The categorization of the landscape
can be constructed so that the arrangements are applied on several levels
at the same time, in almost all the dimensions of life. For instance,
patterns in the landscape can at the same time be reflected in decorative
schemas in the material culture or in the ordering and distribution of
activities on settlement sites.
The classification of places as dwelling, votive place, and so on, is
thus arbitrary. The categories must nevertheless be considered useful
when we try to give meaning to prehistory, and it is likely that a place
could have had a primary function as, for example, a dwelling site or a
votive place. In fact, it is a question of a network of human activities (e.g.
cooking, dwelling, sacrifice, burial) which, depending on the
circumstances, were at times performed in different places but sometimes
also on the same spot.
Settlement
Our knowledge of the internal organization of Early and Middle Neolithic
settlements is still limited in comparison with what we know about the
megalithic tombs of Skåne and Denmark. Although several scholars have
devised systems to describe settlement patterns, few attempts have been
made to understand the activities performed in habitation areas. A study
of the settlements can provide answers to questions concerning everyday
activities such as exploitation of resources, land use, and tool
manufacture. Broadly speaking, two different categories of settlement can
be distinguished. The first is the main settlement where the habitation
areas (the sites with the houses) are found, where everyday life goes on,
with the elements required by this life, such as storehouses and various
activity areas. Alongside the settlement there is a series of camps for
special activities such as hunting, fishing, or manufacture. They can be
seasonal and may be expected to leave fewer traces than the settlement.
In addition, there are temporary camps used only for short stays, perhaps
just overnight.
An important precondition is that the houses and dwelling sites are
more than just a place for sleeping and eating. No dwelling site can be
understood if we assume that all its elements have solely a practical
function (Bradley 1998). The houses can tell us about the organization of
the household, but they can simultaneously be reflections of cosmology
and beliefs (Cooney 2000). In the account of the places in chapter 4 there
are several examples of the polysemy of settlements. Like all human
activity, the arrangements in the habitation area, tool manufacture,
cooking, or waste handling followed structured, deep-rooted cultural
norms. Building houses, clearing areas for cultivation and animal
husbandry, or making a tool were transformative events, which were
probably accompanied by special rituals. It is reasonable to imagine
rituals on several social levels, from the collective, general ritual to the
acts of the individual or the family group. It is therefore important that
different features on the settlement site are studied on the basis of their
31
context and that the analysis does not focus solely on their form and
content (cf. Hill 1995:96ff; Chapman 2000).
Settlement sites, however, are only a part of the greater network of
activities that also includes, for instance, graves and votive sites.
Graves
The grave as we meet it in an excavation is an extremely fragmentary
reflection of the multifaceted society. In large measure the construction of
a grave monument is of course an action associated with people’s beliefs.
The sepulchral evidence should thus give us access to parts of the
spiritual aspect of life. Even though the grave and the burial ritual are not
necessarily a direct reflection of the beliefs of a society, there is often a
close connection. One of the functions of ritual is to explain and confirm
the mythology to the society and its members. It is a part of the
celebration of a cult, in which people use symbolic or dramatic rites to
repeat primeval happenings and thus renew and ratify the world order to
which creation gave rise (Ringgren 1968:43; Lévi-Strauss 1977:210). In
this way the social power structure was presumably also confirmed
through the ritual. The graves and the rituals connected with them are
therefore probably also an expression of secular purposes and may be
seen as an instrument in the exercise of power and the maintenance of the
prevailing social order. The graves should be regarded as the result of
ideological values and beliefs in mutual interaction with economic and
social patterns (cf. Thomas 1991; Bergh 1995:142).
In the graves there were various constructional details which are of
course difficult to interpret. The conceptual world may have been
asserted in a way that seems irrational to an outside observer, but which
had an important role to play in the social context where it occurred. Each
object taken separately is usually dumb, but when placed in their context,
material remains can contribute significant clues in the process of
interpretation. The question is whether it is possible to find in the graves
patterns which we can interpret and understand today. One way to grasp
the ideas behind monument building is to study burial methods and
various constructional elements in the graves. Since these are the material
traces of conscious ritual actions which to some extent reflect the
prevailing world of ideas, they can give an – albeit fragmentary –
understanding of the social and ideological meanings of the graves.
Features adjacent to the graves can tell of various activities both before
and after the construction and testify to the meaning of the monuments
for the survivors in a longer temporal perspective.
Votive sites
The deposition of votive gifts, mainly in wetlands, occurred throughout
Nordic prehistory. In Skåne we know of a large number of Neolithic
votive finds, discovered above all during digging for peat. It is mostly
single finds that are encountered at each place, and a limited number of
artefact categories are represented, chiefly axes. At some places,
however, objects were deposited on repeated occasions, resulting in what
we call accumulated votive sites (Karsten 1994). Deliberate deposits of
whole and fragmented objects occur in several different settings outside
32
wetlands too – on dwelling sites, at graves, and beside large stones. It is
reasonable to imagine that the different deposition contexts varied partly
in function and meaning. I believe that what we consider to be votive
deposits can, in many cases, be closely connected to everyday activities
and be difficult to separate from these in the archaeological material. This
may illustrate the prehistoric state of affairs, when there was no distinct
boundary between what we perceive as secular and what we perceive as
sacred. In my work I would emphasize the importance of trying to
understand people’s intentions when depositing objects in different
contexts. To some extent we must ignore our own sharp distinction
between deeds of a profane character and sacred acts and instead focus on
the activity performed in prehistoric times in its specific context.
Central places
A traditional society needs meeting places for several different reasons:
economic, administrative, social, and spiritual. The form of these can
vary and seems to have done so during the Early and Middle Neolithic.
Well-known examples are the large Sarup enclosures (causewayed
enclosures), which began to be built in southern Scandinavia at the end of
the Early Neolithic, or the palisaded enclosures that occur at the transition
from the Funnel Beaker to the Battle Axe culture (Andersen 1974, 1997;
Svensson 1991, 2002; Andersson & Svensson 1999). Other monuments,
such as megalithic tombs, may also have been a focal point for a society’s
activities on special occasions. Other places such as settlements or special
natural formations in the landscape may also have functioned as meeting
places for people.
Natural formations
Natural formations are not monuments since they were not constructed by
human labour. However, it is not necessary for a place to be physically
reshaped to become a place of cultural importance. A distinctive
topographical feature, such as a rock, a valley, or a watercourse, can
constitute such a place. A fundamental aspect of the daily occurrences in
traditional societies is the physical perception of the landscape – earth,
water, wood, stone, high and low hills, wind, rain, sunshine, stars, and
sky. The rhythm of the landscape and the seasons corresponds to the
rhythm of life. Natural formations acquired meaning through associations
with social events of a mythological character. These places could be
symbolic resources of great significance for prehistoric populations.
Place-names, associations, and memories humanized and cultivated the
landscape and linked topographical landmarks with human intentions
(Tilley 1994; Bradley 2000).
It is one matter to recognize the concept of physically unspoiled
places, but quite another matter to identify their localization and
significance archaeologically. In several cases the meaning of a place has
been manifested through depositions of sacrifices, for example, in
wetlands or beside a large stone.
33
The regional level
In the area around the Saxån-Välabäcken and Lödde Å-Kävlingeån there
is a distinct grouping of Neolithic settlements, megalithic tombs, places
of assembly, and votive sites which suggests a demarcated region. Taken
together, these places make up a settlement organization which is the
result of a complex relationship between economic, social, and spiritual
factors. It is obvious that these factors operated during prehistoric times
just as they do today.
In an interpretation of social organization, I do not believe that it is
appropriate to concentrate solely on the individual parts such as
settlements or graves. The relation between the antiquities must be
clarified. It is necessary to determine which categories are dependent on
each other and in what way, that is, how the parts function in the whole.
Can we demonstrate, for example, that changes in mortuary ritual were
synchronized with changes in other parts of society?
The identification of a place as a locality with one or more meanings
demonstrates the relationship to other places. In the valley landscapes it is
likely that such a study, seeking to establish the chronological
relationship and the spatial interaction between the places, can distinguish
different local communities or societies. By a society I mean in this study
a group of people and their places within a defined geographical area – a
landscape space – within which the group’s seasonal and annual activities
were maintained. The people in a society felt that they had a common
identity which made them different from surrounding societies. Even
though we tend to regard the home and the grave as two isolated
phenomena, we should bear in mind that for people who lived and died in
the Neolithic they were probably part of the same life cycle. People shape
a complex network of activities in the landscape, of varying intensity and
duration. It can be expected that people were closely connected to the
home/house, and beyond this there were places which were visited at
certain points in time during the year or on special occasions. Through an
understanding of the function of each place, knowledge can be obtained
about the relationship between settlements, graves, and votive sites, and
about how changes in these different aspects of social organization
correspond to each other. In this valley landscape, where do we find
different places and how are they linked?
To varying extents, the different groups or societies within the valley
landscapes presumably maintained mutual contacts, which were
necessary for their survival, and in this way formed a cohesive district or
region.
The interregional level
Naturally, the investigation area was not an isolated unit during the
Neolithic. People never live in isolation; they always have contact with
other regions. The supraregional social network is significant for an
understanding of the spatial distribution of innovations. It is clear that
ideas and commodities were exchanged between different regions within
the same cultural sphere or with other culture complexes. Similarities in
material culture appear over much of Europe during both the Funnel
34
Beaker and Battle Axe cultures (Malmer 1962; Midgley 1992). In this
work my comparative study will chiefly be concerned with nearby areas,
that is, the rest of Skåne and Denmark. This largely shared Late
Mesolithic background, in the form of the Ertebølle culture (Jennbert
1984a), provided the special social and economic conditions for a new
ideology to establish itself. At the same time, each society has unique
features, and a study of these surrounding regions can give perspectives
on the situation in western Skåne.
35
4. Neolithic settlement around the two
valleys
A stone on the ground
Should not be disdained,
It too has a sky
– if we only give ourselves time
(Setterlind 1972)
The picture of remains from the Early and Middle
Neolithic
My intention here has been to bring together all known Early and Middle
Neolithic remains within the investigation area. To arrive at an
understanding of the function and meaning of places and to ascertain their
relative chronological and chorological relations using the above
approach requires the existence of carefully documented information
about the features and finds from the sites. It is therefore of great
significance whether the places were identified solely through surface
surveys or were also excavated.
Periodization
The absence of pottery, above all from places which have only been
surface-surveyed, means that it is difficult to give exact datings for a
large number of the sites. The assessment of the duration of use for each
aceramic place must therefore be made according to a much cruder
chronological division than where we have access to pottery. In the
present work I have divided the Early and the Middle Neolithic into four
periods, chiefly on the basis of different axe types: EN I, EN II–MNA II,
MNA III–V, and MNB. It goes without saying that the transitions
between these “periods” must be fluid. Some of the axe types and
ceramic decorations can occur in more than one period. My intention,
however, is not to prove whether the different classification systems work
but – primarily – to study the region’s Neolithic social organization and
settlement patterns in a long-term perspective. With this approach there
cannot be any sharp dividing lines; a certain overlap between two phases
can be accepted. Where the find material permits, however, I intend to
give closer datings for some of the excavated sites. Despite the problem
of chronology, I shall henceforth follow Poul Otto Nielsen’s division and
connect MNA with the Funnel Beaker culture and MNB with the Battle
Axe culture. The finds influenced by the Pitted Ware culture which are
documented on some sites, or the Stävie group as I shall call this variant
of the Funnel Beaker culture below (cf. Larsson, L. 1989b), seem to
occur both in the late MNA and at least in the first part of the MNB –
36
there are no distinct boundaries. In my work it will also be clear that
changes in social organization in different phases, above all at the end of
the Funnel Beaker culture, could warrant a different periodization. For
the sake of simplicity, however, I have chosen to divide the chapters
according to chronological phases based on pottery and axe typologies. In
this way I believe it will be easier for readers to orient themselves in time
and to compare my results with other works dealing with the same
period.
The division into the different phases follows Nielsen’s periodization
from 1993.
One problem is that there are great differences in time between
uncalibrated and calibrated 14C datings. The discrepancies in the
calibrated values correspond to a prolongation of the periods EN I, EN
II–MNA II, MNA III–V, and MNB by about 33%, 25%, 33%, and 30%
respectively. The length of the periods is relevant chiefly in the
discussion of settlement intensity. In this study 14C datings will therefore
be presented in both uncalibrated and calibrated values with one sigma.
The calibrated values are shown in parentheses.
EN I
The earliest phase, EN I, can be dated to 5100–4800 BP (3900–3500 cal.
bc). Characteristic artefacts which date sites to this period are the
pointed-butted flint axe and pointed-butted rock axe. Pottery which can
be linked to the south or south-west Scanian groups of Oxie, Svenstorp,
or Mossby also belong to this phase. The Oxie group is characterized by
funnel beakers with a short neck and decoration above all with imprints,
short strokes, and small pits concentrated around the rim. Cord decoration
is a significant element in the Svenstorp group, but we also find stick
imprints and other stamped impressions. The decoration becomes more
complicated than in the Oxie group and several vessel forms occur. The
Mossby group can be regarded as a parallel to the Svenstorp group but
with a greater presence of cord decoration (Larsson, M. 1984; Kihlstedt et
al. 1997). The pointed-butted flint axe occurs above all in Oxie group
contexts but also in some cases together with pottery from the Svenstorp
group (Hernek 1989; Karsten 1994; Kihlstedt et al. 1997). Nielsen has
conducted an exhaustive analysis of the pointed-butted flint axe and
defined three types. Type I is two-sided and has a pointed-oval crosssection, type II is three-sided with a round-oval cross-section, while type
III is characterized by a square cross-section (Nielsen, P. O. 1977).
Karsten’s analysis of combined deposits shows that the pointed-butted
axe of type III occurs in certain cases together with the thin-butted axe. In
this work I therefore choose to associate only the pointed-butted axe of
types I and II with the EN I. The flake axe of Havnelev type is also found
in EN I contexts (Vang Petersen 1993).
Anna Lagergren-Olsson has analysed the extensive ceramic material
from the Funnel Beaker culture found in connection with the West Coast
Line excavations, mostly concentrated in the large Neolithic settlement of
Dagstorp 19 north of the Välabäcken, and she has presented a division of
the dwelling site pottery in terms of style and phase. “The period of small
37
imprints” corresponds to what is traditionally described as EN I,
characterized by sparsely decorated pots. The decoration is wholly
dominated by two basic ornaments, small imprints under the edge of the
rim and indentations on the edge of the rim. The majority of the pottery at
Dagstorp 19 has parallels in the Oxie group, but the material also includes
collared flasks and decorated lugged beakers, vessel forms that do not
belong in the Svenstorp group. These vessels were not found in the
occupation layers of the dwelling site but only in the pits. The occurrence
of the ceramic groups in different contexts within the Dagstorp
settlement, according to Lagergren-Olsson, may suggest that the
difference between the pottery that can be described as belonging to the
Oxie group and the Svenstorp group is probably of a functional character
and does not reflect two groups of people in the area (Lagergren-Olsson
2003).
EN II–MNA II
Phase two, EN II–MNA II, comprises the period 4800–4400 BP (3500–
3000 cal. bc). Artefacts which can be ascribed to this phase are above all
the thin-butted axe, which Nielsen has divided into seven different types
on the basis of the relative thickness of the butt, the location of the
thickest part of the blade, the degree of convexity of the broad sides, the
shape of the butt, and the polishing of the narrow sides (Nielsen, P. O.
1977). Apart from this type of artefact, halberds of flint and polygonal
battle axes are linked to the late Early Neolithic and the start of the
Middle Neolithic. The Bellevuegården group belongs to this phase, with
pottery showing greater variation than the earlier groups of the Early
Neolithic with their large proportion of whipped cord decoration. The
belly decoration consists of vertical lines, covering the whole surface or
in groups (Larsson, M. 1984). The earliest pottery of the Middle
Neolithic is characterized by new vessel forms such as pedestalled bowls,
clay ladles, and brim beakers. Line technique is the predominant method
of decoration. Among the hatched patterns, cross-hatching dominates.
The ceramic style that corresponds to the period EN II–MNA I within
the investigation area is called “the period of belly lines” by LagergrenOlsson. Funnel beakers decorated with belly lines are a form of vessel
found throughout the period. Larger parts of the pots are decorated than
during the period of small imprints. Not just the belly but also the neck
and shoulder are more often decorated. New ornamental elements such as
angular lines, bands, angular bands, hatched fields, and pitted decoration
are introduced during this period (Lagergren-Olsson 2003).
MNA III–V
MNA III–V is estimated as the time between 4400 and 4250 BP (3000–
2800 cal. bc). The characteristic object of the period is the thick-butted
flint axe, which now replaces the thin-butted axe. The thick-butted axes
have been studied by Nielsen, who divided them into two types, A and B.
Type A is considered characteristic of the period MNA III–V while type
B is usually placed in MNB. The criteria for type A are that the narrowside angle is at least 8°, the narrow sides unpolished, the butt is straight,
the shape is trapezoidal, and the axe is mostly thickest at the middle
38
(Nielsen, P. O. 1979). With regard to the butt index, type A has been
divided into three chronologically separate variants – Bundsø, Lindø, and
Valby. The dating of the axes is complicated, however, by the fact that
both types, A and B, have been found together, for instance, in hoard
contexts. Nielsen believes that in such cases it is a question of a transition
period between A and B (Nielsen, P. O. 1979). Further indications that
the two axe types may overlap are finds of both A and B axes at Stävie
(Larsson, L. 1992a), and the occurrence of B axes at Hindby Mosse. The
settlement there has mainly been dated to the MNA III (Svensson 1986).
The classification of the thick-butted flint axe is thus not entirely without
problems. Since my aim is to study the organization of society in longterm perspective, however, it is sufficient to regard the B axe as a
generally later variant, albeit with a certain overlap in time with the A
axe.
MNA III also led to a distinct break in the ceramic tradition. The
formerly so common and characteristic belly line decoration completely
disappears. The pitted decoration reaches its zenith and occurs at least as
often as other types of decoration. Tooth-stamp decoration becomes very
common, and typical decorative elements are vertical bands, angular
bands, chequerboard patterns, and angular lines. The stock of vessel
shapes is more varied than in earlier periods. Apart from funnel beakers
there are open bowls of different kinds and brim beakers.
In the late MNA (MNA IV–V) it is customary to distinguish between
two traditions in Skåne. One is represented by sites like Karlsfält and
Långåker and the other by the Stävie site (Larsson, L. 1992a:146).
Ceramic decoration at Karlsfält is dominated by two techniques, lines and
impressions. The most common patterns are pits of different sizes and
tooth stamps. In several cases there are hanging triangles on both neck
and belly. Flint objects have a composition agreeing well with that at
other dwelling sites from the Funnel Beaker culture. Thick-butted axes of
both Lindø and Valby type occur on the site, as do thin-bladed axes and
chisels. Other tools are based on flakes. The clearly dominant ornamental
variable at Stävie is finger impressions. Other types of ornamentation
such as tooth stamps, oval and oblique impressions occur but to a lesser
extent, as do hanging triangles or arches in line technique. Pottery in the
Stävie group can be paralleled with the Valby phase in Denmark, MNA
V. The flint artefacts give an impression of being influenced by the Pitted
Ware culture in that several examples of cylindrical blade cores and blade
arrowheads occur. A considerable number of blade scrapers in relation to
flake scrapers also shows the importance of the blade technique among
the tools. Among axes we find, as mentioned above, both the A and the B
type of thick-butted axes (Larsson, L. 1982:103, 1986:151, 1992a:146,
1993). In the investigation area, no sites have yielded pottery traditionally
associated with the Pitted Ware culture, but the Pitted Ware–influenced
flint stock has been identified together with pottery which can be defined
as belonging to the later Funnel Beaker culture and equated with the
Valby phase.
Lagergren-Olsson see a clear difference, however, in vessel forms and
decoration, between the ceramic material from Stävie and the pottery
belonging to the “tooth-stamp period” in the Välabäcken valley. She
39
therefore believe that the pottery in Stävie should not automatically be
linked to the Funnel Beaker culture (Lagergren-Olsson 2003).
MNB (Battle Axe culture)
The latest phase of the study, MNB, is dated to the period between 4250
and 3900 BP (2800–2350 cal. bc). The following types of artefacts are
usually ascribed to the MNB and the Battle Axe culture: the thick-butted
flint axe of type B, the thick-butted hollow-edged flint axe, the thickbutted thin-bladed flint axe polished on four sides, the thick-butted rock
axe, and the battle axe of Malmer’s groups A–E. The blade arrowhead of
type D is usually assigned to the Battle Axe culture as well (Malmer
1975; Nielsen, P. O. 1979; Ebbesen 1984; Blomqvist 1989a; Vang
Petersen 1993). Axes of type B should have a narrow-side angle of 8° at
most, polished or unpolished narrow sides, a straight or oblique butt,
usually a rectangular shape, and mostly with the greatest thickness close
to the edge. The dating of the axes is complicated, however, by the fact
that both types, A and B, are found together. The places where the only
identified type of artefact is the B axe are henceforth marked in figures
with a different symbol from sites with artefacts that can be securely
placed in MNB. In the same way as the chronological relationship
between the A and the B axe has not been completely clarified, not all
hollow-edged flint axes can be automatically assigned to MNB.
According to Nielsen, the pointed-butted hollow-edged flint axe is one of
the key artefacts in the MNA IV–V in Denmark (Nielsen, P. O. 1979;
Berg & Skaarup 1979). The type occurs rarely in Skåne, however
(Karsten 1994:66), and has not been found in the investigation area. The
thick-butted hollow-edged axe with a greatly flared edge, which is
usually placed in the late MNB or the Late Neolithic (Vang Petersen
1993), is also missing from the investigation area. It is tricky to build a
sustainable chronological division into later and earlier types based on the
other thick-butted hollow-edged axe types. A periodization of the Battle
Axe culture should therefore proceed from the pottery. Apart from
isolated sherds, Battle Axe pottery has been found only in mortuary
contexts or at the palisaded enclosure in Dösjebro, which makes it
impossible to achieve a fine chronology of the Battle Axe culture
settlements in the area.
The characteristic vessel during the Battle Axe culture is the small,
rounded pot, which in its oldest form is given horizontal cord decoration
solely along the edge of the rim. Later we find stamp-decorated garlands
under these patterns, and there is sometimes decoration on the lower part
of the pot as well. Surface-covering patterns of chevrons are common on
the later pots (Malmer 1962, 1975).
The relative representativeness of material from surface
surveys and excavations
One problem with studies of prehistoric societies is the distorted
distribution that arises because most excavations have taken place in the
most intensively developed areas. Some areas are therefore relatively
well excavated, while others are almost blank spots on the map of
40
Neolithic excavations. Although south-west Skåne and the district around
the river valleys are heavily developed and thus relatively well
investigated by archaeologists, we must reckon that even within this
region there are areas lacking excavation results. It is above all along the
coast and the rivers that most excavations have taken place (fig. 7). An
important complement is therefore the surveys which, at least in theory,
have systematically charted the remains visible on the surface on all the
economic maps sheets of Skåne.
Excavated sites
Within the area there are 72 excavated sites which can be dated to the
Early and/or Middle Neolithic (fig. 8). The majority of the excavations
were performed by the National Heritage Board Southern Excavations
Department in the last few decades. Some of the excavations, however,
were conducted by Lund University Historical Museum (LUHM), partly
in the form of seminar digs and research excavations.
The Neolithic element on the different sites varies in scale. In several
cases it seems that later activities have destroyed any Neolithic structures,
and Neolithic activities reveal themselves only through isolated finds
discovered in later features. The excavated material is also of uneven
scientific value. The excavations vary in quality and, in certain cases,
have not been fully reported. The excavation methods used in older
excavations did not record all the details required to understand the
internal organization of a place. Mostly it was only small, limited areas
that were excavated, which makes it difficult to interpret the function and
meaning of sites. Understanding of the internal organization of a place
requires larger areas so that more extensive remains of settlement will
appear. It was not until recent decades that the method of machine
stripping came into use, allowing the true features such as houses, fences,
and pit systems to be properly documented and related to each other.
The variable quality of the excavations means that, in several cases,
even on the excavated sites it is difficult to be sure of the function and
duration of a dwelling site. In this work I nevertheless try to distinguish
which places may have functioned as main settlements and which were
activity sites. To be able to say with absolute certainty which of these
different types of settlements is which would require a total excavation of
each site, which is of course unrealistic. I nevertheless believe that a
place can with good reason be called a main settlement if it satisfies
certain requirements. By main settlement I mean a place where people
lived for the major part of the year, or even the whole year, and from
where special “work groups” proceeded. There may be several factors
determining whether a place should be regarded as a main settlement: (1)
the surrounding natural environment should be favourable for providing
basic needs the whole year round, with opportunities for a varied diet; (2)
the archaeological source material, in the form of features and finds, must
show that a variety of activities took place on the site; (3) the area of the
settlement should be big enough to show that different activities can have
taken place there and that successive expansion can have occurred; (4)
the presence of graves on or near the site is yet another sign of the
significance of the place; (5) the place should have a demonstrable
41
settlement continuity. The latter point indicates that there was probably
an economic and social knowledge of the surrounding environment. The
list of distinctive features which ought to characterize a main settlement
could be made even longer, but at least three of the criteria should be
satisfied if a place is to be considered to be of stationary character. In
most cases, remains of houses or huts should also have been documented,
but since earlier excavations rarely noticed post-built buildings, this
cannot be crucial for the assessment. My definition of houses and huts is
that the latter differ from houses by not having a central row of roofbearing posts (mesula), although there may sometimes be one or more
roof-bearing posts. I am aware that there are probably main settlements
within the investigation area which I have been unable to identify, but I
believe that the places that I point out really were in all probability main
settlements. Unlike the main settlements, the activity sites were only used
briefly at specific times during the year and are therefore as a rule smaller
and may be expected to have left fewer traces of structures in the ground.
The sites that I have identified as activity sites or short-term settlements
mostly show no more than two of the five points listed above. In cases
where features have been found, they have been of a character indicating
short-term occupation, for example, remains of small huts. Another
important clue in the assessment of a place has been the relationship with
other contemporary places, such as nearby settlements, graves, and votive
sites. The relationship between different sites in time and place can
clarify the meaning and function of a place.
In my calculation of the area of the sites I try to combine the
horizontal spread of the artefacts with the occurrence and distribution of
contemporary features (post-holes, pits, hearths, etc.). The earlier view
has long been that the size of Early and Middle Neolithic base sites was
limited to roughly 600–800 m² (e.g. Larsson, M. 1992). Recent years’
excavations with machine stripping of large areas both in southern
Sweden and in eastern central Sweden have shown, however, that main
settlements can cover several thousand square metres and represent many
different activities (e.g. Apel et al. 1997; Artursson 1997; Andersson, M.
1999; Lagergren-Olsson & Linderoth 2000). To a large extent the older
view was based on limited excavation areas which gave a distorted
picture of the real size of the settlements. There are also serious problems
in comparing the composition and quantity of finds from different places
since this depends on preservation conditions, on which parts of the site
were excavated, and on the excavation method used. It is therefore not
reasonable to assess the duration and function of a place solely on the
basis of the amount of finds. On the other hand, a main settlement should
have a varied composition of tools. Scrapers, knives, awls, arrowheads,
and axe fragments should be represented in the toolkit, together with flint
waste which shows that manufacture and repair took place on the site. I
view pits with Early and/or Middle Neolithic material as a clear
indication that the site was of a more permanent character. The deposition
of objects in pits – whole or fragmented – is an action that shows a
concern for the place. Efforts were expended on cleaning the ground or
marking one’s belonging to the place through the actual digging and
depositing. I shall develop these ideas below.
42
Long barrows, dolmens, and passage graves are chiefly defined as
burial places since remains of human bones show that they functioned as
spaces for the dead (Strömberg 1968, 1971; Hårdh 1990b, Tilley 1996). It
will be clear from my work, however, that traces of rituals adjacent to the
monuments suggest that they also functioned as places of assembly for
the surrounding communities. It is not uncommon that the deposition of
special objects takes place right beside graves although the action cannot
be linked to the actual burial of the dead. At megalithic tombs it is not
uncommon to find hoards of flint axes or pottery in or outside the
entrance, or by the kerbstones (Strömberg 1968, 1971; Ebbesen 1975;
Hårdh 1990b; Tilley 1996). Identifying flat-earth graves, on the other
hand, involves difficulties, since the preservation conditions for bone are
usually limited in the sandy soils of the investigation area. The minimum
criteria for regarding a feature as a flat-earth grave are that it must have a
rectangular shape with clear, straight-dug edges and a flat bottom, and
there should be traces of colouring left by a body or a coffin in the
feature. The context of a site with adjacent flat-earth graves may also
indicate that a feature with the form of a grave and presumed grave
goods, but without clear colouring left by a body or skeleton, should be
regarded as a flat-earth grave.
Deliberate deposits of artefacts, in the form of single finds or hoards of
several artefacts, are phenomena which can occur either separately from
what we normally regard as settlement site material and burials or in
these specific contexts (Karsten 1994). The find circumstances can
sometimes entail difficulties, above all in determining whether it is a
single find/hoard or grave goods. Hoards, unlike grave goods, should not
have anything to do with the actual burial. Objects which are considered
to have been deposited together with the deceased are therefore not
included in the term hoard (cf. Becker 1947; Stjernquist 1963; Nielsen, P.
O. 1977; Ebbesen 1983; Karsten 1994). The many deposits of artefacts
which occur in different wetland settings are presumably not ordinary
graves. With finds on dry land it is trickier to determine whether they are
linked to graves or not. Often the deposits are associated with large
stones, which in theory could be part of a megalithic tomb (Karsten
1994). As a rule, however, the composition of objects in hoards differs
from that of characteristic grave goods, besides which certain forms of
Neolithic tools are unknown or very rare in grave contexts. Unpolished
axes, preforms for tools, and so-called overdimensioned objects, for
example, occur very seldom in grave contexts (Nielsen, P. O. 1977;
Karsten 1994). Of course, it is difficult to determine whether the
deliberate deposits are profane caches or sacred offerings. Karsten says
that in the treatment of a large body of material, repetition as a reason for
ritual interpretation of find material can be applied in both large and
small perspectives: both when the finds occur as traces of repeated
actions at a votive site, and when the category of find as a whole shares
common features such as find spot, find circumstances, and the
appearance of the objects. He moreover puts forward three arguments
against the view that deliberate deposits of objects are treasure hoards or
stockpiles. Firstly, it seems unreasonable that the majority of all the
Neolithic people had a similar perception of what was to be concealed
43
and how it was to be concealed. Secondly, it seems incredible that there
was a need over such a long stretch of time to hide valuable objects in the
earth. Thirdly, far too many caches were never dug up again (Karsten
1994). From this point of view, all closed finds in wetlands should
therefore be regarded as primarily deposits of a ritual character and thus
constitute a votive site.
For a site to be regarded as a central place or an assembly place, there
should be remains indicating that activities of a collective character took
place there. These traces can consist of large buildings, deposits of
artefacts, or traces of ceremonies and rituals adjacent to graves. In certain
cases, then, not only burial places and votive sites but also settlements
may have functioned as places of assembly.
As will be obvious, the different categories of place are closely
connected to each other, and one place probably often had several
functions. It is therefore important to focus on the meaning behind the
action that was performed for each deposit, by putting it in its special
context in time and place.
Surface-surveyed places
The intensive agriculture within the investigation area has meant that
traces from prehistoric times have to a large extent been gradually
ploughed out or have disappeared. Today it is virtually only the surviving
grave monuments that are still visible in the landscape, while the vast
majority of the remains are unknown and completely concealed under
ground level. At the same time, the intensive ploughing in the
investigation area has unearthed hidden remains in the form of worked
flint. There is probably no international counterpart to the surveys of
ancient monuments which have taken place in Sweden since the 1930s
(Larsson, L. 2001:22). The National Heritage Board’s revised survey of
ancient monuments in Skåne 1985–1987 led to a tripling of the number of
known antiquities (Olsson 1991). The reason for this was that this time
the survey, unlike previous ones, also registered dwelling sites and
remains of or information about burial mounds in a more systematic way.
The dwelling sites that have been identified through the occurrence of
knapped flint in the topsoil are registered as Stone Age dwelling sites,
which raises some aspects of source criticism. Whether the sites represent
permanent settlements or temporary camps for special purposes cannot be
determined with certainty by surface surveys. In addition, excavations
have shown that these places often contain remains from the Bronze Age
and Iron Age. Important sources of error to bear in mind are the pressure
of time on the person doing the survey and the conditions prevailing at
the time. The National Heritage Board’s survey of ancient monuments
has often been defined as a quick survey because the surveyors were
working under pressure. This means that they were forced to make
priorities. Only in exceptional cases was it possible to make return visits
to sites and to private farm collections. Surveys of ancient monuments
depend on ocular inspection of the landscape. External factors such as the
occurrence of crops or vegetation, the nature of the soil, how the earth has
been worked, and the weather affect the degree of accessibility. The
composition of the personnel is also significant for the results of the
44
survey. The surveyors differ in their education, knowledge, and
archaeological experience. It goes without saying that not all antiquities
were discovered by the surveys. In the project “The Hidden Cultural
Landscape”, which was a collaborative venture involving the Department
of Archaeology at Lund University, Malmö Museums, the National
Heritage Board Southern Excavations Department, and the National
Heritage Board Surface Survey Department in Karlskrona, conducted
intensive surface surveys in specially selected parishes in the best
conceivable external circumstances. One aim was to investigate the
reliability of the revised survey of ancient monuments. A rough
calculation based on the number of newly registered dwelling sites from
this special survey shows that only about 3% of the total number of
dwelling sites were detected by the revised survey (Holmgren & Tronde
1990; Karsten 1990; Larsson, L. 2001:23).
The proportion of the total number of places in the investigation area
whose type and age have been determined is nevertheless so large that
they can be considered representative enough to allow an interpretation of
the distribution, form, and content of settlement. Thanks to the National
Heritage Board’s survey of ancient monuments it has become possible to
present a distribution map of all the known Stone Age dwelling sites in
the investigation area. The survey was conducted by a limited number of
people with long experience of surveying, and of the 29 parishes, almost
70% were surveyed by a single person. This means that the
documentation from the survey of ancient monuments may be considered
to be of good quality. On the basis of the collected material it is difficult
to determine from a surface survey whether the finds represent a large
settlement, a temporary camp, or a work site. However, the aim has been
to use this material as a complement to the excavated sites to compile a
chronological and chorological distribution map and as far as possible to
ascertain the functions of the different places (fig. 9).
The difficulty lies in distinguishing dwelling sites from different
phases within the Neolithic. In several cases there are no finds allowing a
more exact dating, or the information on dating in the register of ancient
monuments is inadequate: it was therefore necessary for me to go through
the collected find material from the survey of ancient monuments. After
this the number of places that could be dated to one of the four phases of
the Early and Middle Neolithic stated above rose by almost 30%. For this
purpose farm collections have been a significant addition. These naturally
vary in scope and differ in value as source material. In several cases,
however, it has been possible to link datable objects to individual fields
and registered dwelling sites. They are therefore an important
complement in studies of settlement development in the Early and Middle
Neolithic. Apart from the source material mentioned above, museums and
farm collections contain a large number of Neolithic finds with no more
exact statement of find place than the parish. These objects have been
removed from their original contexts, which makes it impossible to
determine whether they come from dwelling sites, graves, or votive sites.
Since the aim here is to investigate where in the landscape different
things took place and to understand the meaning of places, these objects
have been left outside the analytical framework of the book. Only objects
45
for which an exact find spot is stated can thus be considered in the study.
Exceptions have been made for wetland finds, for which I have regarded
it as sufficient that wetland and the property designation are stated.
Within the investigation area, 247 places have been identified with
material belonging to one or more of the periods EN I, EN II–MNA II,
MNA III–V, and MNB, and 72 of these sites have been excavated.
A minimum requirement for a place to be designated a
dwelling/activity site is the presence of knapped flint and at least one
fragment of a tool. It is rare for potsherds to be discovered by surface
survey, so this group of artefacts cannot be regarded as a requirement for
being able to define a place as a dwelling/activity site. Stray finds of
intact axes should not automatically be regarded as indicators of a
dwelling site; they may come from graves or votive activities that took
place away from the dwelling site. It must be possible to derive finds of
whole axes from an exact find spot where they were found together with
flint debitage if the site is to be regarded as a dwelling site. It is of course
tricky to determine the size of a site. The distribution of flint objects at
ground level must serve as a basis for assessing the size. The possibility
of judging the character of places found by surface survey is however
restricted compared with excavated sites, and in the present work they
will therefore be assessed on the basis of other criteria. Occasional places
– those where the flint discovered by surface survey shows several
different categories of tools (scrapers, knives, awls) together with a rich
amount of debitage/flakes, and where site continuity can be demonstrated
– will be hypothetically regarded in the discussion as potential main
settlements. Finds uncovered in wetland settings which suggest deliberate
deposition are considered in this study as votive finds in accordance with
the discussion above.
The places
In the enumeration of the places I give a detailed description only of the
places where there are distinct features that can be associated with the
investigated period. Of course, the quantity of information and the details
of the site descriptions vary depending on the quality of the excavation
reports. Other places are included merely as dots on the map but are
significant for an understanding of the spatial distribution of Neolithic
societies, the mutual relation of the places in the system, and hence the
relation of the people to the landscape. The places are presented first by
their registration number, and in cases where there is no number, by the
name of the parish and/or property. Important sites for my work are of
course the Neolithic remains excavated in connection with the
construction of the new West Coast Line. Since these places have
previously been presented with an SU number (SU standing for
slutundersökning or “final excavation”) (Svensson 2003), this designation
is also given in parentheses after the name of the place in the heading.
46
EN I
Settlement
Of the hitherto published Early Neolithic dwelling sites in Skåne, the
majority are in the south-west and south-east of the province. The
Hagestad and Ystad projects have dominated Neolithic research in southeast Skåne (Strömberg 1968, 1971, 1978, 1982a, 1982b, 1988a, 1988b,
1988c; Larsson & Larsson 1984, 1986; Larsson, L. 1985, 1989a; Larsson,
M. 1987, 1988b, 1992), whereas for the Neolithic in the south-west of the
province it is above all the intensive excavation work conducted by
Malmö Museums in the last thirty years that has added to our knowledge
(Salomonsson 1971; Svensson 1986; Björhem & Säfvestad 1989;
Almquist & Svensson 1990; Billberg & Magnusson Staaf 1999; Sarnäs &
Nord Paulsson 2001). The Early Neolithic dwelling site material in southwest Skåne has been published in a comprehensive study by Mats
Larsson (1984). In both these areas one notices a change in settlement
patterns during the Early Neolithic. The earlier preference for coastal
sites is replaced by a more varied picture whereby more of the landscape
is claimed in a completely new way, with both coastal and inland
settlements. The settlements in both Skåne and Denmark have been
described as consisting of small and scattered households which
functioned for brief periods (Larsson, M. 1984, 1985, 1988a, 1991, 1992;
Madsen & Jensen 1982; Eriksen & Madsen 1984).
In the innermost parts of the province, however, the lack of Early
Neolithic settlements is striking. Occurrences of stray finds, above all in
the form of pointed-butted axes of types I–II, nevertheless show that
these areas were not unknown to the population at the time (fig. 10). It is
presumably in large measure the lack of excavations in these regions that
explains the absence of known settlements.
The distinctive features that can be identified in nearby regions such as
Sjælland or in the Ystad and Malmö areas in Skåne cannot automatically
be transferred to conditions in the areas around the Saxån-Välabäcken
and Lödde Å-Kävlingeån. The introduction of agriculture in northern
Europe is associated with the Funnel Beaker culture. This complex
displays great similarities in its material culture over much of north-west
Europe (Midgley 1992). At the same time, it should be noted that “the
Neolithic way of life” was adopted in different ways and at different
speeds in different regions. The transition from the Mesolithic to the
Neolithic should be viewed as a protracted process rather than a sudden
event. The Mesolithic background in each region created the basic
conditions in time and place for the emergence of the local Neolithic
societies.
There are relatively few well-documented settlements in the
investigation area which have been dated to EN I. In most cases the Early
Neolithic material is found together with later remains which have
disturbed any Early Neolithic features and occupation layers. From this
period there are 27 registered sites, 15 of which have been excavated (fig.
11).
47
Main settlements on the coast
In the initial phase of the Early Neolithic, the sea was about three metres
higher than today’s level (Regnell, M., pers.com.). The coastline was
marked by bays and lagoons with long shallows extending out from the
coastal strip (Christensen 1982, 1993). This means that bays cut like
wedges into what are now the rivers Saxån and Lödde Å.
Along the bay of the sea which is today the river Saxån, four Early
Neolithic places have been documented (fig. 11).
Saxtorp 23 (SU10)
On a height about 10 m a.s.l., which in prehistoric times was a
promontory-like tongue of land between the Saxån to the south and the
Kvärlövsån – now almost totally drained – to the north (fig. 11), there
was in the Early Neolithic a large settlement with activities covering an
area of several thousand square metres. During at least parts of the Early
Neolithic, in connection with the transgression maximum, an offshoot of
the bay reached all the way in to this place (Regnell, M., pers.com.). The
remains, which were excavated by the National Heritage Board Southern
Excavations Department in 1997–98 in connection with the expansion of
the West Coast Line, are in a central location on the sandy part of the
height. When investigated the tongue of land was cultivated, and
according to the maps drawn for the storskifte enclosures, it has been
used at least since the second half of the eighteenth century as arable,
pasture, or meadow land. Different Early Neolithic activity areas have
been distinguished (Andersson & Pihl 1997).
Small areas on the height tend to become peaty because areas with
finer soils in the surrounding boulder clay bring the groundwater up to
the surface. Within one such area two features (A2369 and A13939) and
a find-bearing occupation layer were excavated (fig. 12). The two
features were relatively small and shallow, about 1 m in diameter with a
depth of roughly 0.4 m. The features were interpreted as wells since the
groundwater could be reached by digging shallow pits. A 14C dating taken
from charcoal in one of the wells gave the result 4885±80 BP (3780–
3540 cal. bc, Ua-8984), which corresponds to EN I. The finds from the
wells included flake scrapers and pottery with small imprints under the
edge of the rim. In addition, there was burnt clay and stone in large
quantities. Of the osteological material, dental enamel from cattle could
be identified. Analysis of the palaeobotanical material from the two wells
shows that the forest vegetation consisted, among other things, of hazel,
lime, oak, pine, alder, and birch. A large percentage of grass and herb
pollen suggests, however, that the area was cleared in places and perhaps
used as pasture or arable (Regnell, M., pers.com.). At least one of the
features, which was documented in the preliminary investigation but later
fell outside the area of the final excavation, may be yet another well
(A3156). About 40% of the surrounding occupation layer (A103) was
excavated. The flint material (2.3 kg) was dominated by flake scrapers.
These tools are all made of relatively large flakes with a long convex
scraping edge. The stratigraphical observations in the field indicated that
the wells and the occupation layer are virtually contemporary. The area
around the well was probably the scene of some specialized activity, with
48
the flint scrapers used for working wood and skins. An asymmetric
halberd, most likely of type A (Ebbesen 1994), was retrieved from the
layer. These tools occur throughout the Early Neolithic. The pottery (0.4
kg) mainly consisted of small, unidentifiable sherds. One sherd showed
traces of very vague decoration in the form of two parallel lines. The
sherd cannot be dated any more precisely than to the Neolithic
(Andersson & Pihl 1997; Andersson, M. 1999).
About 60 m east of the area with the wells, on a terrace in the gentle
slope down towards the Kvärlövsån, the excavation documented a house
adjacent to a find-bearing layer (fig. 12). The house was round-oval and
was estimated to measure 4.5×7.5 m, oriented WNW–ESE. The wall
structure consisted of two trenches and a total of eight post-holes, three of
which were in the eastern trench. In the centre of the house were two
post-holes which were interpreted as posts to hold up the roof. In the
southern part of the structure between the trenches there was a black,
sooty layer which was covered by a compact layer of burnt clay – perhaps
the remains of a simple oven (A3852). The pottery in the sooty layer is
undecorated but can be assigned to the Neolithic. A 14C dating from the
sooty layer gave the value 4910±95 BP (3900–3540 cal. bc, Ua-8987),
which corresponds to EN I. Since the area was not included in the final
excavation, only 4% of the occupation layer (A104), or 400 m², was dug
out. The stock of tools was dominated by flake scrapers, but also
comprised a knife and two transverse arrowheads. The transverse
arrowheads were made of flakes. Other flint material (4.2 kg) consisted of
cores, flakes from axe manufacturing, retouched flints, along with
debitage and debris. There was a concentration of flint within the layer; it
included a core, several flakes from axe manufacturing and blades, but
also a transverse arrowhead. The dense accumulation of flints (0.6 kg)
and the occurrence of both debris and small and large flakes suggests a
primary deposit. This material may perhaps represent the waste amassed
by tool production. The pottery (0.5 kg) is all coarse-tempered and
mainly undecorated. A cord-decorated rim sherd was found, with
decoration consisting of two horizontal lines placed under the edge of the
rim. The rim is slightly everted with a small lip. On some of the sherds
one could detect a distinct transition between the neck and the belly. All
in all, the composition of the flint indicates that the material originated in
EN I (Andersson & Pihl 1997; Andersson, M. 1999).
Higher up on the plateau, about 80 m south of the house and the wells,
there were two features (A642 and A1292) which were presumed to be
flat-earth graves (fig. 12). A642 ran from north-east to south-west and
measured 2.32×0.79 m with a depth of 0.58 m. Two post-holes were
found adjacent to the ends of the feature and may have been part of the
structure. They could be the traces of some form of superstructure. Grey
humus documented in the grave is probably the stain left by a body (fig.
13). No skeletal parts survived and it was not possible to determine how
the body had lain. On the same level as the body colouring there were
eight stones of varying size at the north edge. Among the flint there were
three flake scrapers and a fragment of a polished axe. The axe fragment
shows parts of three polished sides and probably comes from a thinbutted or a pointed-butted axe of type 3 and can thus derive from either
49
EN I or EN II (Ebbesen 1983:61). The pottery mainly consisted of
undecorated sherds of general Neolithic character. Two small rim pieces,
one of them with cord decoration, were found, however. A charcoal
sample from the filling was 14C-dated, yielding the result 4885±85 BP
(3780–3540 cal. bc, Ua-8986). This result falls within EN I and is thus
contemporary with the house and the wells. Immediately to the southwest of the structure was an intact quern bedstone. Just over ten metres
east of A642 was yet another grave-like feature (A1292) measuring
2.02×0.76 m; the depth was 0.63 m. The feature was oriented north–
south. A grey colouring in the filling of the grave, about 1.3 m long, was
interpreted as having been made by a body, showing that the deceased
was probably laid with the head towards the north (fig. 14). No skeletal
parts or grave goods were found. A small amount of flint was retrieved
from the filling. There was at least one more feature in the area (A11820)
with a round-oval, grave-like shape, but no skeletal parts or body
colouring could be documented (Andersson & Pihl 1997; Andersson, M.
1999).
Between these activity areas there were a number of pits with Early
Neolithic material, some of them containing a fairly large number of
finds. The composition – potsherds, flint flakes, axe fragments, flake
cores, blades, awls, scrapers, and burnt bones – can be described as
ordinary dwelling site material. The large quantity of burnt clay and clay
daub found in the pits is remarkable. The clay occurred scattered in the
features. No layers of soot or clay were documented, except in the
remains of the house described above, where they could be the traces of
an oven. One possible hypothesis is that it is clay daub deriving from
other buildings on the site – outside the excavated area. The use of clay
for Early Neolithic buildings has been documented from the nearby EN II
settlement at Saxtorp (see Saxtorp 26). One of the pits, in the south of the
area by the flat-earth graves, stood out by virtue of its distinctive
appearance (A12181). The pit was about 2.3×1 m and just over 0.5 m
deep. The sides of the pit bulged outwards and seemed to be lined with
clay. The finds consisted of 2.5 kg of flint, including a number of flake
scrapers, blade knives, and a core awl. Just over half a kilo of pottery was
retrieved. The decorated sherds were dominated by small imprints, but
whipped cord also occurred (Andersson & Pihl 1997; Andersson, M.
1999).
The place on the tongue of land was probably a main settlement. The
various remains display a diverse picture, with a house, tool manufacture,
wells, and specialized activities in the form of wood and skin processing.
The flint is of the type associated with dwelling sites, with a large
element of flake cores and flakes/debitage. The tools are dominated by
flake scrapers, but knives, awls, and transverse arrowheads also occur in
fairly large numbers. The palaeobotanical analyses indicate, moreover,
that an area of forest was cleared, possibly for cultivation and/or animal
husbandry. The area of the settlement is difficult to estimate since the
whole site was not excavated, but the surface survey suggests an extent of
roughly 25,000 m². This size reinforces the impression that the
occupation was not short-term, and the presence of graves shows that the
place had a function more than just as a settlement.
50
There were no remains on the site to suggest any Mesolithic activity.
However, hut remains from the Middle Neolithic were identified, as well
as hearths from the Late Bronze Age and Early Iron Age (Andersson &
Pihl 1997; Andersson, M. 1999). It is noteworthy that 300–400 m southeast of the site a settlement from the Iron Age was excavated at the same
time and one of the houses discovered there could be from EN I. It was a
small house, about 7.5×5 metres, with two aisles. The typology led to its
being interpreted as a building from the Roman Iron Age. A 14C analysis
from one of the post-holes, however, gave a dating in EN I (Artursson et
al. 2003). Nearby the preliminary investigation uncovered an occupation
layer with finds from the Funnel Beaker culture. There was thus a
possibility that this house could be Neolithic and be part of the Early
Neolithic settlement complex on the tongue.
Saxtorp 3 (Tågerup)
Three kilometres to the north-west, on the shores of the same bay, was
the Mesolithic dwelling site and burial place at Tågerup (fig. 11). The
area is characterized by its proximity to the Saxån and Braån. The terrain
beside the rivers today consists in large measure of marshy grazing
meadows which are repeatedly flooded in winter and spring. The place
comprises parts of a moraine plateau that slopes down towards the Braån
to the west and towards the Saxån to the south. To the south-west there
extends a large area of wetland running along the valley of the Saxån
towards the village of Häljarp.
The archaeological excavations conducted by the National Heritage
Board Southern Excavations Department in 1996–98 revealed
comprehensive activities in the Late Mesolithic (Karsten & Knarrström
1999, 2001). An inventory of stray finds shows that the place was also
visited during the Early Neolithic. The extent of these Neolithic activities
is difficult to assess since the excavations covered only Mesolithic
settlement layers along the former shoreline. The remains cover a large
part of the foreland (over 100,000 m²), but according to the surface
survey the Early and Middle Neolithic activities mainly took place higher
up on the plateau. The composition of tools here, with scrapers, knives,
awls, arrowheads, and axe fragments, indicates that the site probably
functioned as a main settlement during much of the Neolithic as well.
Tofta 17
A little more than a kilometre and a half west of Tågerup, two sites (Tofta
17 and Saxtorp 12) with finds of Early Neolithic material were excavated,
on either side of the Saxån bay (fig. 11).
Tofta 17, on the north side of the bay, was on a slight sandy rise. It
was excavated by the National Heritage Board Southern Excavations
Department in 1998 in connection with the construction of the West
Coast Line. Within this area it has been possible to document a very long
prehistory. Flint finds show that the first visit here came late in the
Palaeolithic (Andersson & Knarrström 1999:60). The place was
subsequently used for a long time as a burial ground. With certain
interruptions, there are burials from the Late Mesolithic until the early
part of the Iron Age. The long site continuity meant that stratigraphical
51
interpretations were very difficult and that the older remains in several
cases were disturbed by the later ones. In the north-west part of the area,
above all, it was possible to document Early Neolithic activities
(Cademar & Ericson 2000).
Parts of a house were identified, overlayered by a burial mound that
has now been ploughed away (fig. 15). It has not been possible to arrive
at an unambiguous dating of the post structure, but the rounded gable in
the western part of the building shows similarities to the two-aisled
houses of Mossby type which are dated to the Early Neolithic (Larsson,
M. 1992; Göthberg et al. 1995:100). Other central posts and wall posts in
the eastern part of the house were probably destroyed in connection with
the digging of the trench (A1686) around the edge of the barrow. This
trench is dated to the earliest part of the Bronze Age, or possibly the Late
Neolithic. It is likely that the barrow has preserved the post-holes in the
western part of the structure (Cademar & Ericson 2000). In the area
around the structure, Early Neolithic pottery was retrieved, along with a
fragment of a pointed-butted flint axe. The dating of the house is of
course uncertain since it has been disturbed by later activity. Any Early
Neolithic occupation layers that may have existed have also been
destroyed by later activity. The form of the structure, the stratigraphical
observations, and finds of Early Neolithic pottery in the area indicate a
dating to EN I to be reasonable.
At least two of the flat-earth graves on the site may come from the
Early Neolithic. In the south-east part of the house a feature measuring
2.01×0.8 m and 0.37 m deep (A2792) was excavated. It was oriented
north–south and overlayered in the eastern part by the trench around the
barrow. No skeletal colouring was identified, but there was a filling that
was interpreted as the remains of a stain left by a coffin. The feature was
therefore interpreted as a flat-earth grave. A charcoal sample from the
filling gave a 14C dating of 5105±75 BP (3980–3800 cal. bc, Ua-8351).
This corresponds to the transition between the Late Mesolithic and the
Early Neolithic. Under two long barrows placed one on top of the other at
Bygholm Nørremark in eastern Jutland, a grave was found inside a house.
The long barrows have been dated to EN II (C) (Rønne 1979). Although
the Bronze Age barrow overlayering the house and the grave in Tofta has
preserved dug features such as post-holes and the grave, the construction
of the barrow destroyed other remains of Early Neolithic activities. If a
long barrow preceded the Bronze Age barrow, perhaps the traces of the
traditional east façade of a long barrow, in the form of stains left by posts
or pits and/or a stone packing, should nevertheless have been
documented. None of these remains could be identified, which probably
means that there never was a long barrow here. About five metres south
of this grave, yet another grave-like feature (A2663) was excavated. This
measured 2.33×1.04 m and was 0.4 m deep. The feature was oriented
north–south. No bones or skeleton colouring could be observed, however.
The finds in the filling included sherds of cord-decorated pottery, five
flint blades, a butt fragment from a thin-butted flint axe, and almost 2 kg
of flint flakes and debitage, of which 1.5 kg was burnt. A charcoal sample
from the bottom filling gave the value 5540±70 BP (4460–4340 cal. bc,
Ua-8352), corresponding to the middle Ertebølle culture. Both the
52
function and the dating of the feature may thus be regarded as uncertain
(Lindblad & Lund 1997). In two trenches (A1734 and A18314)
immediately to the west of the feature there was cord-decorated pottery
which can be dated to the Early Neolithic (Cademar & Ericson 2000). It
cannot be ruled out that the graves are later and that the Early Neolithic
material comes from an older occupation layer which has been dug up
and is now ploughed away. Despite this, the Early Neolithic presence on
the site is palpable, and it is particularly interesting in relation to the Late
Mesolithic and Early Neolithic remains (Saxtorp 12) excavated on the
other side of the Saxån.
Saxtorp 12
This site, which was excavated by a seminar excavation in 1982 by the
Department of Archaeology, Lund University, was located on what was
once a sandy foreland south of the Saxån (fig. 11). The site had
previously been dated to the Late Mesolithic and the Early Neolithic on
the basis of the rich quantity of surface finds from the plough layer. In the
south-west part of the excavated area, which was on a small plateau about
6 m a.s.l., an area of 30 m² of a dark-coloured occupation layer was dug
out. The finds consisted of flint (3.3 kg) in the form of flakes, blades,
cores, two blade scrapers, and three transverse arrowheads, and there
were also small quantities of pottery (0.13 kg) of an Early Neolithic
character; these included belly sherds with shallow parallel lines which
can be categorized as ENC (EN II). Adjacent to the occupation layer was
a grave measuring 2.10×1.20 m. Traces of colouring and skeletal remains
could be distinguished (fig. 16). Towards the bottom the filling was
denser and fattier, which could be interpreted as remains of a coffin. The
grave was 0.70 m deep and oriented SSW–NNE. Finds of two potsherds,
one of them decorated with shallow parallel lines, can be dated to ENC
(EN II). About 50 m north-east of the grave, 26 m² of yet another
occupation layer was excavated. Besides flint flakes and debitage, there
were scrapers, knives, awls, polished axe fragments, transverse
arrowheads, hammerstones, cores, and part of a quern. The large amounts
of flint (60 kg) and pottery (0.3 kg) here indicate dates in the Ertebølle
culture and EN B–C (EN I–II) (Jennbert 1984b).
No clear boundaries to the settlement could be determined on the basis
of the metre-square trenches that were dug. It is of course difficult from
the excavation of a limited area to obtain a picture of the organization of
the place. It is reasonable to assume that the grave is not a solitary
phenomenon; there may well be more graves in the area. The
composition of the flint suggests that the site was used for a long time
during the Late Mesolithic/Early Neolithic and that it functioned, at least
periodically, as a main settlement. Perhaps the place can be associated
with the remains on the other side of the river. The two sites may very
well have functioned partly simultaneously and constituted a larger
settlement complex.
53
Löddeköpinge 8 (Löddesborg)
In the Early Neolithic there were also settlements along the bay that is
now the Lödde Å (fig. 11). The only one that has been excavated is the
Löddesborg site, Löddeköpinge 8.
The Löddesborg dwelling site was at an altitude of 4–5 m a.s.l. on the
coast of the Öresund, roughly 1 km west of where the Lödde Å flows into
the sound. The settlement was located on a raised beach on the south side
of a small peninsula which was demarcated to the north by the former
lagoon that is now the bog of Barsebäck Mosse. The site has been known
since the start of the twentieth century, and excavations were conducted
by LUHM during a total of six field seasons between 1964 and 1970. The
total area excavated was 622 m², some 412 m² of this intensively, within
an area measuring roughly 170×25 m (Jennbert 1984a).
Under the plough layer there were several occupation layers deposited
by recurrent settlements. The total quantity of Late Mesolithic and Early
Neolithic flint and pottery is very large. Several hundred kilos of knapped
flint has been retrieved, and the pottery amounts to 130 kg. The latter is
dominated by Ertebølle ware, but a large quantity of Early Neolithic ware
was found, especially in the upper layers. Tools account for only about
1% of the flint (Jennbert 1984a).
In several of the occupation layers there were features in the form of
hearths, post-holes, and a stone packing. Clay daub was identified in the
upper occupation layer, which might suggest the remains of some kind of
building in connection with an Early Neolithic settlement phase. The
excavated areas are too small, however, to allow us to establish this for
sure. Large stones were found in the central parts of the site. Their size
and finds of human bones do not exclude the possibility that there was
once a dolmen here (Jennbert 1984a).
Jennbert thinks that the Löddesborg site is a settlement of “mixed
character”. The Ertebølle and Early Neolithic ceramic tradition can be
distinguished in all the layers, with an increasing frequency of Early
Neolithic sherds in the upper layers. Based on a 14C dating from the lower
occupation layer with the value 5260±80 BP (4230–3980 cal. bc, Lu1842), the character of the stone finds, and the predominance of Ertebølle
pottery in all the layers, all the occupation layers of the settlement have
been dated to the Late Atlantic (Jennbert 1984a). Whether the absolute
dating in the bottom layer also applies to the later horizons above it can
of course be discussed. We cannot rule out a certain mixture of material
between different stratigraphical horizons. In the upper layers in
particular there is a significant element of material characteristic of the
Early Neolithic.
Grain impressions in the pottery and remains of bones from
domesticated animals, chiefly in the later settlement horizons (Jennbert
1984a), show that the settlement is a place where people probably
pursued tillage and animal husbandry. This fact, together with the size of
the place and the varied nature of the finds, is a powerful argument that
there was a main settlement here.
Another six places with Early Neolithic material have been registered
along the coast or in the bays. Since they have not been excavated, it is
difficult to determine their function. At three of the places (Löddeköpinge
54
17 (Vikhög), Barsebäck 72, and Barsebäck 54) a large amount of flint has
been collected, of both Late Mesolithic and Early Neolithic character.
Since these sites also cover relatively large areas, it is reasonable to
regard them as hypothetical main settlements.
Main settlements in the interior
Unlike the Late Mesolithic sites in the area, several of the registered
Early Neolithic sites are in the interior. None of the settlements in the
area, however, is more than about 15 kilometres from the former
coastline, which means that the sea was always within easy reach. Places
within a few kilometres of the coast, from where the water can be reached
in an hour or so, may be reckoned as coastal or near-coastal sites. When
the distance to the coast is more than five kilometres, however, the sites
should be regarded as inland sites since in these cases it was probably not
the marine environment and its resources that dictated the choice of
settlement location. Most of the inland sites, however, are close to
watercourses or wetlands. It was above all the sandy soils that were
claimed, but often in the zone where they border on the clay soils.
Most of the Early Neolithic inland settlements are relatively small, but
one larger dwelling site in the interior has been documented beside the
Välabäcken in the valley between the medieval church of Dagstorp and
the hills of Västra Karaby (figs. 11 and 17).
Dagstorp 19 (SU21)
Dagstorp 19 comprised remains of settlement from the Early and Middle
Neolithic Funnel Beaker culture and the Late Iron Age, as well as
occasional remains from the Battle Axe culture and the Late Bronze
Age/Early Iron Age. On the site, which was excavated in connection with
the construction of the West Coast Line in 1998, remains were found of
about fifteen houses from the Early and the Middle Neolithic. The
number of houses is the largest from this period in Sweden hitherto found
on one site (Lagergren-Olsson & Linderoth 2000; Artursson et al. 2003).
Fig. 18. Plan of Dagstorp 19 (SU21) during EN I.
The Välabäcken, the course of which has been straightened today,
flows east–west, and the land on either side is used for tillage and pasture.
The site is located on gentle slopes and tongues of land reaching out
towards areas which in prehistoric time were wetlands beside the
Välabäcken. In the northern part of the investigation area the terrain
slopes gently down towards a more waterlogged area. The subsoil closest
to the water system consists of fine-grained sand, while the element of
coarser stone becomes more noticeable on the higher parts of the ridge to
the north. The remains are located on stretches of fine sand along the
Välabäcken running for a distance of approximately 500 m. The dwelling
sites make up a chronological sequence from EN I to MNA III
(Lagergren-Olsson & Linderoth 2000).
In the western part of the site there were occupation layers (A150)
with chronologically homogeneous find material, so the place here
appears not to have been disturbed by later prehistoric activity (fig. 18
and 19). The area has not been subject to repeated deep ploughing, and
55
there are well-preserved features both in and under the occupation layer.
The layer comprised an area of about 3,700 m² and the boundary could be
established wholly to the east and west and partially to the north and
south. After an introductory surface survey of the whole occupation layer,
403 metre-square trenches were dug by hand. The remainder of the layer
was investigated extensively by means of machine stripping. The pottery
(16 kg) was of Funnel Beaker character and the total impression was of a
dating to EN I (Becker 1947; Larsson, M. 1984; Lagergren-Olsson &
Linderoth 2000). The decoration of the excavated material was done with
stabbed dots around the rim. Fragments of at least one collared flask and
a clay disc were retrieved. The clay disc had impressions on the edge,
which was also thickened. Occasional elements of Middle Neolithic
pottery consisted of sherds decorated with lines or tooth stamps. The
layer also contained a concentration of pottery about 1.9×0.7 m (A79683)
with about 160 sherds. Among the decorated pottery were large parts of a
lugged beaker with decoration consisting of alternating vertical and
horizontal fields of whipped cord on both belly and neck, and notches at
the rim. There is also a rim sherd with impressions under the rim and
there are remains of a clay disc. The flint in the layer (24 kg) was of
Neolithic character; finds included several cores of polygonal and
platform type, blades, and flakes from axe and flake manufacture. A
fragment of a polished, probably thin-butted, flint axe and part of a
polished halberd datable to EN–MN II (Ebbesen 1994:103) were found in
the topsoil.
In and beside the occupation layer farthest to the west was a hut
structure, designated hut 54. It was round with a diameter of 4.3 m, and
with the opening towards the north-north-east. In the southern half the hut
consisted of a trench with post-holes and in the northern half of postholes. Charcoal taken from one of the post-holes gave a dating to EN I,
5040±75 BP (3950–3770 cal. bc, Ua-25730). Several Early Neolithic pits
were found on the site. Pit A52104 north-east of the hut distinguished
itself through the relatively large quantity of finds retrieved here. In the
feature, which measured 0.98×0.7 m and was 0.3 m deep, there were
flakes with polished surfaces, burnt flint, debitage from axe manufacture,
parts of funnel beakers, and burnt bones. A fragment of a clay disc, with a
raised edge and decorated with finger impressions along the rim, was also
discovered. Clay discs of this type can be dated to EN I (cf. Nielsen, P. O.
1985). Two charcoal samples from the feature gave Early Neolithic
datings, 4755±70 BP (3640–3380 cal. bc, Ua-8860) and 480070 BP
(3660–3380 cal. bc, Ua-25059) (Lagergren-Olsson & Linderoth 2000).
Adjacent to the eastern part of the layer was a structure designated
house 57/58. This was first regarded as two separate houses, but a
reinterpretation has shown that it was probably a large building with no
pairs of posts in the middle part of the long walls. What speaks in favour
of this alternative is the occurrence of a distinct row of roof-bearing posts
and the fact that there were similar contemporary finds. The weaknesses
of the interpretation can be the exaggerated trapezoidal shape and the fact
that the roof-bearing line was placed somewhat obliquely in the design. It
is also uncertain what the interruptions in the long walls represent. The
design was two-aisled and just over 20 m long, with a width varying
56
between 7.7 and 5 m. Charcoal samples taken from one of the roofbearing post-holes gave a date in EN I, 491585 BP (3800–3540 cal. bc,
Ua-25726). In the eastern part beside the gable was a pit, A101623,
which measured roughly 4.7×3.1 m and was 0.18 m deep. This feature
can be interpreted as remains of a sunken floor. In the middle of the
house was a pit rich in finds, A101408 (1×0.7×0.2 m). Just outside the
southern wall there was another find-bearing pit, A107282
(1.06×0.92×0.35 m). The pit in the central part of the house contained
quite a lot of pottery and flint. The flint finds mostly consisted of
flakes/debitage, but there were also tools in the form of four scrapers, a
knife, a transverse arrowhead, and a polished axe fragment, as well as
retouched flint and a microblade. Among the pottery there were parts of a
lugged beaker with decoration consisting of alternating vertical and
horizontal fields of whipped cord on both the belly and the neck. These
sherds showed great similarities to the lugged beaker found in the layer,
and they may come from the same vessel. The lugged beaker has
decoration resembling what was found at Bellevuegården in Malmö,
which has been dated to the late EN II (Larsson, M. 1984). Eva Koch,
however, believes that this type of lugged beaker can be dated to EN I
(Koch 1998:109ff.) The pit also contained a piece of a clay disc and a
sherd of a collared flask. In the sunken floor, A101623, there was flint,
pottery, burnt bones, and the shell of a hazelnut. The flint mostly
consisted of flakes/debitage, but there were also a couple of scrapers and
some retouched pieces of flint. The pottery was not decorated. Pit
A107282 contained a large quantity of pottery along with flint, burnt
clay, burnt bones, and charcoal. Some rim sherds were decorated with
notches on the edge. There were also two fragments of a clay disc with
finger impressions on the edge. The finds of flint consisted of
flakes/debitage, a flake core, debris, a couple of retouched flints, and a
polished axe fragment. The pottery and the analysis of carbon samples,
yielding the values 492570 BP (3780–3640 cal. bc, Ua-25719) and
4900±70 BP (3770–3630 cal. bc, Ua-25720), allow the pits to be dated to
EN I (Artursson et al. 2003).
East of the layer there was yet another house structure, house 61,
which according to the 14C results from a charcoal sample taken from one
of the wall post-holes can be dated to EN I, 489585 BP (3790–3540 cal.
bc, Ua-25727). The house is a two-aisled structure, 16×7 m and oriented
ESE–WNW, with a rectangular, possibly slightly trapezoidal form.
Heavy ploughing in this part of the excavated area has removed any
associated occupation layers. Occasional flint flakes were found in the
features of the house. The dating, however, must be considered uncertain,
since the 14C analysis points towards EN I, while the appearance of the
house is more like that of houses dated to MNA I–III.
The total quantity of finds and the scope of the occupation layers and
features at Dagstorp suggest that the site functioned as a main settlement.
57
Dwelling/activity sites
Stävie 21
In the area around the Lödde Å and Kävlingeån valley, three small,
similar Early Neolithic sites (Stävie 21, Lackalänga 36, and Örtofta) have
been identified (fig. 11). They are relatively small and have a limited
amount of finds.
The Stävie 21 site, which was excavated in 1990 by the National
Heritage Board Southern Excavations Department in connection with the
planned construction of new houses, was located on a moraine plateau
just south of the Lödde Å. The natural environment is influenced by the
meandering course of the river and the undulating terrain with sandy till
ridges, interrupted by wetlands, now mostly drained. From the excavated
plateau, with a view of the valley, the land slopes down to the west, at
first gently and then steeply towards an area of wetland (Knarrström
1995).
The excavated area, which comprised about 4,500 m², contained two
hut structures (fig. 20) which were rather difficult to interpret. Hut I was
about 7.5×7.5 m, consisting of eighteen post-holes with an average depth
of 0.15 m. The hut was badly damaged by recent drainage. No vestiges of
occupation layers or floor levels were found in or beside the structure.
One post-hole at the probable entrance in the south of the hut contained a
small flint flake and an awl made from frost-split moraine flint. Hut II
measured 6.5×6.5 m with thirty-seven post-holes with an average depth
of 0.09 m. No occupation layers or remains of floor levels were
discovered. Flint flakes were found in two post-holes, one in the north
wall, the other in the south wall. South-east of hut I was a pit almost 3 m
in diameter and half a metre deep. Close on four kilos of pottery was
retrieved from the pit. The combination of decoration, shape, tempering,
and fabric quality indicates that about twenty different vessels were
deposited in the pit (Knarrström 1995). The decorative and formal
elements are comparable in typology and chronology to the Svenstorp
group in ENB (EN I) (Larsson, M. 1984). A total of 95 scrapers were
found in the pit, with a total weight of 3.7 kg, both worn-out and unused
examples as well as preforms. Use-wear analysis showed that as many as
85% of the scrapers were used for working both wood and skins. In
addition, a fragment of a thin- or pointed-butted flint axe was found and a
large amount of flakes suitable for secondary knapping (Knarrström
1995, 2000a).
Lackalänga 36
A comparable hut structure was excavated only two kilometres west of
Stävie 21 (fig. 20). The site, located on a flat terrace on a south-facing
slope, was excavated by the National Heritage Board Southern
Excavations Department in 1995 in connection with road construction.
The excavated area comprised roughly 1,600 m². The district is
dominated by light clay soils and has several areas of wetland. In
prehistoric times the bogs were probably lakes and the hilly landscape
was more wooded. A total of thirteen post-holes with an average depth of
0.15 m made up this round-oval hut-like structure. Charcoal from one of
58
the post-holes gave the value 4790±80 BP (3651–3385 cal. bc, Ua-7402),
corresponding to EN I–II. Other features on the site consisted of pits and
hearths which could not be dated any more exactly than to prehistoric
times. The few finds on the site were difficult to identify; however, a
polished axe fragment was discovered (Andersson, A. 1997).
Örtofta
Approximately 100 m east of the Braån in Örtofta parish, structures have
been excavated (fig. 20) which show parallels to the structures from
Stävie and Lackalänga described above. Areas totalling 16,200 m² were
excavated here by the National Heritage Board Southern Excavations
Department in 1992–1996 in connection with gravel extraction. The site
is on a clayey plateau which slopes gently towards the south, down
towards a small patch of wetland. The majority of the structures have
been dated to the Bronze Age and Iron Age (Petersson & Hägerman
1997). There are, however, two post-built structures on the site which are
slightly smaller than those in Stävie and Lackalänga but otherwise show a
similar plan. They are round and about 5×5 m in size. Outside each
structure was a pit containing Early Neolithic pottery. The pottery from
one of the pits was highly fragmentary but it could be seen that it was
decorated with oval impressions in least two rows under the rim. The
other pit contained a large amount of pottery with a total weight of 1.4
kg. Among the sherds there were rim pieces decorated with cord and stick
impressions grouped in several rows. The form and decoration of the
sherds allow the pottery to be assigned with some probability to EN I.
The large quantity of post-holes in the buildings, which are evidence
of repair and post replacement, makes it hard to define the shape of the
huts. The buildings on the three sites were probably round or round-oval.
Of course, the structures may also have consisted of platforms supported
on posts. No remains of occupation layers or finds normally associated
with traditional settlement sites have been discovered beside these
structures. One explanation for this could be that the sites have been
exposed to protracted ploughing, and there was never any systematic
surface survey before the excavation. The remains, which lack a central
row of posts, have been interpreted as huts where repairs and new posts
have made the form difficult to determine. The similar appearance of the
buildings, the 14C dating from Lackalänga, and the Early Neolithic
material in the pits from Stävie and Örtofta all mean that a dating to EN I
seems reasonable. A comparable round structure was documented at the
Late Mesolithic site at Tågerup. After careful investigation it was found
that this building was used in two phases (Cronberg 2001).
Vallkärra point 12
In 1994 the National Heritage Board Southern Excavations Department
excavated a number of places in connection with the construction of the
West Coast Line between Lund and Kävlinge. Two of these places
revealed remains which can be dated to the start of the Early Neolithic,
although they are difficult to interpret.
The Early Neolithic activities at Vallkärra point 12 (fig. 11) were
located on the crest of a plateau of sand and till which goes on to slope
59
steeply to the south. The height above sea level varies between 25 and 30
m. At the lowest point in the excavated area was a thin, black layer of
peat which indicates the occurrence of now-drained wetland.
The excavation covered an area of just over 5,000 m² and contained
remains from several prehistoric periods. At the highest point on the crest
of the plateau there was row of post-holes about eleven metres long.
South of and parallel to the post-holes the archaeologists identified a
small trench, about ten metres long and half a metre wide. North of the
post-holes was a much bigger trench which could be followed for 25 m
over the entire excavated area in a NNE–SSW direction (fig. 21). The
trenches had diffuse boundaries and were up to 0.3 m deep. The filling of
the post-holes, consisting of light brownish-grey sand, was only faintly
visible against the sterile subsoil. A few unidentifiable pieces of flint
flakes and debitage were retrieved from some of the post-holes. Roughly
in the middle of the row of post-holes was a pit measuring 2×1.3 m with a
depth of 0.8 m (A121). The pit contained remains of least ten different
pots. The decoration consisted of horizontal rows of small imprints, rim
bulges, and nail impressions, simple rows of nail impressions and tooth
stamps. The ornamental elements and the vessel shapes correspond to a
dating to EN I. The stratigraphical observations in the field showed that
the pit preceded the making of the trenches and the row of post-holes.
The impression of the excavators, however, was that the pit was an
integral part of the system of trenches and post-holes. This picture is
reinforced by the fact that the pit is situated roughly between the two
trenches and exactly under the row of post-holes. There was no datable
material in the trenches or the post-holes, nor was there any charcoal for
analysis. It is therefore difficult to ascertain whether the structures are
contemporary. Based on the observations in the field, the remains could
be regarded as parts of a ploughed-out long barrow. The pit may have
been a votive pit or possibly a grave above which a long barrow was
subsequently built (Knarrström, ms). The weakness of this interpretation
is that there are no traces within the excavation trench, to either the north
or the south, of any mark of the width of the long barrow. If the long
barrow was more than 16 m wide, however, it is possible that the
northern part of the structure lay outside the excavated area.
Finds from the peat layer included a dagger, a spoon scraper, ordinary
scrapers, several rubber stones, and a rock whetstone. There was no
material here which could be dated to the Early and Middle Neolithic. At
least during the Late Neolithic/Early Bronze Age the wetland probably
functioned as a votive site (Knarrström, ms).
Burial place
Stångby (Vallkärra) point 10
About 2.5 kilometres north-west of Vallkärra and less than two
kilometres north-west of point 12 (fig. 11) an area of roughly 1,700 m²
was excavated. The site is located on clay soil about 30 m a.s.l., some 500
m east of the nearest large area of wetland. The dig unearthed a total of
twenty-nine features (post-holes, pits, and hearths) which were deemed to
be prehistoric. The only feature containing datable material was a pit
60
measuring approximately 2.4×1.5 m and 0.27 m deep. The structure was
surrounded by four post-holes. Small stones were found at the edge of the
pit. Besides a scraper and a number of flint flakes, the pit contained an
unpolished pointed-butted axe. The axe is two-sided with a pointed-oval
cross-section, and it is 19 cm long and 6 cm wide. No certain skeletal
colouring could be documented in the feature, but the rectangular shape
means that we cannot rule out the possibility that the pit functioned as a
grave and the post-holes are the remains of some kind of superstructure
(Ericson Borggren, ms). Finds of unpolished axes in grave contexts are
rare, however (Nielsen, P. O. 1977; Karsten 1994). Since the dating and
function of other features on the site were never clarified, the grave
hypothesis must be considered uncertain. Nor can we determine whether
the adjacent features should be regarded as remains of a contemporary
settlement.
Votive sites
Within the investigation area, five places (Västra Hoby 18, Norrvidinge
22, Norra Nöbbelövs Mosse, Virke 3, and Östra Karaby 11) have been
interpreted as sites of Early Neolithic votive deposits in a context where
no contemporary remains of settlements or graves have been found (fig.
11). The chosen sites no doubt lay in bogs or waterlogged ground when
the deposits were made. The sacrificed objects are exclusively single
pointed-butted axes, both unpolished and polished. Three of the axes are
intact, two of them unpolished (Norrvidinge 22, Östra Karaby 11) and
one polished (Virke 3). In two cases only the butt of the axe was
deposited, one unpolished (Norra Nöbbelövs Mosse) and one polished
(Västra Hoby 18). Four of the sites were later used for votive deposits on
repeated occasions, in the Middle Neolithic as well, while Virke was used
only during EN I. What they all have in common is that only one object,
namely, the pointed-butted axe, was found at each place (Karsten 1994).
There are no Early Neolithic settlements – whether excavated or
identified by surface survey – in the vicinity of these places. The find in
the bog at Norra Nöbbelövs Mosse is at the shortest distance (approx. 700
m) from the nearest contemporary settlement.
EN II–MNA II
Settlement
In the latter part of the Early Neolithic we notice a change in the
settlement pattern in much of southern Scandinavia. Once again, our
knowledge of Scanian settlement in this phase comes from the south-west
and south-east parts of the province (e.g. Strömberg 1968, 1971, 1978,
1982a, 1982b, 1988a; Salomonsson 1971; Larsson & Larsson 1984,
1986; Larsson, L. 1985, 1989a, 1992a, 1992c, 1993, 1998; Larsson, M.
1984, 1985, 1987, 1988b, 1991; 1992; Svensson 1986; Björhem &
Säfvestad 1989; Almquist & Svensson 1990; Billberg & Magnusson
Staaf 1999). What characterizes these well-investigated regions is that
settlement expanded vigorously during the period. In contrast, the
settlement pattern looks partly different in different regions of Skåne. In
61
the south-west parts of the province there is a shift in the settlements from
the hummocky landscape of the interior to the rich clay soils on the
coasts. In other parts of the province, such as the Ystad area, we do not
see the same change. Here the settlement areas show a continuity from
the opening phase of the Early Neolithic into EN II–MNA II.
It was also at the end of the Early Neolithic that the sea reached its
highest level, almost five metres above today’s (Regnell, M., pers.com.),
which meant that the bays reached further inland.
In the area around Saxån-Välabäcken and Lödde Å-Kävlingeån,
eighty-eight settlements from this phase have been documented, thirtythree of them excavated on varying scales (fig. 22).
Main settlements
Within the investigation area there are some excavated places which,
judging by the existing remains of settlement and the variation in find
material, can be regarded as main settlements.
Saxtorp 26 west (SU8)
The dwelling site remains at Saxtorp 26 lay on a flat sandy height, about
10 m a.s.l., roughly 100 m north of the Saxån (fig. 22). East of the site the
land starts to slope noticeably down towards what is now drained wetland
but which in the Early Neolithic functioned as a votive site (see Saxtorp
26 east) (Lindahl Jensen & Nilsson 1999). The area was formerly
documented in the register of ancient monuments as a Stone Age
dwelling site, including a find of a fragmentary thin-butted axe.
The site was excavated in 1998 by the National Heritage Board
Southern Excavations Department in connection with the construction of
the West Coast Line. The almost 6,000 m² large excavation area
contained a great number of features and houses. The density of features
increased further up the slope, and all the house remains were
concentrated within the northern and north-eastern part of the
investigation area. In all probability the central parts of the dwelling site
were on the plateau north of the excavated area. The remains of
settlement consisted of ten long-houses, four sunken-floor huts, and at
least one four-post house. One of the long-houses, house 17, can be dated
to EN II–MNA I on the basis of the design, 14C datings, and the
appearance of the pottery, while the others are most probably from the
Early Roman Iron Age and Migration Period (Artursson 1999).
The Neolithic house was roughly 20 m long and 6 m wide, a twoaisled structure oriented WNW–ESE (fig. 23). A total of three stout and
deep post-holes were documented as traces of the roof-bearing structure.
The distance between the roof-supports in the western part of the house
was large, about 9 m, while in the eastern part it was about 4 m. The line
of the north wall was almost entirely preserved and in certain sections
doubled, while the southern wall line was more diffuse. The gables were
less well preserved, but the parts that survive suggest that they were
rounded. The inner area of the building was roughly 100 m². Finds of
burnt clay and clay daub with clear impressions of wicker and other
wooden structures were plentiful in the area of the house. It is thus
reasonable to envisage that the walls were made of wattle and daub.
62
Inside the house and outside the line of the south wall were a number of
shallow pits or depressions with remains of a presumed demolition layer.
The pits or depressions contained a large quantity of burnt clay and clay
daub, as well as pottery of Funnel Beaker type. The clay daub in the pits
could also be the vestiges of ovens. Archaeological remains of an oven,
however, should consist of both remains of daub and signs of firing in the
form of soot layers and fire-damaged underlying layers (Eriksson et al.
2000). The pits around the Neolithic house showed neither of these
features, so the oven theory must be considered highly uncertain. The
flint (1.2 kg) consists mainly of flakes and debitage. Only six tools were
found: two flake scrapers, three retouched flint flakes, and a transverse
arrowhead. The potsherds (1.3 kg) are of Funnel Beaker type, consisting
mainly of pieces without decoration. The decorative techniques that do
occur are lines, small stick impressions, cord, and whipped cord. Sherds
from a richly decorated lugged beaker in Virum style were excavated
from a pit (A14626) right beside the line of the south wall, and one
fragment was found in the hole for a roof-bearing post (A15866) in one
of the nearby Iron Age houses. The latter fragment is of thinner ware, and
with finer whipped cord decoration; it could be a part of the pot that was
found in the wetland (see Saxtorp 26 east). Pottery of Virum type is
usually dated to EN II (Ebbesen & Mahler 1980; Koch 1998). The
decorative elements on the other pottery agree with what was found in the
adjacent wetland and can thus be dated with all probability to EN II. Of
the bones (22 g), just over half are burnt and neither the species nor the
type of bone can be identified. The unburnt fragments consist of enamel
fragments, most of which come from cattle (Artursson 1999).
The house can be dated on typological criteria and through the
appearance of the pottery to the transition from the Early to the Middle
Neolithic. This dating is confirmed by the 14C analyses. Charcoal from a
wall post-hole has been dated to 4750±70 BP (3640–3380 cal. bc, Ua9929), and charcoal from a roof-bearing post-hole to 4625±70 BP (3510–
3130 cal. bc, Ua-9930) and 4685±70 BP (3620–3360 cal. bc, Ua-9931).
The pit (A14626), which contained a relatively large amount of burnt
clay daub and pottery of Virum type, has been 14C-dated to 4710±70 BP
(3630–3370 cal. bc, Ua-9927) (Artursson 1999; Artursson et al. 2003).
In the north-eastern part, the building was overlayered by an
occupation layer (A38567), about 36 m² in area. The layer extends
outside the line of the wall and continues outside the excavated area to
the north and east. The flints (1 kg) are of Neolithic character but cannot
be dated any more closely than this. The dwelling site could thus not be
demarcated towards the east and north-east. South of the house, towards
the wetland, there were no Neolithic remains (Artursson 1999).
Västra Karaby 7
About five kilometres south-east of Saxtorp 26, along the Saxån, was the
next large settlement from this period, Västra Karaby 7 (fig. 22).
In connection with a planned house construction project in Dösjebro,
the National Heritage Board Southern Excavations Department in autumn
1972 excavated a Bronze Age barrow. Under the barrow were found
settlement layers from the Middle Neolithic. The dwelling site lay on a
63
sandy height, 10 m a.s.l., and just over 300 m south of the confluence of
the Välabäcken and Saxån. The sandy ridges in the area create great
differences in level (Nagmér 1976).
The remains of the Middle Neolithic settlement documented by the
excavation consisted of an occupation layer measuring about 150 m² and
some small pits. The occupation layer could be demarcated to the south
and east, but flint artefacts discovered by surface survey suggest that the
settlement probably continued outside the excavated area to the north and
west. The finds, both flint and pottery, are mainly concentrated in an area
east of the barrow. Almost 35% of the occupation layer was excavated.
Of the flint (5 kg), 16% consisted of tools or flakes with retouching.
Flake scrapers dominated among the tools, which also included flake
awls, knives, and transverse arrowheads. The majority of the pottery (12
kg) belongs to the Funnel Beaker culture. The most common decoration
consists of vertical lines on the belly. Other decorative elements are
whipped cord, cord, angles, and various forms of pits. Funnel beakers and
bowls seem to be the most common vessel forms. Based on decoration
and vessel shape, the pottery can be dated to EN II at the earliest, but the
composition of the decoration indicates that the majority can be placed in
MNA I. Fifteen grain impressions have been documented on pottery from
the site. Hakon Hjelmqvist’s analysis shows the following distribution of
cereal types: five einkorn, four emmer, two einkorn or emmer, and four
wheat. No organic material from the site is preserved. The occupation
layer contained a funnel beaker which had been placed upside down,
carefully enclosed by a clay packing. Only the rim and neck survived.
The rim, which was decorated with double rows of pits, had a diameter of
0.4 m (Nagmér 1976; Löfwall 1977). The excavation did not uncover any
surviving dwelling structures, but the varied finds suggest that the site
may have functioned as a main settlement.
Dagstorp 19 (SU21)
Just over two kilometres to the east, immediately north of the
Välabäcken, lay Dagstorp 19 (fig. 22). The remains of settlement here
make up a chronological sequence comprising EN I–MNA III.
(Lagergren-Olsson & Linderoth 2000; Artursson 2003), and an account
of the traces of settlement during the earliest phase of the Early Neolithic
was given in the previous section.
In the western part of the excavated area, the largest occupation layer
(approx. 3,700 m²), A150, was investigated (fig. 24a). The finds in the
layer mainly came from EN I but a small element of MNA I is noticeable
in the northernmost parts of the layer. In this part, especially under but
also in the bottom of the layer, four houses could be discerned (houses
50, 51, 52, and 55). The house remains were trapezoidal and between 7
and 10 m long and with a maximum width of between 4.6 and 5.5 m.
Three of the buildings ran roughly north–south and were very similar in
shape. A characteristic feature of these three houses was the placing of
the roof-bearing posts. One roof support was placed in the southern gable
or just inside it, while two to three roof supports were found one or a few
metres inside the north gable. In the northern part of the house there were
pits (A53477, A53516, A84845, and A100162) which were probably
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contemporary with the houses. Finds from the pits in the trapezoidal
houses have all yielded datings in MNA I. In addition, there is a 14C
dating from a cereal grain taken from the wall-post of house 51. This
gave a value of 4475±65 BP (3340–3030 cal. bc, Ua-25066), which
corresponds to the start of the Middle Neolithic. In occupation layer
A150 yet another building was documented. The structure, which was
8×7 m, consisted of irregularly placed post-holes and can be interpreted
as the remains of a hut. This building (hut 56), based on finds in the
adjacent occupation layer, should also be assigned to the early Middle
Neolithic (Lagergren-Olsson & Linderoth 2000).
In the southern part of the site, closer to the Välabäcken, the
excavation unearthed yet another occupation layer, A159 (fig. 24b).
Access to the northern parts of the layer was restricted by modern-day
buildings, but the extent within the excavated area was estimated as just
over 1,000 m². This was excavated in forty-four hand-dug 1×1 metre
squares and then stripped in fifty 4×4 m squares. The flint material (7.8
kg) is numerically dominated by scrapers, but other tools include awls,
knives, a transverse arrowhead, and fragments of polished flint axes.
Parts of a polished rock axe were also retrieved. The pottery (3.4 kg)
shows great variation in decorative techniques and composition. Line
technique and cross-hatching dominate, but whipped cord, tooth stamps,
and various types of pitted impressions occur. Based on the finds, the
layer can be dated to the early MNA. Beside the southern part of the
occupation layer was a concentration of post-holes which has been
interpreted as the remains of a hut structure, hut 62. Just north of the hut
an oblong pit (A120871) rich in finds was excavated. The filling was of
varied character, with sooty, humic parts alternating with lightercoloured, less humic parts. The pit measured 2.7×0.82 m, was bowlshaped and 0.2 m deep. The finds mainly consist of pottery (2 kg). The
flint (1.6 kg) included three scrapers, one transverse arrowhead, and two
fragments of polished axes. Other finds are burnt bones (including two
fragments of dog and one of sheep/goat) and two rock whetstones. The
finds date the pit to MNA I. A charcoal sample from the feature gave an
early Middle Neolithic dating, 453070 BP (3360–3100 cal. bc, Ua25063) (Lagergren-Olsson & Linderoth 2000).
Roughly 300 m east of A150, parallel to the Välabäcken, an
occupation layer measuring 300 m², A156, was excavated. The layer
could be demarcated to the west, north, and south, but extended outside
the development area down towards the Välabäcken in the south. Under
and a little way outside the layer a two-aisled house was documented,
house 72. It was oriented east–west, and it was about 15 metres long and
7 metres wide. After a surface survey, fifty-four metre-square trenches
were dug. An area in the central part of the occupation layer, where the
density of finds and features was particularly high, was totally excavated.
The layer was then stripped in eighteen 4×4 m squares. The flint tools
(7.8 kg) were dominated by scrapers, but knives and an awl were also
found. The pottery (6.6 kg) was concentrated in a limited part of the
occupation layer. A great deal of the pottery is decorated, with the
predominant ornamentation technique being lines, above all on the belly.
65
Cross-hatching patterns and pits are also common. The finds date the
layer to the early MNA (Lagergren-Olsson & Linderoth 2000).
The results of the excavation indicate a potential contemporaneity
during the early MNA between several buildings (houses 50, 51, 52, 55,
and possibly 72, along with huts 56 and 62) and occupation layers (A156
and A159 along with parts of A150), which suggests a contemporary
habitation area corresponding to that of the big Danish Middle Neolithic
settlement sites (cf. Madsen 1982, 1988; Skaarup 1985).
Stora Harrie 38
Four kilometres east of the Dagstorp settlement was yet another dwelling
site from this period, Stora Harrie 38 (fig. 22). It was situated on a sandy
south slope of a plateau, just over two kilometres north of the Kävlingeån
and one and a half kilometres south of the Välabäcken. Immediately to
the south of the plateau was a stream now channelled through a culvert. It
flowed from a former lake north-east of the excavated area. Half a
kilometre to the south was a large expanse of wetland. The sandy area of
the settlement is surrounded by slightly heavier clayey soils (Persson
1988; Jeppsson 1996a).
On the site, which was excavated by the National Heritage Board in
connection with the Sydgas project in 1984, there was a Neolithic
occupation layer with an extent within the investigation area of almost
300 m², of which 225 m² was excavated. The layer contained dug features
in the form of fifteen hearths, six pits, three post-holes, and one trench.
Several of the features held Neolithic pottery. The occupation layer was
limited to the west and east but continued outside the excavated area to
the north and south (Persson 1988; Jeppsson 1996a).
The majority of the pottery (7 kg) can be dated to the early Middle
Neolithic and possibly the late Early Neolithic. The decoration consists of
cross-hatching, pitted impressions, whipped cord stamps, angle lines,
vertical strokes, and triangles. The largest group of flint finds (43 kg)
consists of flakes and debitage. The flint tools include scrapers, flake
knives, transverse arrowheads, awls, cores, and polished axe fragments.
Flake scrapers constitute the largest group of tools, with over 40%. The
composition of the flint may be said to be typical of a Funnel Beaker site.
The flint and pottery was concentrated above all in the area of the
occupation layer where the features were also found. Neolithic pottery
was found in a trench which had been disturbed by a trial dig and it was
not possible to determine with certainty whether it was part of a Neolithic
house structure. A feature adjacent to the trench was found to contain
clay daub with impressions of wattle which could perhaps have come
from the wall of a house (Persson 1988; Jeppsson 1996a). Remains of
clay daub need not necessarily come from a wall; they may have been,
for instance, part of an oven. Since there were no traces of ovens on the
site, however, it seems reasonable to assume that the clay daub together
with the trench represents a house from the early MN. The size and
composition of the finds, the probable remains of a house, and the
favourable ecological environment with the conditions for cultivation,
animal husbandry, hunting and fishing indicate that the site should be
regarded as a main settlement.
66
Löddeköpinge 13
Beside the stream called Mare Bäck it has been possible to identify some
main settlements. Löddeköpinge 13, which was investigated in 1971 by
the National Heritage Board Southern Excavations Department in
connection with the construction of a road, was located in flat, sandy
arable land a few hundred metres south of the Mare Bäck (fig. 22).
Within the excavated area an occupation layer 250 m² in extent and
0.2 m thick was documented, and 132 m² was excavated and machinesieved. A test pit outside the area intended for development showed that
the occupation layer covered a larger area than that documented inside
the excavated area. The finds consisted of flint (10 kg) and pottery (9.8
kg). The latter was badly fragmented, consisting of both decorated and
undecorated sherds. The decorative motifs were lines, pits, stick
impressions, and whipped cord. The flint tools mainly consisted of flakes
and debitage; the tools included scrapers, transverse arrowheads, awls,
knives, and polished axe fragments. A pit measuring 3.2×1.5 m and 0.3 m
deep, containing pottery, was excavated. The composition of the finds
dates the occupation of the site to an early part of the Middle Neolithic
(Wihlborg 1976).
The excavated area is small but the finds are numerous and varied,
indicating that the site may have functioned as a main settlement.
Löddeköpinge 40
Just over a kilometre to the north-east, along the Mare Bäck, was yet
another settlement which can be dated to the period EN II–MNA II (fig.
22). House construction led the National Heritage Board Southern
Excavations Department to conduct excavations at Löddeköpinge 40 in
1990–1991. The settlement was beside the stream, which today is strictly
drained and regulated, but which in prehistoric times flowed into the bay
at today’s Barsebäck Mosse. On the reconnaissance map of Skåne from
1812–1820, former wetlands and heights within the investigation area can
be seen adjacent to the water system of the Mare Bäck. The remains of
the settlement were on a sandy height about 9 m a.s.l. (Knarrström &
Wallin 1999).
A total of 267 features were registered in the excavated area of 5,200
m², consisting of post-holes, hearths, and pits. A two-aisled house
oriented NE–SE was documented, with four roof-bearing posts and a
system of wall-posts (fig. 27). In the north-eastern third of the house there
was a semicircular short side consisting of about ten wall-posts. 14C
analyses of charcoal from two of the post-holes gave datings to 4185±65
BP (2880–2630 cal. bc, Ua-5472) and 4420±100 BP (3300–2920 cal. bc,
Ua-5475). The composition of the flints (5.6 kg) suggests that the site
was a main settlement in the Neolithic. The debitage reflects the
manufacture of a great diversity of objects, and tools such as axes and
scrapers paint a picture of the activities around the site. A great deal of
the flint was collected during the work with the machine stripping. This
clearly shows that the occupation layer was destroyed by ploughing and
that the artefacts from the settlement ended up in the topsoil. Flakes and
tools were concentrated in the central part of the site, where the finds
included two large fragments of thin-butted axes. The majority of the
67
pottery (0.7 kg) consists of coarse ware without decoration. Two ceramic
fragments which were discovered in a hearth about 40 m south-west of
the Neolithic house have datable decoration. On the bigger sherd the
decoration is vertical bands consisting of repeated impressions with
whipped cord and vertical cord-decorated lines. The smaller sherd has
angular band decoration with cord-decorated lines forming fields with the
tips of the angles overlapping each other (Knarrström & Wallin 1999).
The sherds should probably be dated to the early Middle Neolithic
(Ebbesen 1978). In the light of the 14C datings and the finds from the
plough layer above the house, it should be placed at the transition from
the early Neolithic to the Middle Neolithic (Knarrström & Wallin 1999).
The first occupation of the site thus occurred at the Early/Middle
Neolithic transition. The house and the composition of the finds suggest
that the place can be described as a main settlement. This settlement,
however, was not renewed by the construction of new houses or the
reconstruction of the old house. A possible interpretation of this is that
only one generation was active on the site. The sandy plateau does not
appear to have been settled again until the Early Iron Age (Knarrström &
Wallin 1999).
Lackalänga 35
Just over ten kilometres inland was the settlement of Lackalänga 35 (fig.
22). The site is on a flat rise, about 29 m a.s.l., consisting of light clay
soils. North-east of the site is the bog Stångby Mosse, and the Kävlingeån
flows a further 2.5 km to the north. In connection with the rerouting of
road 108, the site was investigated in 1994 by the National Heritage
Board Southern Excavations Department.
A total of 42 features were registered in the excavated area of roughly
1,000 m², most of them associated with EN II–MNA II. A number of
post-holes were attributed to a probable house (fig. 28), not completely
preserved. It was oriented east–west and was of the two-aisled type, with
a trapezoidal form. It was difficult to determine the length and width of
the house since only a few post-holes from the wall were preserved. An
occupation layer was documented inside the house. The finds included
pottery, burnt clay, flint, and burnt bones. The pottery is coarse-tempered
with several decorated fragments, in the form of stick impressions and
vertical strokes. Both the fabric and the decoration indicate a dating to the
transition between the Early and the Middle Neolithic. A 14C dating of a
feature adjacent to the house gave a value of 4610±90 BP (3520–3100
cal. bc, Ua-7138), that is, EN II–MNA I (Olson et al. 1996). The site
represents a limited area of a main settlement, with a probable house, a
number of scattered post-holes, pits, and occupation layers.
Stora Harrie 35
The settlement was on a sandy plateau-like rise and a gentle southward
slope some 400 m north of the Kävlingeån (fig. 22). The landscape is
criss-crossed by several smaller watercourses. Just west of the site is the
channel of a now drained stream, and there were once several wetlands in
the area. In connection with the construction of housing, the Southern
Excavations Department in 1988–1989 investigated remains of
68
settlements from the Neolithic and the Late Bronze Age. The Neolithic
remains consisted of a number of pits in the south-east part of the area.
One of the pits contained the greater part of a Funnel Beaker vessel with
decoration in Virum style (Nagmér 1991). The flint tools included flake
scrapers, awls, and knives. The occurrence of features in the area which
could be dated to the Early and Middle Neolithic, together with flint
material of Neolithic character, leads me to regard this place too as a
main settlement. The occurrence of flint flakes in the topsoil suggests that
a Neolithic occupation layer has been ploughed away.
Votive sites
During this period we see a distinct increase in the deposition of objects
in wetlands compared with the previous phase (fig. 29). Of the 47 known
wetland sites in the investigation area, only one has been excavated,
namely, the fen at Saxtorp 26.
Wetlands
Saxtorp 26 east (SU9)
The site is in the valley of the Saxån, at about 10 m a.s.l., on the slope of
a sandy ridge (fig. 29). Towards the south-west the ground slopes down
towards the Saxån, which flows about 130 m from the site. The site was
investigated in autumn 1998 by the National Heritage Board Southern
Excavations Department in connection with the construction of the West
Coast Line (fig. 30). The former fen has now been drained, and at the
time of the excavation the area was fully tilled. The fen drained towards
the Saxån in the south-west. The layer sequence consisted of glacial clay,
calcareous tufa, and several layers of peat with intervening layers of sand
and gravel. Vegetation analyses show that in the Early Neolithic there
was an established, relatively open, human-influenced landscape in the
vicinity. The existence of the fen is manifested in the pollen through the
presence of sedges, marsh horsetail, and water mint. The surrounding
forest is dominated by lime and hazel, but occasional birch and alder also
occurred near the fen. Adjacent settlements are indicated by the
occurrence of plants typical of cultivated land, such as nettle, raspberry,
sheep’s sorrel, and knotgrass. Based on the pollen spectrum, the fen
environment in the Neolithic is interpreted as relatively open, with the
formation of fen peat and rivulets from a gushing spring giving small
pools, at least during parts of the year. In certain circumstances
calcareous tufa was also formed along the rivulets. The water from the
spring was rich in iron, and a reddish-orange sludge containing iron built
up in the rivulets (Lindahl Jensen & Nilsson 1999; Nilsson & Nilsson
2003).
Two find-bearing layers were excavated. A104 contained a rich and
well-preserved body of finds from the Early Neolithic with objects of
flint, pottery, worked sticks, bone objects, and bones of animals and
humans. A103 overlayered A104, and in the northernmost part of the
layer there was a concentration of finds from the Late Bronze Age
consisting of a pot, wooden artefacts, and bones of both humans and
animals. The Early Neolithic layer was located under layers of peat up to
69
a thickness of some two metres, at levels between 6.5 and 9.3 m a.s.l.
They covered virtually the whole extent of the fen, but there were small
areas where the layer was missing, generally where the calcareous tufa
had created small heights. The entire limits of the Neolithic layer, which
comprised roughly 350 m², were documented within the investigation
area (Lindahl Jensen & Nilsson 1999).
The finds in the Early Neolithic layer consisted of knapped flint (35
kg), pottery (4 kg), animal bones (8 kg), human bones (0.8 kg), two bone
artefacts, and three worked sticks. The majority of the finds were
unearthed within a limited area in the southern part of the fen. With
occasional exceptions, the finds of pottery and human bones were
concentrated there.
The number of fragments of human bones is 39. Most of these have
been identified as coming from the skull, chiefly the frontal bone and the
parietal bone. Other common bones are parts of the long bones from both
the upper and the lower extremities, including the humerus, radius,
femur, and tibia. Other skeletal parts and regions of the body are more
sparsely represented, such as the trunk, with two rib fragments, and the
foot, with one toe bone. Other bones from humans are half a mandible,
two loose teeth, and a clavicle. The bones have been judged as coming
from at least three individuals, but it is possible that they represent five
individuals. Of individual I, only the skull is represented, which consists
of 13 fragments which can be joined to make one large fragment. This
comprises the greater part of the forehead with the superciliary arches and
the two parietal bones. Two of the fragments have been 14C-dated, one to
4520±80 BP (3350–3090 cal. bc, Ua-9811) and the other to 4760±75 BP
(3690–3360 cal. bc, Ua-9810). The individual is judged to be an adult
woman in her twenties or thirties. Individual II is identified solely on the
basis of two fragments, a right and a left superciliary arch with a little of
the frontal bone. One of the bones has been 14C-dated to 4690±75 BP
(3620–3360 cal. bc, Ua-9809). The shape of the superciliary arches
suggests that the individual was a woman. The age is uncertain, estimated
only on the basis of the thickness of the three different layers of the skull,
giving the age range teenager/adult. Of individual III there are two
fragments from the front part of the parietal bones towards the frontal
bone. The bones can be joined together. One of the bones has been 14Cdated to 4975±75 BP (3810–3660 cal. bc, Ua-9808). It has not been
possible to ascertain with certainty whether other human bones belong to
any of the above individuals or are parts of other people (Nilsson &
Nilsson 2003).
The pottery consists mainly of sherds without decoration. The
decoration that does occur consists above all of belly lines, but there are
also examples of whipped cord, cord, and tooth stamp. Bone artefacts are
represented by an ulna dagger, made from a bovine ulna, and a pin made
from the bone of a pig. The ulna dagger has been 14C-dated to 4810±75
BP (3690–3380 cal. bc, Ua-25501). The wooden artefacts consist of
small fragments of pointed sticks of uncertain function. The majority of
the flint tools and animal bones were found in combination with the
above finds. The flint tools are dominated numerically by flake cores,
retouched flints and blades, but scrapers, awls, microblades, knives, and
70
polished axe fragments also occur. The animal bones are mostly from
species such as cattle, pigs, sheep/goat, and red deer, but there are also
bones from animals such as dog and roe deer. The bones are badly
fragmented, although some whole bones do occur. A lumbar vertebra of
sheep/goat has been 14C-dated to 4470±60 BP (3340–3030 cal. bc, Ua25499), a pelvic bone fragment of domesticated pig has been dated to
4550±60 BP (3360–3100 cal. bc, Ua-25500), and a tubular bone from a
mammal to 4695±70 BP (3620–3370 cal. bc, Ua-9062) (Lindahl Jensen
& Nilsson 1999; Nilsson & Nilsson 2003).
All in all, the finds give a uniform Early Neolithic impression, which
is also confirmed by the 14C analyses which date the Neolithic activities
to EN I–EN II (Lindahl Jensen & Nilsson 1999). Based on comparisons
with other votive fens, it is reasonable to interpret these finds as being
deliberately deposited. A remarkable feature of the finds from Saxtorp is
the absence of so-called traditional votive finds in the form of large tools.
The most common votive object from the Early Neolithic in Skåne is the
thin-butted flint axe (Karsten 1994), but at Saxtorp only small fragments
of five axes were found. On the other hand, there were smaller flint tools
and flakes/debitage, which have the character of more profane material. It
should be pointed out, however, that “everyday waste” commonly occurs
at other excavated wetlands such as Röekillorna and Hindby votive fen
(Svensson 1993; Stjernquist 1997).
West of the wetland were remains of Neolithic settlement (fig. 23),
including a house in the form of a two-aisled structure (see Saxtorp 26
west) (Artursson 1999).
Offerings on dry land
Adjacent to all the excavated megalithic tombs in the investigation area,
remains have been identified which can probably be associated with
special rituals to do with the monuments. At the sites of Hofterup 28,
Dagstorp 11, and Särslöv (fig. 29) remains were documented which were
not precisely beside contemporary graves but which should nevertheless
be linked to the nearest megalithic tomb. It is uncertain whether there was
a megalithic tomb at Dagstorp 11, but the proximity to Krångeltofta and
the grave of Harald Hildetand (see below) shows that the site may have
had a special meaning.
Hofterup 28
Close to the Hofterup dolmen (fig. 29) LUHM investigated a 5×2 m stone
setting in 1959. The feature, which was about 20 m north of the grave,
was oval and consisted of only one layer of stone of varying size. The
area of some 6.5×4.5 m that was excavated around the feature was wholly
covered by an occupation layer. The flint and the fragments of pottery
decorated with tooth stamps and fish bones in the stone setting and
occupation layer indicate that the two can be dated to the Middle
Neolithic. According to the survey of ancient monuments, finds from the
area include a thin-butted axe, two fragments of preforms for thick-butted
axes, and flat-flaked sickles and daggers (Salomonsson 1960b). The
function of the feature was difficult to determine, but one clue could be
that similar features were excavated at Dagstorp 11 adjacent to the site of
71
a presumed megalithic tomb (see below). Perhaps the stone packings are
what is left of “altars” in connection with ceremonies performed at the
burial monuments.
Dagstorp 11 (SU17)
The Early and Middle Neolithic remains at Dagstorp 11, which were
excavated in 1998 by the National Heritage Board Southern Excavations
Department in connection with the construction of the West Coast Line,
were beside the Välabäcken on a sandy south-facing slope and plateau at
about 12 m a.s.l. (fig. 29). The area closest to the river was wetland in
prehistoric times. North of the site, the terrain rises and the subsoil
becomes clay. During the late MNA and early MNB there was a large
settlement complex in the area, consisting of a palisade structure, axemanufacturing places, houses, and a linear cemetery from the Battle Axe
culture (see the sections on MNA III–V and MNB). Four urn graves and
parts of an Iron Age settlement site were also documented. The features
that can be dated to EN II–MNA II consist of a concentration of pottery, a
U-shaped trench, and three accumulations of stone (fig. 31) (Månsson &
Pihl 1999).
In a pit, A18474, measuring 5.4×1.5 m and with a depth of roughly 0.2
m, a total of just over 14 kg of pottery was retrieved, much of it with
decoration in the form of belly lines, pitted impressions, and different
variants of stamp decoration. There is also pottery with decoration on
both the inside and outside of the rim. The pottery comes from several
different vessels. Judging by the decoration and fabric of the pottery, the
finds can be assigned to the early MNA. Apart from pottery, the finds
consisted of flint and occasional burnt bones. Most of the flint was flakes
and debitage, but there was also a scraper and a few retouched flints. Just
north-east of A18474 was yet another pit with pottery, A38833, from
which one pot was excavated in a matrix. It is likely that this pit too
should be regarded as part of the larger accumulation of pottery.
Otherwise, only occasional post-holes could be documented adjacent to
the concentration of pottery, but without forming any distinguishable
structure (Månsson & Pihl 1999).
In the western part of the area, 40 m north of the pottery concentration,
was a U-shaped (A19484), partly stone-lined trench, with external
dimensions of 3×1.4 m. The width of the closed western end was about
0.6 metres, while other parts were roughly 0.2–0.3 m wide. In the open
eastern part there were two irregular sooty areas 0.5–0.6 m large. The
depth of the trench varied between 0.2 and 0.3 m. Some of the stones
along the edge of the trench were supported by smaller stones. At the
bottom of the feature were small patches of soot in various places. These
could possibly be the remains of a burnt wooden structure which could
not be discerned in the otherwise homogeneous filling of the trench. A
small quantity of pottery was found in the north-east part of the trench,
beside a collection of stones. Otherwise, occasional potsherds and flint
flakes were found scattered in the trench. The flint mainly consisted of
flakes and debitage, but a blade and two flake cores were also found. The
pottery consisted of small undecorated sherds. A charcoal sample from
the eastern patch of soot in the feature has been 14C-dated and given the
72
value 4590±55 BP (3500–3120 cal. bc, Ua-9850), which corresponds to
the period EN II–MNA I (Månsson & Pihl 1999).
North-west and south of the U-shaped trench were two accumulations
of stone (A19552 and A20208). Both features consisted of single layers
of stone located in diffuse colourings. The stones varied in size, but the
majority were 0.2–0.3 m. Yet another collection of stones (A18371) of a
similar character was found about 10 m north of the pottery concentration
(Månsson & Pihl 1999). A chronological link between the pottery
concentration, the trenches, and the stone collections cannot be ruled out.
One possible interpretation is that these features are part of the activities
performed beside a removed megalithic tomb. Outside megalithic tombs
in both Skåne and Denmark, large quantities of pottery/vessels are often
deposited (Strömberg 1971; Hårdh 1982; Tilley 1996, 1999a). There are
similarities in the composition of vessels and decoration between the
Dagstorp feature and deposits at other megalithic tombs (LagergrenOlsson 2003), and stone packings and dolmens seem to be the rule rather
than the exception beside megalithic tombs in the investigation area (see
below). An indication that there may have been a megalithic tomb in the
area is the place-name Dösjebro. “Dysia” was the medieval name for the
Välabäcken (Olsson 2000:26) and it may be connected to a megalithic
tomb through the word for a dolmen (Swedish dös, Danish dysse).
Dagstorp, Särslöv (SU22)
The place is a glaciofluvial plateau of gravel and sand, about 100 m north
of the Välabäcken, and at a height of roughly 15 m a.s.l. (fig. 29). The
passage grave of Södervidinge 3 is about 800 m NNE of the investigation
area. In connection with the construction of the West Coast Line within
the area, the National Heritage Board Southern Excavations Department
excavated remains, above all from the Iron Age and Early Middle Ages,
but at least one Middle Neolithic structure was documented (Kriig 1999).
The Middle Neolithic feature was a U-shaped trench (A3585) with
external dimensions of 2.7×2.5 m (fig. 32). It was partly overlayered by
Iron Age remains and was partially damaged by a drain. Towards the
NNE was an opening roughly 1.6 m wide. The filling consisted of
homogeneous brown, slightly humic, gravelly sand and the depth varied
from 0.04–0.22 m. The deeper parts probably consist of three post-holes.
One post-hole is located at the opening to the east, and the other two are
in the western part of the feature. Based on the shape of the feature and
the occurrence of post-holes, it is reasonable to interpret it as some type
of building. The finds from the feature were scarce. The flints were a few
flakes/debitage, flakes from axe manufacturing, retouched flakes, flake
cores, blades, and a flake scraper. A hammerstone of rock was also
found. In the north-west of the trench there were two decorated potsherds.
The decoration consisted of large rhombi or angular bands filled with
cross-hatching in line technique. This type of decoration is characteristic
of the early Middle Neolithic (MNA I–II) and the sherds presumably
come from a pedestalled bowl. These are normally associated with
Middle Neolithic burial places and cultic sites. There were no other
certain Neolithic structures in the area. A similar feature (A21809) was
excavated about 40 m west of this, but it contained no finds and the
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dating is thus uncertain (Nilsson 2000). The features resemble the Ushaped trench at Dagstorp 11. The features at Särslöv, however, were
slightly larger and more oval in shape than the one at Dagstorp.
In Denmark, northern Jutland has several parallels to the features in
the so-called Neolithic cultic houses. The Danish examples, like those
excavated at Särslöv, lack structures and finds usually associated with
Neolithic dwelling sites. They have instead been interpreted as small
sacred buildings, mortuary houses, or temples (Becker 1993; 1996).
Graves
Excavated megalithic tombs
Barsebäck 12, Gillhög
Gillhög is at the highest point, about 25 m a.s.l., on a distinct hill rising
above the otherwise flat coastal landscape (fig. 33). The hill is on the
border of a foreland sticking out into the sound. The distance to today’s
coastline is just over a kilometre to the north and south and just under two
kilometres to the west. To the south and east extends the plain of Lund
and to the north the sandy plains around Saxtorp and Hofterup. The area
at the passage grave differs from the rest of the coastal landscape in that
the soils here are dominated by clay till. There is one Stone Age dwelling
site in the area registered by surface survey, with material indicating a
dating to MNA III–MNA V.
The barrow measures about 36 m in diameter and reaches a height of
slightly over 3 m. The chamber, which is 5.8×2.2 m with a height of 1.6
to 2 m, consists of a slightly rounded rectangular arrangement of twelve
standing, uncut blocks (fig. 34). The chamber is oriented longitudinally
SSW–NNE. The passage is 5.8 m long, 1 m wide, and roughly 1 m high,
built of five pairs of orthostats topped by three capstones. It runs at a
slightly oblique angle in the longitudinal direction of the chamber, which
it enters at the south-east. In both the chamber and the passage the gaps
between the orthostats are often filled with a carefully built-up packing of
thin, horizontally laid flagstones. The spaces between the protruding parts
of the orthostats are sealed on the outside with a mixture of clay and
crushed flint. The floor of the chamber and the inner half of the passage
consists of stamped clay. The outer part of the passage is covered by the
cairn of earth and stone that surrounded the passage grave. The cairn ends
towards the burial chamber in a large block which is placed in the middle
of the passage, leaning against one of the side walls (Forssander 1932).
The passage grave was excavated by LUHM in 1931–1932. The finds
in the chamber are relatively sparse. Their fragmentary state and mutual
relations suggest that they have been disturbed. Fragments of the same
pot were found in different squares. Special circumstances indicate that
the movement took place back in Neolithic times, since fragments of the
same pot occurred both in the chamber and in the outer part of the
passage, near the bottom of the huge cairn, which contained only finds
from the Neolithic and was probably built in that period. There were few
skeleton parts in the chamber and they were mostly unidentifiable. On the
other hand, plenty of human bones were identified in the inner part of the
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passage. One of the skull fragments shows traces of trepanning. Parts of
six axes were found in the passage, two of them thin-bladed, both
polished on four sides, and a hollow-polished edge fragment (Forssander
1932).
The cairn outside the passage was built up of stone and clay. The
biggest stones were placed against the bottom and the size of the stones
decreased towards the surface of the cairn. The finds are dominated by
potsherds, roughly 40,000. Among the vessel types there are pedestalled
bowls, funnel beakers, and hanging vessels. The flint contains just over
thirty fragments of axes. Of those that could be identified, the thin-bladed
and hollow-polished shapes predominate. In addition, a battle axe of type
A is documented from Gillhög. The majority of the axe fragments were
identified in the upper part of the cairn, above the greater part of the
potsherds, which gives an indication of changed deposition traditions
over time (Forssander 1932; Malmer 1962; Tilley 1999a).
Barsebäck 3, Storegård
The passage grave at Storegård is located at a relatively high altitude,
about 15 m a.s.l., on a flat, sandy height, roughly 3 km north of the Lödde
Å and 2 km west of the Öresund (fig. 33). From the site today there is an
extensive view and the sea can be glimpsed at two places. About half a
kilometre south of megalithic tomb is the Mare Bäck with its surrounding
wetlands. Just over a kilometre to the NNE is the Hofterup dolmen. There
are no known Early or Middle Neolithic dwelling sites in the immediate
vicinity of the grave. The closest is Barsebäck 36, half a kilometre to the
east.
When the passage grave was excavated by LUHM under the
leadership of Hansen at the end of the 1920s, it was observed that it was
badly damaged. All that remained of the chamber was three undisturbed
orthostats, two of which were shared by the passage and chamber, and the
greater part of yet another orthostat, as well as small base parts of two
stones. With the aid of packing stone in the ESE it was possible to
estimate the shape and size of the chamber as about 6.5×2 m and roughly
1.6 m high. The chamber is rectangular, possibly with slightly rounded
corners, and oriented SSW–NNE (fig. 35). Between the orthostats there
was originally a packing of split flagstones, which survived at some
places. The floor consisted of stamped clay which is preserved in most of
the northern half of the chamber. The passage, which consists of five
pairs of orthostats, is roughly 5 m long and 1 m wide with a height of
about 1 m. Just as with Gillhög, the passage is not at right angles to the
chamber, instead entering slightly obliquely to the south-east. Only the
outermost capstone is preserved (Hansen 1930, 1931).
Although the grave was largely destroyed, seven virtually complete
pots were found in it, parts of a further two pots, and small parts of ten
more vessels. There were few flint tools in the chamber. We may mention
a thin-bladed axe partially polished on four sides. In front of the entrance
in the south-east there were no intact pots but a large number of sherds
from an estimated 60 pots with rim ornamentation typical of MNA I–IV.
Among the shapes are hanging vessels, pots with a tall cylindrical or
conical neck, biconical vessels, and also clay ladles. A total of 227 amber
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beads were found in the chamber and 40 in the passage. The beads
include different axe-shaped types. Outside the grave to the east, all that
was found was parts of two beads and two axe fragments, one of which
belonged to a thin-bladed axe (Hansen 1930, 1931).
No large skeletal parts were found in the burial chamber, just a few
tiny pieces and about fifteen teeth. From this material it is not possible to
say how many individuals were buried, just that there was more than one.
Judging by the teeth, they could have been children or at least young
individuals. A few pieces of burnt bones were also documented in the
chamber (Hansen 1930, 1931).
In 1986–87 the Department of Archaeology in Lund conducted
seminar digs during four weeks in 1986 and two weeks in 1987 to
investigate the barrow surrounding the megalithic tomb. At the time,
probably all that was left of the barrow, about 25 m in diameter and
almost 1.5 m high, was the lower part. The barrow around the megalithic
tomb proved to consist exclusively of sand. In the southern side of the
barrow, deposits of flint flake and pottery were observed, including a pot
decorated with tooth stamps, in an accumulation of stone. In addition,
parts of a probable kerb of a Bronze Age barrow west of the megalithic
tomb were found (Hårdh 1993).
Hög 2, Ljunghög
The passage grave in Hög is on a flat height 25 m a.s.l., west of a steep
slope down towards the Lödde Å (fig. 33). The soils on the height consist
of both clays and sand. The site affords a broad view of the surrounding
landscape. Along the Lödde Å-Kävlingeån there are several Neolithic
settlements. The nearest known one is less than 400 m to the north-west.
The megalithic tomb was excavated in 1919 by Hansen (1919a). The
structure that was restored in 1967 is one of the best-preserved in Skåne
(Petré & Salomonsson 1967). The rectangular chamber is 5×2 m in east–
west direction and the passage is 5 m long. The chamber originally had
three capstones (fig. 36). Around the chamber and the passage is a
compact cairn covered by a thick layer of earth. One of the capstones is
visible. Ljunghög is built up of round moraine blocks and the spaces
between them are filled with horizontally laid flagstones. In the chamber
some of the orthostats do not reach the desired height; the height of the
wall was thus increased with blocks laid on top of and projecting out
from the lower slabs. In the chamber were a large number of Late
Neolithic objects which are typical grave goods, including flint daggers,
and there was at least one Early Bronze Age burial. The grave was thus
used during these periods as well, and older burials were probably cleared
out. From the Middle Neolithic period there are only a few finds in the
chamber. Most of these consisted of amber beads. In the passage there
were two thin-bladed flint axes polished on four sides and a further
polished fragment, along with three blade arrowheads of types A and B.
The greatest quantity of Middle Neolithic was found outside the mouth of
the passage. About 30 kg of potsherds was retrieved together with a
fragment of a thick-butted flint axe. In connection with the restoration a
semicircular cairn was excavated at the mouth of the passage. Under the
cairn was a dark, sooty layer containing pottery, flint blades, amber
76
beads, two flint axes, and a rock axe. The finds were concentrated in the
entrance. The pottery from Hög consists of several hundred vessels, yet
this is presumably only a small part of the original quantity. Vessel forms
which could be identified include pedestalled bowls, funnel beakers,
bowls, biconical pots, brim beakers, and hanging vessels. It seems as if
the passage grave was used during much of the Middle Neolithic. The
pottery represents phases MNA Ib–MNA IV (Hansen 1919a; Petré &
Salomonsson 1967; Hårdh 1982).
Kävlinge 1, Annehill
The megalithic tomb of Annehill is one of three double passage graves in
Skåne. The other two, Östra Värlinge in Hammarlöv parish and Stora
Kungsdösen in Östra Torp parish, are in south-west Skåne. Annehill has
been excavated on two occasions, by Hansen in 1919 and as a seminar
dig by the Department of Archaeology in Lund in 1986–87. The grave is
located on a large plateau, 25 m a.s.l., roughly 1.3 km south of the
Välabäcken and just over 2 km north of the Kävlingeån (fig. 33). The
plateau is dominated by clay soils with small sandier parts. The area
around the double passage grave is described as stony, clayey sand. The
nearest Early and Middle Neolithic settlements are just over a kilometre
to the north, beside the rivers.
The grave consists of two chambers. One is oval, measuring 3.5×2.5 m
and oriented east–west, while the other is roughly the same size but more
rectangular and oriented ESE–WNW (fig. 37). The 1919 excavation
found that the structure was already seriously damaged. All the capstones
were missing. The passage to the western chamber was missing, and only
two stones were left of the passage to the eastern passage. The western
chamber consists of seven orthostats with an opening facing the southeast, where the passage presumably lay. In both chambers there are
remains of sealing in the form of pieces of sandstone between some of the
orthostats. Eight slabs were documented in the eastern chamber and two
belonging to the passage which led to the SSW. Between the chamber
and the stone in the east side of the passage, according to Hansen, there
was a doorpost stone. Hansen’s excavation in 1919 was confined to the
chambers and the area of the damaged passages. He was able to observe
that the soil was greatly disturbed, with recent material down in the
bottom layer. In the eastern chamber there were occasional artefacts of
flint, a slate pendant, and half an amber bead. In the bottom layer of the
western chamber there were human bones, an undecorated sherd, a heartshaped arrowhead, and a bone awl. Half an amber bead in the form of a
double axe was discovered at the mouth of the eastern passage. The
excavations in 1986–87 also comprised an area of 63 m² in front of the
grave, with 53 m² as a continuous area and the rest as test pits. Under the
topsoil eight features were documented, some of which could be from the
re-erection of slabs belonging to the passages. Part of the structure
contained sealing stones; potsherds were found among some of them
(Hårdh 1982; 1990a, 1990b).
A total of 9,000 potsherds were found in the area in front of the grave.
Thirty-six per cent of the sherds are of Funnel Beaker type. It is clear
from the rim sherds that about 260 pots were deposited in or near the
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grave. Among the vessel forms were pedestalled bowls, open bowls, and
brim beakers. Chronologically the material comes from the greater part of
the Middle Neolithic Funnel Beaker culture. It seems as if the material
closest to the grave is older in character than what was discovered in the
outer part of the excavated area. The flint is dominated by flakes and
debitage. Among the tools are transverse arrowheads, flat-flaked
arrowheads, three fragments of polished flint axes, and a reknapped
thick-butted flint axe with a square butt. Two fragmentary rock axes were
also found. Small fragments of unidentifiable burnt bones were collected.
Among the bones were four fragments with scratched strokes. The
decoration, partly in the form of zigzag lines and triangles, agrees well
with the Funnel Beaker culture (Hårdh 1982; 1990a, 1990b).
Lackalänga 14, Stenhög
The passage grave in Lackalänga is on the highest point, roughly 35 m
a.s.l., of a sandy plateau (fig. 33). From the top of the hill there is an
extensive view of the surroundings. A small bog and a watercourse are
located just over 400 m south of the megalithic tomb. The nearest
Neolithic settlement has been documented about 600 m to the north-east
and dated to EN II–MNA II. Slightly more than 600 m to the south-west
there is yet another settlement dated to the Early Neolithic.
Stenhög was excavated and restored in 1923 by Hansen. Most of the
chamber and passage was concealed before the excavation. The chamber
is basically oval and extends 3.8×1.5 m north–south. It has three stones
on one side and two on the other and one stone at each end. The chamber
has three capstones. The passage in the east, which consists of twelve
orthostats and four capstones, is 5.5 long and 0.8 m wide (fig. 38). The
finds in the chamber included seven blade arrowheads of types A and B,
flint daggers, flat-flaked arrowheads, a narrow chisel, blades, potsherds,
and occasional human bones. The filling in the chamber, according to
Hansen, gave the impression of having been disturbed. There were few
finds in the passage, but they did include one fragmentary thick-butted,
hollow-edged axe. A number of 1×1 m squares were excavated in the
area immediately in front of the entrance to the passage. Within this area
stone paving about 0.15 m thick was documented, containing almost
7,000 potsherds and two thin-bladed quadrilaterally polished flint axes
(Hansen 1923). On the plan drawn during the 1923 excavation it may be
noted that the passage grave is surrounded by a partly preserved stone
floor with a diameter of approximately 25 metres. Parts of a kerb mark
the limit of the stone floor to the north.
Lilla Harrie 4
In 1909 there was an excavation of three collapsed – and now removed –
dolmens in Lilla Harrie (Karlin 1909). The site is on a flat, sandy ridge,
35 m a.s.l., just over 500 m north of the Kävlingeån (fig. 33). The nearest
Early and Middle Neolithic settlement lies one kilometre to the west.
Dolmen I: A large block, about 4.2×2.6, functioned as the capstone
resting on three or four large stones. An outer kerb of smaller stones
surrounded the structure. Inside the presumed round dolmen were some
human bones.
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Dolmen II: About 6 m north-east of dolmen I was dolmen II. This had
the same shape as the former. A stone block, about 2.7×1.7, was placed
on top of four stones. Several cup marks were documented on the
capstone.
Dolmen III: The third dolmen, which was situated just less than 4 m
south-west of dolmen II, was probably the biggest. The capstone was
about 5.2×3 m, supported by five upright slabs. This capstone likewise
had cup marks.
The report states that there were a further two megalithic tombs in the
area which had previously been removed. It is also reported that the
dolmens in Lilla Harrie were the subject of legends (Karlin 1909).
Dagstorp 12, Krångeltofta
The ploughed-out long barrow was on the slope and crest of a ridge, 20 m
a.s.l. The area is the western end of a fairly elevated range of hills known
as Dagstorps Backar. To the west it gives way to the Saxån valley and in
the south the valley of the Välabäcken extends with its many ancient
monuments (fig. 33). To the east there are several Bronze Age barrows
along the crest of the ridge.
The barrow was excavated by the National Heritage Board Southern
Excavations Department in the winter of 1998–1999 in connection with
the construction of the West Coast Line. The remaining stone structure
consisted of three parallel lines of stones running north-east–south-west.
The extent of the structure to the west could not be clarified, however,
since it lay outside the excavated area. To the east, at right angles to the
rows of stones, were two rectangular stone packings (contexts 4 and 9).
The southern stone packing was slightly shifted to the east in relation to
the northern one. These two stone packings were interpreted as façades
for the long barrow. Furthest east was yet another rectangular stone
packing oriented east–west (context 13). The three parallel rows of stones
formed something that can be described as two rectangular stone frames.
The middle line of stones was common to both the northern and the
southern stone frame. The southern stone frame was not complete. Within
the two stone frames were two large features interpreted as graves
(contexts 6 and 11), characterized by outer and inner limits. The outer
limits (contexts 5 and 10) consisted of stones laid in an oval pattern
around the inner boundary of flat, split stones. It was striking that there
were no stones inside the stone frames that were not part of the graves
(fig. 39). Only fragments of burnt bones were encountered, but these
were too fragmentary to allow identification. Just west of the northern
stone frame was yet another grave structure which consisted of a stone
packing overlayering a pit (context 7). Around the grave were scattered
smaller stones. North and south of the outer rows of stones there were
also scattered occurrences of stones. Adjacent to the western grave was a
row of stones which linked the northern and middle rows. This can be
interpreted as the vestiges of a room division or a west façade (Ericson
Lagerås 1999).
The interpretation of the monument at Krångeltofta is mostly based on
characteristic traits of the stone structure and the individual stone
packings. The monument shares features with other long barrows: the
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trapezoidal shape, the location on a south-facing slope, and a mainly
east–west orientation (Kaul 1988:64ff). The outer boundary consists of
two stone frames, each with a façade in the eastern part, which is
evidence that the structure was extended on at least two occasions.
Within the stone frames were graves consisting of stone packings with
flat and split stones. Floor-like stone packings which have been
interpreted as graves in long barrows have previously been found in
Sejerø (Liversage 1982) and Onsved Mark II (Kaul 1988) in Denmark,
and in Britain (Liversage 1992:80). In many cases pottery is found in
long barrows, for example, at the façade. It is often the sherds of just a
few vessels. Very little pottery was discovered at the façades at
Krångeltofta, which makes it difficult for us to give an exact dating of
these characteristic parts of the long barrow (Ericson Lagerås 1999).
Under the stone structure at Krångeltofta the excavation unearthed no
dwelling site material in the form of house remains or occupation layers
from the Neolithic. Fragments of a pointed- or thin-butted axe were
retrieved immediately north of the feature (Ericson Lagerås 1999).
Very little charcoal was found in the façades, the graves, and the postholes, which may be because fire was not a part of the rituals associated
with the long barrow. The chances of finding relevant charcoal which can
be used for 14C dating these features were thus reduced. The filling in the
north-eastern façade and the grave in the north-eastern part contained
very little charcoal, which minimized the chances of finding charcoal
from the time when the structure was in use. Moreover, the results of
these samples, 8790±70 BP (7940–7700 cal. bc, Ua-9793) and 3375±60
BP (1740–1530 cal. bc, Ua-9795), did not correspond to the
archaeological material. We probably cannot entertain great hopes of
being able to date the stone structure with the aid of the 14C method. To
determine the date and phase of the long barrow at Krångeltofta,
comparisons with other long barrows are likely to be more fruitful
(Ericson Lagerås 1999).
Södervidinge 3
Two passage graves are located on the south slopes of Dagstorps Backar
in Södervidinge parish, at a distance of about 250 m from each other (fig.
33). In 1919 Hansen excavated the more southerly one, Södervidinge 3.
The grave is placed on a terrace on a sandy slope, 25 m a.s.l. The nearest
Neolithic dwelling site is almost a kilometre to the south-west. The
barrow is 10 m in diameter and up to 1 m high. The chamber is almost
oval and measures 6×2–3 m from north-east to south-west. The floor of
the chamber was covered with thin flagstones, some of which were still in
position in the western part of the chamber when it was excavated. Of the
capstones, only two large, broken fragments survived. The passage is just
over 5 m long and about 0.6 m wide (fig. 41). Between the first and
second orthostat in the passage is a doorpost arrangement (Hansen
1919b).
In the chamber, which had been plundered, the only finds were a
dozen undecorated potsherds and a flint spearhead. In the passage, which
was undisturbed, the excavation retrieved small quantities of pot
fragments from both the Middle Neolithic and the Bronze Age and a
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blade arrowhead of type B. The largest amount of finds was discovered in
a stone packing outside the passage. These included parts of pedestalled
bowls and brim beakers, fragments of a thick-butted, hollow-polished
flint axe, and yet another fragment of a thick-butted flint axe whose exact
type cannot be determined (Hansen 1919b).
Västra Hoby 3 and 4, Danshögarna
The area in Västra Hoby consists of two long dolmens and a passage
grave. The southern long dolmen and the passage grave were excavated
by LUHM in the summer months of 1934–35. The excavated megalithic
tombs are on a gentle sandy slope facing north, 200 south of the
Kävlingeån. About 100 m north of these is the third grave, it too on a
north-facing slope (fig. 33). Neolithic settlements lie both south and north
of the river, although there is no settlement registered in the immediate
vicinity of the megalithic tombs. Just over 500 m south of the site, parts
of a Battle Axe cemetery have been excavated (Hansen 1917).
The southern long dolmen (RAÄ 3) measures 24×12 m in north–south
direction and is 1–1.5 m high. The shape is virtually rectangular with
rounded short sides. The barrow was erected on such sloping terrain that
the base of the western side is 1.25 m lower than the opposite eastern
side. The barrow is surrounded by a kerb of boulders. They are 0.2–0.5 m
high and 0.5–1 m wide. The barrow surrounds a fairly centrally placed
dolmen chamber, approximately 1.45×0.75–0.95 m (N–S), narrowing
towards the south. At the time of the excavation what remained were the
two end slabs and one side slab. Impressions in the sand showed that the
chamber originally consisted of two stout side slabs and two slightly
smaller slabs at the ends. A massive capstone probably covered the
chamber. The bottom of the cist was lined with flagstones of alternating
gneiss and chalk. The chamber is surrounded by an almost circular cairn,
made of stones the size of a human head. The diameter of the cairn is 5.6
m. The chamber has been dug up all the way to the bottom in modern
times, and there were no finds left in it. In the filling, however, there was
a core axe and occasional potsherds of Neolithic character (Forssander
1937).
The barrow around the passage grave (RAÄ 3) is 11×15 m and 1.2 m
high. The chamber of the passage grave is rectangular-oval and built of
uncut slabs about 1.5 m high. Horizontally packed stone chips were
documented between some of the slabs. The chamber measures 6.6×2 m
and runs from north-east to south-west. The passage, which is 5.2 m long
and 0.65 m wide, faces the south-east and consists of four pairs of
orthostats (fig. 42). Between the first and second slabs is a doorpost
arrangement. The capstones of both the chamber and the passage are
missing. Around the barrow is a kerb consisting of about fifteen stones,
0.2–0.6 m high and 0.5–0.9 m wide. The chamber was excavated in the
nineteenth century, and the excavation in 1934–35 therefore uncovered
only occasional potsherds and flint flakes. Except in its innermost part,
however, the passage was undisturbed. In it a lower Middle Neolithic
later was documented, consisting of relatively few potsherds and a thinbutted axe. The axe was wedged between the two outermost slabs in the
eastern side. The Middle Neolithic level was overlayered by a stratum of
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Late Neolithic material. Immediately outside the mouth of the passage
was a flat cairn with a great admixture of gravel. In the direction of the
passage it extended about 5 m, describing an almost semicircular arch
with a diameter of 5 m. It seemed as if quite a few of the slabs in the kerb
had been knocked down in connection with the building of the cairn,
which would mean that the cairn is later than the passage grave itself. The
cairn contained a large amount of pottery, about 50,000 sherds, which is
the largest quantity from a megalithic tomb in south Scandinavia and
probably in the whole of north-west Europe. Forssander claimed to be
able to divide the find-bearing parts into two strata. In the layer closest to
the entrance (stratum I) he found sherds belonging to pedestalled bowls,
clay ladles, funnel beakers, and large bowl-shaped vessels. Stratum II was
dominated by pottery decorated with tooth stamps. Among the vessel
types are brim beakers and hanging vessels. The flint artefacts include
nine flint and rock axes, one of them reknapped, and two fragmentary
thick-butted flint axes, probably of type A, fragments of a probably
hollow-polished thick-butted flint axe, an edge part of a thin-butted flint
axe, fragments of a thin-bladed flint axe partially polished on four sides,
two thin-butted axes, and a thick-butted rock axe, as well as two blade
arrowheads (Forssander 1936, 1937; Tilley 1999a).
The long dolmen (RAÄ 4) closest to the Kävlingeån is 53×13 m in
north–south direction and 2.4 m high. The barrow is surrounded by 37
kerbstones (0.3–1.1 m high and 0.5–1.7 m wide), most of them standing.
No burial chamber is visible, which means that it could in fact be a long
barrow. The priest’s report (1692) mentions that a warrior was slain on
the spot. His body is supposed to be buried in one of the barrows (RAÄ
4?) and his head in the other (RAÄ 3?).
Some of the megalithic tombs in the area have never been excavated. In
certain cases, therefore, it can be difficult to determine whether it is a
long barrow/dolmen, round dolmen, or a passage grave.
Dagstorp 2, the grave of Harald Hildetand
The passage grave known as the grave of Harald Hildetand lies on a
sandy south-facing slope of Dagstorps Backar, 20 m a.s.l. The
Välabäcken flows approximately 300 m south of the megalithic tomb
(fig. 33). There are no Neolithic settlements registered in the immediate
vicinity of the grave. The grave has never been subjected to any
archaeological investigation or restoration. The construction of the road
to Södervidinge, south of the grave, has destroyed parts of the passage
and any votive deposits there may have been there. The chamber
measures roughly 6×2.5–3 m and is oriented from north-east to southwest with the passage to the south-east. The barrow is 9 m in diameter
and 1 m high. On the upper side of one of the visible capstones of the
passage there are about forty cupmarks.
Dagstorp 23
The presumed long dolmen is located at 50 m a.s.l. on a ledge of a clayey
north-west slope with a position dominating the Saxån to the west (fig.
33). The structure is rectangular with noticeably rounded corners and is
about 55×35 m and almost 3.5 m high. The long dolmen has a kerb,
82
partly built like a cavity wall, almost 1.3 m tall, made of stone measuring
0.3–1 m. No Neolithic settlements exist in the immediate vicinity of the
grave.
Hofterup 1
On a sandy terrace 10 m a.s.l. on a slope facing east down towards a
depression, is the Hofterup dolmen. The site is just over a kilometre
north-east of the passage grave at Storegård (fig. 33). The closest Early
and Middle Neolithic dwelling site is about 350 m north of the megalithic
tomb. The dolmen has a quadrilateral chamber measuring 1.3–1,9×1.2–
1.5 m in a north–south direction. Five orthostats, 1.2–1.3 m tall and 0.7–1
m wide, bear up a capstone measuring 1.3×1.8 m (N–S). There are about
twenty cup marks on the capstone.
Stora Harrie 1
The long dolmen is situated on a sandy plateau (30 m a.s.l.), right beside
the slope down towards the Kävlingeån, which flows just over 500 m
north of the grave (fig. 33). The closest Early and Middle Neolithic
settlement is less than a kilometre to the north. The dolmen today consists
of an orthostat measuring 1×1.3 m. Two metres south of this are two
stone blocks, about 0.8–1.3×0.5 m in size. The dolmen is surrounded by
an almost square stone setting, 11×11 m.
Stora Harrie 7, 8, and 9
On a flat, sandy height (30 m a.s.l.), roughly 800 m south of the
Välabäcken, there are a dolmen and two long dolmens (fig. 33). Half a
kilometre south-east of the site is a settlement dated to EN I, and a
kilometre to the south-west, remains of settlement from EN II–MNA II
have been excavated.
The dolmen (RAÄ 7) is 3×1×1.5 m and consists of three blocks, one
of them smashed to pieces. The dolmen chamber is filled with stone and
earth. There is no capstone. The long dolmen (RAÄ 8) measures 13×9 m
from north-west to south-east. At the foot of the barrow there are eleven
stone blocks 0.5–1.7 m high and 1–1.5 m wide, four on each long side,
two at the south-east end, and one at the north-west end. No traces of the
dolmen chamber are visible. The other long dolmen (RAÄ 9) is 52×7 m
long from east to west. It is surrounded by kerbstones, 0.1–0.3 m high
and 0.2–1.7 m wide. No dolmen chamber is visible. One of the blocks at
the western end has a number of cup marks. The site of the long dolmen
is popularly known as Galgbacken or “Gallows Hill”. The area within the
kerbstones is said to have been used as a place of execution (Hansen
1926).
Södervidinge 11
The passage grave is on a sandy plateau, 25 m a.s.l. (fig. 33). The barrow
measures 17 m in diameter and is almost 1.5 m high. The chamber is
estimated to have measured 5×2 m, in north-east–south-west direction.
The chamber has two capstones, the northern one of which bears about
ten cup marks. The nearest Neolithic settlement is about a kilometre to
the south, beside the Välabäcken.
83
Data from archival studies
Archival studies, chiefly in the register of the Dialect and Place-Name
Archive in Lund and early land survey maps, can supplement our picture
of the stock of megalithic tombs. Research has been carried out, for
example, by Hårdh (1982) in her study of the megalithic tombs in the
area, and in connection with the second survey, to find special names
indicating the existence of megalithic tombs. Particular attention was
devoted to names containing elements such as dös-, dysse-, stendös-,
stendysse-, stenkiste- and kycklinge-. The material is of course uncertain
and can never be complete. It was no doubt common for megalithic
tombs to give places their names, but it is difficult to know how names
like hög or höj should be judged. They could be the remains of megalithic
tombs or Bronze Age barrows.
A record of a passage grave or dolmen the exact location of which is
not known, Håstad 2, is found in the Priest’s Reports of 1692: “a mound
called Puga-ugn [‘fairy oven’] all covered with large stones…” located in
the east field of Håstad.
The area where the passage grave in Hög is located, Hög 2, is called
“stendöserne” (the stone dolmens) on a map from 1748. The register
known as Palteboken from 1514 mentions Stendösen as the name of a
part of the east field in Hög parish. It is probable that these names can be
associated with the passage grave in Hög and that the plural form
“stendöserne” refers to several cultivation plots. It cannot be ruled out,
however, that more than one megalithic tomb may have existed in the
area (Hårdh 1982).
Sjöborg writes about a now destroyed kummelgrotta, literally “cairncave” and marks the place on a map, Norra Nöbbelöv 1, north-east of the
bog of Nöbbelövs Mosse. On a map from 1774 the area is called
“Kycklingeskiftet” (the chicken shift) and Sjöborg mentions the name
“Kycklinghönan” (the mothering hen), an old term for a megalithic grave
(Sjöborg 1824).
The land register mentions a dolmen in the north field of Norrvidinge.
The place is right beside the Saxån, on a gentle sandy slope facing west,
Norrvidinge 76, Jungfrukällorna. The priest’s reports from 1729 mention
that a man in the locality had five children, two sons and three daughters.
One Christmas morning the three sisters were on their way to the early
morning service when they were attacked and killed by their brothers
who had failed to recognize them. The brothers buried their sisters on the
bank of the river, where three springs rose: “the one bigger than the other.
There is also a stone cairn, and these springs and the cairn can still be
seen this day.” When the place was surveyed in 1986, nothing was
visible. The stone cairn (stenvården) that is mentioned could possibly be
a dolmen.
At Stångby 3:1 there is a place, west of Stångby Mosse, which is
called “Stendösseåkern” (stone-dolmen field) on the 1744 map, Stångby
3. It is mentioned by Bruzelius in his Antikvarisk Beskrifning om Torna
Härad i Skåne. Even then the dolmen was totally destroyed (Bruzelius
1880).
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Another area at Stångby is named “Stenkullen” (stone hill) on the
1744 map, which could indicate that there was once a megalithic tomb on
the spot, Stångby 5. Remains of a mound can be seen today.
In Stävie there is a concentration of names suggesting that there were
megalithic tombs in the area, Stävie 20. Today, however, there are no
traces of any dolmens or passage graves. Palteboken from 1514 mentions
“Stendösefältet” (the stone-dolmen field) in the west field. On maps from
1748, 1768, and 1776 the area is called “Stendösen” (Hårdh 1982).
During the survey in 1985 there was nothing visible in the field. The area
is a flat sandy height less than a kilometre south of the Kävlingeån.
On a map from 1775 there is a place marked “Stenkullen” (stone hill),
Vallkärra 37. This is possibly the feature that Sjöborg records as “E of
the village [Vallkärra] a line of standing stones [domstensbana] of the
Danish quadrilateral form” (Sjöborg 1815). Sjöborg may be referring to a
long dolmen. The site is on a flat sandy ridge.
On another sandy ridge (Karaby Backar), one kilometre south of the
Välabäcken there is a barrow measuring 30×15 m (NNE–SSW) and
almost 5 m high. A report from LUHM to Skånes Hembygdsförening (I
595/1959) mentions the remains of a kerb and that a couple of stones
from it had rolled down the slope. The 1986 survey found nothing visible
in the field. Dybeck mentions that there were eighteen large stones
forming a triangle at the top of the mound (Dybeck 1840). The monument
may possibly have been a long dolmen, Västra Karaby 25.
In the first survey in 1969 there is a record of a removed dolmen on
Karaby Backar. By the time of the second survey in 1986 there was
nothing visible in the field. On a map from 1755 a barrow is marked on
the site, Västra Karaby 113.
On the same ridge, just over a kilometre south of the confluence of the
Välabäcken and Dösjebro, is a barrow measuring 15×2–9 m (NW-SE),
Västra Karaby 34. It is about a metre high and narrows towards the
north-west. At the south-east edge there is a stone – possibly the
kerbstone of a long dolmen.
Jennbert mentions in her dissertation that an area of 100 m² at
Löddeköpinge 8 contained some big stones. Their impressive size,
together with the fact that the layers here were disturbed and that human
bones were found, is strong evidence that there may have been a dolmen
here (Jennbert 1984a:28).
As already mentioned, the name Dösjebro, the concentration of
pottery, and the stone packings (see Dagstorp 11) suggests that there may
have been a megalithic tomb at Dagstorp 11.
Since the data on the above megalithic tombs must be regarded as
more or less uncertain, they will not be included in the discussion of the
spatial distribution of graves in relation to other Neolithic remains. They
are, however, a reminder that the number of megalithic tombs was
probably greater in prehistoric times than those known today.
Flat-earth graves
Little is known about flat-earth graves from the latter part of the Early
Neolithic and the start of the Middle Neolithic in the investigation area
and in Skåne as a whole. Recently excavated sites in Flädie parish,
85
however, have shown that this form of burial also existed during this
period.
Flädie RAÄ 7
A more or less continuous complex of monuments was investigated by
the National Heritage Board Southern Excavations Department in the
autumn of 2000 in connection with planned road construction. The
antiquities were on a sandy height beside the bay at Lomma (fig. 33).
North and west of the site is the Lödde Å, the estuary of which in this
period formed a deep bay. A Middle Neolithic flat-earth cemetery with
seventeen securely attested graves (fig. 45) and a manufacturing place for
flint tools located about 250 m north-east of the cemetery have been
excavated. The sites, one of which, RAÄ 7, was previously known as a
Stone Age dwelling site but also containing Iron Age remains, are in the
parishes of Flädie and Borgeby in south-west Skåne (Pihl & Runcis
2001).
The cemetery yielded a rich amount of finds consisting of at least 180
amber beads and amulets, most of them shaped as double axes and clubs.
Other forms occurred as well. At one of the graves a virtually intact
decorated pot was found. In four of the graves it could be demonstrated
that whole pots had been deposited, while others contained only sherds.
Some of the graves contained flint blades manufactured in an extremely
refined technique. In one of the graves a little polished rock axe was
deposited. Traces of the deceased were confined to reddish-brown stains
in the ground and fragments of dental enamel. The buried individuals are
judged by osteologists to be exclusively children or young individuals.
The shapes of the amber objects and the pottery indicate that the
cemetery was used at least during MNA I–III (Pihl & Runcis 2001;
Runcis 2002).
The manufacturing place, where traces of Iron Age settlement were
also observed in the immediate vicinity, stood out after stripping as an
occupation area covering about 120 m² (A102) with numerous knapped
flints on the surface. The dense concentration of flakes was demarcated in
a total of twenty-three 0.5×0.5 m squares which were dug by hand. The
distinct flint concentration (A100138) was slightly irregular in shape and
measured roughly 1.8×1.1 m. The flakes lay on or near the surface of the
layer, closely packed in a stratum a few centimetres thick. The total
quantity of flint from the knapping place was just over 25 kg, with a great
variation in weight between the squares, from less than 0.1 kg up to 7 kg
per square. The flint is mainly of Senonian type, with flakes and debitage
as the predominant category of finds. A large number of these are judged
to come from the manufacture of quadrilateral flint axes. About ten flakes
showed a polished surface, and there were also occasional tools in the
form of flake scrapers and a transverse arrowhead. Two of the polished
flakes could be refitted to give a bigger edge fragment of an axe, whose
narrow and broad side could both be distinguished. The angle between
these, together with the arch, suggest that the flakes probably come from
a thin-butted axe (Pihl & Runcis 2001).
86
MNA III–V
Settlement
Settlements, votive sites, and graves from this period in Skåne are not as
well represented as in the previous phase. Just as in earlier parts of the
Neolithic, it is above all in the southern and south-west parts of the
province that there is sufficient archaeological source material to allow us
to carry on a discussion of the settlement pattern. In the Ystad area, there
is settlement continuity within the old settled districts near the coast, but
it seems as if the inner hummocky landscape was also claimed for
settlement. Some of the earlier settlement areas were abandoned,
however, which indicates that settlement was concentrated in certain
areas. Archaeological excavations suggest that settlements continued to
be small (Larsson, L. 1985, 1992a:94), but it should be pointed out that
any assessment of the extent of settlements is based on the excavation of
rather small areas. Around Malmö the archaeological evidence shows that
several smaller settlements were probably amalgamated in one bigger
settlement, namely, Hindby Mosse (Svensson 1986:122).
Within the investigation area, fifty-one dwelling sites have been
registered which can be dated to MNA III–V, and eighteen of these have
been excavated.
Main settlements
A number of the excavated sites have been interpreted as main
settlements belonging to the period MNA III–V.
Dagstorp 19 (SU21)
The period of the Neolithic settlement at Dagstorp 19 (fig. 46) that was
most richly represented as regards the quantity of finds was MNA III.
In the eastern part of the area was the occupation layer with the
greatest amount of finds, A153, which measured 500 m². The layer could
be demarcated to the west, north, and east, but it extended beyond the
excavated area to the south (fig. 47). After a surface survey, eighty-three
1×1m squares were dug by hand, concentrated in the central part of the
layer, where the density of finds and features was high. The layer was
then stripped in twenty-six 4×4 m squares. Among the flint (129 kg), the
predominant categories of tools are flake scrapers and blade knives. Other
types of tools include transverse arrowheads, awls, fragments of polished
flint axes, and a large number of flake cores. About 8% of the total 26.4
kg of pottery is decorated. The decoration was rich and varied, with a
wide range of execution and composition characterizing the material. Pits
and stick impressions dominate, but tooth-stamp technique is also richly
represented. Fragments of at least seven clay discs were retrieved. All in
all, the finds indicate a dating of A153 to MNA III (Lagergren-Olsson &
Linderoth 2000).
Two long-houses and a sunken-floor hut west and east of the layer
(houses 71, 73, and 74) can probably be dated to MNA III. House 74 was
oriented east–west on a slight slope down towards the Välabäcken. The
building was roughly 15 m long and 7 m wide, with an internal area of
just over 100 m². It was two-aisled and rectangular in shape. There were
87
post-holes for at least six roof-bearing posts. All that remained of the
northern long wall was four post-holes. The southern wall seems to have
consisted of a double row of posts. In the features belonging to the house
there were only a few finds of flint and pottery. The pottery, which is of
Funnel Beaker character, consists of just two undecorated sherds. The
flint is small quantities of flakes/debitage but there is also a flake core, a
blade, and a microblade. The stratigraphical relation to layer A153
indicates that the house is probably contemporary with this. House 71
was built on a gentle slope down towards the Välabäcken. It was a twoaisled structure at least 13.5 m long and 5 m wide. The shape was
rectangular and the orientation was WNW–ESE. The internal area is
estimated as just under 70 m². The row of roof-bearing posts consisted of
five posts, three inside the house, and one in each gable. The northern
wall line consisted of seven post-holes and the southern one of eight. In
the line of the wall some post-holes were missing in places, because
recent pits and drains had destroyed parts of the structure. The finds in
the features of the house were confined to occasional flint flakes and
potsherds and small quantities of burnt bones and charcoal. In the southwestern part of the house, beside the long wall, was a pit, A68765. It was
irregularly rounded and had a diameter of roughly 1.5 m and a depth of
0.15 m. It had a fairly level bottom but sloped sides. The pit contained
flint in the form of flakes/debitage and a retouched flake. The vast
majority of the pottery is undecorated sherds. Three small pieces,
however, have a tooth-stamped pattern and can be dated to MNA III.
Adjacent to house 71 was an occupation layer (A158) with mixed pottery
belonging to the Middle Neolithic. House 73 stood on a very gentle slope
down towards the Välabäcken. The building had a slightly irregular
round-oval shape. It may be described as a hut with a sunken-floor just
over 4 m long and roughly 3.7 m wide and an area of nearly 15 m². The
pit was about 0.3 m deep with a fairly level bottom and slightly sloping
edges. In the middle of the house was a hole which could be a post-hole
for a roof-bearing post. At the edge of the pit of the hut were three postholes arranged in a triangle, which may possibly have been part of a wall.
The flint in the pit consisted mainly of flakes/debitage and debris. The
other flints were retouched pieces, blades, flake cores, knives, scrapers,
awls, and two small polished axe fragments. The pottery was mostly
undecorated, with only a small number having any kind of decoration. In
addition, there was a little piece of an undecorated clay disc. Among the
decorated Neolithic pottery there were some fine-tempered sherds with
small pits under the rim. A further few sherds have a double angle line
both under the rim and on the shoulder. This vessel had a short neck and
was therefore probably a bowl. In the pit of the hut there was also a quern
rubber stone of rock and small quantities of burnt bones and red ochre.
The bones were too fragmentary to allow identification of the species. All
in all, the dated sherds together with the surrounding context probably
allow the building to be dated to MNA II–III (Lagergren-Olsson &
Linderoth 2000; Artursson et al. 2003).
A number of post-holes and pits were excavated in and under
occupation layer A153, above all in the western parts. Right beside the
occupation layer, two large pits, A68613 and A68431, were excavated.
88
Large quantities of pottery (10 kg) and flint (15 kg) were retrieved from
A68613. The pit measured 1.75×1.5 m on the surface; it was bowl-shaped
and about 0.5 m deep. At the centre of the pit the filling in a likewise
bowl-shaped section was very humic and sooty (fig. 49). The sooty part
was demarcated to the north and the bottom by a concentration consisting
of pottery and flint. The sherds in this concentration are of a thick,
coarse-tempered fabric. The majority comes from a big vessel decorated
with pits. Beside this stout pot was the greater part of a brim beaker. The
placing of the pieces indicates that the brim beaker was originally placed
in or perhaps right beside the bigger pot. Apart from the big pot and the
brim beaker, fragments of a further fifteen or so decorated vessels were
found. In addition, parts of nine clay discs were retrieved, three of them
decorated with various types of stick impressions. One of the clay discs
has a hole located at the edge. Among the flint tools there are scrapers,
knives, above all blade knives, and awls. Further finds were a large
fragment of a polished, reknapped, thick-butted axe, flake cores, and
blades. The majority of the finds come from the sooty part of the feature.
The finds and the relation of the pit to the occupation layer indicate a
dating to MNA III, contemporary with the deposition of the layer.
Charcoal from a macrofossil sample gave a Middle Neolithic dating,
436070 BP (3090–2890 cal. bc, Ua-25062). Also found in the pit was 36
g of burnt bones, of which one fragment could be identified as coming
from a domesticated pig. A68431 consisted of a funnel-shaped, stonefilled pit, which was also visible at the top of the layer. The pit measured
2.7×2.5 m at the surface, decreasing rapidly in size towards the bottom,
which was 0.75 m deep. Three layers of stone were documented in the
pit. The size of the stones mostly varied between 0.15 and 0.4 m. The
middle layer of stone gave the impression that bigger stones had been
placed along the edges of the pit and that the centre had been packed with
smaller stones. The finds were mainly found in the top layer. They
include a blade knife/blade sickle polished by use wear. Other flint
material comprises scrapers, knives, and part of a polished axe.
Fragments of at least ten different decorated pots were found together
with about 1 kg of undecorated pottery. The relation of the pit to the
occupation layer (A153) indicates that it was dug earlier or at the same
time as the deposition of the layer (MNA III) (Lagergren-Olsson &
Linderoth 2000).
It seems likely that Dagstorp 19 was a main settlement during the
MNA III as well. The long tradition of the site, the extent of the finds, the
size of the settlement, and the houses are clear indications of this.
Barsebäck 48
The settlement was on a sandy height, about 5 m a.s.l., and according to
the surface survey it comprised roughly 60,000 m². The distance from
today’s coastline is approximately 1.5 km. With the sea level at the time
being about 4–5 m higher than today, the site was near the coast in the
late MNA, when it was on a small peninsula by a lagoon right beside the
narrow isthmus that connected the Barsebäck foreland with the mainland
(fig. 46).
89
Parts of the site were excavated during seminar digs arranged by the
Department of Archaeology in Lund in the autumn of 1987 and spring of
1988. No features were observed by the excavation, which was wholly
concentrated on the massive occupation layer up to 0.5 m thick.
Unfortunately, none of the documentation material in the form of plans
and sections has been archived. Students at the department have,
however, gone through parts of the material found in the 42 m² excavated
in 1988. A total of almost 90 kg of flint was found, 8% of which
consisted of tools, and there was about 3.5 kg of pottery. The tools are
dominated above all by scrapers, which account for more than 50% of the
total tools. No stratigraphical units could be distinguished in the
occupation layer which was excavated in units of 0.1 m. On the other
hand, a certain chronological difference could be discerned in the
composition of finds between the upper and lower parts of the layer. At
the bottom (unit V) the decorated pottery mostly shows tooth-stamp
technique, bands, angle lines, and angle bands, small imprints at the rim,
notches on the edge of the rim, holes, lines, rhombi, and chequerboard
patterns. In units II–IV pits at the rim are most common. In these layers
there were also Pitted Ware–influenced flint artefacts in the form of blade
arrowheads and cylindrical blade cores. The uppermost unit (unit I)
contained Late Neolithic flint tools such as spoon-shaped scrapers and
flat-flaked arrowheads.
The layer sequence indicates more or less continuous settlement in the
period MNA III–V. The extensive finds with a varied toolkit, the extent
of the site, the favourable ecological environment, and the proximity to
the passage grave of Gillhög mean that the site may be regarded as a
main settlement during MNA III–V.
Stävie 17
Just over seven kilometres east of Barsebäck 48 was the dwelling site of
Stävie 17, immediately to the east of the Lödde Å (fig. 46). In 1972 the
National Heritage Board Southern Excavations Department did an
excavation of the site occasioned by plans for a gravel quarry. The
settlement was located on a sandy height and the slope down to the Lödde
Å. There was once an area of wetland north of the settlement.
The total area excavated was 150 m², distributed in four different
trenches, which yielded similar find material and can be regarded as one
and the same settlement. If it is, the remains cover an area of at least
10,000 m². The remains consisted of thick occupation layers and
occasional pits and hearths. The flint amounts to 50 kg, of which 5% is
tools. A large number of polished fragments were identified, of which
four were thick-butted axes (3 A-axes and 1 B-axe). Eight cylindrical
blade cores were found and about thirty fragments of blade arrowheads.
The majority were deemed to be of types A and B. No certain blade
arrowheads of group C or D were found. Other tools include flake and
blade scrapers, awls, and knives. The pottery (17 kg) mostly consists of
undecorated sherds. The decoration that does occur includes pit
impressions, horizontal rows of vertical strokes, and comb stamps
(Lindsten 1974; Nagmér 1990). The flints, with blade arrowheads and
cylindrical blade cores, have a distinct Pitted Ware character. The pottery
90
should probably be dated to the closing phase of MNA, that is, the Stävie
group, showing clear similarities to the Danish Valby phase. The area of
the settlement and the extent and varied character of the material give the
impression that the site may have been a main settlement.
Norra Nöbbelöv 13
The settlement was on a sandy place on the western edge of Nöbbelövs
Mosse, about 23–25 m a.s.l. In the Neolithic this bog was probably an
open lake (fig. 46). The site was excavated by the National Heritage
Board Southern Excavations Department in 1994 in connection with
work on road 108, and was found to have remains of settlement from
both the Middle Neolithic and the Early Bronze Age. The extent of the
Neolithic remains, which consisted of an occupation layer rich in finds
with adjacent post-holes and pits, indicates that the site can probably be
regarded as a main settlement. The location of the occupation layer, down
towards the bog, and the fact that no features were observed under it,
shows that it can be a refuse layer from the adjacent settlement. In total,
only twelve 1×1 m squares in the layer were excavated. The flint (16 kg)
consists mainly of flakes/debitage, but among the tools there are above all
scrapers, knives, axe fragments, and cores. The scrapers are mostly flake
scrapers and the knives are dominated by flake knives. The pottery in the
layer is badly fragmented, making it difficult to draw any conclusions
about vessel types. The decoration consists of tooth stamps and stick or
nail impressions (Olson et al. 1996; Hellerström 1997). Analyses at the
Ceramic Research Laboratory in Lund show that the pottery has a very
homogeneous composition when it comes to the choice of raw clay and
tempering, and differences in the size of temper have more to do with the
function of the vessels. The same raw clay was used to make both pots
and clay discs. This could suggest that the manufacture took place on the
site (Brorsson 1996). The composition of the decoration and the total
absence of cord, whipped cord, and vertical strokes points to a dating in
the late Funnel Beaker culture, no earlier than MNA III. Also found in the
layer was a flint flake with scratchings on the cortex. The pattern consists
of two concentric circles with cross lines and two angular bands. The
pattern of the scratching agrees quite well with the decoration that we
find on late Funnel Beaker culture pottery (Olson et al. 1996; Hellerström
1997). Among the bones in the layer which could be identified were
cattle, sheep/goat, pig, and two fragments of human femurs (Nilsson
1996). Macrofossil analysis suggests that there was cultivation on the
site. The occurrence of fat hen, black bindweed, common chickweed, and
corn spurrey indicates spring-sown crops on nutrient-rich soils (Regnell
1996:93).
Immediately west of the occupation layer was a concentration of postholes measuring roughly 12×5 m from east to west (fig. 50). The form
and the filling suggest that the post-holes were contemporary. It is
probable that they are the remains of some kind of building, the type of
which could not be determined exactly in the field. A pit (A2054) just
east of the post-holes contained a fragmented vessel. It was probably an
open bowl with a weakly marked shoulder and decorated with at least
three rows of oblique stick impressions in a zipper pattern. The vessel is
91
likely to be no older than MNA III. It contained burnt animal bones and
retouched flint flakes (Olson et al. 1996; Hellerström 1997).
Dwelling/activity sites
Saxtorp 23 (SU10)
On the height between the Saxån to the south and the Kvärlövsån to the
north (fig. 46) where Early Neolithic remains were documented, there
were also traces of Middle Neolithic activity. In the southern part of the
excavated area there were five trenches which were interpreted as having
been dug for the walls of four hut structures (huts 1–4). The area with the
huts has been heavily cultivated and damaged by recent activities. The
trenches that could be observed were probably only the last vestiges of
the original structures. The huts were almost identical in design: circular
with a diameter between 4 and 5 m. The width of the trenches varied
between 0.5 and 0.6 m and the depth between 0.15 and 0.25 m. The
cross-section was unevenly bowl-shaped and the irregularities can be
interpreted as stick- or post-holes. Three of the huts had an opening
towards the east. The two southernmost structures were cut by recent
drains and could not be fully documented. The finds consisted of flint
flakes/debitage, burnt clay, and small, unidentifiable potsherds. In the
area closest to the huts several small trenches were noted. It is possible
that these are the last traces of wall trenches destroyed by modern
cultivation (fig. 51). The features contained no extant parts of animals or
plants which could hint at the function of the huts (Andersson, M. 1999).
The four 14C analyses of charcoal particles from three of the wall
trenches and the pit at hut 2 have yielded very different datings. Despite
this, all four huts must be of roughly the same age since they are close to
each other and give the impression of constituting a unit. The wall trench
in hut 1 has been dated to 5315±90 BP (4240–4000 cal. bc, Ua-9846),
that is, the end of the Late Mesolithic or possibly the start of the Early
Neolithic. In hut 2 the wall trench has been dated to 9045±80 BP (8130–
7970 cal. bc, Ua-9843), which corresponds to the Early Mesolithic. The
pit (A10194) beside the same feature, however, was dated to 4000±85 BP
(2850–2340 cal. bc, Ua-9845), that is, early MNB or possibly late MNA.
The wall trench in hut 3 was dated 4485±85 BP (3340–3040 cal. bc, Ua9844), which corresponds to the end of the Early Neolithic and the start
of MNA. The preliminary investigation of 1997 excavated an occupation
layer which subsequently ended up outside the area of the final
excavation. Under the layer, excavation in squares documented two
features, including part of a trench (A5538). The finds consisted of
occasional flints. From this feature there is a 14C dating which gave the
result 4160±90 BP (2880–2610 cal. bc, Ua-8985), corresponding to a
dating to the transition MNA–MNB. The trench could possibly be part of
a hut of the same type as those described above. Fragments of blade
arrowheads were also retrieved within the area (Andersson, M. 1999).
Features of the same design as the huts on the site are known, for
instance, from the village of Tuna on the island of Ven, where eight
circular hut bottoms, about 3–5 m in diameter, were documented. These
were dated to the Pitted Ware culture (Löfgren 1993). At Hagestad a
92
dozen dwelling sites from the late EN and MN have been found, and hutlike structures have been excavated on some of these. On dwelling site 6
there were two probable hut bottoms, which had a diameter of three and
five metres respectively. The pottery on the site was difficult to date since
it retains traits of both Funnel Beaker ceramics and Pitted Ware. A likely
dating is the start of MNB. On site 7 there were six round hut bottoms,
with a diameter varying between 2.9 and 3.3 m. These structures have
only been schematically published, but in five cases they are supposed to
have had remains of post-holes at the edges, while the sixth lacked postholes. The huts were in a row, and since the excavated area was limited, it
is not impossible that there were more huts on the site. These huts have
been dated on the basis of the pottery to the transition between MNA and
MNB (Strömberg 1988a).
The excavations at Saxtorp 23 show that the site has settlement
remains from both the Early Neolithic and the Middle Neolithic. The
circular huts probably belong to the latter phase. Finds of fragmentary
blade arrowheads in the topsoil, parallels to the huts on Ven and at
Hagestad, and at least two of the 14C analyses indicate a dating in the
final phase of MNA and/or MNB. In addition, according to the register of
ancient monuments, two thin-bladed axes and a B-axe have been found
on the site. Whether all the huts are contemporary or should be associated
with repeated visits to the site is difficult to judge. These remains
probably represent brief, temporary activities on the site. The favourable
environment, on a sandy tongue of land at the confluence of the Saxån
and Kvärlövsån, may mean that the structures served as temporary
dwellings or stores used by people when hunting, fishing, and collecting
plants (Andersson, M. 1999).
Lackalänga (Furulund)
The settlement was on the south side of the Kävlingeån, on a sandy
plateau about 15 m a.s.l. (fig. 46). The landscape surrounding the site is
gently undulating in character, broken only by the river and the ravine
through which it flows. The closest megalithic tombs are “Danshögarna”
at Västra Hoby, roughly two kilometres to the north-east. In connection
with the rerouting of road 934, the National Heritage Board Southern
Excavations Department excavated an area of 300 m² on the site.
The area was covered by an occupation layer up to 0.5 m thick. Of the
flint (27 kg), 2.3% consists of tools, if blades and retouched flints are
included. Scrapers, above all flake scrapers, are the most frequent
category of tool. Two blade arrowheads of type A2 and a transverse
arrowhead were retrieved. Five large polished fragments could be
identified, one of them from a B-axe, one from a repolished A/B-axe, and
two from thick-butted, thin-bladed axes. In addition there was a fragment
of a burnt flint chisel. Other tools included cores, knives, and an awl. The
collected flint material from the occupation layer represents a traditional
toolkit from the Middle Neolithic in southern Scandinavia, with Pitted
Ware influences in the form of blade arrowheads. Generally speaking, the
potsherds are small and fragmentary and cannot be more closely
identified than as being of Neolithic character. A number of post-holes, in
a round-oval formation measuring 15×9 m and running NW–SE, was
93
documented under the occupation layer (fig. 53), but it was not possible
to assign them to any distinct building. The occurrence of the post-holes
and the form they made up nevertheless indicates that there may have
been a building on the site. The majority of the flint came from the
occupation layer within this round-oval formation. Two 14C samples, one
from the occupation layer and one from a post-hole, gave values of
4180±90 BP (2888–2611 cal. bc, Ua-7341) and 4060±70 BP (2823–2526
cal. bc, Ua-7642) respectively, which corresponds to late MNA or early
MNB (Munkenberg 1996). Despite fairly varied flint material, I choose to
regard the site as an activity site, like Saxtorp 23. The site seems to lack
any long settlement tradition, the pottery was limited, and it is uncertain
what the post-holes represent.
A place for hoarding and axe manufacture
Barsebäck 105, Stenbocksvallar
Along the north shore of the Barsebäck foreland, a very large amount of
Mesolithic and Neolithic flint has been collected along a stretch of about
1.5 kilometres (fig. 46). It is likely that some of this material comes from
several places which could not be distinguished by the surface survey. In
the material collected here, Carl-Axel Althin, in his dissertation,
documented 130 thick-butted axes (56 of them preforms), 22 thin-bladed
axes (7 of them preforms), and 113 thick-butted chisels (95 of them
preforms), together with a large number of flake axes, scrapers, awls,
knives, etc. (Althin 1954:19f). A new analysis of some of the axes found
that, of the preforms whose types could be identified, there was a clear
preponderance of thick-butted axes (Svensson, M., pers.com.). The huge
quantity of axes and chisels gives the impression that there may have
been a large hoard at some spot. One of the places probably functioned as
a site for the production and distribution of axes and chisels.
A seminar dig in the area, performed by the Department of
Archaeology in Lund in 1982, found that the material was mostly from
the Late Mesolithic (Prahl & Streijffert 1994).
Central places
At the end of MNA and the transition to MNB, places of central character
were established within the investigation area (fig. 54). They no doubt
had several functions, but the overall purpose must have been to assemble
the people from a scattered settlement on special occasions.
Stävie 3
In a total of four stages between 1973 and 1978 and once during 1983,
the National Heritage Board Southern Excavations Department excavated
this site because of gravel quarrying and the laying of the Sydgas
pipeline. The excavated area consisted of a sandy rise on the south bank
of the Lödde Å (fig. 54). The site can be described as a tongue of land
between the Lödde Å to the north-west and a small ravine cut by a stream
to the south-west. A total area of almost 70,000 m² was excavated with
greater or lesser intensity. Within this area there were remains from most
94
prehistoric periods, including a large cemetery from the Viking Age
(Nagmér 1979; Larsson, L. 1982; Nagmér & Räf 1996).
In the eastern part of the area, a roughly 250 m long band of oblong
pits was identified (fig. 55). These comprised a total of 14 pits whose
length varied between 3 m and 40 m and the width between 1.3 and 4 m.
The pits were between 0.4 and 1 m deep. The row of pits is at right angles
to the tongue but ends in the middle of the sandy slope. One of the pits
showed traces of burning in the bottom. Some of the pits were found to
have an irregular bottom, which might suggest that they were dug in
stages. The character of the filling indicates that the pits were filled in
again after a short time when the edges collapsed. No traces of post-holes
belonging to a palisade could be observed. The pottery in the oblong pits
should probably be dated to the closing phase of MNA, that is, the Stävie
group. The occurrence of finds in rather large quantities suggests that
whole vessels were deposited. The pottery shows similarities in form and
decoration to the pottery that characterizes MNA V, which is called
Valby ware after the type site. Several of the smaller features within the
pit system can also be dated to this period. Three presumed ovens were
also excavated on the site; they were probably intended for firing pottery.
The majority of the pots from the site which could be reconstructed have
a slightly marked ledge between the neck and the belly and a straight,
short neck. The clearly dominant ornamental variable is finger
impressions (Larsson, L. 1982). Impressions of cereal grains in the
pottery show the use of mainly emmer and einkorn (Hjelmqvist
1982:108f). If the pottery can be placed at the end of the Funnel Beaker
culture, then the flint shows a distinct character of Pitted Ware culture.
Among other things, at Stävie there are numerous blade arrowheads of
types A and B and cylindrical blade cores. There are also several
fragments of thick-butted axes of both A- and B-type, a large quantity of
scrapers, awls, polished fragments, and cores (Larsson, L. 1982). In one
of the pits, which was part of the 250 m long system, flakes from axe
manufacture were also identified. The amount of bones is limited, but pig
is most common, with cattle, sheep/goat, and red deer also occurring
(Persson 1982:114). There are 14C datings of charcoal from an oven, a pit,
and from a food crust on a sherd from a vessel with MNA V decoration
from one of the pits in the system. These have yielded values of 4055±90
BP (2860–2460 cal. bc, St-6003), 3930±90 BP (2570–2280 cal. bc, St6000), and 4360±85 BP (3260–2880 cal. bc, Ua-26016) (Nagmér 1979;
Larsson, L. 1982; Nagmér & Räf 1996).
The site has been interpreted as an enclosure of Sarup type, but the
finds and the 14C analyses suggest a later dating than sites of this type
found in Denmark (Nagmér 1979; Larsson, L. 1982; Nagmér & Räf
1996). Various scholars, however, have questioned whether this dating is
relevant for the original phase of the structure, and doubts have been
expressed as to whether the pits were excavated all the way to the bottom
(Madsen 1988; Larsson, L., pers.com.). This question could only be
answered by further excavations on the site.
95
Västra Karaby 101, Dösjebro (SU19)
The U-shaped palisaded enclosure at Dösjebro has been dated to an early
phase of the Battle Axe period (MNB). I nevertheless choose to present
the feature in this section since remains on the site show that it was of
special significance already during the late MNA. The palisaded
enclosure was on a long, narrow, flat, sandy strip of land about 500 m
long right beside the Välabäcken (fig. 54). This was one of the sites
excavated by the National Heritage Board Southern Excavations
Department in 1998 in connection with the construction of the West
Coast Line. The roughly 100,000 m² strip was bordered to the north and
east by the now straightened Välabäcken and to the south by a low, flat
area which was once presumably wetland. The strip of land is centrally
placed near the confluence of the Välabäcken and Saxån in the roughly
two kilometre wide valley, which is lined by the hills of Västra Karaby to
the south and Dagstorps Backar to the north.
The palisade was built of a single row of some 500 posts forming a Ushaped structure (fig. 56). The posts were free-standing, with a space of
about a metre between them. Fragments of burnt clay in the filling of the
post-holes suggest that the posts were probably joined by a wicker
structure daubed with clay. Occasional sections, however, differ from this
picture in that the posts were placed close together in trenches. The depth
dug for the post-holes, up to 0.70 m, suggests that the palisade was at
least of human height. The upper part of the stains left by the posts was
sooty or mixed with charcoal, which shows that the posts burnt down
rather than that they were singed before being set in the ground. In both
the western and the eastern part of the palisade it was possible to follow
the rows of postholes down to the wetland layers to the north. This could
mean that the palisade was a structure of which the Välabäcken and the
former wetland were the northern boundary. It cannot be ruled out,
however, that the palisade took a turn right beside the wetland and
formed a closed structure. All in all, the palisade and the river enclosed
an area of roughly 30,000 m². Within the excavated area, inside the
palisade, few structures could be associated with it. To the west was a
circular, post-built structure which was joined in places to the palisade.
Several rows of posts proceeded from the eastern part of the palisade
down towards the Välabäcken (contexts 15 and 37). A number of
openings in the palisade should be interpreted as entrances and/or exits.
In post-holes belonging to the palisade structure there were deliberately
deposited axes and flakes from axe manufacture. On several occasions
the latter were found so densely packed that they must have been placed
in the post-holes enclosed in a container. In two of the post-holes for the
palisade there was pottery which, judging by the form and decoration,
probably comes from the Battle Axe culture. Cord-decorated rim sherds
presumably from two different vessels were found in A68602. The coarse
cord decoration and the shape of the sherds indicates that they are likely
to come from spherical pots of type C, according to Malmer’s
classification. A few metres south of this post-hole, in A68668, there was
yet another sherd with cord decoration just under the rim. The slightly
finer cord decoration suggests that this is a third vessel, presumably of
type A or B. All the sherds can be dated to the early Battle Axe culture
96
(Malmer 1962). Parallel to the north-west part of the palisaded enclosure,
a ditch was excavated (context 9). It was about 50 m long and 1 m wide.
The feature had a U-shaped cross-section and the depth varied between
0.40 and 0.60 m. The ditch was surrounded by occupation layers to both
the west (A122) and the east (A121). Four different strata could be
distinguished in the ditch. Occasional flakes of axe manufacture occurred
throughout the feature. The upper, very humic layer, with Late Bronze
Age/Early Iron Age pottery, should be regarded as an added layer
connected with the later settlement on the site. The underlying layers, on
the other hand, were older and seemed to be the same as the surrounding
occupation layers (A121 and 122). Two deposits of flakes from axe
manufacture were documented in layer 121 (Andersson et al. 1999).
In one of the pits (A1833), right beside an opening in the palisaded
enclosure, there was an unpolished, thin-bladed, thick-butted flint axe.
The pit had a diameter of 0.5 m and was 0.18 m deep. The axe was placed
with the edge pointing upwards, right beside a 0.35×0.35 m stone. Three
14
C datings have been obtained from post-holes in the palisade. The
charcoal samples come from securely documented post-hole colourings.
The dates they gave were 4130±55 BP (2870–2590 cal. bc, Ua-8790),
4165±70 BP (2880–2620 cal. bc, Ua-25094), and 4185±55 BP (2890–
2670 cal. bc, Ua-8791), which correspond to the transition from MNA to
MNB, thus firmly corroborating the archaeological dating. Two charcoal
samples from the pit (A13132) beside the palisade with tooth-stamped
Battle Axe pottery gave the dates 3980±70 BP (2580–2350 cal. bc, Ua25098) and 3935±70 BP (2560–2310 cal. bc, Ua-25090) (Andersson et al.
1999; Svensson et al. 2001; Svensson 2002).
North of the palisade on the other side of the stream, nine graves were
found in a linear cemetery from the Battle Axe culture (see Dagstorp 11,
cemetery). A 14C dating of a wooden coffin from one of the graves gave
the value 4100±75 BP (2870–2490 cal. bc, Ua-9289), which suggests a
close chronological connection between the cemetery and the palisade
(Andersson et al. 1999; Svensson et al. 2001; Svensson 2002).
Just over a hundred metres east of the actual palisade, an occupation
layer (A109) measuring slightly more than 700 m² was excavated; it was
mostly characterized by the rich amount of flint flakes in relation to tools.
Pottery was also scarce. A large proportion of the flakes showed features
characteristic of the manufacture of quadrilateral axes and chisels. No
intact knapping place was found, however. A total of just under 20 kg of
flint and about 0.3 kg pottery was retrieved. In the total flint material the
matt-grey Danian flint is slightly more common than flint of Senonian
type. In contrast, the identified tools are almost exclusively made of
Senonian flint. Among the tools may be mentioned transverse
arrowheads, scrapers, occasional knives and awls, so-called gaming
pieces, and retouched flakes. One of the transverse arrowheads was made
from a flake from a polished axe. There were also a few flake cores. In
terms of number, however, the tools make up less than 1% of the total
flint. It is worth noting the relatively large number (71) of flint fragments
with polished surfaces. Unlike the flint material as a whole and the axe
manufacturing flakes in particular, this category of find is dominated by
Senonian flint. Most of these mainly small axe fragments do not allow
97
any identification of axe types. One of the axe fragments, however,
consists of an edge piece with small sections of both the narrow and the
broad side preserved. The polishing seems to be confined to the broad
side, but it cannot be ruled out that the narrow side had also been
polished. The flakes that could be securely associated with axe
manufacture consist of a total of 774 pieces (approx. 2.5 kg), which
corresponds to roughly 5% of the total number of flints. The majority of
these are of Danian flint (just over 70%). The final stages in the axemanufacturing process are overwhelmingly predominant (Svensson et al.
2001). North of the Välabäcken too, proper knapping places were
documented (see Dagstorp 11). The palisaded enclosure, the cemetery,
and the axe-manufacturing place should probably be regarded as a single
complex of sites (Andersson et al. 1999; Svensson et al. 2001; Svensson
2002).
East of the palisade there was a complicated system of rows of postholes (context 12), which could be followed in an east–west direction
along the wetland. The rows of post-holes may possibly be viewed as a
form of passage, the easternmost part of which expands to four rows of
posts which form a pointed-oval “room”. Within this area a large
occupation layer was noted (A132 east) with a rich amount of flint and
pottery of Karlsfält character belonging to the late Funnel Beaker culture
(Lagergren-Olsson 2003). This layer and the post-hole system may
therefore in all probability be regarded as being slightly older than the
palisaded enclosure. The composition of the find material in the layers
may be considered typical of dwelling sites from the Funnel Beaker
culture. However, no houses or pits for waste or storage were found by
the excavations. The traces of activity therefore probably do not represent
permanent settlement on the site, which more likely saw short-term visits.
Both outside and inside the palisades there were several small pits
which can be interpreted as votive deposits. One of the post-holes
(A101902) west of “the room” contained a preform for a thick-butted axe
of coarse Danian flint (fig. 59). The axe was placed with the butt facing
upwards. A 14C dating from a charcoal fragment from this post-hole
yielded the value 4510±70 BP (3350–3090 cal. bc, Ua-25091). Pits A904
and A10184 were similar in shape, size, and find composition. Both were
round, about 0.5 m in diameter, and can be described mainly as rubbish
deposits. Apart from the many scrapers there were retouched flints and
flint flakes, which should be regarded as preforms for scrapers. Knives,
flake cores, and an almost entirely disintegrated clay disc decorated with
wavy lines were found in A10184. The latter can be dated to MNA V
(Davidsen 1978). Right beside A10184 was yet another bowl-shaped pit
(A33035) with finds including a transverse arrowhead. A 14C analysis of
a charcoal sample dates this feature to 4380±60 BP (3100–2910 cal. bc,
Ua-25094). Pit A1114 differed in size from the pits described above. The
feature was much larger, 0.8×1.0 m, but had a similar shallow bowlshaped bottom (0.07 m). Occasional stones up to 0.15 m in size were
unearthed. Despite its larger volume, the pit held fewer finds; they consist
of a large butt part of a polished flint axe of Valby type, a scraper, a flake
core, and small quantities of knapped flint.
98
Votive sites
There are six documented votive sites in wetland contexts within the
investigation area (fig. 60). All were found by people working with the
soil and have thus not been archaeologically excavated. The pottery
shows that the sites at both Hofterup 28 and Dagstorp 11 were also
visited during this phase.
MNB
Settlement
We know the Battle Axe culture mainly from graves. There are not many
excavated remains of settlement which can be dated to this period in
Skåne. The finds are also of limited extent on these sites, which has often
been interpreted as showing that the population were nomadic herders.
Malmer, on the other hand, believes that agriculture was probably the
main economic foundation for the Funnel Beaker and the Battle Axe
cultures in Skåne, since their distribution essentially corresponds to the
good soils for agriculture (Malmer 1975). Even though forty-two sites in
the investigation area have been interpreted as settlement sites, the
excavated remains are few and usually diffuse. Only five of the excavated
sites can be assigned with reasonable certainty to the Battle Axe culture.
It is not until the late MNB, at the transition to the Late Neolithic, that I
have been able to identify places which can be interpreted as main
settlements.
Main settlements in the late MNB and early LN
Västra Karaby 101, Dösjebro (SU19)
In the spring of 2000 the Department of Archaeology at Lund University,
in collaboration with the Southern Excavations Department, conducted a
seminar excavation at the palisaded enclosure. The earlier excavation in
1998 had documented an opening with an adjacent passage in the
southern part of the palisade. The structure was preliminarily interpreted
as an entrance/exit (Andersson et al. 1999). For the seminar dig the trench
was extended northwards and yet another row of post-holes was found
parallel to the “passage”, which meant that the earlier interpretation could
be revised. The plan documentation and excavation of the post-holes
showed that a long-house with a central row of posts overlayered the
palisade (fig. 62). The northern row consists of the post-holes left by the
roof-bearing posts, while the southern row is one of the wall lines. Only
the south-east half of the house was exposed. The southern wall line,
however, was uncovered in its entirety and found to consist of thirty-three
post-holes. Several of the post-holes are doubled, which is probably a
sign of repairs. The excavated eastern part of the row of roof-bearing
posts consisted of nine central posts. Three of these (A200072, A202194,
and A66191) were bigger and were dug deeper. These post-holes were
evenly distributed along the roof-bearing construction, at distances of 6.3
m and 7.5 m. The stouter central posts were presumably an original
structure that was subsequently reinforced. The fillings in the post-holes
99
consisted of sooty humic sand. It was not possible to distinguish any
colouring left by the posts; the filling was all homogeneously sooty. If the
house burnt down, this suggests that the charred posts were pulled up and
the holes filled with the surrounding occupation soil showing the effects
of fire. Otherwise it should have been possible to distinguish the sootfilled post colouring from the holes. The house is oriented east–west, and
from the excavated part it is calculated to have been about 26 m long and
6–7 m wide. The finds in the post-holes that could be associated with the
house were limited, consisting above all of occasional flint flakes and
small, unidentifiable potsherds. In the post-holes in the south-west of the
house (A201580), however, there were parts of a pot of Late Neolithic
character together with indefinable burnt bones and flint flakes. In the
eastern part of the house, two small, shallow, bowl-shaped pits were
documented. One of them (A65987) contained a large quantity of charred
seeds. One of the seeds (wheat) was sent for 14C analysis and gave the
value 3785±60 BP (2290–2040 cal. bc, Ua-25614), which corresponds to
the transition to the Late Neolithic. Charred seeds were also found in
some of the post-holes belonging to the house (Svensson et al. 2001). The
house is paralleled in its structural details by house no. 95 at Fosie IV,
which has been dated to the Late Neolithic/Early Bronze Age. The two
houses are roughly the same size and have doubled post-holes in the
walls, which indicates that they were repaired and reinforced (Björhem &
Säfvestad 1989).
Dagstorp 19 (SU21)
Along with the extensive Funnel Beaker material at Dagstorp 19 (fig. 61)
there were also some remains that can be dated to MNB. One of the
houses at Dagstorp 19 may possibly be dated to the end of the Battle Axe
culture.
The house (house 70) was situated on a gentle slope down towards the
Välabäcken. The building ran from north-west to south-east and was a
rectangular, two-aisled structure, with slightly convex walls. The remains
of the house had been disturbed by modern drainage and other recent
digging, but the length could be estimated at about 15 m and the width at
6 m. The internal area was just under 90 m². The roof was supported by
five stout posts, the westernmost of which was in the gable (fig. 63). The
finds in the post-holes of the house consist of pottery and flint along with
small quantities of burnt bones and burnt clay. The flint mainly consists
of flakes/debitage, but there are also two flake cores, two blades, a knife,
and a scraper. The pottery consists only of undecorated sherds, one of
them with a type of fabric resembling Battle Axe ceramics.
There are two 14C analyses of hazelnut shells from the house. The sample
from one of the wall post-holes gave the value 4784±75 BP (3650–3380
cal. bc, Ua-25061), corresponding to the transition between EN I and EN
II. The other sample from one of the post-holes belonging to the roofbearing structure was dated to 3950±75 BP (2570–2320 cal. bc, Ua25060), that is, the end of MNB. The first dating must be considered
early with regard to the regular design of the building and the large holes
left by the roof-bearing posts. The latter dating may agree better with the
appearance of the building, which is confirmed by the potsherd from one
100
of the wall post-holes resembling Battle Axe ceramics. The nearby
occupation layer, A158, also contained some potsherds which have been
dated to the Battle Axe culture.
Dagstorp 11 (SU17)
At Dagstorp 11, north of the palisaded enclosure and the Välabäcken (fig.
61), the excavation found not only the early Middle Neolithic structures
but also remains from MNB in the form of occupation layers, houses,
linear cemeteries and extensive axe-manufacturing places (Månsson &
Pihl 1999).
The house was oriented NNW–SSE and was rectangular with a
slightly trapezoidal form. The north-west part of the structure was
overlayered by an occupation layer, 0.1 m thick, A105. The house was
two-aisled, and at least two phases of building can be discerned. In
addition, the roof-bearing posts appeared to have been replaced or
reinforced once in each phase. The house was moved just over a metre
when rebuilt. One phase, to the north, had three roof-bearing posts, all of
them doubled. The other phase, to the south, consisted of four roofbearing posts, two of which were doubled. The walls were straight and in
a trapezoidal relation to each other, being wider at the north. The gables
in both phases were straight in the southern part and slightly rounded in
the northern part. The two phases of the building show a similar form
apart from the fact that the northern phase was missing a post-hole for a
roof-bearing post (figs. 64 and 96). The flint in the post-holes mostly
consists of flakes/debitage but there are also two flake scrapers, two flake
cores, two polished axe fragments, and a flake from axe manufacture.
One of the axe fragments probably comes from a hollow-edged axe. The
pottery is mostly undecorated sherds, but two fragments have stroke
ornamentation of Middle Neolithic character. Two 14C analyses of
charcoal from the holes of roof-bearing posts were performed. The
sample from roof-bearing post A41084, in the northern phase, gave a date
of 4280±55 BP (3020–2700 cal. bc, Ua-9848), while roof-bearing post
A32248, in the southern phase, gave the result 374580 BP (2280–1980
cal. bc, Ua-25190). The first range is from the end of MNA to the start of
MNB, while the second corresponds to the transition to the Late
Neolithic. The latter dating seems most reasonable in view of the find of
the hollow-polished axe fragment in one of the roof-bearing post-holes
and the design of the house which resembles the house structures found
from the Late Neolithic.
The partly overlayering occupation layer, A105, contained
chronologically mixed find material. Both Funnel Beaker culture and
Battle Axe culture, and even later periods, are represented.
A noteworthy find in the occupation layer is two potsherds with
geometrical decoration very like the Bell Beaker tradition and a tanged,
flat-flaked arrowhead of the type common in Bell Beaker contexts (Vang
Petersen 1993).
101
Dwelling/activity sites
Västra Karaby 7
In 1972 the National Heritage Board Southern Excavations Department
investigated a barrow in Dösjebro from the Bronze Age in connection
with planned housing construction. Under the barrow were settlement site
layers from the Middle Neolithic (see chapter 4: EN II–MNA II). Västra
Karaby 7 is just a few hundred metres south-west of the palisade complex
in Dösjebro (fig. 61).
In the same place as the Funnel Beaker settlement, remains from the
Battle Axe culture have also been documented. Pottery with a total
weight of just over half a kilo, belonging to seven vessels, can be dated to
this period. A vessel of which one-third has been reconstructed can be
identified as spherical with all-over angular decoration (Löfwall 1977).
The form and decoration place the vessel in the G, H, or J group of the
Battle Axe culture (Malmer 1962). Battle Axe pottery was above all
concentrated in the eastern part of the excavated area, where the largest
quantity of knapped flint was also found. No features could be shown to
belong to this settlement phase (Löfwall 1977).
Dagstorp 18
The settlement at Dagstorp 18 was in the valley landscape, on a sandy
hilltop and slope immediately south of the Välabäcken, just over half a
kilometre east of Västra Karaby 101 (fig. 61). This Stone Age dwelling
site was discovered at the start of the twentieth century, and was then
completely obliterated in connection the extension of the arable land. A
brief description together with the finds retrieved by ploughing was
submitted to LUHM through the auspices of the landowner. According to
the description, the occupation layer was oval in shape with the
dimensions 20×6 m. The depth was 0.6 m. The flint included a large
number of scrapers, awls, a fragment of a thick-butted axe, and a couple
of fragments of hollow-polished axes. Among the pottery were pitdecorated sherds and a fragment of a clay disc decorated with a simple
zigzag line (Althin 1954:109). Some of the pottery can thus be plausibly
dated to the early Middle Neolithic, but the axe fragment shows that the
site was also used in MNB.
Axe-manufacturing place
Dagstorp 11 (SU17)
In the northern part of the excavated area at Dagstorp 11 there was a findbearing layer (A109) mainly characterized by a rich occurrence of flint
flakes and, in relation to the amount of flint, a relatively small proportion
of tools and very little pottery. The flakes are wholly dominated by
examples from axe manufacture. One intact (A46964) and two damaged
knapping places (A49444 and A49971) were documented. These were at
a distance of about 12 m from each other. Two further small
concentrations of flint flakes were found at the western edge of the layer
(A37460 and A42286) (fig. 65). The composition of the finds and the
absence of dwelling site remains mean that the area is best described as a
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production place. The plentiful but relatively uniform flint material
reflects extensive manufacture but also reknapping of flint axes. No
evidence was found that axes were polished on the site, since no
grindstones were discovered.
Knapping place A46964 was located in the north-west part of A109.
The flint concentration was oval in shape, measuring about 3×2.3 m and
0.01–0.14 m thick. The place had flakes and debitage from axe
manufacture, several polished fragments, and a butt part of a thick-butted,
polished flint axe. The axe shows secondary working, but the narrow
sides have traces of polishing and the cross-section of the butt is square.
It can best be classified as a thick-butted axe of type B, dated to late
MNA or MNB (Nielsen, P. O. 1979; Larsson, L. 1992a). In addition, a
small number of flint tools were identified, including a hammerstone,
transverse arrowheads, and scrapers. A few of the flints are burnt. Several
different types of flint are represented. Apart from variants of Senonian
and Danian flint, there is also very coarse-grained, light-grey to dark-grey
flint. A total of roughly 118 kg flint was retrieved from the knapping
place, the majority of which is flakes from axe manufacture. A small
quantity of pottery (0.4 kg) was discovered in the layer, including three
sherds with horizontal cord decoration and a fragment of a clay disc. The
other pottery mainly consists mainly of small, unidentifiable sherds.
About twelve metres south-east of A46964, a badly damaged knapping
place was exposed (A49444). Two ditches cut through the site. Between
the ditches, the extensive excavation of the layer uncovered large
amounts of flint within an area measuring 2.5×0.9 m. Here too, the flint
mainly consisted of flakes from axe manufacture. Half of the preserved
part of the knapping place was excavated and roughly 21 kg of flint was
retrieved. The remains of yet another knapping place (A49971) were
found about twelve metres east of A49444. The feature was damaged
since the occupation layer had been bulldozed away, and its original
extent is difficult to estimate. A total of 16 kg of flint and occasional
potsherds were found within an area of 1.8×1.5 m. Here too, the finds are
dominated by flakes from axe manufacture, but several transverse
arrowheads and occasional potsherds were noted.
The axe-manufacturing site at Dagstorp 11 represents the largest
assembled amount of finds in this category hitherto known in south
Scandinavia, even though it is located outside the primary deposits of
flint. The link to the axe-manufacturing sites documented at the palisaded
enclosure, as well as the close chronological connection with the
cemetery and the house, add a further dimension to the material. One of
the few excavated manufacturing places for flint axes is Hastrup Vænget
near Køge in Denmark (Vemming Hansen & Madsen 1983). Here a
careful analysis of the finds and comparison with flakes from
experimentally produced axes led to an estimate of the number of axes
manufactured, of how long a time this corresponded to, and of how
production was organized. Hastrup Vænget differs from the knapping
place at Dagstorp 11, however, in that it is located within the primary
area of flint, with a good supply of high-quality raw material.
103
Graves
Dagstorp 11 (SU17)
The linear cemetery at Dagstorp 11 (fig. 67) comprised ten graves from
the Battle Axe culture. One of the graves (A227), however, can be placed
in the Late Neolithic. The cemetery, which was oriented north–south,
extended for about 70 m within the investigation area. The six
southernmost graves lay in pairs in three groups. Grave A43708 was
about 3.5 m west of the line of graves and was oriented east–west, while
the other graves were oriented north–south (fig. 68). From roughly 500 m
east of the linear cemetery there is information about a vanished Battle
Axe grave, Dagstorp RAÄ 25, where a boat axe, a hollow-edged flint
axe, and flint blades were found under a stone packing (Hansen 1920).
Map studies have shown that the removed flat-earth grave was in all
probability part of the now excavated cemetery. If so, RAÄ 25 would
correspond to A25409, located nine metres west of the line of graves,
which showed traces of recent digging. The graves differed greatly in
terms of size, construction, orientation, depth, filling, grave goods, and
number of burials. In cases where there was a stone packing, its depth
varied, as did the size and number of the stones, and whether the packing
was shaped like a frame or a funnel. Adjacent to two of the graves there
were post-holes and a trench which were probably parts of the grave
structure. There were also graves with different types of coffins, ranging
from stains left by wood to slab cists, but there were also graves
completely lacking a coffin. The number of grave goods per grave varied
greatly. In four of the graves there were grave goods in the form of
hollow-edged axes, battle axes, pots, amber beads, and blades. In five
graves body colouring could be documented and in two cases it was
possible to ascertain that more than one person had been buried. The
stains in the graves that are judged to have been left by bodies were all
distinct, allowing identification of the head, trunk, and legs (Månsson &
Pihl 1999).
Inhumation grave: (A25793), oval, roughly 2.8×1.8 m and 0.5 m
deep. The grave was oriented north-east–south-west. No outlines of the
deceased could be observed in the filling. In the southern part of the
grave, within an area of 1.2×0.3 m and on either side of a stone, there
were fragmented potsherds. Beside the stone, on a relatively even level,
there were in addition ten amber beads which were in a very fragile state
of preservation.
Inhumation grave: (A43708), oval, roughly 2.4×1.3 m and 0.35 m
deep, oriented east–west. In the middle was a dark, rectangular stain left
by a coffin, approximately 2.0×0.45 m. It contained flakes, burnt flint,
pottery, and a thin-bladed, hollow-edged axe of flint corresponding most
closely to Malmer’s variant 3 (Malmer 1975:76). The pottery, including
tooth-stamped sherds, was encountered in the eastern part. The axe was in
the western part of the grave with the edge facing south. No skeleton
colouring was noted. Four post-holes were found in either end of the
grave, placed in a row. The filling indicates that the post-holes should be
regarded as being contemporary with the grave, probably as part of some
wooden structure which marked the grave above ground. Battle Axe
104
graves with markings above ground are documented in Ullstorp, Skåne
(Larsson, L. 1988a:81), and in Hagestad 44, Skåne (Strömberg 1989:82).
Two charcoal samples from the bottom of grave A43708 gave the values
3850±75 BP (2460–2200 cal. bc, Ua-9854) and 4085100 BP (2870–
2490 cal. bc, Ua-25192). From one of the post-holes east of the grave
(A43736), possibly belonging to a structure built over a grave, a charcoal
sample was retrieved for 14C analysis, yielding the value 3975±70 BP
(2580–2350 cal. bc, Ua-9855).
Inhumation grave: (A8184), oval, roughly 3×1.8 m and 1.15 m deep.
The grave was oriented north–south. At the southern end of the grave
were two post-holes which may have been part of a superstructure. The
deceased had been laid in a frame-shaped stone feature. On a level with
the lower part of the stone frame and 0.1–0.2 m above the burial level,
there were coffin stains along the edges of the grave. At the burial level
there were stains left by three individuals. The individual furthest to the
south was placed in crouched position, with the head to the south and the
face to the east. Behind the head was a battle axe of rock corresponding
best to Malmer’s group C2 (Malmer 1975:95). In front of the head was a
polished thin-bladed axe of variant 1 and an amber object. At the hip was
a thick-bladed polished hollow-edged axe of variant 1, yet another amber
find, two flint blades, and a small pot of type L. At the knee was yet
another flint blade. Two vessels, one large and one small of type J, were
found at the feet along with a flint blade. In the middle of the grave was
an individual who had been buried in the same way, crouched. Behind the
neck of the deceased was a thick-bladed, polished hollow-edged axe of
variant 1. Slightly to the south of this was a battle axe, agreeing with
Malmer’s group D2. Just beside the battle axe lay a flint blade. The battle
axe and the flint blade were placed in front of the head. At the knee was
an amber object and at the foot a ceramic vessel. Furthest to the north, a
colouring left by an individual was identified. The body was probably
buried in crouched position in a north-west–south-east direction. West of
the colouring was a pot and at the north-east edge a flint blade. Dental
enamel and traces of the other anatomy of the skull show that the
deceased was probably laid with the face to the east. Immediately west of
the dissolved skull was a fragment of a milk tooth, a molar. This shows
that the grave probably contained a child besides the three individuals
attested by grave goods and colourings. The two 14C datings from the
grave have given values of 4100±75 BP (2870–2490 cal. bc, Ua-9289)
and 390575 BP (2480–2210 cal. bc, Ua-25194). The samples were taken
from charcoal fragments found in the coffin stain. Despite the early 14C
dating, the finds suggest that the grave can be assigned to the middle or
later part of the Battle Axe culture (Malmer 1962; 1975).
Inhumation grave: (A37661), oval, roughly 1.4×1.3 m and 1.5 m
deep, oriented NNE–SSW. A funnel-shaped stone structure was
documented in the grave. Directly under the stones were colourings left
by two individuals lying head to foot. The eastern individual stood out
relatively clearly, with the head, trunk, and legs distinguishable. The
individual was laid with the head to the north in slightly crouched
position. Between the individuals was placed a large rectangular stone.
105
Occasional undecorated potsherds and flint flakes were found in the
filling of the grave.
Inhumation grave: (A37624), oval, roughly 2.15×1.1 m and 1.4 m
deep, oriented NNE–SSW.
The frame-shaped stone packing consisted of stones at a total of eight
levels. One individual was buried in crouched position in the south-west
part of the grave, with the back to the west and the face looking southeast. In the north part of the grave, at the same level, there was yet
another colouring. This was not so distinct, however, and it is unclear
whether the stain represents a buried individual. No finds were found in
the vicinity of the stains.
Inhumation grave: (A227), round, approx. 1.80 m in diameter and 0.5
m deep. A number of large stones were visible on the surface. The stone
packing was about 0.5 m deep, and under it was a rectangular slab cist,
oriented ENE–WSW, with a well-laid stone floor about 1.4×0.5 m. The
floor consisted of 0.1–0.3 m flat slabs, most of them worked. The
southern long side and the western short side were marked by orthostats
on which capstones rested. Adjacent to the south-east side of the slab cist
was a “side chamber” measuring roughly 0.4×0.4 m formed of three large
and a number of smaller stones. No skeleton colouring could be
documented, whether in the slab cist or the side chamber. No grave goods
were found, and the grave filling contained only a small amount of
pottery and flint, including two polished fragments. The potsherds are
probably from the same pot. The fabric is relatively thin, with fine
tempering and with red granite as a dominant element. A small sherd is
decorated with tooth stamps. The sherds can probably be ascribed to the
Battle Axe culture. In Battle Axe graves, however, it is very unusual to
find stone-paved floors, so the grave may possibly come from the Late
Neolithic.
Inhumation grave: (A261), round, about 1 m in diameter and 0.9 m
deep. After the ground was stripped, the grave stood out as a round, light
colouring and with a number of large stones visible. All that was left of
the stone packing were three large stones raised on edge along the
western side. The colouring left by an individual in crouched position
with the head to the south and the face to the east was documented. Some
thirty pieces of undecorated pottery were retrieved, probably from the
same vessel.
Inhumation grave: (A16777), oval, roughly 1.0×0.6 m and 0.5 m
deep, oriented NNW–SSE. Four stones slightly larger than the size of a
head marked the grave. Three of the stones were raised on edge to form
an incomplete stone cist. The colouring left by an individual who had lain
in crouched position with the head to the north and the face to the west
was observed. Apart from the head, the trunk and legs could also be
discerned. No finds occurred in the feature.
Inhumation grave: (A16799), oval, roughly 1.7×0.45 m and 0.45 m
deep. Two stones stood on edge along the south-west side of the grave.
Diffuse skeleton colourings were visible. No finds were discovered.
Stone-filled pit/grave: (A25409), about 5.5×0.85 m and 0.8 m deep,
oriented north–south. The filling was recent, consisting of brownspeckled humic sand. Along the western side, however, there was another
106
filling that was untouched, of an even grey colour and slightly humic. In
the south-east corner some large stones were visible. The finds were
knapped flint and pottery, relatively evenly distributed in the feature. The
flint consisted of flakes and debitage. The pottery was exclusively
undecorated sherds, but a large, thin-walled rim fragment was found in
the northern part of the feature. Two 14C datings of charcoal taken from
the filling of the western side yielded values of 4630±65 BP (3520–3340
cal. bc, Ua-9851) and 457085 BP (3500–3100 cal. bc, Ua-25195),
corresponding to the period EN II–MNA I. The feature is probably the
grave documented by Hansen (RAÄ 25) back in the 1920s. This would
explain the recent filling, and the early 14C dates may be from material
from the older settlement that ended up in this context (Månsson & Pihl
1999).
Västra Hoby 5
In 1916 three flat-earth graves belonging to a linear cemetery from the
Battle Axe culture and the Late Neolithic were excavated (Hansen 1917).
A fourth grave which had been discovered 25 years earlier is probably
part of the cemetery. The graves lay in a north–south direction on a flat
plateau about 800 m south of the Kävlingeån (fig. 67). Some fifty metres
to the west the land slopes down towards a now drained wetland. Further
to the north and north-east of the find spot, the land likewise slopes down
to the river. Only about 500 m north of the site is the monument called
“Danshögarna”, consisting of two long dolmens and a passage grave.
The southernmost grave measured 2×2.5 m and was 0.6–0.7 m deep.
No skeleton parts were preserved, but the deceased had been laid in a
frame-shaped stone structure. The grave goods were a hollow-polished
flint axe and two pots of Malmer’s type J:2. Roughly five metres NNW
of this grave was yet another flat-earth grave, measuring about 3×2 m and
almost a metre deep. A stain left by a wooden coffin was observed within
the stone frame. Two pots of type H:3 and L:2 were documented as grave
goods together with a hollow-polished flint axe. The third grave, which
was about eight metres NNW of grave II, had a rather different stone
structure consisting only of one layer of stones, laid in an irregular shape.
A fragmentary flint dagger was found in this. Some fifty metres northwest of this there is information about yet another grave found in
connection with clay extraction. The scant details state that there was a
great deal of stone on the surface. The finds, which were not noticed until
the extracted clay was to be used, consisted of a battle axe, a hollowpolished flint axe, and a thin-bladed flint axe (Hansen 1917; Malmer
1962).
Västra Karaby 39
In connection with the National Heritage Board Southern Excavations
Department’s excavations for the Sydgas project in 1983, two flat-earth
graves from the Battle Axe culture were discovered at Västra Karaby 39
(fig. 67). The site of the graves is a flat, sandy height about two
kilometres south of the Saxån and Välabäcken (Jeppsson 1996b), where
the nearest known cemetery from the Battle Axe culture is also located
(Dagstorp 11).
107
The two Battle Axe graves were oriented east–west and lay about 10
m from each other on a little height. The grave to the south measured
3.1×1–1.6 m and was 0.56 m deep. No traces were left of the coffin or
skeleton. At the bottom of the eastern part of the grave were grave goods
consisting of a large pot of Malmer’s type H:2 with base decoration of
type 2:a. There was also a small vessel of Malmer’s type G:2 with a
slightly damaged bottom, but it was probably, like the preceding vessel,
of type 2:a. The big pot contained two long flint blades, and outside the
pot there were a further three blades and a blade scraper. Adjacent to the
other grave goods were two blade arrowheads with a triangular section of
type D. In the western part of the grave were two hollow-edged polished
thick-butted axes (Malmer 1962, 1975; Jeppsson 1996b).
The northern grave measured 3.35×1.22 m and was 0.9 m deep. It
contained traces of a rectangular coffin. In the western part there were
fragmentary parts of the skull surviving, which showed that the deceased,
aged between 30 and 35, had been placed with the face to the north.
Beside the skull there were 59 small cylindrical amber beads and 5–10
fragmentary ones. Seven large amber beads lay at the shoulder, and at the
pelvis there were fragments of at least one big bead. At the head there
was also a hollow-edged polished thick-butted axe and an undecorated
pot of Malmer’s type N. In the eastern part of the grave stood a large pot
of type H:3, along with two long flint blades, a blade scraper, and a flake
(Malmer 1962, 1975; Jeppsson 1996b).
Västra Karaby (Ålstorp)
About 400 m south of the Saxån and immediately north-east of the bog
Ålstorps Mosse (fig. 67), a preliminary investigation conducted by the
National Heritage Board Southern Excavations Department in October
1997 documented dwelling site remains and a flat-earth grave. A gentle
sandy height runs through the area, about 14–16 m a.s.l. The bog was a
lake in prehistoric times, so the site may be described as having a
lakeside location. The flat-earth grave was an oval stone setting
measuring 4.2×1.8 m, oriented NNW–SSE. The feature was never
excavated during the preliminary investigation, but judging by the size
and shape, and the size and orientation of the stones, the grave should
probably be dated to the Battle Axe culture (Malmer 1975; Aspeborg
1997).
Megalithic tombs
Several megalithic tombs in south Scandinavia have been found to
contain objects which show that they were also used during MNB (fig.
67). In the passage at Gillhög, the edge of a hollow-polished axe and two
thin-bladed flint axes were found, and the cairn in front of the passage
contained parts of a battle axe of type A and several thin-bladed and
hollow-polished axe fragments (Forssander 1932; Malmer 1962:915). In
Hög too, artefacts belonging to MNB were documented, including Battle
Axe pottery of type H both inside and outside the passage grave (Hansen
1919a; Malmer 1962:917). At the mouth of the passage grave at
Södervidinge, Battle Axe pottery of types GH and J:1 and a hollowpolished axe were retrieved (Hansen 1919b; Malmer 1962:922). The
108
excavated passage grave at Västra Hoby held fragments of a thick-butted,
probably hollow-polished flint axe, a thin-bladed flint axe with both the
narrow and the broad side polished, and a thick-butted rock axe
(Forssander 1937). The passage graves of Stenhög in Lackalänga and
Storegård contained thin-bladed flint axes polished on four sides, which
are usually dated to MNB. In Lackalänga there were moreover fragments
of a hollow-edged thick-butted flint axe in the passage.
Votive sites
In the investigation area there are no excavated votive sites in wetland
which can be dated to MNB. On the other hand, work with the soil at
twenty-seven places (fig. 72) has turned up objects from this period
which can be suspected to have been deposited in wetland where there
are no parallel contemporary settlement remains or graves (Karsten
1994).
109
5. Social organization
Day after day, alone on a hill,
the man with the foolish grin
is keeping perfectly still
…But the fool on the hill
sees the sun going down
And the eyes in his head
see the world spinning round
(Lennon & McCartney 1967)
Went out walkin’ through the wood the other day
and the world was a carpet laid before me
The buds were bursting
and the air smelled sweet and strange
and it seemed about a hundred years ago
(Jagger & Richards 1973)
The northern Funnel Beaker complex has been regarded by many
scholars as having its origin in the encounter between the ErtebølleEllerbek complex and various farming groups on the continent (Midgley
1992). A similar material culture was adopted over a large area in
northern Europe, which should be viewed as an expression of a similar
identity perception. This should not be understood, however, as being
synonymous with “a people” or a homogeneous culture. Within this area
there were several different societies with differing historical
backgrounds and structural norms. I therefore consider it important that
the interpretation of the social organization in the investigation area is
based on the Neolithic remains in the region and that the manner in which
the Neolithic way of life was adopted and developed here should be
viewed on the basis of the distinctive regional conditions and the Late
Mesolithic background.
New ideas and old customs
The question of when and how the Neolithic began is a subject of
constant debate which is closely connected with the discussion of what
the Neolithic way of life meant and whether it led to changes in the
material, economic, social, or spiritual sphere. I believe that in the Early
Neolithic there was a change in all parts of society, but that this was a
protracted process. The transition from the Late Mesolithic to the Early
Neolithic was not a drastic event; it seems as if the really major changes
to society did not take place until later in the Early Neolithic. What is
clear is that the terms Mesolithic and Neolithic, referring to different
cultures with distinct economies and social organization, should not be
over-interpreted. The sharp boundary between the two periods is in part a
product of precisely these terms. In addition, there have often been two
110
different schools of research, one studying the Mesolithic, the other
studying the Neolithic, and each school proceeding from its own
priorities and perspectives (Edmonds 1999). The archaeological record
contains indications of both continuity and discontinuity, but it shows
that there were gradual changes during the course of the Early Neolithic
in all spheres of society.
A fully developed agricultural economy, to the extent that the major
part of food was provided by cultivation and/or animal husbandry, is not
attested in the initial phase of the Neolithic. In actual fact, wild food
resources were probably of great importance during the Early Neolithic
as well (cf. Madsen 1982; Larsson, M. 1984; Skaarup 1985). In the same
way, there are indications that cultivation and animal husbandry on a
small scale were introduced to south Scandinavia already in the Late
Atlantic period (cf. Jennbert 1984a). As regards spatial organization, the
archaeological evidence likewise shows that the transition from the
Mesolithic to the Early Neolithic was characterized by both continuity
and change. Several of the coastal sites of the Ertebølle culture in the
investigation area, as in other parts of south Scandinavia, display traces of
continuous use into the Early Neolithic. Eight of the total ten Early
Neolithic coastal settlements are on Late Mesolithic sites. Some of the
sites, moreover, have traditions of use going back thousands of years, in
some cases back to the Late Palaeolithic (Andersson & Knarrström
1999). Sites were gradually occupied during the period in “new”
environments inland as well. Unlike the coastal settlements, none of the
Early Neolithic inland sites show continuity from the Mesolithic. At the
same time, it is obvious that, in connection with the transition to the
Neolithic, there were changes in parts of the material culture. It is above
all in the form and decoration of the pottery that there are fundamental
differences vis-à-vis Ertebølle pottery. The stock of flint in many ways
shows continuity from the preceding period, although the polished flint
axe does not occur until EN I (Stafford 1999).
Settlement pattern
Traces of the earliest Neolithic in the investigation area are confined to
settlements (27 of them) – in some cases probably combined with flatearth graves – and occasional votive sites (5). The Neolithic is usually
associated with the building of long barrows and megalithic monuments.
However, there is no certain evidence that burial monuments were built
in the investigation area in the very first phase of the Early Neolithic. Nor
has it been documented that special places of assembly, corresponding to
the Sarup sites, were arranged at the beginning of the Early Neolithic.
Settlement
Several factors interacted in the choice of settlement locations in the
Early Neolithic. Some of the underlying factors of significance were the
availability of rich and varied economic resources, good communications,
and the existence in the area of a tradition of well-known geographical
landmarks which had acquired a symbolic meaning for the population.
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It is obvious that tradition had a great influence when a settlement was
established. In the areas where we find Mesolithic activities, in many
cases we also find remains from the Early Neolithic. The coastal
settlements were not abandoned at the transition to the Neolithic; most of
the big Late Mesolithic sites were also used during the Early Neolithic.
These were thus places with a long tradition of settlement. By repeatedly
locating settlements in places where the ancestors had lived, their
knowledge of and feeling for the place was carried on. A social landmark
was created which constituted a permanent place in a partially mobile
way of life. A long place-based tradition was crucial for the group’s
identity and for tracing and confirming its origin. I think that there was in
this region an inherited knowledge of the coastal landscape which was
shared by all the members of the community. This insight was not just a
matter of the physical landscape but also of the landscape as a social
construction. The activities of previous inhabitants were manifested in the
landscape in that different places – natural formations or artificial
constructions – were familiar and recalled past events. They thus
constituted the norms or underlying structures that guided people in the
annual use of all the parts of the landscape.
The inclination to locate their settlements by the sea, especially in bays
and lagoons, was strong. Coastal sites – where land meets water, where
the forest gives way to the open sea – appealed to the people. It is clear
that two areas of coastal settlement can be discerned in the region. One of
them, consisting of Tofta 17, Saxtorp 12, Saxtorp 3 (Tågerup), and
Saxtorp 23, was centred around the former bay at the estuary of the
Saxån. The other area, comprising Barsebäck 72, Barsebäck 54,
Löddeköpinge 8, Löddeköpinge 17, and Löddeköpinge 33, was beside the
rivers Lödde Å and Mare Bäck. The coastal strip between these two areas
lacks traces of both Late Mesolithic and Early Neolithic activity. This can
of course be due in part to the neglect of Early Neolithic coastal sites here
in the survey of ancient monuments, but it is nevertheless a clear hint that
coastal settlements were above all founded on the shores of bays or
estuaries.
In an environment where the inland was filled with closed deciduous
forests, we may assume that transports, seasonal movements, and social
contacts were maintained by river and sea. The Öresund naturally was of
major significance as a communication route in the area. A dwelling site
should be viewed as a part of the landscape, not as separated from the
surroundings. It therefore cannot be understood as an isolated
phenomenon, but must be put in a landscape context. In this connection
the value of places from the point of view of communications was
important. All main settlements were situated along special
communication channels in the landscape – beside river mouths or on
tongues of land where two rivers merged, that is, at the encounter
between land and water. From such places it was easy to move in several
directions. The dwelling sites evidently represented points in the
communication system.
Early Neolithic people took advantage of the topography to emphasize
certain aspects of the dwelling site, through its spatial relation to other
parts of the landscape. Places where communication channels met seem
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to have been of particular importance, in bays or at confluences of rivers.
Another significant variable seems to have been the choice of prominent
places in the landscape from which water routes could be observed.
Settlements were always on small rises. Topographical features were
used to reinforce and underline the prevailing structure of the community.
The more permanent settlement areas can be regarded as nodes in the
landscape.
With regard to the existing evidence of Early Neolithic dwelling sites
it is very difficult to reconstruct a settlement pattern in which main
settlements and activity sites are represented. There are no “pure” Early
Neolithic settlements in the area. At occasional places the remains are
nevertheless of such a scale that it is possible to discuss their character,
and there are indications that some of the sites may have lasted longer
than others.
Five of the excavated settlements in the area (Tofta 17, Saxtorp 12,
Saxtorp 23, Dagstorp 19 and Löddeköpinge 8) which can be dated to EN
I could be regarded as main settlements. From an economic point of view
it is fully reasonable that a year-round settlement could have existed in
these places. At least people could have stayed in the places for most of
the year and only made short excursions for specific purposes. All the
sites, with one exception, are on the open coast or in bays. The sole
exception is Dagstorp 19, which is in the valley of the Välabäcken (fig.
11). The most diffuse traces are found at Tofta 17, where the admixture
of remains of later settlement has seriously disturbed the Early Neolithic
picture. The house and the probable flat-earth graves, together with the
proximity to Saxtorp 12 mean that the site may cautiously be regarded as
a main settlement. At the other sites there were fairly large occupation
layers with varied find material. Houses and huts were documented at
Saxtorp 23, Tofta 17, Dagstorp 19, and possibly at Löddeköpinge 8, and
there are good reasons for assuming that graves occurred at Tofta 17,
Saxtorp 12, and Saxtorp 23.
It is evidently the case that certain groups in the initial phase of the
Neolithic, of which Dagstorp 19 is an example, moved their more
permanent settlement from the coast to inland watercourses. The inland
settlements were mainly established beside rivers or wetlands. Contact
with the familiar coastal regions was thus retained both physically and
mentally via the water routes.
The main settlements constituted the fixed points, and the people took
their identity from them. Apart from these sites there were other places
intended for special purposes in certain periods of the year, temporarily
visited by herders or hunters. It is of course difficult to recreate a
settlement pattern in which temporary activity sites are linked to specific
main settlements. Excavations of these places mostly reveal only one or
two features, and this makes it hard to speculate about the function of a
site. In the areas around the settlements by the Saxån bay there are no
known minor sites which could represent short-term places with special
functions. Around the inland settlement of Dagstorp 19, on the other
hand, there are a number of sites identified by surface survey with a
limited amount of Early Neolithic finds which may have been part of a
settlement system of which Dagstorp 19 was the node. The evidence,
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however, is far too fragmentary to allow us to say anything about the
function of these places. They are on the slopes of Karaby Backar, on
sandy soils but close to clay soils. The advantage of these places is that
the proximity to two different soil types gives variation in vegetation and
game. In the sandy areas with late glacial and glacial glaciofluvial
sediments, the vegetation consisted of a nutrient-rich wooded pastures
with a relatively well developed undervegetation. This provided good
living conditions for deer. An increased element of clay tills meant that
the surface water found it difficult to penetrate the soil, so that there were
at times damp patches where pools of water remained. In this
environment the forest was probably dominated by ash, elm, and lime.
The heavy clay soils with their deciduous forests offered optimal
resources for extracting vegetable food. Trees could be ring-barked and
thus made to produce shoots at a comfortable height for people and
animals (Göransson 1988, 1996). A settlement in a “marginal area” like
this, between different biotopes, made it possible to use several resources
from one and the same place (cf. Larsson, M. 1984:204 ff).
Lackalänga 36, Stävie 21, and Örtofta constitute a special category of
place. Remains of huts at these sites show that a group of people probably
used the sites for overnight stays in connection with special activities.
There are no finds or other contemporary features to indicate that these
were main settlements occupied for any length of time. All three are
situated at a certain distance from the big river valleys, on clay soils
beside sandy soils. These places can probably be said to represent
temporary seasonal settlements intended for special purposes, perhaps
animal husbandry.
The introduction of cultivation and animal husbandry, albeit on a
small scale, entailed changes to the appearance of the landscape that
subsequently had an impact on people and their relations. However, we
can obtain no more than a fragmentary picture of the subsistence of the
Early Neolithic populations in the area. Unfavourable preservation
conditions for organic material restrict our chances of illuminating the
economy. Through a combination of different kinds of source material
one can nevertheless acquire some knowledge of the different economic
pursuits. The location of settlements in the landscape, impressions of
cereal grains in pottery, remains of animal bones, and pollen diagrams are
all factors which can contribute information. The scant organic material
means that comparative evidence must be used.
The general picture in north-west Europe as a whole is that the
proportion of elm pollen declines at the start of the Subboreal period. At
the same time or slightly later, there is a tendency for other stands of
deciduous forest, such as oak, ash, and lime, to decrease at the expense of
grass pollen (Nilsson 1964; Berglund 1969; Digerfeldt 1982). In
comparison with well-excavated areas, in a belt running from Ireland in
the west via Scandinavia to the Baltic region, landscape development
suggests an overall pattern for the emergence of the cultivated landscape,
with the Neolithic being characterized by a wooded landscape with
extensive, mobile agriculture and woodland grazing (Berglund 1999).
The palaeobotanical investigations undertaken in the investigation area
agree with this picture, since the spring at Saxtorp 26 and the wells at
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Saxtorp 23 have given a concordant impression of small cleared areas
beside settlements during the Early Neolithic (Regnell, M., pers.com.).
Finds of cultivated plants from the Early and Middle Neolithic mostly
consist of impressions in pottery. The Scanian material has been
identified and discussed in detail by Hakon Hjelmqvist (1955, 1964,
1974, 1979). The overall picture is that varieties of barley and wheat
predominate. In the Early Neolithic naked barley is more common than
hulled barley. Three different species of wheat (emmer, einkorn, and
wheat) are attested in the Early Neolithic finds. Impressions left by other
species of plant occur, such as wild apple and hazel (Hjelmqvist 1955,
1964, 1974, 1979; Larsson, M. 1984; Jennbert 1984a; Tilley 1996). In the
material from Löddesborg, the Early Neolithic sherds have nine certain
impressions of identified cereals grains: five of wheat, two of naked
barley, one of emmer, and one of einkorn. In addition there were
impressions of apple pips, a little rounded impression which may be a
bulbil of chive, an impression of lyme grass, an impression of a piece of a
sedge leaf, and an impression of couch (Jennbert 1984a). There are of
course problems involved in producing a picture of Early Neolithic
cultivation on the basis of a few impressions of seeds in pottery. The
evidence is far too small to allow us to ascertain the relative significance
of the different species. It is also difficult to judge the scale of this early
agriculture.
The relation between domesticated animals and game is poorly
illuminated in the earliest phase of the Neolithic. There are few cases
where the conditions on excavated dwelling sites are such that organic
material is preserved. Among the attested domesticated animals in
southern Sweden, cattle and pigs account for the largest share. Sheep or
goats are rare in the material. It has been assumed that pigs were for a
long time the most important source of protein (Bjørn 1988; Welinder
1998). This assumption, however, is not based on the faunal evidence but
rather on the ecological conditions prevailing at the time, with a wooded
landscape. These animals, which were really more like today’s wild boar,
blended very well in the forest environment, and the amount of work
needed to maintain them was minimal. The available evidence in the
investigation area, as in the rest of south Scandinavia, is scant. At
Löddeköpinge 8 there are only a few finds of bones from cattle; wild
species, such as various kinds of fish and bird, roe deer, red deer, and
wild boar dominated (Jennbert 1984a). The Early Neolithic settlement of
Saxtorp 23 was likewise dominated by remains of cattle in one of the
wells. Although several of the sites were on the coast, there is little
evidence of fish being of any great significance at the few Scanian sites
where organic material is preserved. The bones from the late Early
Neolithic site of Rävgrav in Östra Vemmenhög suggest that fishing was
not an important economic activity (Larsson, L. 1992c).
The overall impression of the Early Neolithic economy is that it was
highly varied. The siting of the settlements beside rivers and where
different soil types meet nevertheless indicates that a varied and resourcerich environment was available. Hunting and collecting probably played a
major role, while cultivation and animal husbandry perhaps, in several
cases, accounted for only a small part of the total provision of food,
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mostly without any real economic significance. It is possible that some of
the cultivation was for the production of alcoholic drinks for use on social
occasions. Some of the Early Neolithic vessels may very well have been
intended for use as drinking cups (Koch 1998; Fischer 2002:377).
Special dwelling sites as nodes used by people moving through the
area were important for the way in which the landscape was ordered and
perceived. We find that the places which seem to have been main
settlements were located beside bays or, as in the case of Dagstorp 19, on
rivers, while the smaller places, intended for some kind of specialized
activity, mainly seem to have been located inland, usually along some
watercourse.
This way of living was a tradition going back for generations; it gave
the population a knowledge of the social and ecological structure of the
landscape. This knowledge was constantly repeated and reinterpreted on
the basis of the daily experience of the landscape.
The central significance of the main settlement is also expressed in the
internal organization. Studies of the individual sites show, as we shall
see, that there is a pattern in the way the Early Neolithic population
organized itself in the micro-space (the place). Although we cannot
explain in detail how they carried out their everyday activities, it is
possible to detect several underlying motifs according to which the places
were used. Different areas in which different activities were performed
can be distinguished. The archaeological traces of at least three of the
Early Neolithic coastal sites indicate that several societal functions were
attached to one and the same place. The settlement was not just a site for
social and economic activity; at these sites there was also a harmony
between the everyday and the ritual activities. It therefore seems
inadequate to make a strict distinction between profane and sacred when
trying to understand people during the Neolithic.
Houses and huts
Remains of houses or huts were documented at Dagstorp 19, Saxtorp 23,
Stävie 21, Lackalänga 36, and – with some doubt – at Tofta 17,
Löddeköpinge 8, and Örtofta. In most cases the buildings are rather small
and round or round-oval. The exceptions are houses 61 and 57/58 at
Dagstorp 19, which are two-aisled buildings, and also possibly the
incompletely preserved house at Tofta 17. All of the rectangular houses
are oriented east–west with, in certain cases, a slight shift to WNW–ESE.
The basic building material, as was customary in the Stone Age of
southern Scandinavia, was wood. Remains of burnt clay at Saxtorp 23
suggest that the walls of some houses were of wattle and daub.
Preservation is far too fragmentary to allow a detailed discussion of the
internal structures of the houses. In the Saxtorp house, however, a hearth
or oven structure could be linked to the internal design of the building.
At the Dagstorp settlement there were two long-houses and a hut
which can be dated to EN I. It is not possible to determine with certainty
whether it is a large household with accompanying houses for different
functions or several contemporary households. Of course, there may also
be a certain chronological difference between the buildings. The
116
occurrence of several houses, however, might indicate dwellings for two
or more individual family units.
The number of Early Neolithic houses is rather limited, but the few
documented houses do confirm the picture of heterogeneous house
structures in the opening phase of the Early Neolithic (figs. 20 and 73).
The standardized house types that seem to occur in later periods have not
yet been established.
Activity areas
Houses are only one element in a system of activities performed at a
settlement. In studies of the organization of place it is essential to analyse
how the house as one aspect of material culture relates to other activities.
At some of the sites dated to EN I, special areas intended for specific
activities can be distinguished outside the remains of the houses. The
modest size of the houses suggests that the majority of the daily activities
took place outside the houses. Moreover, the house interiors seem to have
been kept fairly clean, since the finds are to a large extent outside the
houses.
The clearest examples of the division of a dwelling site comes from
the remains at Saxtorp 23, where it was possible to document, within an
area of roughly 15,000 m², a dwelling, a manufacturing place, an area
around a well, and flat-earth graves (fig. 12). The manufacturing place
was just a few metres north-west of the house. The stratigraphical
observations in the field show that the two phenomena may very well
have been contemporary and that the production of tools was carried on
right beside the house. Since the flint waste was registered in a dense
accumulation, it is probable that people making tools gathered the waste
on some kind of skins and then dumped it here. It therefore cannot be
ruled out that the knapping place may have been inside a building which
was cleaned when the work was finished. The activities at the well, on the
other hand, were carried out a good distance from the house. For natural
reasons, wells were dug where the groundwater was close to the surface.
The heavy preponderance of scrapers among the tools beside the wells
indicates that a specialized working process – the preparation of wood
and skins – took place around them.
At some of the excavated sites there were surviving occupation layers
of various sizes left by human activities. The quantity and variety of the
finds at Löddeköpinge 8, Saxtorp 12, Saxtorp 23, and Dagstorp 19
strengthen the hypothesis about the character of these sites as main
settlements. A common feature of the excavated settlements is that the
flint, as expected, is dominated by flakes and debitage. Flake manufacture
predominates, with some element of blades. Some flakes from axe
manufacture were also retrieved, although they are only a small
proportion of the total debitage/flakes. The tools are scrapers, knives,
transverse arrowheads, and awls and axe fragments, together with a large
quantity of “other” retouched flint. An analysis of the flint inventory
shows that there was continuity in technology and tool types between the
Late Mesolithic and the Early Neolithic. A slightly larger concentration
of flint and pottery is noted beside, but not in, the Early Neolithic houses
117
at Dagstorp (fig. 74). The settlement at Tofta has been too badly damaged
by later activities to give us any clear idea of the Early Neolithic element.
At several of the Early Neolithic sites (Dagstorp 19, Saxtorp 23, Stävie
21, Örtofta) a number of small pits with sherds of Early Neolithic pottery,
flint artefacts, burnt clay, and burnt bones have been documented. The
function of the pits is of course difficult to judge. The composition of the
material in the Early Neolithic pits, above all fragments of “everyday”
objects, means that these have routinely been regarded as waste pits or
storage pits. Some thought should nevertheless be devoted to the pits and
their meaning. The majority of them are shallow and irregularly bowlshaped, and the filling and section give the impression that the pits were
filled in again immediately after the deposition. My view is that these
features are in fact impractical as storage pits. A storage pit should have a
distinct form in plan and section, with the sides straight or slightly
sloping and the bottom flat (cf. Eriksson et al. 2000). It is reasonable to
imagine that the almost beehive-shaped pit at Saxtorp 23, the sides of
which were partly lined with clay, had a primary function as a storage pit.
It has often been argued that pits with beehive-shaped sides were suitable
for storing grain (Hill 1995:67). This, however, is one of the few pits that
can be said to have been specially intended for storage. It also seems not
to have been particularly appropriate to perforate the ground surface at a
dwelling site with shallow pits for waste products. Yet another argument
against the idea that all pits functioned solely as storage containers or
waste pits is that at both Saxtorp 23 and Dagstorp 19 there are potsherds
from different pits with tempering and decoration which mean that they
could come from the same vessels. Separating sherds from different pots
and depositing them in different pits seems like a deliberate action,
although of course it cannot be ruled out that a damaged pot could end up
in two different waste pits.
Similar Early Neolithic pits are known from several places in southern
Scandinavia. Nielsen has conducted a careful analysis of the finds from
an Early Neolithic pit at Sigersted in Sjælland. Large quantities of pottery
and knapped flint were retrieved here which could be chronologically
linked to finds in the occupation layer of the site. He therefore interpreted
the feature as a waste pit, since identifiable waste from diversified tool
manufacture was found, together with remain of meals in the form of
animal bones (Nielsen, P. O. 1985). It is tricky to determine what might
be storage, waste, or accidentally dropped objects and what might be
offerings on a dwelling site. Each find must be assessed separately.
Ethnographic parallels show that the outlook on and treatment of dirt and
waste vary between different cultures (Thomas 1991). It is obvious that
the attitude to waste products prevailing in the Neolithic differed from
that of our Western society. Deposits of flint flakes and debitage from
Skåne are known from megalithic tombs and elsewhere in the south-east
of the province (Strömberg 1971:320). The deposits can comprise
everything from a few flakes to a couple of thousand. Besides flakes and
debitage the deposits also contain blade fragments, transverse
arrowheads, scrapers, and other small flint artefacts (Karsten 1994).
These have been interpreted as reflecting cultic acts in connection with
the construction of the grave (Strömberg 1971). Deliberate deposits of
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flakes/debitage from axe manufacture in the post-holes at the palisade in
Dösjebro (Andersson et al. 1999; Svensson 2002) are yet another
example of how so-called waste material is regarded as something more
than just “dirt”. It is possible that pits found on a dwelling site and
containing habitation material or waste should not always be
automatically considered as storage or waste pits. The composition of the
material in the Stävie pit, including 95 scrapers and a stone packing on
the bottom, gives a hint that the purpose may have been at least partly
something else. Similar Neolithic deposits are known from elsewhere.
Excavations in Fosie uncovered 32 scrapers together in the filling of a
well (Björhem & Säfvestad 1989). By far the largest hoard was excavated
as part of the Hagestad Project in eastern Skåne; it comprised 4,601
flakes and pieces of debitage, 770 flake scrapers, and 74 cores with a total
weight of just over 76 kg (Strömberg 1982a:48ff).
Graves
Remains of skeletons and clear grave goods are lacking in the graves in
the area, which makes it difficult to establish with certainty that they
really are graves. Some strong clues nevertheless suggest that they may in
fact be Early Neolithic flat-earth graves. From Denmark several Early
Neolithic flat-earth graves are known, and a comparative study of these
can enlarge our understanding of the Scanian features as well. The
majority of the graves were found in Jutland. The grave forms vary from
simple, flat-earth graves without special structural details, to burials with
various kinds of stone structures and/or adjacent post-holes. In Ebbesen’s
(1994) analysis of Early Neolithic graves he distinguishes eight types (A–
H). Type A is defined as a simple oblong pit with no stone structure. The
pit is usually a long oval or rectangular with rounded corners. The body
was buried in a wooden coffin, wrapped in skins, or just laid in the earth.
The orientation of the grave varies greatly, although east–west is most
common. The length ranges from 1.6 to 3.0 m and the width from 0.45 to
1.5 m. The graves are between 0.45 and 0.6 m deep. At some of the
features there were lone stones, and some have post-holes at the corners.
The graves are dated to the entire Early Neolithic. This form of grave is
most commonly found under flat earth. Some of the grave types are
documented under long barrows. Ebbesen’s study treats, above all, graves
in which grave goods were found. However, he does not believe that this
means that Early Neolithic flat-earth graves are particularly rich in grave
goods. Graves without finds can only be dated to this time in cases where
they can be securely associated with one of Ebbesen’s eight types or if
they are part of an Early Neolithic context (Ebbesen 1994). Unlike the
situation in Denmark, there is as yet little sure evidence of Early
Neolithic flat-earth graves in Skåne. At some places south and east of
Malmö – Kristineberg, Oxievång, Petersborg, Skjutbanorna 1B, and
Södra Sallerup – some probable flat-earth graves have been dated to EN
I. The grave at Kristineberg was east of a ploughed-out, presumed long
barrow (Larsson, M. 1980; Ekström 1999; Rudebeck & Ödman 2000;
Sarnäs & Nord Paulsson 2001; Siech 2002).
The graves in the investigation area can be categorized as type A, that
is, flat-earth graves without stone structures. Grave A642 at Saxtorp 23
119
does admittedly have stones along the north edge of the pit, which may
be part of a simple frame structure. Post-holes found at the end of the
same grave may also be part of the structure. The orientation of graves of
type A varies greatly in the Danish material. This agrees with the
excavated graves in our area, where both east–west and north–south
occur. As regards length and width, all the graves in the investigation
area fall within the dimensions measured in Denmark. The depth varies
slightly, but this of course is connected to the degree of preservation. The
shape of the features, fairly straight sides, a flat bottom, and traces of
colouring left by a skeleton and/or coffin, corroborate the theory that
these are graves. What is perhaps the least distinct grave at Tofta 17 is
surrounded by post-holes forming a structure that resembles a house type
of Mossby character. There are other examples of Early Neolithic burials
in houses. At Bygholm Nørremark in eastern Jutland, under two long
barrows placed one on top of the other, there was a burial inside a house.
The house was a two-aisled structure with rounded gables and measuring
roughly 12×5 m in east–west direction. An interpretation put forward by
Preben Rønne is that a “ceremonial house” was built on the site. This was
then demolished and the grave was placed within the demolished house
and then the barrow was constructed on top of this. The structure has
been dated to EN II (C) (Rønne 1979). At Tofta the grave and house are
overlayered by a Bronze Age barrow (fig. 15). Although the barrow has
preserved holes dug as post-holes and graves, the actual construction of
the barrow destroyed any other traces of Early Neolithic activities which
might tell us what happened on the site. There are at least no clues that a
long barrow preceded the Bronze Age barrow.
Ebbesen believes that the Early Neolithic flat-earth graves without
stone structures are a continuation of Late Mesolithic mortuary traditions
(Ebbesen 1994:80). At Skateholm it seems as if many more people were
buried without grave goods in the later than in the earlier cemetery
(Larsson, L. 1988b). There was possibly a decline in the tradition of
burying the dead with grave goods at the end of the Late Mesolithic and
the start of the Early Neolithic. This would explain the absence of finds in
burials in the investigation area. Naturally, the grave goods may have
been of material which has not been preserved. In the course of the Early
Neolithic the grave forms become more complicated, with structures of
wood and stone (Ebbesen 1994:80). A close spatial link between
cemeteries and Late Mesolithic dwelling sites has been attested through
different excavations in southern Scandinavia, for instance, at
Bøgebakken on the Öresund coast of Sjælland, Skateholm on the south
coast of Skåne, and Tågerup on the Saxån (Albrethsen & Brinch Petersen
1977; Larsson, L. 1995; Karsten & Knarrström 1999; Kjällquist 2001). A
similar intimate relationship between graves and dwelling site seems to
exist at some of the coastal Early Neolithic sites in the investigation area.
At Saxtorp 23 the graves were placed within the highest part of the
settlement area, while houses and activity areas were located further
down towards the Kvärlövsbäcken. At Vallkärra it was not possible to
determine the relation of any graves to contemporary settlements. The
areas excavated there were too small and the finds too limited.
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The size of settlements
It cannot be taken for granted that Early Neolithic settlements were small
in area. It seems in fact that both large and small sites existed in parallel.
Both the excavations and the surface surveys in the investigation area
show that some of the Early Neolithic dwelling sites were rather large.
This may be a sign that space was needed for different activities and that
there was successive expansion. It is difficult to calculate how large a
group lived on each site at the same time. It may nevertheless be
assumed, on the basis of the varying activities and the extent of the
settlement, that, at least at Dagstorp 19 and Saxtorp 23, the groups could
have been bigger than a single family. The different Early Neolithic
activities at Saxtorp 23 comprise an area of at least 15,000 m² (fig. 12).
The surface survey suggests that the site was much larger, more likely
covering about 25,000 m². The excavated area at the Early Neolithic
settlement of Dagstorp 19 comprises roughly 7,000 m² (fig. 18). The
surface survey shows that the site probably continued down to the
Välabäcken and was probably twice as large as the excavated area shows.
Moreover, the finds collected from the site are so numerous as to indicate
extensive activity. Of course it is impossible to determine with certainty
the exact contemporaneity of the remains in the different places, but the
spatial extent nevertheless gives the impression that the settlements were
bigger than previous research has usually stated. The size of a settlement
is of course closely connected to how we define a dwelling site. The big
settlements during the Early Neolithic were not just used for dwelling,
but also for burials and votive ceremonies, which meant that greater areas
were claimed.
To sum up, it may be said of the organization of Early Neolithic
settlements that there seems to have been a distinct and deliberate
division into different activity areas on the site. The houses are relatively
small and the distribution of the finds indicates that everyday chores were
performed outside them. At both large and small settlements excavations
have found small pits – often beside the houses – with contents which
seem to represent the day-to-day activities of a dwelling site and which
seem to manifest its significance. It seems as if there was an open area at
the centre of the settlements at Saxtorp 23 and Dagstorp 19 (figs. 12 and
18), perhaps used for communal activities. At Saxtorp 23 this area is
surrounded by a house and a well to the north and graves to the south. In
Dagstorp the houses are in the eastern and western parts of the settlement.
Votive sites
Alongside the deposits of votive character on dwelling sites there is also
evidence that wetlands were used as votive sites. It appears as if this
custom was practised to a rather limited extent in the opening phase of
the Neolithic. Only at five places have objects been found in
circumstances that can be described as votive finds, and in all cases the
deposited object is an intact pointed-butted axe or a fragment of one.
These finds are consequently found in contexts where there are no
vestiges of burial or habitation.
The custom of depositing objects in wetlands is a recurrent feature
throughout the Neolithic. It also seems as if the Early Neolithic votive
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custom has its roots in the Late Mesolithic, since there is great similarity
between the Late Mesolithic and the Early Neolithic in the choice of the
method and place for sacrifices. Karsten’s studies of Neolithic votive
finds shows that axes predominate in the votive bogs of Skåne (Karsten
1994). The fact that the axes are discovered as solitary finds may of
course be due in part to the fact that the wetlands have not been
excavated and that the find circumstances have therefore never been fully
clarified.
Society
As we have seen, the social and economic pattern follows largely the
same lines as at the end of the Mesolithic. The archaeological evidence
from the area indicates that the Mesolithic–Neolithic transition was not a
dramatic event, but more like a continuous course of development.
Each society has its unique features. The specific culture-historical
background means that the social organization and people’s patterns of
action vary from one society to another. By applying the archaeological
evidence together with what we know about small-scale social structures
from ethnographical investigations, there should nevertheless be good
chances within the investigation area of reconstructing parts of the Early
Neolithic social organization.
The settlement pattern shows nothing to contradict the prevailing view
of Early Neolithic society as having been organized in kin communities
where social relations were established and preserved through various
bonds of kinship and friendship between individuals and groups (cf.
Meillassoux 1972, 1981; Rey 1979; Terray 1975, 1979; Tilley 1984;
Eriksen 1995). It is of course impossible to reconstruct in detail the
structure of kinship relations. In the discussion below, however, it is
sufficient to assume that people did not live in isolation and that their
relations were steered by kinship. In societies of this type the individual
household is the smallest and basic unit of production. Household or
family units were tied together through one or more shared ancestors.
Together they made up the kin group that was the fundamental social
unit. Usually the local community consists of one or more kin groups
governed by one of the elders. Collective work was socially organized or
divided according to gender and age. The distribution of the products of
labour was ensured via kinship ties and through a network of individuals
extending beyond those who took part in the work process. It was mainly
the younger members of the group who took care of production, while it
was usually the older members who supervised and coordinated and who
distributed resources to the economically unproductive members such as
children and sick people.
There is evidence that people in the Late Mesolithic switched to an
increasingly sedentary life. Coastal places like Saxtorp 3 (Tågerup),
Skateholm, and Löddeköpinge 8 (Löddesborg) have been interpreted as
more permanent settlement sites, possibly year-round dwellings (Jennbert
1984a; Larsson, L. 1988b; Karsten & Knarrström 1999). With the rich
sources of nutrition available on the coast, people may have found it
possible to settle permanently. It is uncertain whether these main
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settlements were inhabited all the year round or on recurrent visits, but it
is clear that the sites functioned for hundreds and sometimes even
thousands of years. Around the main settlements there were a number of
places of a more temporary kind, used seasonally or for special purposes
by small groups. The sedentary life that seems to have begun on the coast
in the Late Mesolithic appears to have continued into the Early Neolithic.
This gave the sites a symbolic emotional significance that was manifested
in several places by burials beside the settlement.
It is perfectly reasonable to imagine that some of the bigger sites on
the Saxån bay functioned at the same time (fig. 75). On the basis of the
archaeological evidence, of course, it is impossible to achieve the
absolute fine chronology required to establish that the sites were
contemporary. If Tofta 17 and Saxtorp 12 are regarded as a unit, the
distance to Saxtorp 23 is less than five kilometres. In between is Saxtorp
3 (Tågerup), the size and function of which are difficult to judge since the
excavations never touched any Early Neolithic settlement horizons. A
further six kilometres to the east, counting from Saxtorp 23, along the
Saxån and the Välabäcken, is the inland site of Dagstorp 19. It ought to
be perfectly possible that these places functioned simultaneously as selfsufficient units. Many ethnographically studied groups pursuing
cultivation use a territory stretching 1–5 km (Chisholm 1968; Bakels
1978). One hypothesis is thus that it is possible to identify at least three
and perhaps four settlement groups in the valleys of the Saxån and
Välabäcken.
In the area by the Lödde Å and Mare Bäck it is only Löddeköpinge 8
that has seen archaeological excavation, and here the extent of the
occupation layer and the finds indicates that the sites functioned as main
settlements. A further three sites in the area, identified by surface survey,
with large amounts of flint and with traditions from the Late Mesolithic,
could possibly be regarded as main settlements (fig. 76). Two of them are
located close to the Mare Bäck, namely, Barsebäck 72 and Barsebäck 54.
Almost five kilometres from there, at the mouth of the Lödde Å, there is
not only Löddeköpinge 8 but also Löddeköpinge 17. Not having been
excavated, these places are of course not proved to have been
contemporary and their function cannot be determined with certainty. It
may be observed, however, that Early Neolithic populations inhabited the
Barsebäck foreland by the Mare Bäck and the bay formed by the estuary
of the Lödde Å. There may have been one group of people in each area
who moved between different settlement areas, Moreover, it is likely that
these two settlement areas may have been in use simultaneously. If so, we
can hypothetically imagine five or six settlement groups inhabiting the
region around the Saxån-Välabäcken and Lödde Å-Kävlingeån in the
opening phase of the Early Neolithic.
An analysis of the settlement organization in the investigation area
gives the impression that more than one family may have lived together
at some of the main settlements in the earliest phase of the Neolithic as
well. The size of the individual house suggests that it was a dwelling for
one family. A family may very well have consisted of three generations,
with the grandparents also included in the household. Even though the
excavated areas are not large enough to document the remains of all
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possible houses, the amount of finds and the spatial distribution of the
sites, it seems that a number of family units could have existed
simultaneously at the main settlements. The excavation at Dagstorp
documented two long-houses and a hut from EN I, and finds of clay daub
in several of the pits at Saxtorp 23 indicate that more than one house
stood on the site. At least these two settlements were large enough to
house several families, that is, a kin group.
In the wooded Early Neolithic landscape, small areas had been cleared
for settlement, cultivation, and livestock. The location was optimal in that
it commanded a view of large areas, not by creating closed territories but
as a node linking several lines of movement in different directions.
Although the landscape was largely covered by deciduous woods, the
watercourses linked the region together. There are no traces yet of any
permanent monuments in the landscape to manifest the specific territory
or landscape spaces of a population. The row of post-holes and the
ditches at Vallkärra, which may have been part of a long barrow, seem to
have been constructed after the first phase when the grave/pit that could
be dated to EN I was dug. There is likewise no secure dating for the
excavated long barrow at Saxtorp 12 (Krångeltofta). Perhaps there were
no clear territorial boundaries at all in this phase of the Neolithic. The
wooded landscape was a socially open landscape in that the people
moved freely in the area. It might have been possible for individuals to
change group identity if they so wished. Kin groups may not have been
closed, and the sense of “us and them” less pronounced. It is possible that
ties of friendship were at times as significant as pure kindred relations for
establishing networks of contact in the opening phase of the Early
Neolithic.
With the idea of watercourses as a uniting link, it is reasonable to
imagine that the main settlements along the Saxån-Välabäcken
constituted a society in which one or more kin groups functioned
together. In the same way, the dwelling sites on the Lödde Å and Mare
Bäck may possibly be regarded as a cohesive society. Since the distance
between the estuaries of the Saxån and Lödde Å is less than twenty
kilometres by water, it is likely that there were contacts between these
areas and that together they constituted a settlement district. Since the
individual kin groups could not live independently, they were for several
reasons dependent on the local community through the network of
contacts. These social relations were necessary for the survival of the
society. There was a need to maintain marriage contacts, trade, joint
spiritual ceremonies, etc. Collective gatherings, when all the people in the
area were assembled, probably occurred in connection with recurrent
ceremonies which seem to have been connected to one of the main
settlements. I thus believe that both the profane and the sacred acts were
centred in the dwelling site and presumably open to the whole social
community, even though the special collective ceremonies were probably
conducted by a leading stratum. At this time the settlement was the most
important point for the social network.
Through an increasingly sedentary way of life in the Late Mesolithic
and the Early Neolithic, people became more tied to both time and place
and thereby became dependent on what earlier generations had done in
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the area, such as forest clearance. A necessary condition for groups in
these circumstances to be able to maintain a fair distribution of the most
important resources was that more permanent relations were established
and preserved between individuals through an expanded network of ties
of kinship and marriage. The way in which this social order was
maintained or changed depends on how power was legitimized. The
archaeological traces of settlements, as regards how they were spatially
organized, gives some, albeit vague, hints as to what the power structure
may have looked like. Rituals concerning the life cycle, such as the
mortuary ritual, could have the function of maintaining different interests
of power and domination. Death and attitudes to death created a sphere of
great symbolic and emotional power which could be exploited by the
living. Mortuary practice was related to beliefs, which meant that burials
could idealize, influence, and distort everyday social relations
(Huntington & Metcalf 1979:122). It is probable that the power of the
dominant groups in Early Neolithic society was legitimated and passed
on through the burial ritual. Although important rituals were controlled
by the social élite, it was not just these leading actors who were
important, but also the onlookers, the passive participants. Through the
burial, norms and values were expressed in different ways and thereby
also linked generation to generation. The cohesion between the members
of society was reinforced. Since the ancestors had first made claim to the
society’s resources and land, there was also a close link in space between
the settlement and the graves. The graves functioned as an expression of
solidarity with the local group and of the geographical ties to the area (cf.
Shanks & Tilley 1982). The close connection between dwelling site and
burial place, I think, can therefore be seen as a territorial marker, with the
concrete remains of the ancestors justifying the society’s claim to the
area. The ancestors established not just the solidarity and economy of the
society, but also the rights of the society to the resources. This
organization of space suggests that, just as with many historically known
belief systems, there was no distinct difference between the living and the
dead (Hertz 1960; Kopytoff 1971). The dead and the living were in a
close relationship to each other. Life and death were categories of the
same classification system. They were different categories, but life is a
precondition for the definition of death and vice versa. Death and burial
ceremonies were deeply involved in all spheres of society. The mortuary
practice contributed to the reproduction of the social organization. Ideas
about death and how to handle it were an important component in the aim
of controlling time, space, and social relations.
Burial was also important because it was a symbolic transformation, a
“rite of passage” (Gennep 1960), which changed a person’s social
position, in this case the move from the sphere of the living to the sphere
of the dead. With its double meaning, the funeral ritual was an important
element in the social process. Human bones are evidently special remains
which do not only symbolize kinship; they also constitute it. They
represent two fundamental principles of social relations, namely,
individuality and collective. In the kin-based social organization, each
person is at once a distinct individual and part of a larger collective.
Burial is therefore important both for the individual in that it takes a
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person from one stage to another, and for the group in that the burial
consolidates the relationship to the ancestors and the right to the place.
Alongside the recurrent but rarer “rites of passage”, such as the funeral
ritual, there are the more common rituals associated with annual,
seasonal, and daily chores and actions. It is reasonable to imagine rituals
on several social levels, from the collective, general ritual to the tasks of
the individual or family group. We may assume that rituals entailed
duties and actions on every level (Bradley 1990; Rudebeck 1998).
Building houses, clearing areas of forest for cultivation and animal
husbandry, or making a tool may also be regarded as transformative
actions and may be occasions for special rituals. The ritual is often an
action that exemplifies the ordinary and everyday. Ritual therefore cannot
be placed in a separate pigeonhole from other activities, and neither the
localization nor the content need express anything “special”. Ritual is a
social act that reproduces the structure and constitution of a society. It has
often been argued that the distinction between ritual and everyday
activities is a stereotyped, formalized, and repeated action (cf. Bell 1992;
Rappaport 1999). It is nevertheless, as I have pointed out before,
repetition and routine that characterize everyday chores and therefore the
latter reproduce the prevailing structures.
Just like all human activity, such as arrangements in the habitation
area, tool manufacture, or cooking, the handling of waste follows
structured, deep-rooted cultural norms. Deliberate depositions of
fragmented objects in pits is a form of symbolic behaviour which follows
the prevailing cultural norms and structures. One problem in interpreting
these “waste pits” is their household character, as regards both content
and location. The difference between ritual and non-ritual can be very
fine and difficult to discern in the archaeological record, but the
important thing is to observe that the treatment of waste follows cultural
norms and is a ritualized routine and therefore an act that reproduces the
prevailing structural principles. It is therefore important to look at the pits
in their context and not just focus on their form and content (cf. Hill
1995:96ff). By all appearances people in the Early and Middle Neolithic
perceived dirt and hygiene differently from the way we do today. Unlike
our Western attitude, their stance was not influenced by knowledge about
hygiene and pathogenic organisms (cf. Douglas 1966). Potsherds, flint
tools and debitage, and bones of cattle and pigs were in addition more
than just dirt because these objects represented a Neolithic way of life
(Thomas 1991). Dirt was formed by means of various activities
performed on the sites and was therefore considered a by-product of the
creation of order. In such conditions, I therefore think it is possible that,
for example, potsherds and bone waste could be left to lie at the
settlement because they had acquired symbolic meaning. The often thick
occupation layers at Funnel Beaker settlements may be the consequence
of an ideology in which dirt was regarded as a natural part of the way of
life belonging to the settlement, and so it was not cleared away. I
consequently believe that the pits should perhaps not be regarded solely
as waste pits (since much of the waste seems to have been left lying
where it was) but as a procedure for further marking the symbolic
meaning of the waste by burying a selection of it.
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The material in the pits in the investigation area represented the most
basic activities in people’s social life, such as eating, cooking, drinking,
and keeping fires burning. The actions performed during the ceremonies
were reflected in the everyday activities pursued on the site. The
deposited objects were fragments of action on the site and the pit was
thus also a metaphor for the day-to-day chores. Everyday finds from
several households may have been deposited on one and the same
occasion. Social solidarity was enforced by a manifestation of everyday
activity. The use of the same material, such as pottery, and the symbolism
of destroying the vessels before depositing them, strengthened the bonds
between the everyday activities and the actions that characterize ritual. A
question that arises naturally is where the other parts of the objects were
deposited. The majority, as we have seen, were probably left lying on the
site, but perhaps some fragments were moved to other parts of the
settlement. There are indications that sherds belonging to the same pot
were deposited in different pits at both Saxtorp 23 and Dagstorp 19.
Perhaps this should be regarded as an action intended to confirm the
community between different households. It is also reasonable to imagine
that fragments were exchanged between two different settlements with a
view to reinforcing the solidarity between different groups, a state of
affairs that is of course difficult to trace in the archaeological record.
On a higher level, the act of digging a pit and depositing fragmented
objects in it is also a way to transform and strengthen the ties to the place.
According to Claude Lévi-Strauss, sacrificial acts serve to create a
relationship between the human and the divine (or the ancestral spirits).
The relationship begins by breaking up the natural order of the world
through the handling of objects in a special way. The establishment of a
link between human and divine is proclaimed in several cases through the
selection, justification, and destruction or deposition of an object, an
animal, or a human. The transfer of a selected object from one stage to
another is the goal of the ritual, which involves the act of picking out the
object from its natural context (Lévi-Strauss 1987). In the same way as
two persons establish a form of relationship by breaking and sharing a
suitable object, the relation to a place is confirmed and strengthened by
the deposition of parts of an object (cf. Chapman 2000). A locale
acquired meaning and became a place when societal institutions
transformed it by various rituals. I thus believe that depositions of objects
in pits and the funeral ritual partly served the same purpose. In the Early
Neolithic society in western Skåne it thus seems as if the dead were
involved at some of the places which were also a forum for everyday
activities – the production, use, discarding, and deposition of tools of
stone and bone, of pottery and food remains.
Our Western conception of “individual” is a historical view which
needs to be problematized. The human body should perhaps be viewed
from one aspect as one of the material categories in the prevailing
deposition structures during the Early Neolithic which belonged to the
rituals for categorizing and understanding the world. The body as an
incarnation of a lifelong process – from birth to death – can in this
cultural context have been a twin source of an object’s production (birth),
consumption (life), destruction (death), and deposition (burial) (Kopytoff
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1986; Bradley 1990; Tilley 1996). The strong bonds between people and
objects in prehistoric times cannot be ignored. The production of artefacts
was a process in which the craftsman’s qualities were in certain cases
transferred to the object. Material things were virtually animated, which
is an outlook that can be recognized from several different ethnographical
analyses (Carsten & Hugh-Jones 1995). Humans and objects should be
seen as two distinct units but nevertheless related to each other. From this
perspective, it is not surprising to regard the deposition ritual for the
human body as a parallel to how artefacts were treated (cf. Wagner 1975;
Chapman 2000). Artefacts may be viewed as events from the past which
survive into the present. As authentic, primary, historical evidence, the
objects can be revived, and in this way the past, the world of the
ancestors, is brought into contact with the present and the prevailing
structures are reproduced. Objects have the power to define the historical
self-identity of the group, while simultaneously confirming for the living
the strong bond between the group and the ancestors (Weiner 1985;
Prown 1993). Depositing fragments of these artefacts gives a locale the
value of being a special place and creates relations between the past and
the present. This action can be of particular significance if one returns to
a place which has been temporarily abandoned over a season. It is not
necessary, however, for the object to have been deliberately destroyed.
An artefact that has been broken in connection with use can subsequently
acquire a symbolic role. For example, fire was important because of its
transforming role and its symbolism in both sacred and profane contexts.
Several of the flint objects in the excavated pits were burnt. I believe that
the depositions of fragmented objects in the pits were deliberate, repeated
actions which strengthened the relationship to the place by a
manifestation of everyday activities.
The emphasis on the place, in my opinion, should be viewed as an
expression of increased social control and the emergence of more or less
permanent institutions. The maintenance of social relations between the
living, the recently deceased, and the ancestors was ensured through
several material forms – flint, pottery, and human bones.
Fragments of polished axes occur frequently on the dwelling sites in
the investigation area, which shows, I believe, their importance as tools
for clearing forest, for building houses. and so on. The well-shaped axes
and the deposits of objects in wetlands also indicate that the axes had a
meaning that went beyond the purely practical and symbolized some
form of status. Even though other material was also deposited which has
not survived or been retrieved, the special role of the axe as an economic
and social resource during the Neolithic is indisputable. In connection
with the start of the Neolithic there is no evidence that axes were
manufactured on the dwelling sites. Flakes from axe manufacture occur
sparsely at settlements. It seems as if these objects were made by special
craftsmen in special places. The manufacture of polished flint axes
required much more time and energy than the making of Mesolithic core
and flake axes. In certain cases the grinding and polishing of the axes was
taken much further than what was required in practice. It is conceivable
that axe manufacture, at least from raw nodule to plank, was carried out
at places where the primary deposits of flint were found (Knarrström
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2000b). Datings from the flint mines at Sallerup outside Malmö suggest
that flint was extracted here as early as the very start of the Neolithic
(Rudebeck 1994). The presence of axes in the investigation area and the
absence of major traces of axe manufacture are thus evidence of contact
and exchange of commodities taking place between different regions,
since the flint must have been brought from the primary deposits. Quite
lot of the flint probably came from the Malmö region, but there were also
occurrences of flint on the raised beaches along the coast.
The flint as raw material and the axe with its symbolic meaning were
probably important in the exchange of gifts. Ethnographical research has
shown how various reciprocal relationships in societies maintained
prevailing structures and gave the group a shared identity. This
reciprocity is in turn based on different exchange systems on different
levels which forged alliances within the society. The medium in the
building of these alliances is “the gift”, which has a built-in principle
which means that a gift always requires a return gift. In his studies among
peoples in Polynesia, Melanesia, North Asia, North America, and Africa,
Marcel Mauss shows that exchange relations found expression in the
form of gifts and return gifts. Material objects, as we have seen, were
animated. The circulation of goods created bonds and obligations which
constituted the foundation of social relations. If someone stops returning
the gift, the alliance is broken and hence the social communication. The
exchange of gifts was perhaps not primarily an economic matter but was
used in diplomacy and was a way to achieve prestige (Mauss 1925,
1950). Bronislaw Malinowski arrived at a similar picture when studying
trading in shells in the Trobriand Islands (Malinowski 1922; Saunders
1991).
As ties to place increased in the Early Neolithic, as manifested in
burials and sacrifices on dwelling sites, a more socially differentiated
system was probably shaped. An incipient trend is therefore faintly
detected, as people marked their group affiliation and position both
within the group and in relation to nearby groups. A small surplus is
produced to be used for feasts and rituals on the dwelling site and for the
exchange of gifts. It is difficult to distinguish exchange commodities in
the archaeological material, although similarities in the material culture
reveal long-distance contacts. The occurrence of the axe in votive bogs
shows its special position and its function beyond the purely practical.
The pointed-butted axe may therefore also have acquired a position in the
Early Neolithic as an important object in exchange relations. Kristina
Jennbert’s hypothesis about “the productive gift”, assuming that grain
and livestock came to southern Scandinavia through the exchange of
gifts, also seems wholly plausible (Jennbert 1984a).
When axes were then placed in wetlands they ceased to circulate and
took on a different meaning. They were given back to the earth from
which they originally came. In this way the biography of the axe was
completed. The role of the axe in the exchange of gifts was a matter of
creating and maintaining relations between individuals and groups. The
act of depositing the axe in a bog leads our thoughts rather to the
sustenance of a relationship with a divinity. Depositions of single
pointed-butted axes suggest that people in the Early Neolithic customarily
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used the votive sites on just one occasion, and that the act had a private
rather than a collective character. The occurrence of both polished and
unpolished examples and whole and fragmentary axes may indicate that
the important thing was not the quality of the object but what the axe
symbolized.
In chronological terms, EN I comprises almost a quarter of the
Neolithic, whereas the votive deposits are only a small proportion of the
total quantity of Neolithic votive finds. This picture prevails not only in
the investigation area but in Skåne as a whole (Karsten 1994).
The available archaeological material consequently shows that
collective activities, both profane and sacred, took place on the settlement
site. The link between the group and the place, between the everyday
activities and the social processes in society as a whole, is seen clearly on
the dwelling sites. Smaller places or activity areas for some kind of
specialized work – hunting, cultivation, animal husbandry, special
sacrifice, etc. – performed by a smaller group of people, perhaps a family
or a working group, were located at various places out in the surrounding
landscape. Although the impact of the first so-called farmers on nature
was rather marginal, cultivation and animal husbandry, albeit on a small
scale, did of course affect the landscape. A changed view of the
landscape subsequently had consequences for how people lived their
lives. The human environment was increasingly shaped around
permanent settlements, and within the socially constructed landscape the
dwelling sites therefore also became the most prominent places. The
settlement was the node where water met land, earth met air, body met
soul, and time met place – a cosmology organized like a landscape. This
is the angle from which we can see the landscape in the Early Neolithic.
An ideology and a cosmology, a social network and an economy
embodied by the creation of places with meaning in a landscape as an
active cultural process. There was nothing of what we today would call a
“ritual landscape” and a “profane landscape”. Ritual activity was linked
to everyday activities such as hunting, fishing, gathering, and agriculture.
The division into sacred and profane is thus irrelevant to a society where
every aspect of life is interwoven.
Further inland
The Early Neolithic period is characterized by a social organization
already shaped in the Mesolithic. The individual’s identity in time and
place was linked to the settlement. Lasting structural principles prevailed
in the Late Mesolithic and Early Neolithic, according to which the
settlement was embedded in rich symbolic meaning reproduced through
people’s actions. The houses, the graves, and the pits may be seen as
parts of this process, and ritual was a way to consolidate the central role
of the settlements. The structure of society was based on kin groups
where power probably lay with the elders of the group. Studies of
traditional societies have shown that it was usually the elders who had the
greatest power. Because of their age, they were considered to be in close
contact with the ancestral spirits and the founders of the community, and
it was the ancestors who once claimed the land. The ancestral spirits had
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a continued role to play by functioning as judges of how daily life should
be lived, and here the old people in the community served as the
intermediate link who could pass knowledge on to the young. It was to
the elders that the power of the spirits was communicated, and the
group’s prosperity was dependent on the will of the spirits. In Early
Neolithic society this view served to legitimate the prevailing social
relations. The benevolence of the spirits was preserved through set,
recurrent rituals controlled by the leading stratum of society (the elders)
and the places in the landscape associated with them.
We have seen that the Late Mesolithic coastal sites continued to be
used in the Early Neolithic. In the opening phase of the Early Neolithic,
however, new settlements were also established, above all along the river
systems further inland. Leaving a life by the sea must have been a rather
big step. Along the coast, by lagoons and river mouths, people were
active for most of the year, utilizing the diversity and variation of food
resources both in the sea and on the land. There was a long tradition and
knowledge of how to organize the landscape in the coastal region.
The transition from the Late Atlantic to the Subboreal has sometimes
been characterized as a period of climate change, which supposedly had a
negative effect on the marine resources and forced a change to agriculture
and movement inland (Rowley-Conwy 1983, 1984, 1985; Zvelebil &
Rowley-Conwy 1984). There are indications that the regressions and
transgressions of the period caused a change in the marine environment
and may have had an impact on the potential for oysters in particular to
reproduce (Christensen 1982; Vang Petersen 1982; Liljegren 1982).
There is nothing, however, to suggest that the climate changed to such a
drastic extent as to have affected the ecological environment and access
to the resources on which people lived. The economic conditions were
surely no less favourable in the coastal region than inland. In addition,
judging by the few preserved organic finds from Early Neolithic coastal
settlements, it is not certain that the marine resources were used to any
great extent. The Late Mesolithic economy was characterized by a fullscale broad-spectrum economy, and at Skateholm it was found that 87
different animal species were used as food (Larsson, L. 1984:14).
Alongside these, there was probably a great variety of plants, fruit, and
berries and a number of animal species whose traces have not survived
because of decomposition processes. In such a flexible economy the
decline in one resource ought not to have meant that people were
fundamentally forced to change their way of life. It was the tradition and
knowledge of the landscape rather than the resources of the sea that tied
the population to the coast in the opening phase of the Neolithic, so the
movements inland must have been provoked by other causes than purely
economic ones.
The change in settlement pattern should probably be sought within the
society. The reasons for change are always present within the group since
there are constant oppositions in social relations which can lead to
transformation. How serious the antagonisms become depends on the
special relations prevailing between individuals, if one faction in the
group exerts dominance over another.
131
Relations between the individual and the rest of society became
increasingly tense as the Early Neolithic progressed. With greater
sedentism, the population increased and hence also the social unit. The
complexity of social relations increased, with more opposition between
the individuals in the group as a consequence. A more stationary way of
life gradually entailed not only a potential for new production conditions
but also the rise of new social customs which utilized the depth of time
and the social memory in a place. The social power that resulted from
acquiring the past and using it with reference to the present and the future
was attached to the settlement. Power was a matter of controlling other
people and their resources, and it was based on social and esoteric control
rather than economic control. Goods, labour, and land were evaluated
within a symbolic system before they could be used as a basis for social
dominance (cf. Hodder 1990). What happened at the start of Neolithic
was thus that a more settled life reshaped the landscape, albeit to a
limited extent. Areas were cleared for cultivation and grazing. As a result,
the view of the landscape was also changed. The need to assert one’s
sense of belonging to a place was intensified, and the power enjoyed by
those (the elders) who exerted social control increased. A relation of
dependence arose through the joint investment of labour in the soil. This
entailed that the subsequent generation literally lived off the work of the
previous generation. The same group that controlled the exchange of gifts
probably also enjoyed access to the material symbols. Ties to place were
displayed through rituals associated with ancestor worship, which
affirmed the significance of the place and the social relations. The result
is a structure in which the younger generation finds itself tied in onesided dependence and obligations vis-à-vis the older generation. An
inevitable consequence of the rise of a socially differentiated society is
increased social awareness and suspicion of collective processes. As
awareness of the new social compulsion grew, the social control also
became more vulnerable. At the start of the Neolithic there were
opportunities for the younger generation to avoid having the older
generation exerting power or control over them. Migration and expansion
to new, formerly unexploited areas meant that the bonds and obligations
between the generations were weakened. The ancient system of norms,
the underlying structures, changed. Perhaps this is what we see in the
opening phase of the Early Neolithic. New sites and places came into use.
Although ties to place increased and led to increased internal social
pressure between the different segments of the society, there still seem to
have been no fixed territorial boundaries. The open ideology as regards
territoriality may have facilitated the colonization process. Early
Neolithic society had a great inherent freedom to colonize new
landscapes. If people were not solely dependent on coastal sources of
subsistence, but could also use other resources, there was no obstacle to
populating new land.
132
Establishment
In the latter part of the Early Neolithic and at the transition to the Middle
Neolithic, changes in society are noticeable in several respects.
Settlement expanded and seems to have gradually become established in
more permanent districts. Apart from the settlements, other types of
places with special meaning and function are a new element in the
landscape. It was in the second half of the Early Neolithic that people
began to build megalithic tombs. With their monumentality, these graves
were to affect the picture of the landscape. Cultic and votive sites with
deposits in wetlands increased significantly. There is also evidence for
specialized workshop sites from this period in the investigation area. The
landscape seems to have been divided up according to socially defined
categories which meant that special social, economic, or spiritual
activities took place at special times and specific places. Burials, votive
deposits, cultivation, animal husbandry, hunting, and so on were all
actions with their given place. Some of these activities were associated
with the dwelling site while others were located in different parts of the
landscape. In material culture too, there were changes, including the
coming of a new form of axe – the thin-butted axe – and pottery with
increasingly varied vessel shapes and combinations of decoration. It was
probably also in this period that the first objects of metal began to
circulate in the area.
Settlement pattern
The remains from this period in the investigation area are extensive (fig.
77). In relation to the previous period, there is a noticeable growth in the
number of places which can be defined as dwelling sites or activity sites.
I have documented more than three times as many dwelling sites in EN
II–MNA II than in EN I (88 versus 27), even though the length of the
former period is only about 33% that of the latter (25% in calendar years)
(see table I). Even more striking is the expansion of hoards and/or votive
finds. In EN I five votive sites have been documented as against 50 from
EN II–MNA II.
Settlement
The factors that were decisive for the choice of settlement location in the
first phase of the Neolithic naturally applied in EN II as well, namely,
tradition, communication, and ecology. The choice of settlement,
however, is no longer tied to the coast and to the sites with a long
tradition of occupation. The expansion of settlement inland which began
in EN I increased significantly in EN II.
It is not the case that the coastal sites were abandoned at the end of the
Early Neolithic. The number of settlement sites increased and all parts of
the landscape, both coastal and inland environments, were claimed in a
completely new way. At nine of the ten registered EN I sites on the coast,
there is evidence that the place was also used in EN II–MNA II. They
were known from before and continued to be used. It seems, however,
that the late Early Neolithic and early Middle Neolithic element at several
133
of these places is rather limited. They were used but had lost their crucial
significance. The majority of the settlements established in the interior in
EN I were visited continuously into the Middle Neolithic. Like the former
period, locations chosen for settlement were above all on sandy soils
close to a varied range of ecological and topographical features. The
settlements mostly follow the rivers or wetlands, but areas outside these
were also claimed.
As regards finds, features on dwelling sites, and the size of
settlements, four main settlements can be identified along or close to the
Saxån and Välabäcken (Saxtorp 26, Västra Karaby 7, Dagstorp 19, and
Stora Harrie 38). The first three were located on sandy soil beside the
Saxån or Välabäcken, while the rest were on a sandy south-facing slope,
1.5 km south of the Välabäcken, but beside a small lake (fig. 22). Houses
were securely attested at Saxtorp and Dagstorp. At Stora Harrie a trench
was documented and beside it clay daub with impressions of wattle was
found. This is presumably the last remains of a house. The slightly earlier
excavation of Västra Karaby did not systematically look for remains of
buildings, so the function of this place must be considered uncertain. A
large and varied amount of finds was registered at Västra Karaby,
Dagstorp, and Stora Harrie. Five sites can be interpreted as main
settlements in the area by the Lödde Å–Kävlingeån and Mare Bäck.
(Barsebäck 48, Löddeköpinge 13, Löddeköpinge 40, Lackalänga 35, and
Stora Harrie 35). The first three were beside the Mare Bäck and Stora
Harrie is on the Kävlingeån (fig. 22). The site at Lackalänga differs by
having been a few hundred metres from the nearest wetland. It is also the
only place located on clay soils. Long-houses were documented at
Löddeköpinge 40 and Lackalänga 35. All the settlements show a varied
range of finds. The material from Stora Harrie 35 is limited, but several
features were observed here in the form of pits and post-holes. Since only
about 40% of the registered EN II–MNA II sites have been excavated, it
is likely that not all the main settlements in the investigation area have
been identified. Apart from the excavated settlements there are some sites
identified by surface survey, with a varied collection of tools and waste
indicating that they may have been main settlements. In the area by the
Mare Bäck a site has been identified where the collected flint, both tools
and waste, is of such varied scope that it cannot be ruled out that the site
functioned as a main settlement (Västra Karaby 44). The same applies to
two places near Stångby Mosse (Stångby 18 and Stångby 36). In spatial
terms the twelve main settlements are distributed to the west around the
Mare Bäck, to the east around the Kävlingeån and Stångby Mosse, and to
the north by the Välabäcken south of Dagstorp Backar.
The main settlements no longer seem to be solely on the coast; in
many cases they were located on inland water systems. Small sandy
heights or south-facing slopes were chosen as suitable settlement
locations, with the exception of Lackalänga 35, which was on light clay
soils. A clear breach of tradition in settlement is thus noticed in that the
dwelling sites increase in number and their spatial placing is changed. It
is noteworthy that only one of the main settlements (Dagstorp 19) shows
continuity from EN I. The main settlements were thus still on slight
elevations in the terrain but they do not have the same prominent role in
134
the social landscape as before. In relation to the megalithic tombs they are
mostly on a lower level, which also illustrates the somewhat different
meaning of the settlements. I shall return to this later.
The majority of the places (76 in number), however, both the
excavated ones and those discovered by surface survey, seem to be small
and of a temporary character. The surveyed sites where only sparse
amounts of flint have been observed may be assumed to be of a more
temporary kind. These are along the watercourses and wetlands, spread
all through the region, but with a concentration in the same areas as the
main settlements.
Although settlement is no longer to the same extent on the coast, there
was still access to water and different soil conditions with a variety of
plant and animal life. The main settlements were thus located in
favourable environments with rich variation, where the conditions were
good for providing food. The picture of economic activity in Skåne and
Denmark in EN II–MNA II is generally better illuminated than in the first
part of the Early Neolithic. Pollen diagrams from different bogs in these
areas show that woodland pollen decreases in the early and middle Early
Neolithic and there is a corresponding increase in pollen from grass and
other plants demanding light. In the closing phase of the period and at the
start of the Middle Neolithic there is once again a rise in the proportion of
woodland pollen in what is known as the regeneration phase (Berglund
1969, 1999). This need not necessarily reflect a decline in the intensity of
the farming economy; it could just as well be the result of an emerging
coppice forest in the wake of forest clearance, a type of vegetation
suitable for animal husbandry, giving both grazing and foliage for fodder
(Göransson 1996). The pottery from this period has quite a number of
grain impressions. The wheat varieties emmer and einkorn dominate,
with a small element of ordinary wheat. Hjelmqvist’s analysis of grain
impressions from Västra Karaby 7 showed that it was precisely these
three kinds of cereal that could be distinguished in the pottery (Löfwall
1977). Barley also occurs but to a lesser extent (Hjelmqvist 1982, 1985).
In the osteological material from Danish Early and Middle Neolithic
dwelling sites there are three species that dominate among domesticated
animals, namely, cattle, pigs, and sheep/goat. Dog and horse have also
been identified, but it is uncertain whether the horse in this period should
be reckoned as domesticated. Starting in the Middle Neolithic, cattle
seem to become the most important domesticated animal in economic
terms (Madsen 1982:230; Nyegaard 1985). In Skåne the comparable
osteological material from this period is rare. Bellevuegården outside
Malmö yielded the largest amount of contemporary material from Skåne.
The osteological analyses there, conducted by Evy and Ove Persson,
agree with the findings from the Danish material (Larsson, M. 1984).
Rävgrav in southern Skåne (Larsson, L. 1992c) and similar results have
come from Hindby in Malmö (Nilsson & Nilsson 2003). Despite the
Early Neolithic expansion phase, the impact on nature in this period was
still marginal. The occurrence of game among the bones from dwelling
sites indicates that hunting was still an important source of food. Roe
deer and red deer are the most common species in the material. The role
135
of fishing, on the other hand, is uncertain since very small quantities have
been found on dwelling sites (Larsson, L. 1992c).
Despite the large number of settlements from the period EN II–MNA
II in the investigation area, only a limited number have been so carefully
excavated that a meaningful discussion of the internal organization of
settlement sites is possible. Some important observations have
nevertheless been made. The concentration of different societal functions
in the settlement does not seem to be as great as at the start of the Early
Neolithic. Functions were divided so that “new” places were created,
such as the grave monuments and votive sites, for the performance of
special ritual activities. This does not mean, however, that these activities
totally disappeared from the dwelling sites.
Thanks to the most recent excavations along the West Coast Line in
particular, our knowledge of Early and Middle Neolithic houses has
increased. In the investigation area there are several more or less clear
buildings from this period. An article on Early and Middle Neolithic
houses in southern Scandinavia proposes a division into at least three
different types occurring in EN II–MNA II (see Artursson et al. 2003).
The first group, known as the “Mossby house”, consists of two-aisled
houses with rounded gables and convex walls. They varied in length and
in the number of roof-bearing posts, and sometimes had only a slightly
rounded gable. As a rule there were no roof-bearing posts in the gables;
the roof-bearing posts were instead placed along a more or less straight
central line through the house. Three houses in the investigation area,
house 17 at Saxtorp 26, house 57/58 at Dagstorp 19, and the house at
Löddeköpinge 40, can be assigned to this group. This type of house
seems to occur at least through the whole Early Neolithic. House 57/58
could be dated to EN I while the other two can be placed in the late Early
Neolithic and possibly the early Middle Neolithic (Artursson et al. 2003).
The next group of houses consists of two-ailed houses with a
trapezoidal shape – Dagstorp house type I. These are generally small
houses, trapezoidal with the long walls straight. Depending on the size of
the house, the number of post-holes left by roof-bearing posts varies
somewhat, and they can also be placed in the gables. Five structures in
the investigation area can be assigned to this type. Four of the houses,
houses 50, 51, 52, 55 at Dagstorp 19, were uncovered by the excavations
along the West Coast Line. The houses have been dated to the early
Middle Neolithic. The house at Lackalänga 35 might also belong to this
group (Artursson et al. 2003).
Two-aisled houses of rectangular form make up the third group –
Dagstorp house type II. This category consists of long-houses with
straight walls and gables. The majority of the houses had a length
somewhere between 15 and 20 m. House 72 at Dagstorp is of this type
and can be dated to MNA I (Artursson et al. 2003).
During the period, houses appear to have developed a certain
regularity in their design (fig. 78). The basic materials for house
construction were wood and clay, and the houses that seem to be dwelling
houses have the form of small long-houses. At least four trapezoidal
houses have been identified at Dagstorp 19, which can probably be dated
to MNA I. In addition, there is a rectangular house here with a slightly
136
less certain dating to the same period. The four trapezoidal houses show a
striking homogeneity in their design. Built on a gentle slope running
down towards the Välabäcken, the houses have an area of 32–50 m². Two
of them are oriented NNW–SSE direction and one NNE–SSW. The
fourth house runs east–west, placed almost at right angles to house 52. At
least two of the houses are divided into two “rooms”, a big one between
the south gable and the roof-bearing posts in the northern part of the
house, and a small room north of these posts. Three of the houses have
pits placed in the northern part, in the small room. The houses were
placed beside each other with no overlapping, which is an indication that
they may be contemporary. Nor is there anything in the finds to suggest a
difference in time between the buildings, that is to say, that the house was
moved around on the same site. The division into two rooms could also
be identified in the house at Löddeköpinge 40. It is noteworthy that the
larger presumed dwelling section is in all cases in the southern part of the
houses. The intention may have been to take advantage of the daylight
and to keep the sunlight away from the other part of the house which may
well have been used for storing food products. At the other sites where
houses have been documented (Saxtorp 26, Löddeköpinge 40, and
Lackalänga 35), only one sure building has been observed at each place.
This may of course be because the excavation did not cover the entire
settlement, but it nevertheless seems as if there were during the period
both isolated farms with a single household and places where several
households and farms existed at the same time. The size of the buildings
from the different places which are interpreted as dwelling houses
indicates that they were inhabited by a household or production unit,
probably corresponding to a family.
Like the houses from EN I, the Dagstorp houses are relatively small
and there is also little evidence of any kind of tool production inside the
buildings. The mild climate that prevailed for much of the year during the
Neolithic permitted outdoor activities. To take advantage of the daylight,
a great deal of the cooking and the manufacture and maintenance of tools
was done outdoors. It is also clear that the find concentrations are outside
the houses (fig. 79a and b). This is particularly noticeable around houses
50 and 72 at Dagstorp. Immediately north-east of house 50, within an
area of 2×3 m, large quantities above all of potsherds but also flint
debitage were documented. There are no traces of any tool production in
the immediate vicinity of the four trapezoidal houses.
The objects west of house 72, on the other hand, give the impression
of being the remains of tool manufacture. This building was just over 300
m east of the other four dwelling houses in Dagstorp, and it is uncertain
whether this house should be associated with the others or if it should be
regarded as an isolated farm. Finds here included 26 flake cores and a
hammerstone. The occurrence of 13 scrapers and 6 knives shows that
other work was also carried on here. The pottery in the layer indicates
that it belongs to a later part of MNA I (Lagergren-Olsson 2003). It is
thus possible that the house should be regarded as slightly later than the
four trapezoidal buildings in the western part of the settlement.
Accumulations of post-holes were identified at Dagstorp 19 which do
not seem to be proper dwelling houses; they are more likely to have been
137
small huts or shelters which served other purposes than habitation (fig.
80). In and beside the irregular concentrations of post-holes (hut 56) only
20 m south-east of house 50 there is a noticeably increased find
concentration, including a grindstone. Just over 200 m south-east of the
four trapezoidal houses, down towards the Välabäcken, there was a
feature that is also best regarded as a hut (hut 62) and beside it an
occupation layer with concentrations of finds and features. Unlike the
situation in the dwelling houses, there is a greater concentration of flint
and pottery inside the huts. It is likely that workshops and activity areas
were located a little distance away from the dwelling houses. The
organization of the Dagstorp site seems to have involved placing the
dwelling houses as far north as possible and the various general activities
on the ground sloping down to the Välabäcken.
At the other site with more permanent settlement there are no traces of
more than one contemporary farm unit as we find at Dagstorp. Where
single houses have been documented (Lackalänga 35, Löddeköpinge 40,
and Saxtorp 26) the excavated areas are of such a size (1,000, 3,500, and
4,400 m² respectively) that several buildings could have been identified if
they had existed (figs. 23, 27, 28). The house at Saxtorp 26 is much
bigger than other houses from this period. Perhaps more than one family
lived here.
The phenomenon of pits on dwelling sites also occurs in EN II–MNA
II. At the Saxtorp 26 site there were several pits inside the house and
outside the southern wall. The pits were an irregular round or oval shape
of a size varying from 0.76×0.57 m to 2.68×0.77 m. None of the pits was
more than half a metre deep. They contained a large quantity of burnt
clay and daub, pottery, knapped flint, and burnt bones. Among the vessel
types there are fragments of a richly decorated lugged beaker. Beside the
presumed wall trench at Stora Harrie 38 there were several pits with
Neolithic pottery, knapped flint, clay daub, and occasionally bone
fragments. At the Dagstorp settlement, pits could also be associated with
three of the trapezoidal houses and right beside one of the so-called
workshops. The finds agree with what was observed at Saxtorp and Stora
Harrie. In form and content the pits are like those identified at settlements
from EN I. On the other hand, it seems as if at least some of these
features in EN II–MNA II were more closely linked to the actual house
than was the case in the preceding period. One deposition that stands out
is the upturned funnel beaker at Västra Karaby 7. The custom of
depositing funnel beakers upside down is known from other Scanian
settlements, for instance at Burlöv outside Malmö (Berggren 1999) and at
Stora Herrestad north of Ystad (Andersson, T. 1997, 1999).
The number of dwelling sites at the end of the Early Neolithic
increases in relation to the preceding period. However, it does not seem
as if settlement generally grew in area. In most cases settlement consists
of isolated farms, although the Dagstorp site shows that this was not the
only possible form. If we assume that the settlement at Dagstorp extended
down to the Välabäcken, as the surface survey indicates, then it covered
an area of 50,000–60,000 m². Judging by the excavated area together with
the surface survey, the small main settlements had an estimated area of a
few thousand square metres.
138
Graves
One long barrow, eleven round or long dolmens and nine passage graves
are securely documented in the area. The second survey in 1985–1987
has shown by means of archive studies that the number was probably
much larger. Twelve of the graves have been excavated in varying
degree. One problem for the interpretation is that few megalithic tombs
have been investigated by modern excavation methods, since a large
share of them were excavated at the start of the twentieth century. Often
these excavations focused on finds and paid no attention to features
adjacent to the monuments. Apart from the megalithic tombs, a flat-earth
cemetery consisting of 17 securely attested graves has been excavated in
Borgeby parish.
The placing of the megalithic tombs in the landscape does not show a
uniform picture. They were often placed at the highest point in the
surroundings, but it is only Gillhög and Hög that can be said to have a
monumental topographical location. Several of the graves were built on
slopes or ledges on slopes. Nor is it possible to see any variations
between how the different types of megalithic tombs were placed in the
terrain. With the exception of the passage grave of Annehill, all the
graves were beside or close to running water. Like the settlements, the
megalithic tombs were above all located on sandy soils. Graves occur
both singly and in groups. It is in the east and north-east of the area that
the megalithic tombs are found in groups – three dolmens at Lilla Harrie,
two long dolmens and a passage grave in Västra Hoby, two long dolmens
and a dolmen at Stora Harrie, and two passage graves in Södervidinge.
The opinion still prevailing is that the long barrow is the earliest form
of monumental grave, followed by the dolmen and later the passage grave
(Nielsen, P. O. 1984; Blomqvist 1989a). However, there do not seem to
be any distinct boundaries between the grave types; the different forms
seem to overlap in time. In certain phases all three forms were probably
constructed at the same time in different parts of southern Scandinavia.
Early datings of human bones from passage graves in the Falköping
district have shown that this type may have been erected here as early as
the end of the Early Neolithic (Persson & Sjögren 1996). Dated material
from grave chambers in Danish and Swedish dolmens and passage graves
have also shown that they are partly contemporary, although the dolmen
mostly seems to be the earliest (Blomqvist 1989a). Studies of the
distribution of the different megalithic tombs in the investigation area
show that those presumed to be oldest (long barrows, long dolmens, and
dolmens), with Hofterup as an exception, lie in the east or north of the
area.
In a study of the megalithic tombs in the area, Hårdh has analysed the
pottery deposited at the monuments. By investigating the frequency of
different combinations of decoration occurring at the different graves, a
certain chronological difference can be demonstrated. At the four passage
graves in the east and north of the area – Hög, Annehill, Södervidinge,
and Västra Hoby – there is pottery with a high frequency of whipped
cord, cross-hatching, arched impressions and lines, which belong in an
early part of the Middle Neolithic. This can be contrasted with Gillhög,
Storegård, and Lackalänga to the west and south, where whipped cord is
139
rare (Hårdh 1990b). It thus seems as if the first grave monuments, in the
form of long barrows, long dolmens, and dolmens, were erected in the
east and north of the area. It must thus have been in this area, judging by
the ceramic deposits, that the first passage graves were built, and only
after that was this type of grave established in the western and southern
parts.
There are about twenty barrows in Skåne which may be long barrows,
only a few of which have been excavated (Larsson, L. 1992b). In the
investigation area only one long barrow (Dagstorp 12, Krångeltofta) has
been excavated. In Denmark, by contrast, many more have been
excavated, and it is in large measure from there that we derive our
knowledge of the construction of long barrows (Madsen, T. 1993). The
interpretation that the stone structure at Krångeltofta is the remains of an
Early Neolithic long barrow is mainly based on the distinctive
characteristics of this type of monument. Typical features are the
trapezoidal shape, the east–west orientation, and the frequent location on
the south slope of a hill. The east side has been perceived as a façade,
sometimes in the form of a ditch with posts (Kaul 1988:64ff) and often
with finds of pottery from one up to a dozen vessels. The actual burials,
on the other hand, may be poor in grave goods (Madsen, T. 1993:98).
None of the dolmens in the area have been excavated in modern times,
and it is only the Hofterup dolmen that seems to be undamaged today.
Consequently, it is difficult to give a full account of their different
structural details. The dolmen chambers were relatively small, about 1.5–
3 m², consisting of three to five orthostats with a large capstone. In most
cases the chamber was surrounded by a rectangle (long dolmen) or circle
(round dolmen) of stones. These constituted the boundary of the mound
of earth and stone packing that once probably covered most of the tomb
up to the lower part of the capstone. In several cases, however, the kerb
has been removed and it is therefore impossible to determine whether it
was originally a long or a round dolmen.
Since seven of the passage graves in the investigation area have been
excavated, we have a better picture of them than of the long and round
dolmens. The size of the chamber varies greatly from one monument to
another, from Lackalänga at just over 6 m² to Gillhög at 18 m². In the
cases where the shape is known, three of the graves have a rectangular
chamber and three an oval chamber. The double passage grave of
Annehill has one oval and one rectangular chamber. The chamber is
usually oriented east–west, sometimes with a slight shift to either side of
that axis. The exception is Lackalänga, whose chamber runs north–south.
The passage, which is intact at six of the passage graves, is 5–5.8 m long.
Generally speaking, the passage graves are carefully built and technically
sophisticated. An interesting structural detail is that some of the wall
slabs in the passage grave of Hög did not reach up to the desired height,
which was therefore increased with extra slabs overshooting the lower
slabs (Peter & Salomonsson 1967).
Several of the passage graves (Gillhög, Hög, Lackalänga,
Södervidinge, and Västra Hoby) have a more or less massive find-bearing
cairn in front of the passage. It is not possible to determine whether
Annehill and Harald Hildetand’s Grave had a similar cairn, since recent
140
cultivation and road construction have destroyed any traces. The
excavations suggest that these cairns were accumulated in several phases
and that deposits outside the graves were carried on in MNA Ib–MNA
IV, with a concentration in the periods MNA Ib–MNA III (Hårdh 1990b).
It is rather rare for areas to have been excavated beside megalithic
tombs. The digs that have been performed, however, show that activities
took place not just in the immediate vicinity of the graves; a wider area in
front of and around them was intended for various rituals. The different
forms of stone packings found at Hofterup 28 and at the site of a possible
megalithic tomb at Dagstorp 11 and possibly at Lackalänga and Annehill
may be traces of sacrifices at the megalithic tombs. The U-shaped trench
at Dagstorp may be the last traces of a cultic house. Perhaps the structures
at Särslöv should also be interpreted as ritual buildings. The lack of
contemporary features and ordinary Neolithic settlement site material
suggests that the buildings did not serve as dwellings but had a
specialized function. Moreover, the inner floor area of the buildings was
only about 3 m², which must be considered small for a dwelling. The
occurrence of sherds of a pedestalled bowl may corroborate the
hypothesis that the buildings were intended for ritual purposes. The
distance to the nearest megalithic tomb may seem large (800 m), but
people in the Neolithic had a different way of viewing and shaping the
landscape than we have today. Places that we would regard as isolated
were viewed as being linked together. Parallels to these structures have
been documented in some places in Denmark. In Jutland there are a
number of features of varying size which have been interpreted as cultic
houses. The remains consists of wall trenches with post-holes and are of
rectangular/square form with the opening in one of the gables. They have
all been dated early in the Middle Neolithic. Potsherds and flint axes have
been found in most of them and they are, like the Dagstorp building,
located close to megalithic tombs (Becker 1993; Andersen 2000). On the
island of Strynø south of Fyn there was a building of the same shape and
size as one of the buildings in Särslöv (A3585). Only one find was
retrieved, a thin-butted flint axe placed on a flat stone in the centre of the
house. In the vicinity there was a flat-earth grave, and the house has
therefore been interpreted as a ritual building associated with the
mortuary cult of the Funnel Beaker culture (Skaarup 1985:337ff). Like
the Danish cultic houses, the feature at Dagstorp seems to have burnt
down. Unlike the Danish counterparts, however, there are no finds of
votive ceramics. One explanation for this, of course, is that later
ploughing has removed any deposits.
Votive sites
Deposits in the investigation area for which the find spot is exactly
known, and where the finds cannot be linked to any dwelling site or
burial place, seem to be mainly located in wetland areas such as bogs,
fens, and lakes (cf. Karsten 1994). There are, however, records in which
the find spot is described merely as a “hollow” and in these cases it is not
clear whether it really is a drained wetland. These hollows may possibly
represent former wetlands of limited size, which were sites for offerings
of a private character performed by individuals.
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Depositions of objects in wetlands, outside settlement contexts,
increase significantly during this period. A clear distribution is noticeable
in inland areas of wetland in the northern and eastern parts of the
investigation area. In the Neolithic the area was full of bogs of varying
size. The reconnaissance map of Skåne provides a picture of what the
landscape might have looked like in the Neolithic (fig. 4). When the map
was drawn (1812–20), 29% of the investigation area consisted of
wetland, while the figure today is around 3% (Wolf 1956).
Concentrations of deposits are observed in the bogs at Dagstorp, Västra
Hoby, and Norra Nöbbelöv. None of the identified deposits are on the
coast.
Of the forty-seven known votive sites in wetland environments in the
investigation area, twenty-five consist of single finds, that is, finds of just
one object. In all these single finds the deposited object is a thin-butted
axe. Fifteen of the thin-butted axes were wholly or partly polished (of
these two were thin-bladed, two of rock, and six fragmented). In addition,
a miniature axe has been documented, made out of a thin-butted polished
axe. Besides Saxtorp 26, twelve accumulated find spots have been
documented, that is, places where finds of more than one object have
been registered. In six of the cases the place was used on only one
occasion in EN II–MNA II but reused in later periods. The objects in the
accumulated find spots that can be linked to EN II–MNA II consist of a
total of 21 thin-butted axes (5 of them unpolished and 5 fragmented) and
one thin-bladed, thin-butted quadrilaterally polished flint axe which can
be interpreted as an imitation of a copper flat axe. At five places there are
two or more objects interpreted as having been deposited simultaneously
as hoards. Of the total eleven thin-butted axes in this category of find,
two are unpolished and three of rock (Karsten 1994).
All of the deposited thin-butted flint axes whose type could be
identified were of types I–IV. These types are usually assigned to EN II
(Nielsen, P. O. 1977; Vang Petersen 1993). This dating is corroborated
by the fact that all four axe types have been discovered in find
combinations in Scanian hoards together with the pointed-butted axe of
type 3 (Karsten 1994:137). Karsten’s statement that axes found in hoards
are longer than those probably deposited separately is confirmed in the
investigation area (Karsten 1994:103–125).
A major problem is that only a few votive sites have been excavated.
Most of the artefacts have been discovered in connection with peat
cutting, drainage, or farm work (Karsten 1994). In these contexts it is of
course above all the eye-catching objects – the axes – that are spotted.
The fact that the thin-butted flint axes found in votive contexts are of
types I–IV is an indication that sacrificial activity in wetlands culminated
already in EN II and declined during the early Middle Neolithic. In the
investigation area it is just the fen at Saxtorp that has been excavated.
This investigation, together with the excavations of Hindby votive fen
outside Malmö and Röekillorna in Löderup parish, shows that the
deposits were highly varied in character and composition (Svensson
1993; Stjernquist 1997). It thus cannot be taken for granted that the
objects unearthed from the different bogs in the investigation area are
representative of what was once deposited. On the other hand, the
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wetland finds probably give a fairly good picture of their distribution in
time and place.
It is difficult to describe the internal organization of the votive sites
since so few have been excavated. There is much evidence, particularly
from finds on dry land beside large stones or as house and pit offerings at
dwelling sites, that votive acts in the form of deposits of a single object or
a hoard exist as unique events (Karsten 1994). Without a total excavation,
however, it is impossible to ascertain whether a votive site in wetland was
used only once or on repeated occasions. Based on the excavations that
have been done, there is good reason to suspect that several of the single
finds from wetlands found during peat cutting or drainage should not be
automatically interpreted as a single deposit, but rather as part of
continuous, accumulating sacrificial activity in the same place. The
Neolithic votive sites in southern Scandinavia which have been excavated
to varying degrees, such as Hindby votive fen in Malmö, Röekillorna in
Löderup parish, Salpetermosen in Sjælland, Veggerslev Mose I in
Jutland, Lilla Aamosen in Sjælland, and Sludegårds Mose in Fyn, display
partially shared features (Becker 1947; Albrechtsen 1954:4ff; Svensson
1993; Stjernquist 1997). We find deposits of varied character with
occurrences of pottery, axes, animal bones, and sometimes human bones.
The area covered by these accumulated find spots in wetland seems to lie
between 300 and 1,000 m². Wooden structures such as platforms and
piles, and occasionally even a footbridge leading out to the votive site,
have been documented.
The area affected by wetland at Saxtorp 26 was about 1,200 m², of
which the Neolithic layer comprised roughly 350 m². The wetland
yielded a rich amount of Neolithic finds, mainly consisting of pottery,
flint, and animal and human bones. The animal bones are chiefly remains
from butchering and meals. The typologically datable pottery can be
clearly assigned to EN II. Finds of two thin-butted axe fragments do not
conflict with this dating. Despite the many aspects of source criticism to
be considered, the distribution of the finds is interpreted as being largely
undisturbed. The greater share of the objects were found in the southern
part of the wetland. Maj-Lis Nilsson and Lena Nilsson argue in their
article about the fen (2003) that the place should be interpreted as a
votive site since specific categories of find occur only within a limited
area. The assumption that the objects may be viewed as deliberately
deposited offerings is corroborated by the that fact that the combination
of human bones and pottery occurs frequently at Neolithic votive sites in
wetlands (Becker 1947; Karsten 1994; Koch 1998). Flint and animal
bones also figure in Neolithic votive contexts, and may have been part of
the same context, but they could also have been deposited in an earlier or
a later phase, as they have a wider distribution in wetland and may
represent remains of votive acts of a different character, or they could be
discarded material from a dwelling site. As regards the manner of
deposition, it cannot be ascertained whether it was single or multiple
objects that were deposited on one occasion. The archaeobotanical
analyses have enabled a reconstruction of the environment, which
corroborates the theory that the spring was used as a votive site. Both the
striking topography and the occurrence of water have always been
143
important in ritual contexts. The analyses present a picture of a complex
and dramatic environment, where a spring with reddish water trickles
through the ravine, over peat and areas of yellowish-white calcareous
tufa, to form small pools in the deeper places (Nilsson & Nilsson 2003).
The absence of wooden structures at Saxtorp may be a sign that they
were not needed. The spring was fairly accessible anyway, since the
water mostly did not form any deep water mirrors. People could go out
into the fen without any man-made structures; perhaps accumulations of
stone prevented people from sinking into the fen. If the material had
consisted of refuse from the settlement site, it would presumably have
been dumped as close to the dwelling as possible, that is, in the northern
part of the layer, but the majority of the finds were discovered within a
limited area in the southern part. This was where all the objects of rock,
wood, and bone were found, and virtually all the potsherds and human
bones, and the greater share of the flint and animal bones. The house
adjacent to the wetland can be interpreted on the basis of its design and
the find material as a contemporary dwelling (fig. 23). 14C datings from
both the terrestrial environment and the wetland, and similarities in the
finds, suggest that the remains are contemporaneous and that the area was
used for at most 350 years in the latter part of the Early Neolithic. The
settlement was probably a single farm for one household, and the
interpretation is that the people living on the site used the spring as a
votive site (Nilsson & Nilsson 2003).
Society
The start of the Neolithic saw the crystallization and formation of a
number of ideas, social strategies, and networks whose roots can be
sought in the Late Mesolithic. During this period the identity of the
individual and the group was attached to the settlement. The prevailing
structural principles reinforced the great symbolic significance of the
settlement which was reproduced through people’s action, and the
houses, the graves, and the pits can be seen as parts of this process and
the ritual of manifesting the vital role of the settlements. Later, in the
course of the Early Neolithic, people’s perception of places and landscape
underwent a change. With increasingly permanent settlement, the
complexity of social relations increased, leading to a tenser relationship
between individuals and the rest of the community. These social relations
were established in rituals associated with the ancestor cult, which also
marked the significance of the place. Awareness of the growing social
coercion meant that social control became more vulnerable. Some groups,
mostly the younger people, therefore moved to settle in new areas. This
meant that the landscape was used in a different way. Changes at places
or monuments can be related to changes in the underlying structures of
the population.
Landscape spaces
The different categories of places (fig. 81) should be regarded as parts of
a whole which were closely interlinked in the Neolithic person’s world-
144
view. In the social landscape it is reasonable to imagine that people’s
identity was closely connected to the house and the dwelling site. Beyond
this there were places visited at special times for special purposes
(Cooney & Grogan 1999). A spatial analysis of the distribution of large
and small settlements, grave monuments, and votive sites allows some
observations to be made. It is striking how well the distribution of main
settlements and megalithic tombs coincides. All main settlements, with
the exception of Saxtorp 26, are at a distance of between 500 and 1,500
metres from the monuments. In contrast, there is no contemporary
settlement, whether large or small, that is located right beside the grave
monuments. According to the register of antiquities there were Stone Age
dwelling sites adjacent to Gillhög, Stora Harrie 8, and Södervidinge 3.
The surface finds at Gillhög, however, can be dated to MNA III–V and
those at Stora Harrie to EN I, while the material at Södervidinge cannot
be dated any more exactly than to the Stone Age. The finds at these
megalithic tombs should perhaps be primarily associated with activities
connected with various mortuary rituals. This hypothesis is corroborated
by the excavations hitherto conducted beside megalithic tombs. The
distribution of votive sites in the landscape is not as clearly connected to
the settlements or the graves. Even though the areas with the greatest
concentration of dwelling sites and graves also contain most votive sites,
these occur both in the immediate vicinity of settlements and, in certain
cases, several kilometres from the nearest known contemporary dwelling
site or burial place. If one studies the spatial distribution of all known
places, that is, even the smaller and presumably temporary activity sites,
it is difficult to discern specific settlement concentrations. It is natural if
the temporary sites have a wide distribution, since they may in many
cases be overnight camps used when moving in the landscape. If the
analysis is confined to the probable main settlements, megalithic tombs,
and votive sites, on the other hand, different settlement concentrations
associated with different spatial contexts can be distinguished. These
“landscape spaces” can be identified by studying the chronological and
chorological distribution of settlement together with the character of the
landscape. It may be reasonable to assume that it is within a landscape
space that a society consisting of one or more kin groups maintained its
annual activities.
Judging by the evidence of dwelling sites, graves, and votive sites, the
first inland area in the valley landscape to be permanently settled during
the Early Neolithic seems to have been the Välabäcken valley (fig. 82). It
is no exaggeration to claim that this valley landscape constituted a
geographically well-demarcated area. At Särslöv the Välabäcken, flowing
from the north, takes a westward turn and meanders just over three
kilometres through the valley until it then joins the Saxån. There is a
distinct elevation here on either side of the Välabäcken. North of the river
are the hills called Dagstorp Backar and to the south are Karaby Backar.
The former wetland area in the valley at Dösjebro is beside the
Välabäcken where it turns to the west. The topographical conditions may
be said to have pressed settlement into the confined space of the river
valley. This means a heightened sense of being in an enclosed space
between the two groups of hills and the wetland. Several dwelling sites,
145
megalithic tombs, and votive sites are concentrated here, on sandy spots
along the river. The character of the valley, together with the composition
of the settlement, thus suggests a socially constructed landscape space
with a physical and mental extent and boundaries. A large settlement was
established at Dagstorp already in EN I, when several households seem to
have existed at the same time. This place was probably used, at least in
periods, throughout the Early Neolithic and subsequently. During the
early Middle Neolithic we see once again a concentration of settlement in
this place. Together with Västra Karaby 7, these two settlements may be
regarded as main settlements. They are just over two kilometres apart.
Västra Karaby 7 seems to have been established in EN II but continued
into the early Middle Neolithic. The Dagstorp site was probably the
larger of the two, with several cooperating farm units. It may actually be
the case that this place is the only main settlement in the valley, and that
it is here that the household units were assembled. At Västra Karaby there
are no traces of house remains, but there were extensive finds, and the
lack of buildings may be due to the excavation techniques. It is therefore
difficult to assess the place. It is reasonable to assume that the four
trapezoidal houses at Dagstorp represent four separate and perhaps
contemporary production or household units. A factor suggesting that
they are contemporary is that the houses do not overlayer each other but
lie side by side (fig. 24a). Their virtually identical shape also hints that
they were built at the same time. The similarity in design of the houses
could also symbolize the equal position of the households; in other
words, none of the household units ranked higher than any of the others.
The settlement is centrally located within the “enclosed space” formed
here by the Välabäcken valley. Several places where only a small amount
of finds are documented lie higher up on Karaby Backar and along the
river, both east and west of the Dagstorp settlement. Their function and
meaning cannot be determined on the basis of the meagre finds and the
lack of osteological material. They were most likely places which were
visited on a temporary basis in connection with cultivation, animal
husbandry, or food gathering. That the valley confirmed its importance at
an early stage is noticed in the occurrence of a long barrow and a long
dolmen. The custom of burying the dead on the dwelling site seems to
have ceased at the end of the Early Neolithic. At least, there are no traces
of proper burials on the sites. This ritual now seems to have largely been
moved to special places in the landscape – to the big grave monuments.
In the Välabäcken valley it is clear that the central settlement was located
on the river down in the valley while the grave monuments were placed
on the plateau of southern slopes of the Dagstorp hills. This location of
the graves, chiefly on the south side of the hills, probably made it
possible for the inhabitants of Dagstorp to see the monuments every day,
at least if the areas around the graves were cleared. The megalithic
monuments are three passage graves (Dagstorp 2 and Södervidinge 3 and
11), one long dolmen (Dagstorp 23), and one long barrow (Dagstorp 12).
In spatial and chronological terms the long barrow and possibly the long
dolmen could be associated with Västra Karaby 7 while the passage
graves belonged to the Dagstorp site. The placing of the long dolmen on a
north-west slope down towards the Saxån indicates that this monument
146
was perhaps built to face settlements along the Saxån which have not yet
been discovered. Several votive deposits have been registered beside the
bogs at Dagstorp Backar. In all cases these are separated from the
settlements.
West of the Välabäcken valley, along the Saxån, there are separate
sites virtually all the way out to the coast. A small concentration can be
noted around the main settlement at Saxtorp 23. The terrain here is rather
flat but is interrupted by the Kvärlövsbäcken where it flows into the
Saxån. The area is distinctive in that there are no megalithic tombs and no
archival data about any removed graves. Votive sites are documented,
however, and one is located right beside the Saxtorp site.
During the Early Neolithic the expansion of settlement continued
eastwards, along the rivers. Around the Kävlingeån as far as its tributary
the Bråån, and to the south along the tributary from Stångby Mosse, there
is a concentration of settlements, votive sites, and megalithic tombs (fig.
83). The terrain is gently undulating but is cut through the centre by the
valleys of the Kävlingeån and Stångby Å. Along the northern part of the
Stångby Å the steep valley is a striking feature of the landscape. In
prehistoric times there was a continuous area of fen along the river, from
today’s Västra Hoby to Lackalänga, around which settlement was
concentrated. The area of this settlement concentration is bigger and not
as clearly demarcated by the physical geography as the Välabäcken
valley, although the settlement density decreases to the north-east by the
Välabäcken and to the south-east at Stångby, where the land rises. In the
north-west the wetland in the Dösjebro valley forms a natural boundary.
By adopting a central position in the area today, at Stångby Mosse, one
gets a good general view of the character of the district. The “outer
limits” may be said to correspond to the location of the churches which
can be seen from here on their heights, Kävlinge to the north-west, Stora
Harrie to the north, Lilla Harrie to the north-east, Stångby to the southeast, and Lackalänga to the south-west. It seems as if the hilly area
around the Kävlingeån and Stångby Mosse constituted a landscape space
with a mental boundary coinciding with what could be visually surveyed.
Unlike the “enclosed space” in the Välabäcken valley, the area is a more
open landscape space. Nor do the different household units in the area
seem to be concentrated in a single settlement like the one at Dagstorp.
Settlement here seems to have consisted of several “small spaces”, that is,
single farms with surrounding activity sites and close to one or more
megalithic tombs. Three of the excavated settlements, which can be
assumed on good grounds to have been of permanent character (Stora
Harrie 38, Stora Harrie 35, and Lackalänga 35), seem to have been
established in EN II but the material also indicates, at least at Stora Harrie
38 and Lackalänga 35, that the settlement continued during MNA I. Two
passage graves (Lackalänga and Västra Hoby) and seven round or long
dolmens (Västra Hoby, Lilla Harrie, and Stora Harrie) are located in this
part of the region. All three settlements are at a distance of about a
kilometre from the nearest megalithic tomb. The megalithic tombs are at
slightly higher locations that the settlements, and in all cases it must have
been possible to see the graves from the settlement. It would thus be
perfectly reasonable to link Stora Harrie 38 to the group of graves at
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Stora Harrie 7, 8 and 9; Stora Harrie 35 to the megalithic tombs in Västra
Hoby; and Lackalänga 35 to the passage grave in the same parish. Several
votive sites are registered in this area. As in the Välabäcken valley, these
are grouped around, but nevertheless separate from, the settlements.
The south-west settlement group is on the Barsebäck foreland and
along the Mare Bäck (fig. 84). The area is topographically demarcated to
the south-east by the bay formed by the estuary of the Lödde Å, to the
west by the Öresund, and to the north-west by wetland areas at Hofterup.
To the north-east the settlement extends to the bog of Karaby Mosse. The
terrain is flat, interrupted only by the distinct ridge on which the Gillhög
passage grave is located. Apart from Gillhög, the megalithic tombs of
Storegård and Hofterup are also located in the area. Within this area it is
possible to distinguish smaller spaces. In the Neolithic the foreland at
Barsebäck was a peninsula connected to the mainland by a narrow
isthmus. Within this area there are several coastal dwelling sites and a
main settlement (Barsebäck 48) just under a kilometre north-east of
Gillhög. Two main settlements close to Storegård (Löddeköpinge 13 and
Löddeköpinge 40) can be dated to the early Middle Neolithic by means of
the pottery and 14C analyses. Near the Hofterup dolmen, less than a
kilometre to the east, there is likewise a presumed main settlement
(Västra Karaby 44). The place has not been excavated, but the survey of
ancient monuments registered a copious amount of flint. One or two main
settlements seem to be associated with a megalithic tomb each. The
organization of the excavated sites indicates that settlement here
consisted of isolated farms (fig. 27). As in the other areas, the settlements
are placed at such a distance and level that it was evidently possible to
see the monuments from the habitation area. Unlike the northern and
eastern parts of the investigation area, where several votive sites have
been registered, only one votive site in a wetland environment is known
in this south-west part of the investigation area.
Datings of the dwelling sites, votive deposits of thin-butted flint axes
of types I–IV, megalithic tombs, and ceramic deposits beside these,
suggest that it was in the northern and eastern parts of the investigation
area that the bigger settlement districts were first established at the end of
the Early Neolithic. This tendency is noticeable already in EN I when the
first big inland settlement was founded at Dagstorp. Unlike the open
landscape that existed in the initial phase of the Early Neolithic, however,
in the later part of the period there was more permanent localization in
special landscape spaces. The triad constituted by the dwelling sites,
megalithic tombs, and votive sites reflects a society that established more
permanent settlement in special districts. The spatial distribution of
settlements, graves, and votive sites suggests that there may have been
three or four different districts or landscape spaces in the valley in the
early part of the Middle Neolithic. However, differences between
different areas are noticeable in the structure of the dwelling sites. The
central settlement site at Dagstorp in the Välabäcken valley consisting of
several household units has no counterpart in the other areas where the
isolated farm seems to have been the prevailing form of settlement. These
latter landscape spaces also seem to have been divisible into small spaces
148
consisting of one or a few households around one of the megalithic tombs
or groups of graves.
Social organization
The size of the houses in the investigation area indicates, as we have
seen, that they served as a home for a household or extended family. The
house should be seen as a cultural construction, with house forms
illustrating tradition and social organization (Parker-Pearson & Richards
1994:7). Ethnographical studies have shown that a society and its values
are reflected in the house and the dwelling site, with the house as an idea
comprising food, security, social belonging, heat, and rest, as well as the
family, family production, kin continuity, and kinship ties (Tilley 1999b).
In stratified societies houses often function as a marker to distinguish
élite groups from the rest of the population. Larger, more richly decorated
houses manifest prosperity, power, and status (Waterson 1995). In the
existing house evidence from the period EN II–MNA II in the
investigation area, however, it is not possible to detect social differences
between households. Both the houses at the Dagstorp settlement and the
various isolated farms display structural similarities and seem in large
measure to have been divided in a similar way. I would interpret the
slightly smaller buildings at Dagstorp not as dwelling houses but as
workshops or stores. In these buildings there is a greater quantity of
pottery and flint debitage than in the surrounding areas, which would
suggest some form of tool production.
The division of the trapezoidal buildings into two sections presupposes
a deliberate internal spatial organization of the house. There was probably
a functional and symbolic difference between the larger central dwelling
section and the smaller peripheral part. In the northern part of the house,
in the smaller room, pits have been documented. This part was probably
used as a store, but the composition of deposits also indicates that there
may be a more symbolic element. The fact that an activity has an
economic function need not mean that it could not simultaneously have a
ritual or symbolic character. Even if the small room in the houses
functioned as a store, this does not rule out the possibility that we can
detect traces of actions telling us about the underlying ideas the people
had about the house and the place. The finds in the pits, flint
debitage/tools, potsherds, burnt clay, and occasional bones, resemble the
composition in the pits at settlements from EN I.
The discussion above of dwelling site pits in the opening phase of the
Early Neolithic is therefore relevant for this period as well. Deposits in
pits are more frequent in the Early Neolithic and the early Middle
Neolithic (Karsten 1994:162). I believe that the placing of waste in small
pits on the dwelling site, just like all human activity, was governed by
structured, deep-rooted cultural norms (cf. Chapman 2000). In this phase
of the Neolithic too, it is clear that waste was in large measure allowed to
lie on the dwelling site. As a by-product of the establishment of order, it
became a symbol of the Neolithic way of life and had its given place on
the site. Some of the “dirt” was buried in pits but it is still just a small
portion of the settlement’s total waste. This reinforces the hypothesis that
only a representative selection of the waste was deposited in pits.
149
Deposits of fragmented objects in the pits were deliberate, repetitive
actions, that is, rituals which manifested the everyday activities and
reinforced the relationship to the place. The ritual is an action that
exemplified the ordinary and everyday. This means that ritual cannot be
lightly placed in a pigeonhole separate from other activities, and neither
the location nor the content need express anything “special”. It is
important to observe that even the treatment of waste follows cultural
norms and is therefore an action that reproduces the prevailing structural
principles. Several of the pits on the settlements, in or beside the houses,
consist of material that can be designated as waste, but which also
represents a cross-section of everyday activities. What the things had in
common was that they were part of a daily process intended to transform
natural products from the landscape into food, clothes, and building
materials, and the objects are products of precisely this process of
transformation. The objects produced and used in different social
activities are identified with special ideas through ritual. These are
objects employed in agriculture, tool manufacture, cooking, etc. They
were not made specifically to be part of rituals but to be used in a series
of mundane tasks. The majority of the objects in the pits are fragmented
and used, and may be regarded as “dead”. By “burying” the objects,
people strengthened the link between everyday and ritual activities and
thereby also confirmed their own relation to the place (cf. Hill 1995:96ff;
Chapman 2000).
There is a tendency for find-rich pits in EN II–MNA II to be more
clearly linked to the dwelling houses than they were in the initial phase of
the Early Neolithic. That houses function as political and ritual units as
well as household units has been noted by several ethnographical studies
(Carsten & Hugh-Jones 1995). The ancestors are often present, literally in
the form of skeletal parts or through supernaturally charged heirlooms
kept in the house (Waterson 1995). In the same way as EN I pits
manifested the everyday activities at the settlement and reinforced the
community between the households, the pits in this case may also have
functioned as a marker of the individual household’s work. The similar
design of the houses suggests a more formalized site community in which
it may have been important to assert the individual household, despite the
seeming equality.
The equal relationship between households expressed by the houses
did not mean the absence of relations of dominance between different
groups within the society. There are other indications in the
archaeological record of an unequal power structure. At the end of the
Early Neolithic and the start of the Middle Neolithic, just as in EN I,
society was probably organized on the basis of kinship. The power
structures that can be traced back at least to the Late Mesolithic were not
broken up when new lands were occupied; they were instead concealed or
toned down, possibly in a phase when the new settlements were still not
fully established in the interior. My study has shown that each landscape
space was built up of several households or families which were probably
related to each other through kinship ties. In some cases one or perhaps
more kin groups were assembled at a settlement, as at Dagstorp, where
several families probably lived on the same site. In other circumstances
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only one family lived on each site and the kin group was scattered in
several settlements. The construction of grave monuments and the
activities around these testify, as we shall see, to the existence of relations
of dominance. An élite, probably consisting of the elders of the
community, acquired control of spiritual and ritual knowledge.
An attempt was made above to link the bigger settlements to specific
megalithic tombs. It is only a model, but it shows at least that the grave
monuments had a spatial relationship to cultivation and to the dwelling
sites as different parts of an organized landscape, which was probably
established with reference both to economic strategies and to social and
spiritual traditions. It is likely that the monuments had different functions
such as burial places, ritual sites, and symbols of power and memory. It is
therefore not feasible to regard the grave monuments as uniform
phenomena. The concept of mortuary practice may be said to include
both the external and the internal design of the grave, the burial method,
the grave goods, and traces of funeral rituals (Gräslund 1991:84). The
grave should be seen as a structure of ideas in which the different
structural details, both external and internal, can be understood as parts of
a whole reflecting the spiritual and social conceptions of Neolithic
people. The significance of the megalithic tombs probably varied in time
and place. Each region has its specific historical conditions in which the
graves acquire their role. There may have been common traditions and
rituals over wide areas, but these may have been performed and
expressed differently in different regions. What is interesting in the
following discussion is the significance of the grave monuments when
they were erected late in the Early Neolithic and at the start of the Middle
Neolithic in the valley landscape of western Skåne.
The construction of the monuments suggests a new view of the
landscape. It is an activity which involved remodelling the landscape –
moving boulders, clearing forest, and levelling surfaces. Unlike the Early
Neolithic flat-earth graves, the megalithic tombs were visible in the
landscape in a new way. The permanence of the monuments is a reminder
that Neolithic people were not just engaged in the past but also in the
future. The aim of defining places with monuments may have been
primarily to create a sense of permanence between the society and the
landscape – a way of socializing the landscape. If we want to understand
the relationship between the megalithic tombs and the landscape it is
important also to consider the contemporary settlement. In the course of
the Early Neolithic partly new settlement districts were established in the
interior, probably as a consequence of internal tensions in the society but
perhaps also due to population growth. In connection with the
colonization of the interior, the time was also right to adopt the western
European tradition of building megalithic tombs. The really interesting
thing from the point of view of the landscape is the visibility of the
monuments. They probably functioned vis-à-vis two different categories
of population and with two different messages. They were a symbol
directed against the outer world and also an internal identity symbol for
the society within which the monuments were erected. In the gently
undulating landscape of western Skåne there were no natural cliff
formations. In this terrain the monuments had a manifest physical impact.
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Building creates a visual effect in the landscape, to and from which
attention was directed. The architecture of the graves and the topography
of the place interact. The placing of the monuments in the landscape
determines from where and from what distance they could be observed
and what could be seen from them. Control of the new land could be
confirmed by the monuments, which then functioned as a social and
ideological signal to passers-by. The megalithic tombs, with the
exception of Annehill, were located on the rivers that probably served as
communication routes in the Neolithic: the Välabäcken, Lödde Å–
Kävlingeån, and Mare Bäck. Although they are rarely right beside the
rivers, they could in most cases be seen from them because of their
location on the slopes running down to the water or on high plateaus. The
construction of the megalithic tombs can probably be associated with one
aspect of what is popularly called the domestication of nature (cf. Hodder
1990; Thomas 1991; Bradley 1993; Tilley 1994). At the start of the Early
Neolithic, the central settlements were linked to ancient lands established
back in Mesolithic times. The relation to the landscape and to other
population groups was traditionally regulated through rituals at the
dwelling sites. In connection with the migration to the interior, I believe it
became necessary to create new “spaces”. Before this the landscape along
the valleys had only seen sporadic visits and therefore had not been
modelled according to ancient traditions in the way the coastal areas
were. It was thus essential to domesticate the landscape through the
creation of new places in important topographical locations. These places
can very well have previously been reference points in the terrain, but
with the construction of a monument, the landscape was reshaped and the
people forged a lasting relationship to it. Creating and shaping a
meaningful order in the surrounding space through new places is an
attempt to make the world comprehensible and meaningful. This seems to
be why some of the activities formerly associated with the dwelling site
in the Late Mesolithic and Early Neolithic, such as burials and other ritual
acts, were transferred to various points in the landscape in the course of
the Early Neolithic. The microplaces within the settlements were moved
out and became places in the landscape but with partly the same function
in a larger space. The landscape spaces were like a macro settlement
comprising dwelling, votive activities, and burial.
The man-made “space” was a scene of social reproduction. Control
over the creation of space therefore led to power over the practice of
social reproduction, that is, to the maintenance of power relations
between individuals and groups. In the parts of the valley landscape
which were relatively densely populated at the end of the Early Neolithic
and the start of the Middle Neolithic, the megaliths were presumably not
primarily to be regarded as territorial markers; they more likely regulated
the social relationship within and between the different local groups.
They served to define the social identity of the group and functioned as a
stabilizing factor symbolizing the permanence of the social identity.
The lack of extremely monumental positions suggests that it was not
the intention that the graves should be seen from far afield. They faced
inwards towards the groups that built the monuments. This indicates that
the monuments were perhaps chiefly intended to keep the group together
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instead of demonstrating power towards an outside observer. An
important aspect is that the megaliths were located in more prominent
places in the landscape than the settlements. From the dwelling sites in
the valleys, the people were able to look up at the megalithic tombs on
the slopes. Daily life proceeded at the settlements with the megalithic
tombs in the background, representing the past, the ancestors, and a sense
of permanence. Death is of course an individual occurrence but it is
simultaneously a social occasion. Since death means that an individual is
separated from the society and the collective of which he was once a part,
the social order must be restored or reproduced in a changed form
through funeral rituals (Huntingdon & Metcalf 1979). I have shown that,
in the first part of the Early Neolithic these actions were performed
beside the dwelling site itself, to which the group’s identity was linked.
When new lands were later colonized, it was necessary for the group to
mark the existence of a larger space through the megalithic tombs and the
rituals associated with them.
People’s physical surroundings influenced settlement and the way in
which spaces were created. Settlement patterns also show different
features in different landscapes. It is only at Dagstorp, in the Välabäcken
valley, that there is evidence of the existence of more than one
contemporary farm unit on the same site. The “enclosed space” formed
by the valley seems to have had a unifying effect in that the farms were
concentrated in one place. Three to four households or extended families
may have lived together on the site. There are three passage graves on the
slopes of Dagstorp Backar. One possibility is that the construction of the
monuments was done communally within the kin group but that each
megalithic tomb originally corresponded to one household. Outside the
Välabäcken valley, where the landscape does not form a closed space in
the same way, only single farms are attested. Their position in the
landscape is also such that the nearest megalithic tomb, located on a
higher slope or plateau, is visible from the settlement.
Most of the excavated megalithic tombs in Skåne and Denmark have
been the scene of recurrent activities of various kinds in both prehistoric
and historic times. This makes it difficult to restore the original burial.
Finds of bones in grave chambers, however, often show that women,
men, and children are all represented (Strömberg 1971; Kaul 1992; Tilley
1996). This corroborates the idea that the graves were originally intended
for the whole household and perhaps not just for the leading stratum of
society, even though the actual funeral ritual was performed by some of
the leaders of the kin group.
It is necessary once again to stress that the megalithic tombs are a
complex and heterogeneous phenomenon. The probably gradual change
of the megalithic tombs from the long barrow via long and round
dolmens to the passage grave may illustrate a partly changed meaning of
the monuments. In EN I, when burials were performed at dwelling sites,
the rituals in connection with this were open in that the whole community
took part throughout the course of events, both the passive spectators and
the leaders officiating at the ritual. When at least parts of the funeral
ritual were moved out to places in the landscape, to the long barrows and
long/round dolmens, this was presumably still open to everyone in the
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community, who could participate because the remains of the ancestors
were enclosed in these monuments. Their presence could then only be
recreated in the memory through the visual effect of the monuments.
With the construction of the passage graves a new dimension was added
to the ritual through the passage leading into the chamber. The passage
emphasized the difference between the outer and the inner world,
between the rituals performed outside the grave and those performed in
the chamber itself. This was marked by the long, narrow passage, often
with a threshold (cf. Cooney 2000). It was probably only a few of the
select members of the community who now had access to the inner
sanctuary. Contact between the living and the ancestral spirits now no
longer took place in the presence of the whole community but in
concealed form, inside the grave chamber. I believe this may have been
an expression of growing social control. Preservation conditions in the
excavated passage graves have not been good enough to allow us to give
sure answers about the treatment of the dead. It is probable, however, that
at least some of the megalithic tombs were used as primary graves.
Evidence for this comes from the black, sticky soil that has been
documented around the bones in several passage graves, which could be
the remains of the soft parts of the body (Gräslund 1989; Kaul 1992). The
treatment of the dead person’s bones evidently did not cease with this,
and it is rare to find the parts of a skeleton in their correct anatomical
position in the chambers. This can partly be explained in terms of later
burials having disturbed earlier ones. However, the bones are often in
such a location that it seems likely that they were arranged according to
specific rules. Excavations have also shown that it is not always complete
skeletons that are found in the graves. Various parts of the skeletons were
probably removed some time after the burial to be used in sacrificial
rituals in other places. Perhaps the complete skeleton was not always
buried. In certain cases the deceased may have been placed elsewhere
first until the soft parts had decayed and the megalithic tombs were thus
used as ossuaries for the deposition of the skeletal parts (cf. Tilley
1996:221ff). There are several ethnographic parallels to such a procedure
(Malinowski 1922, 1929; Weiner 1976; Munn 1986). It seems clear,
however, that special rites were performed around the ancestors’ bones.
Deliberate deposition of whole or fragmented objects – sacrifices –
occurred, as we have seen, both at settlements and burial places and in
wetlands outside these two contexts. Above all we see a noticeable
increase in the frequency of deposition in the wetlands during this part of
the Neolithic. The later part of the Early Neolithic is thus characterized
by the growing frequency of votive activities outside settlement contexts
compared with the early part of the period. Although some of the votive
sites were still used on only one occasion, it seems as if we now also see
a tendency towards the establishment of permanent votive sites. The
tradition from the start of the Early Neolithic of single deposits on one
occasion can be interpreted as offerings of a purely private character
performed by individuals or small groups. The permanent votive sites, on
the other hand, to which people returned several times, may have been
used for more collective sacrificial activities. It is still the flint axe that is
the most commonly deposited object, although the excavations at Saxtorp
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show that the composition of votive finds is much more complex than
this. In certain cases it seems as if people preferred to visit wetlands
located far from the settlement, where they deposited their offerings in
private, while in other cases it is obvious that the bog beside the dwelling
site was used for sacrificial activity. I would regard the objects deposited
in wetlands beside the dwelling place as “dwelling site offerings”, to be
treated as a separately category from the deposits in places removed from
the dwelling site.
We can thus distinguish two different contexts of wetland offering:
deposits in wetlands right beside the settlement and offerings away from
the settlement of both private and collective character. Although the
representativeness of votive offerings must be treated with great caution,
since only a few votive sites have been excavated, there is nevertheless a
tendency for whole axes to dominate in the votive finds not linked to
settlements, whereas votive deposits on or near dwelling sites consist of
more varied and fragmented material which seems to be a reflection of
the everyday tasks. If this difference is real it is an indication that
different value or significance was ascribed to the different offerings
associated with different contexts.
The excavations showed that the votive fen in Saxtorp can be
associated on good grounds with the adjacent settlement (Nilsson &
Nilsson 2003). No whole axes or pots were found here, but a large
quantity of flint flakes and tools such as scrapers, awls, and knives,
potsherds, and bones of animals and humans. At first sight, the
composition of the finds resembles ordinary dwelling site material. The
proportion of human bones and the fact that the objects seem to have
been deliberately placed in a limited part of the fen nevertheless suggests
a deposit with a particular purpose – a ritual act. The objects deposited in
the wetland is comparable in certain respects with the finds documented
in Early Neolithic votive pits at settlements in that they seem to represent
everyday life, being a cross-section of some of the basic activities in
people’s social life, such as eating, cooking, drinking, and lighting fires. I
believe that the “dwelling site offerings” deposited in the adjacent
wetland probably had partly the same purpose as the Early Neolithic
votive pits. The social community was strengthened by a manifestation of
everyday tasks. The votive deposits should also be seen as a way to
transform and reinforce the bonds with the place. A locale acquired
meaning and became a place by means of various rituals which
transformed it. Just as two persons establish a form of alliance by
breaking and sharing a suitable object, the relationship to a place is
confirmed and strengthened by the deposition of parts of an object (cf.
Chapman 2000). The occurrence of human bones in the votive fen at
Saxtorp is a confirmation that the burial ritual was not just performed at
the megalithic tombs. It has long been a well-known fact that scattered
human bones occur at places of differing character, such as dwelling site
features or occupation layers, wetlands, and places of assembly
(Svensson 1993; Kaul 1992; Koch 1998). By all appearances, it was
considered important to place parts of the dead in other places than the
grave. One explanation for this may proceed from the discussion above
about the localization of the graves adjacent to dwelling sites in EN I.
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The idea that objects were animated and, just like the human body, could
be followed from birth to death – production (birth), consumption (life),
destruction (death), and deposition (burial) – no doubt prevailed in the
later part of the Early Neolithic and the Middle Neolithic as well. People
and objects may be perceived as two distinct units, yet still closely related
to each other. It is therefore not especially strange to consider the ritual
for depositing the human body as a parallel to the way in which artefacts
were treated (cf. Wagner 1975; Chapman 2000). The fact that different
parts of the ancestors were used in rituals in connection with the different
places of the group signalled that the different categories – the
settlements, the votive bogs, the graves – constituted separate parts of a
societal whole. The relocation of the ancestors’ bones confirmed the
significance and role of the places in the network of activities in which
the group was involved. This is possibly why we see that parts of the
skeleton seem to have been removed from the megalithic tombs some
time after the burial. Only two more votive deposits in wetland (Västra
Hoby 18 and Norrvidinge 34) are adjacent to probable contemporary
settlements (fig. 77). However, these sites have not been excavated, so it
is not possible to paint a clear picture of their link with the settlements.
The vast majority of wetlands with votive finds, however, are rarely
located adjacent to the nearest known contemporary settlement. The
distance varies from a couple of hundred metres to several kilometres.
Evidently the location of the settlements in these cases was crucial not for
where the deposits were made; it is instead the place itself, its scenery
and special environment that offered the optimal votive setting. There is a
great similarity between different peoples in different parts of the world
as regards sacred places. They are constantly associated with what we in
the West regard as special natural formations such as cliffs, wetlands, or
watercourses (Carmichael et al. 1998). There are several examples of
groups who view wetlands as holy places. The Sto:lo Indians in southwest Canada have several different types of sanctified places, chiefly
lakes or wetlands, which are believed to be inhabited by supernatural
forces. They are often rather large areas with an uneven distribution in the
landscape (Mohs 1998). The situation in Canada, or among other smallscale societies, of course cannot be directly transferred to the Neolithic in
western Skåne. However, it gives an indication of how different places in
the landscape may have been perceived. The fact that it is the place itself
that was important and not the relation to the dwelling site also explains
the varying distance to the settlements. Slightly more than half of the
votive deposits are single finds. Despite the aspects of source criticism
mentioned above, there is a hint here that offerings of a private character
were still of great significance. Also, it is often rather small wetlands that
were used for offerings, which might not have been suitable for large
crowds of people. Individuals or small groups, such as a household or a
work group, may have gone to a sacred place before some special event
in order to appease higher powers.
In cases when it can be documented that two or more whole axes were
deposited at the same time, one can envisage that the offering was
performed by a larger group, perhaps a kin group. It seems improbable
that a single individual would have been able to spare and deposit several
156
axes for private purposes. One hypothesis is that some of the accumulated
votive sites may have functioned during a period in the second half of the
Early Neolithic as meeting places in connection with collective rites. It is
probable too that the first votive finds of copper objects are from the
Early Neolithic. From Västra Karaby there is a find of a copper dagger
dated to late in the Early Neolithic, but unfortunately the exact find spot
is not stated (Oldeberg 1974; Magnusson Staaf 1996). Lutz Klassen, in
his work on early copper in Scandinavia (2000), says that it may have
been extracted in central Sweden as early as the Early Neolithic. The
technological know-how, however, must have come from continental
Europe, which is evidence of the long-distance contacts established
during this period.
It is interesting that deposits in wetlands seem to cease or at least
decrease at the transition to the Middle Neolithic. All of the flint axes
found in the wetlands whose type can be determined are thin-butted axes
of types I–IV, which according to Nielsen can be dated to EN II (Nielsen,
P. O. 1977). The concentration of votive deposits in the northern and
eastern part of the valley landscape, where the earliest settlements and
megalithic tombs are probably found, reinforces this hypothesis. The
decline in the use of bogs as votive sites coincides in time with the
increasing frequency of ceramic deposits outside megalithic tombs. A
clear redistribution and rearrangement of the sacrificial ritual is thus
noticeable at the transition to the Middle Neolithic. Deposits chiefly of
axes in wetlands were replaced by deposits above all of pottery but later
also axes outside megalithic tombs.
The polished axe that was used in several different contexts was
probably of great practical and symbolic significance during the
Neolithic. The axe was important for clearing areas for settlement and
cultivation, and it was used for working wood for building houses and
making fences, canoes, wooden bowls, etc. The axe was probably also an
important object in exchange relations between different groups. The raw
material at least for the axes had to be obtained from areas with a better
supply of flint. Just as in the initial phase of the Early Neolithic, however,
axe production cannot be linked to any of the excavated settlements.
Instead, knapping seems to have been done in special places, sometimes
presumably right beside the sources of the raw material, such as the flint
mines in Ängdala outside Malmö. However, there is no sure evidence of
any production of thin-butted axes at Ängdala. Moreover, the size of
nodules found from the mines in Malmö shows that they probably would
not have been big enough to function as raw material for thin-butted axes
(Rudebeck 1994, 1998; Jansson 1999). Perhaps nodules were brought
from the other side of the Öresund, in Denmark.
On the axe-manufacturing site at Flädie, production seems to have
been geared to thin-butted flint axes (Pihl & Runcis 2001). The flakes
from this place show that the axe was given its final shape here, while the
rough knapping into a quadrilateral plank presumably was done at the
source of the raw material. The fact that special places were chosen for
axe manufacture testifies to the significance of the axe for many different
activities in people’s lives. The production of an axe could even be
compared to important stages in a person’s life (see the discussion
157
above), such as birth, puberty, or marriage. In many cultures these events,
when an individual is transferred from one state of physical development
to another, are accompanied by a rite of passage (Gennep 1960). It was
therefore necessary that axe manufacture, perhaps like some rites of
passage, was performed away from the settlement in order to avoid
“impurity” (cf. Strassburg 2000:412). People probably chose places
which already had a special meaning, and axe production could further
emphasize the significance of a site. The axe-manufacturing site in
Flädie, which is located close to a children’s cemetery, reinforces this
hypothesis. An interesting factor is of course the almost 200 amber beads
deposited as grave goods, many of them in the shape of axes. The
symbolic meaning of the axe is also illustrated by the long and carefully
shaped examples which are often found deposited in votive bogs. Often
the long axes are better made than the shorter ones (Olausson 1983,
1997:271). The axe may thus be said to link production, consumption,
exchange of gifts, and ritual. They tied different spheres of human
activity together and were a medium for alliances and exchange relations
between different groups (cf. Tilley 1996:101ff). In the same way, pottery
was important for several different activities such as cooking, storage,
and in ritual contexts. The varying shapes and decoration of the vessels,
however, emphasized the differences between different groups in a way
that the axe did not. In her study of the pottery from megalithic tombs in
western Skåne, Hårdh thinks that the relatively free choice of patterns on
the pottery, despite a certain basic norm, suggests that ceramic production
was not centralized but local (Hårdh 1986, 1990b). The variation between
the different graves in the way decorative patterns are combined on the
pottery could be a reflection and manifestation of group affiliation.
I think that there are various signs that social control increased at the
transition to the Middle Neolithic. As the settlement areas were
established in the interior, there was a greater need for institutionalized
rituals to consolidate the prevailing order. The leading stratum of society
therefore marked its position by fully adopting the leadership of these
rituals. The passage graves are an indication of this. Only a few leading
individuals had access to the chamber through the passage. The fact that
offerings and rituals were performed at specific places, at the monuments,
is further evidence of the need for control. It is perhaps at this point in
time that the megalithic tombs also acquired a major role as meeting
places. The pottery, which seems to mark group affiliation more clearly
than the axes, became more important in votive deposits. There are
several, admittedly diffuse, traces of activities around the monuments.
Although the obscure character of the remains makes it difficult to
understand what happened on the sites, it is a clear indication of their
function as meeting places for various ritual activities. The U-shaped
trench at Dagstorp can probably be interpreted as having had the same
meaning as the Danish cultic houses. The pottery in these is of the same
type (e.g. pedestalled bowls and clay ladles) as the ceramic deposits at the
entrance to the passage graves. It is reasonable to interpret them as small
ritual temples (Andersen 2000). The stone packings around several of the
megalithic tombs in the excavation area (Hofterup, Annehill, and
Dagstorp) can probably also be associated with votive rituals.
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On the basis of the design of the chamber in the passage graves, they
have sometimes been divided into different phases. The oval shape is
believed to be older than the rectangular (Strömberg 1971; Hårdh 1990a).
In cases where it has been possible to reconstruct the chamber, it has been
found that Gillhög, Storegård, and Hög have a rectangular chamber while
Västra Hoby, Södervidinge, and Lackalänga have oval chambers. The
theory may agree with the state of affairs in the area since the passage
graves in the north-east are assumed to have been erected earlier than
those in the south-west. The centrally placed double passage grave at
Annehill is distinctive in several ways. It has one rectangular chamber
while the other one, which is partly destroyed, seems to have been
rounded. Annehill is also the only megalithic tomb that was placed over a
kilometre from the nearest river. There are no contemporary settlements
in the immediate vicinity as there are around the other megalithic tombs.
Perhaps different societies from the different landscape spaces met here
and manifested their social affinity, expressed in the passage grave. In
Skåne the tradition of building Sarup enclosures does not seem to have
been established in this period. The place most frequently discussed is
Stävie on the Kävlingeån in western Skåne (Larsson, L. 1982). Stävie
includes a north–south ditch system which, like the Danish sites,
demarcated a topographically distinct tongue of land beside the river.
However, the system of ditches has been dated to MNA V. The different
monuments in the separate landscape spaces may have functioned
alternately as meeting places for the local groups. The big deposits of
pottery at Västra Hoby and Gillhög indicate that these may have
functioned periodically as local places of assembly. At large gatherings,
when groups from perhaps the entire region met, Annehill may have
functioned as a kind of central place. The factors speaking in favour of
this are the location of the site and the design of the monument. The
amount of finds is much smaller than at Västra Hoby and Gillhög. This of
course may be due to preservation conditions or technical factors to do
with the excavation. In addition, it is reasonable to assume that the local
meeting places like Gillhög and Västra Hoby were visited much more
often than any regional central place.
Bringing under shared leadership
In the opening phase of the Early Neolithic, the settlement was a central
place in the world, a node linking people both geographically in relation
to the surrounding world and chronologically in a continuous relationship
to the ancestors, to contemporaries, and to coming generations. Votive
deposits and burials on the sites demonstrated the opposition between
what was within the site and what was outside it. The second half of the
Early Neolithic was a period of vigorous settlement expansion. The
increasingly permanent way of life, together with a probable population
growth, increased the internal pressure in the society, and groups moved
inland. In the archaeological record it is possible to follow how
settlements were established from west to east along the Saxån and
Välabäcken, and south from there to the Kävlingeån and Stångby Mosse,
finally also colonizing the area around the Mare Bäck and Barsebäck.
159
When permanent new settlement districts were established, it required the
creation of landscape spaces; in other words, the group had to mark its
social identity in the area by setting up new places, possibly at previously
known topographical landmarks. It is in this context that the western
European tradition of building megalithic tombs was adopted in the
valley landscape and the tradition of depositing offerings in wetlands
increased dramatically. In connection with the creation of the new
landscape spaces, the view of the landscape was also changed. In certain
respects the dwelling site may now be said to have comprised the entire
landscape space in that various functions were now moved out into the
surroundings. For the first time, major interventions were made outside
the settlement itself and the cultivation plots. The construction of the
monuments meant that large areas were cleared and that the landscape
acquired a different profile. Not just the building but presumably also the
clearance of the vegetation meant that special bonds to the place were
forged and much of the landscape was socialized through these measures.
It is clear that the different places in the landscape were parts of a
complete unit – the unit that was formerly concentrated on the dwelling
site. Settlements, megalithic tombs, votive and cultic sites had different
meanings, but at the same time we see that the same phenomena partly
recur at the different places. The primary burial of the dead presumably
took place at the megalithic tombs. The occurrence of human bones both
on dwelling sites and at votive sites shows that either only parts of the
skeleton were buried in the megaliths, or else certain parts were taken
from the passage graves to be used in rituals at other places. The burial or
deposition of fragments of an ancestor at different places in the landscape
space is a symbolic action and a clear signal that there was a need to mark
that places belonged together, that they were parts of a whole. In the
investigation area, no human bones have been identified in settlement site
contexts from this phase. Studies of other areas, where human bones
occur frequently in settlement contexts, suggest that this is due to the
unfavourable preservation conditions for bones. The burnt bones
retrieved from several of the pits are too fragmentary to allow the species
to be identified.
Another indication that the places belong together is the similarity of
the material composition between dwelling site pits and the deposits in
several of the wetlands. Excavations of megalithic tombs in south-east
Skåne have shown that hoards of flint flakes and small flint tools also
occur in the grave chambers. These have been interpreted as cultic acts in
connection with the construction of the grave (Strömberg 1971:320). The
passage graves in the investigation area were disturbed when excavated,
and no certain deposits of waste were noticed by the excavators. On the
other hand, in most cases, flint flakes and potsherds were documented
which could have come from votive pits of the same type as those at the
settlements.
The social organization was still that of a kin society. The growing
social coercion that arose in EN I in connection with the increased
permanence of settlement was relieved when people moved out to
colonize new districts. At the transition to the Middle Neolithic it seems
as if the “new” landscape spaces had been stabilized. It was therefore
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necessary once again that the ritual should be institutionalized in the
sense that the leading stratum in each kin group took a firmer control of
the ritual. This is noticeable above all in the establishment of specific
places for different rituals at the megalithic tombs. The private rituals at
the scattered wetlands seem to have ceased, and instead this activity was
concentrated at central meeting places at the megalithic tombs. The
megalithic tomb with a passage leading into the burial chamber illustrates
how presumably only a few leading people had access to this “sacred
space”. The fact that pottery, which marks group affiliation more clearly
than axes by virtue of the different forms of decoration, is increasingly
asserted in the ritual shows that it may have been important to emphasize
the identity of the group. The increased influence of the ancestors,
expressed in the megalithic tombs and the treatment of the bones of the
dead, probably also meant that biological kin categorizations became the
prevailing form in group formations.
Consolidation and dissolution
In the same way as a distinct change was noticeable in the organization of
society at the end of the Early Neolithic, the transition to what we call
MNA III may also be said to be a time of change. This makes itself felt
above all in the settlement organization, with a reduction in the number of
settlements and deposits in wetlands compared with the previous period.
These transformations can be traced back to the start of the Middle
Neolithic, when the custom of depositing objects in bogs declined in
favour of votive rituals at the megalithic tombs. Although new grave
monuments were no longer erected in this period, they were still used as
burial chambers and “sacred places”. In the material culture the thickbutted axe replaced the thin-butted one. MNA III also entailed a clear
change in the ceramic tradition. Lines on the belly of the pot disappeared,
while pitted and tooth-stamped decoration became very common. Vessel
forms are more varied than in earlier periods; besides funnel beakers
there are now open bowls of various kinds and brim beakers.
In the closing phase of the period it seems as if three different material
cultures partly existed in parallel in southern Scandinavia, which
complicates the picture of the archaeological remains. Alongside the
Funnel Beaker culture there are now also the Pitted Ware culture and the
Battle Axe culture. The Pitted Ware culture, as it is represented, for
example, in north-eastern Skåne, with forms characteristic of the culture
such as pointed-bottomed, pitted vessels, does not seem to occur in the
investigation area. In contrast, a flint inventory influenced by the Pitted
Ware culture is found in Funnel Beaker contexts and known as the Stävie
group. The Battle Axe culture, as in many other places, is chiefly
represented in the grave finds and seems to come after the Funnel Beaker
culture, possibly with a certain overlap. The encounter between the two
material cultures is best seen at the palisaded enclosure in Dösjebro.
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Settlement pattern
The period MNA III–V has a much shorter duration than EN II–MNA II
(see table I), and the number of documented settlements is also much
smaller (51 versus 88). We thus see a numerical reduction in settlements
during the period, which could of course be explained in part by the
shorter duration of the period. The fall in the number of dwelling sites
should not be solely ascribed to the length of the period or a reduction in
the population; it is more likely due to a concentration, with the main
settlements growing in size. Votive deposits in wetlands also decline
noticeably in this phase, from forty-seven known in EN II–MNA II to six
in MNA III–V (fig. 85). As we have seen, this votive activity had
probably already started to decline at the start of the Middle Neolithic. It
is necessary to point out, however, that seven votive sites, apart from the
six mentioned above, yielded the thick-butted B-axe which can be
associated with either the Stävie group or the Battle Axe culture. Some of
these deposits may thus possibly have been made in the late MNA.
Settlement
About half of the settlements are on sites that were also used in EN II–
MNA II, but settlement is no longer scattered over the whole landscape; it
seems as if the population was concentrated to a greater extent than
before in special areas along rivers and near the coast. As in the
preceding periods, people mainly chose to locate their dwelling sites on
sandy soils, although some of the smaller places are on clay soils. Above
all at the end of the period it seems as if the tendency to settle on the
coast increases. The majority of sites with elements of the Pitted Ware
flint inventory are coastal.
Most of the sites from the period have not been excavated, which
makes it more difficult for us to obtain a picture of their function. Of the
excavated sites, five can nevertheless be regarded on good grounds as
main settlements on account of their extent and the quantity of finds
(Saxtorp 3 (Tågerup), Dagstorp 19, Barsebäck 48, Stävie 17, and Norra
Nöbbelöv 13) (fig. 46). It was only at Dagstorp 19 and Norra Nöbbelöv
13 (figs. 47 and 50) that houses could be documented, but these places
were also the only ones where large areas were stripped around the actual
settlement. The excavations at Saxtorp 3 (Tågerup) touched only the
Mesolithic remains, but the surface survey showed that the Early and
Middle Neolithic settlements were higher up on the plateau. Several
fragments of thick-butted axes of type A show that the site was occupied
in the late MNA (Althin 1954:104). At Barsebäck 48 and Stävie 17 the
excavations were concentrated on the finds in the occupation layers.
Some of the surface-surveyed places also contain a large quantity of
knapped flint, which would indicate longer permanent settlement. In most
cases, however, it is difficult to determine which period to assign most of
the artefacts to. It was found that some of the sites on the Barsebäck
foreland had a large number of whole and fragmentary thick-butted flint
axes together with a large amount of other flint. One of these places may
also have functioned as a main settlement. Stångby 18 beside Stångby
Mosse, with continuity from the Early Neolithic and a large volume of
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flint detected by surface survey, including several fragmented thickbutted flint axes, should, in my opinion, be regarded as a main settlement.
The main settlements are all centrally located in areas with a high
density of dwelling sites on sandy heights along the coast and rivers. The
distribution of the settlements partly resembles the situation at the start of
EN I. Unlike the wide distribution of dwelling sites in all parts of the
landscape, as in EN II–MNA II, there has once again been a contraction
to places on the coast or around watercourses. The main settlements are
surrounded by smaller sites, in most cases not excavated, but identified
by surface survey. These places do not seem to have necessarily been
placed beside the rivers in the valleys; in several cases they are at higher
points on sand or clay soils. The localization of the main settlements in
the landscape seems in large measure also to have been influenced by
where earlier generations lived. At Barsebäck 48, Saxtorp 3 (Tågerup),
and Dagstorp 19 there is evidence of occupation in the Early Neolithic as
well, and in the case of Tågerup also in much of the Mesolithic. It is
highly likely that the people knew of the earlier use of these places. At
least, earlier activities should have been obvious in the waste material left
behind. It is not inconceivable that the occurrence of this material gave
the place a special charge which was significant for the choice of
dwelling site. Consideration for the activities of the ancestors is hinted at
Dagstorp 19, where it seems that people in MNA III deliberately placed
their habitation activities alongside the preceding settlement. Perhaps
there was uninterrupted continuity, with successive moves along the
river, or perhaps there was a desire to return to places with an ancient
tradition, but without making any interventions in or “disturbing” the
work of past generations. At also seems as if each main settlement had a
special relationship to some form of ritual place. The most common
feature is the close relationship of the main settlements to a megalithic
tomb, but at Norra Nöbbelöv 13 and Stångby 18 the old votive sites still
seem to have functioned as meeting places. It is only at Saxtorp 3 that
there is no documentation of any contemporary ritual site. This may be
due to technical factors to do with the excavation, but perhaps the site in
this period was in fact only a temporary camp used for activities such as
hunting or animal husbandry.
The general picture in south-west Skåne and Denmark is that cattle
increasingly dominated among the livestock in the course of the Middle
Neolithic. Hunting is less visible in the evidence and it is therefore
possible that animal husbandry acquired a significant role in the economy
(Kristiansen 1988:49; Welinder 1998:98ff). Cultivation still occurs on a
small scale, and analyses of grain impressions, for instance at Stävie and
Karlsfält, suggest that emmer and einkorn predominated (Hjelmqvist
1982:13; 1985:63). The material from Piledal in southern Skåne,
however, shows a different picture. Of the 963 grains which have been
identified, naked barley is more common than hulled barley and varieties
of wheat (Welinder 1998:99). Admixture of later elements on this site
means that we must show some caution about the dating of this material.
However, among the thousands of charred grains from the Alvastra pile
dwelling, naked barley also predominates (Welinder 1998:99). The finds
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thus show that barley may have been more common than the impressions
in pottery usually suggest.
Some of the places surrounding the permanent settlements may be the
result of an economy partly based on transhumance, that is, a stationary
settlement combined with the seasonal use of grazing land away from the
base site. This could be an explanation for the decline in plants favoured
by cultivated land which is noticeable in pollen diagrams from this period
(Digerfeldt 1975). The sometimes stiff clay on which some of the smaller
sites were established was hard to till but would have been fine for animal
husbandry. In the Ystad area Lars Larsson has observed a concentration
of settlement at the transition to the Middle Neolithic which he believes
could be connected with a greater significance for animal husbandry (cf.
Larsson, L. 1989, 1992a, 1998), and it is possible that the same form of
production prevailed in western Skåne.
In the course of the Middle Neolithic we notice a shift of settlement
towards the coast. Right at the start of the Middle Neolithic there are
hints that people in the marginal areas of the Funnel Beaker culture made
greater use of the marine resources along the coast, first in central
Sweden and Gotland, but later also on the west coast and further south
(Malmer 1969; Welinder 1971, 1976, 1978; Löfstrand 1974; Kaelas
1976; Nielsen, S. 1979; Åkerlund 1996; Edenmo et al. 1997). In the
investigation area we can likewise observe a pull of settlement towards
the coast at the end of the period, when the sites show the clear influence
of the Pitted Ware culture on the flint material. Unfortunately, there is no
organic material at the coastal sites in the investigation area, which makes
it difficult to estimate the extent to which marine resources were used
here. It is possible that the deterioration in climate at the end of MNA led
to an increase in the stock of seal in southern Scandinavia as well. The
material from western Skåne in general shows that a mixed economy
prevailed at the end of MNA, when cultivation and animal husbandry
were combined with coastal fishing and inland hunting (Hjelmqvist
1982:108f; Persson 1982:114; Welinder 1998:100f; Burenhult
1999:321f).
The main settlements were evidently used more intensively during the
period than earlier in the Neolithic. The finds in the occupation layer at
Dagstorp 19, in relation to the size of the site, are much more numerous
than in the occupation layers from other periods. The period does not
have a longer duration than other periods in MNA. The large quantity of
finds in the occupation layer indicates instead that activity on the site was
more intensive than in other periods. One explanation is that in MNA III
more people lived on a permanent dwelling site than before. At
Barsebäck 48 and Norra Nöbbelöv 13 too, the extensive finds are an
indication that settlements were bigger than before. This picture can be
connected to the distribution of settlements, with a greater concentration
which could be the result of more people moving together to fewer but
bigger dwelling sites.
The documented buildings in the investigation area show that the
dwelling house was probably a rectangular long-house (fig. 86). Dagstorp
house type II, which can be dated to MNA III, is a clearly rectangular
structure, while the building in Norra Nöbbelöv is more difficult to
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interpret, although it also displays a rectangular ground plan. The number
of houses is small, but the tendency is for dwelling houses to be bigger in
MNA III than in the previous period. The dwelling area in the rectangular
houses is 90–100 m², while trapezoidal house types from MNA I at
Dagstorp 19 (Dagstorp house type I) were no more than 50 m². The
Mossby house at Saxtorp 26, which has been dated to EN II, is an
exception, however, with a dwelling area of roughly 100 m². Perhaps the
bigger houses are an indication that two or more families shared a
dwelling.
There are no structural details in the form of hearths, pits, or postholes to reveal how the house was internally organized. The type of room
division documented in the house remains from EN II–MNA I at
Löddeköpinge 40 and Dagstorp 19 has not been identified. It is difficult
to determine whether this shows that the houses were not divided into
different rooms or that they were built to a design that has not left any
traces.
There are no known long-houses, or dwelling houses, in the
investigation area which can be dated with certainty to the closing part of
the period, MNA IV–V. It must be considered uncertain what the roundoval post-hole structure at Lackalänga (Furulund) represents. On the
other hand, the hut remains at Saxtorp 23 can probably be assigned to late
MNA. The structures were poorly preserved and no finds, whether
organic or inorganic, survived to give any clues about their function. A
comparisons with the hut remains in Hagestad, however, may be fruitful.
The huts here, like those at Saxtorp, were circular and placed close to
each other. The finds, with elements of both Pitted Ware and Funnel
Beaker cultures in the form of objects such as blade arrowheads,
cylindrical blade cores, clay discs with arch decoration, and tulip-shaped
beakers, date the huts to the late MNA. Among the bones, both wild and
domesticated species were identified. Strömberg believes that the huts
functioned as seasonal dwellings in connection with hunting and fishing
on the coast (Strömberg 1988a). Although no finds could be directly
linked to the hut remains at Saxtorp, a number of fragments of blade
arrowheads were retrieved from plough furrows. It is reasonable to regard
the structures at Saxtorp, like those in Hagestad, as remains of brief
seasonal activities.
It is of course problematic that none of the excavations in the
investigation area has uncovered house structures from the final phase of
the Funnel Beaker culture or indeed any remains showing the
organization of settlements in the period. The finds, both from surface
surveys and excavated occupation layers, have shown that the period is
nevertheless richly represented in the area. It is only at a few places in
Bornholm and Skåne that we have houses which can be dated to late
MNA at all. The dwelling sites at Limensgård and Grødbygård have
yielded extensive material with a large number of house remains, in the
form of two-aisled rectangular structures with wall trenches, from the end
of MNA and the start of MNB (Nielsen & Nielsen 1985; Nielsen, P. O.
1999:155). An uncertain house, dated to MNA V, was documented by a
small excavation of the late Funnel Beaker site of Karlsfält (Larsson, L.
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1992a:94ff). Only parts of what might be a house were within the
excavated area, which makes interpretation tricky.
If we study the distribution of finds at long-houses, we see the same
pattern as observed at the dwelling site of Dagstorp 19 for EN II–MNA II
(fig. 87). There is a tendency for the houses to have been kept clear of
waste, but the occupants were not as careful about cleaning the area
around the house. The occupation layer in the eastern part of house 71 at
Dagstorp 19, however, is hard to interpret since it was badly disturbed by
Iron Age settlement. The distribution of finds in the occupation layers
indicates that most of the everyday activities were pursued in the area
between the two houses at Dagstorp 19. It also seems natural that tool
manufacture, cooking, and so on, were done in a shared open area
between the dwelling houses if they functioned simultaneously. The
densest accumulation of finds was observed just east of house 74. This
probably indicates either that several household activities were performed
right beside the house or else that waste was only dumped outside the
home. The composition of flint finds in this area is mixed, dominated by
flakes/debitage with scrapers and knives as the most common categories
of tool. They thus do not give a clear picture of what happened there. At
both Dagstorp 19 and Norra Nöbbelöv 13 there were pits containing socalled waste material. Two pits at Dagstorp distinguish themselves
particularly through their size, design, and quantity of finds. In one of the
pits a brim beaker was placed in or right beside a bigger vessel, and in the
other pit there were three layers of stones, with the bigger stones placed
along the sides. This shows a deliberate deposition which rules out the
possibility that the pits were waste containers – or at least that they were
only regarded as “refuse chutes”. That these pits had a significance going
beyond that of ordinary refuse containers is confirmed by the fact that
people on Funnel Beaker sites generally do not appear to have bothered
to keep the habitation area clear of waste. At the same time, it is obvious
that a large share of the objects in the pits are “everyday objects”, and the
material in the pits agrees with the composition of finds on the rest of the
site. Knarrström’s analyses of the flint from one of the pits (A68613) also
shows that several of the tools were used in everyday work (Knarrström
2000b).
Although a much smaller area was excavated at Norra Nöbbelöv 13, it
is still possible to discern certain similarities between Dagstorp 19 and
Norra Nöbbelöv 13 as regards the internal organization of the settlement.
We find activity areas and refuse layers outside the well-cleaned
rectangular dwelling houses. Beside the houses and activity areas, both
sites had pits containing flint, pottery, and bones. All of the excavated
main settlements showed a similar tool composition, with the disc scraper
being by far the most common artefact, followed by the knife.
It is difficult to assess the area of the sites since none of them has been
completely excavated. The excavated area with material from MNA III at
Dagstorp 19 comprises roughly 5,000 m². The surface survey indicates,
however, that the settlement extended down to the river and that the site
was in reality much larger. The surface-surveyed habitation area at
Barsebäck 48 is about 60,000 m², while Norra Nöbbelöv 13 and Stävie 17
both have an area of some 20,000 m². The area at Tågerup 3 is hard to
166
judge since the evidence of the surface survey does not allow us to draw
any clear boundary with the Mesolithic remains. It thus seems as if the
main settlements in MNA III–V were bigger than in the earlier phases of
the Neolithic in terms of both the area and the amount of finds.
Votive sites
The tradition of depositing axes in wetlands declined in significance
during MNA. There are only six documented votive sites with finds of
material that can be certainly dated to MNA. The deposits are still located
in bogs in the interior, and it is only the one at Norra Nöbbelövs Mosse
that is adjacent to a known contemporary settlement (Norra Nöbbelöv
13). The few votive deposits registered in wetlands in the investigation
area from the period MNA III–V seem to be spread in accordance with
the distribution of deposits in the preceding period, for they occur in the
northern and eastern parts of the area. In the south-west, on the other
hand, around Barsebäck with its density of dwelling sites, there are no
known votive bogs. This indicates that in the areas where the tradition of
depositing objects in wetlands was strongest in EN II–MNA II, the
custom survived in MNA III–V as well, albeit in reduced form. Four of
the six votive deposits are also located in wetlands which were used
during the preceding period. None of the votive sites has been excavated,
but it seems as if it is still the axe that is the most important artefact to
deposit.
In this account I have not included deposits consisting solely of B-axes
since this type is usually assigned to MNB. The excavations in the area,
however, have shown that the B-axe has been found both in places where
the flint is influenced by the Pitted Ware culture and at Battle Axe culture
sites. There may possibly be a new rise in the number of votive deposits
at the end of MNA. It should be stressed, however, that B-axes were
deposited in places which largely agree with the distribution of Battle
Axe settlement in the province.
Society
At the transition to MNA III there were changes which are reflected both
in the material culture and in the spatial distribution of settlements and
votive sites. This is the second palpable change in the Early and Middle
Neolithic Funnel Beaker culture around the Saxån-Välabäcken and Lödde
Å-Kävlingeån. The first was noted in connection with the expansion of
settlement at the end of the Early Neolithic, when people moved to new
areas. I argue that the internal social pressure created in the initial phase
of the Early Neolithic with the establishment of more permanent
settlements now decreased. Rearrangements in the spatial pattern in the
landscape and in the material culture can be ascribed to changed
conditions in the social organization, which was in turn influenced by the
new circumstances. As the new settlement districts were established and
confirmed, there was again a growing need to maintain social control.
The first visible sign of this phenomenon in the archaeological record is
noticed in the changes in votive ritual. The more private sacrifices in
wetlands were increasingly replaced by collective events at the megalithic
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tombs. Pottery, with its decoration more clearly expressing group
affiliation, became more common in the ritual than the axe. Later, during
MNA III, there was also a gradual change in the settlement pattern.
Dwelling sites became fewer in number and more concentrated around
some big main settlements. Towards the end of the period there was a
reduction in the number of inland settlements, while settlement intensity
on the coast and on the shores of bays remained or even increased in
certain areas. Several of these sites have finds with clear Pitted Ware
influences, known as the Stävie group. In cases where sites with material
associated with the Funnel Beaker culture (TRB) and sites with finds
from the Stävie group occur within the same area, I mark this on the maps
showing the different landscape spaces in MNA III–V.
Landscape spaces
The valley of the Välabäcken was still important in MNA III (fig. 88).
The Dagstorp site remained as a main settlement and seems to have had
the largest population during this period (fig. 47). Only two other
dwelling sites in the valley can certainly be placed in MNA III–V: one of
them was by the Välabäcken a kilometre west of Dagstorp 19 and the
other lay half a kilometre south of the main settlement. The material from
these, however, is too limited to allow us to speculate about their
function. Pottery deposits at the passage grave of Södervidinge 3 show
that this was the scene of rituals into MNA III. It is uncertain whether
Harald Hildetand’s Grave still had a function during the period, since it
has not been excavated, but it is likely that this grave, just like the other
passage graves in the investigation area, served as a venue for rituals in
much of MNA. The social relation between the main settlement of
Dagstorp and the passage graves on the slopes of the hills is thus
noticeable during this phase as well. A votive find in wetland has been
documented close to the valley. It is a single find of a thick-butted axe,
located at least two kilometres from the nearest known contemporary
settlement.
At the end of MNA the finds suggest that the valley was no longer
used in the same way. Dagstorp 19 was abandoned as a main settlement,
and no comparable dwelling site is known from this area. However, a site
of a different kind arose less than two kilometres to the west, Västra
Karaby 101 in Dösjebro. The pottery found beside the eastern post
system (fig. 56, context 12) displays similarities to the late MNA material
from Karlsfält. It is doubtful, however, whether this place really
functioned as a traditional dwelling site. Although the finds in the layer
were of dwelling site character, careful documentation failed to uncover
any other features, in the form of remains of houses, hearths, or pits,
indicating the presence of settlement. The material probably represents
the everyday activities carried out in connection with other happenings of
a more collective kind. The post system, which makes up a pointed-oval
room measuring 50×8 m, could perhaps be interpreted as a “predecessor”
of the palisaded enclosure that was later built on the site during the early
Battle Axe culture. It is unclear, however, whether the “room” is a
separate structure or part of a larger palisade system. Ploughing and
damming have destroyed any continuation of the rows of posts. Several
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deposits on the site have been dated to the late MNA, reinforcing the
impression of the significance of the place already in the late Funnel
Beaker culture and before the construction of the palisaded enclosure.
In the area around the former wetland area at Stångby Mosse, rather
few settlements from this period are documented (fig. 89). With the
exception of Stångby 18, the surface-surveyed sites are fairly small. The
large ceramic deposits at the passage grave in Västra Hoby and two
votive finds of thick-butted axes, type A, in the area nevertheless suggest
that the surroundings were also used in the late MNA. Stångby 18 may
possibly have been a main settlement. The site is on the gentle north- and
south-facing slopes of a stream that has now been drained, about a
kilometre east of Stångby Mosse. In the Neolithic the bog was probably
an open lake. The surface survey at Stångby 18 has yielded a large
number of flint flakes and blades and several fragments of thick-butted
axes. It is one of the few inland settlements with finds of both cylindrical
blade cores and blade arrowheads. Moreover, the site had a tradition of
occupation since the Early Neolithic. Without excavations, however, the
significance of the place remains uncertain. The votive site at Stångby
Mosse, with a tradition going back to EN I, may still have been an
important meeting place in the late MNA. Its location in the dramatic
valley would probably have made it an imposing scene for sacrificial
ceremonies. It is reasonable to assume that the rituals at Danshögarna in
Västra Hoby likewise assembled the local population, and perhaps it was
not until the end of the period that deposits in the wetland were resumed.
Both Stångby 18 and Lackalänga (Furulund) show that the area was
inhabited in the late MNA and early MNB.
A few kilometres south of the settlement at Stångby Mosse, we see in
the late MNA a re-establishment of settlement in the areas around
Nöbbelövs Mosse (fig. 90), a bog which was probably an open lake in the
Neolithic (Olson et al. 1996). I have identified two settlements dated to
EN in the area but no known examples from EN II–MNA II. However,
several votive deposits from the late Early Neolithic have been
documented in Nöbbelövs Mosse (Karsten 1994). The area around the
lake was thus used more or less continuously throughout the Early and
Middle Neolithic but its significance varied. Judging by the existing
archaeological evidence, the settlements in the area ceased to exist at the
end of the Early Neolithic, when the lake was only visited for special
sacrificial ceremonies. In MNA III the area was once again settled. A
main settlement (Norra Nöbbelöv 13) has been identified together with
some smaller sites. The terrain is rather flat with no noticeable
topographical variation. In this landscape it is likely that the lake, with
the gentle but distinct slopes down to it, was a central point. The many
votive deposits above all in EN II, but also occasional finds from MNA
III, indicate this. Since no megalithic tombs are known in the immediate
vicinity, sites beside the lake may possibly have functioned as places of
assembly for special collective rituals. These must have been visible to
everyone standing on the slopes around the lake. Nöbbelöv 13 was on a
flat rise from which it was possible to survey the lake.
The area that seems to be most densely settled during this period is the
valley of the Lödde Å, between Hög and Stävie. In a stretch of about
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three kilometres along the river, a dozen settlements of varying size have
been documented (fig. 91). The terrain is slightly undulating but is
interrupted by the valley of the river and its adjacent wetlands. The
landscape resembles the Välabäcken valley to some extent. Although the
hills at Hög and Stävie are not nearly as prominent as Karaby Backar and
Dagstorp Backar, the character of the topography, together with the
distribution of settlement, give the impression of a landscape space. The
centre of gravity of settlement here seems to be at the end of MNA, when
the central place Stävie 3 and the main settlement of Stävie 17 were
established. Stävie 17 lay on a sandy rise that stands out from the
immediate surroundings, with water to the north and west. From here it
was possible to command a view of the valley landscape. In the northern
part of the landscape space is the passage grave at Hög. The large
quantity of pottery found in front of the passage shows that the place was
the scene of shared rituals until at least MNA IV. After this, collective
gatherings were probably moved to the central place in Stävie.
As in the preceding period, we notice denser settlement around the
megalithic tombs of Gillhög, Storegård, and Hofterup 1 on the Mare
Bäck (fig. 92). On the peninsula formed by the Barsebäck foreland in the
Neolithic, there were seven settlements in MNA III–V. At all these sites,
surface survey has discovered large amounts of flint. Apart from
Barsebäck 48, however, only a few can be dated to MNA III–V, and
much of the material probably belongs to earlier Mesolithic settlements.
At five of the settlements, blade arrowheads and cylindrical blade cores
have been identified, which may suggest that the area was used
continuously in the last phase of MNA as well. Excavations and surface
surveys of the main settlement of Barsebäck 48 have yielded a large body
of material from the late MNA. In this period the site was beside a lagoon
in the shelter of the ridge running to the south and west. The peninsula
was dominated by the ridge on which Gillhög lies. There is a clear
relationship between the main settlement, which was established in EN
II–MNA II, and the passage grave. As previously pointed out, the
megalithic tomb “faces” the dwelling site, from where it was possible to
look up towards the grave. The pottery at Gillhög is copious, showing its
significance as a place of assembly in much of MNA. Along the coast, at
Stenbocksvallar, a large number of thick-butted flint axes and flint
chisels, several of them preforms, have been collected. The finds are a
clear indication that the area was important for the production and
distribution of axes and chisels. Outside the Barsebäck foreland, at the
mouth of the Lödde Å and Mare Bäck, several late MNA sites have also
been registered.
The bay at the mouth of the Saxån and the Tågerup promontory at the
confluence of the Saxån and Bråån were likewise used in the late MNA
(fig. 93). Just as on the Barsebäck foreland, several sites have a flint
inventory influenced by the Pitted Ware culture. The big site in the area,
the main settlement, may have been Saxtorp 3 (Tågerup). The
excavations here touched only the Mesolithic parts of the settlement, but
there is a considerable collection of surface finds from here which can be
dated to the late MNA (Althin 1954). The bay probably reached all the
way to the Tågerup promontory throughout the Middle Neolithic and
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functioned as a link between the different sites. There are no known
megalithic tombs or votive sites in this area, so it cannot be ruled out that
the bay was only visited on a temporary basis, for hunting and fishing
expeditions. An excavation of the Middle Neolithic remains at Tågerup
would be required to answer these questions.
In each area or landscape space there seems to have been one main
settlement around which settlement was concentrated. In the vicinity
there is also a site which functioned as a place of assembly for collective
ceremonies, perhaps with the participation of people from other
landscape spaces as well. These central places could have been
megalithic tombs, wetlands, or special structures like those at Stävie and
Dösjebro. The main settlements cover a larger area and yield more finds
than in previous periods. On the other hand, there are fewer places for
special activities. It was probably not just habitation but also various
activities that were concentrated at the main settlements. The location of
these, often where different ecological niches met, shows that hunting,
fishing, and gathering could be managed from here. Macrofossil analyses
from Norra Nöbbelöv suggest that cultivation may have been carried on
adjacent to the settlement. Some of the sites surrounding the main
settlements may be the result of an economy partly based on
transhumance, that is, a stationary settlement combined with seasonal use
of grazing land located at some distance from the main settlement.
In the closing phase of the period we note the start of a dissolution of
the inland settlement districts or landscape spaces established at the end
of the Early Neolithic. The settlements were increasingly located by the
sea in bays, as at Stävie, Barsebäck, and Tågerup (fig. 94).
Social organization
Only Dagstorp 19 has preserved remains indicating that more than one
dwelling house may have existed simultaneously (fig. 47). This is
probably due to the excavation methods and the size of the excavated
areas. The extent of the archaeological material at all the main
settlements of the period can be interpreted as showing that several
families moved together to an even greater extent than in the preceding
periods. Judging by the existing house remains, there is also a tendency
for houses to be built slightly larger during the period and with a regular
rectangular form. The changes in house architecture may be a sign of
modifications in the social organization. The size of the existing house
remains may show that households consisted of more than one nuclear
family. The hypothesis must be considered uncertain, but the fact remains
that the rectangular houses (Dagstorp house type II) from MNA III are up
to twice as big as MNA I houses (Dagstorp house type I). Since I have
interpreted both types as dwelling houses, the difference in size must
have an organizational explanation. It should be emphasized that houses
of greater size (Saxtorp 26 and house 72 at Dagstorp 19) were also
documented during the preceding phase, but these seem to have
functioned as isolated farms. It is only at Dagstorp 19 in MNA III that
there are remains indicating that multi-family houses could have existed
on the site at the same time. There may of course be other functional
reasons why the houses are bigger than before, for example, that various
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manufacturing processes were moved indoors. However, there are no
traces of this, since occupation layers with finds are mainly outside the
houses, which suggests rather that these activities were performed
outdoors. Even if the social group grew, as several families moved
together, there is still nothing in the architecture of the houses or the
organization of settlement to indicate any social differences between
households. The society was probably still organized in the form of kin
groups. Individual families were the base, linked to each other through
one or more ancestor, and together forming a kin group under the
leadership of one or more of the elders (cf. Meillassoux 1972, 1981; Rey
1979; Terray 1975, 1979; Tilley 1984; Eriksen 1995). It seems as if the
significance and power of this group of leading older men and/or women
increased in connection with the consolidation.
Private sacrifices in wetlands almost totally ceased at the very start of
the Middle Neolithic; instead the votive ritual was in most cases diverted
to collective ceremonies at the megalithic tombs. In EN II, areas in the
interior were colonized and new settlement districts were established. As
part of the consolidation phase of these areas, sacrificial activity in
wetlands increased and monumental graves were erected in order to
define places and socialize the landscape. When the settlement areas were
gradually stabilized, it became necessary to maintain and confirm the
newly founded economic and social relations. If the relations involving
social dominance were to be preserved, it was necessary for various
strategies to be implemented regularly in order to mask and distort the
true conditions and legitimize the unequal relations. The institutionalized
public ritual had already been important in EN I–MNA II for legitimizing
the social order. As yet another stage in the consolidation of the power
structure, the old traditional votive sites were abandoned early in the
Middle Neolithic and the votive rituals were instead focused wholly on
the megalithic tombs. The increased ritual focus on the megalithic tombs
can be interpreted as the monopolization of the sacred by an élite, who
thereby completely took over the role of link between the community and
the divine world. A more explicitly hierarchic organization crystallized. It
was also in MNA II–III that the activities involving ceramic deposits at
megalithic tombs culminated and pottery acquired the most complicated
vessel forms and decorative patterns of the whole Neolithic (e.g. Tilley
1984). It can be said that the structural changes in society that began in
MNA I–II were completed at the same time as the manufacture of the
thin-butted flint axe ceased in favour of the thick-butted axe. As the
custom of private offerings decreased in importance, the role of the axe as
an attribute in the collective religious ceremonies declined. Also, the thinbutted axes are often better made than the thick-butted ones, showing a
greater degree of craft skill (Petersson & Nilsson 1999). The emphasis on
pottery in the ritual signalled group affiliation more clearly (see above)
and demonstrated the stronger collective character of the society.
The finds from the megalithic tombs show that burial and the cult of
the dead acquired increasing importance in the social and religious
pattern. It was during the preceding phase that the monuments were
erected, but their significance for the members of the society did not
decline in this period. In fact, it seems as if the rituals at the graves
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became increasingly complex. Exactly what the actual burial process
looked like has not been wholly clarified, since reburials and later
activities have in many cases destroyed the traces of the earliest burials. It
seems clear, however, that several of the major ceremonies took place
after the construction of the passage graves (Kaul 1988:78). The
deposition of human skeletons at the monuments involved a series of
activities. All in all, the results of excavations of Danish and Scanian
passage graves show that they were probably used to a large extent for
primary burials. Evidence for this comes from observations in several
graves of a dark, fatty layer of earth which suggests that a considerable
number of bodies rotted in the chamber. There are also quite a few small
bones in the graves, and it is not likely that these bones would be found to
such an extent in secondary burials (Kaul 1992). In addition, personal
ornaments such as amber beads, which were part of the dress or
necklaces, often occur in the chamber (Strömberg 1971; Ebbesen 1975;
Gräslund 1989:72f). After the decomposition process removed the soft
parts from the skeletons, they underwent different kinds of treatment.
Burnt bones have been documented in the chamber, the passage, and
outside the opening of several megalithic tombs. There are few finds, and
it is not likely that they represent cremation at the graves, but a special
treatment of selected parts of the remains (Tilley 1996:223). The
destruction of the skeleton through fire and the deposition of selected
bones in and around the grave was only a part of the burial ritual. Another
seems to have been to sort and move the bones. When the chamber was
used for a long time, the bones were moved to the side to make room for
new ones. Often this clearance seems to have followed a certain order,
and on several occasions we find specific categories of bones, such as
skulls, thigh bones, and shoulder blades stacked. Evidently, certain
categories of bones were taken away to other places (dwelling sites and
votive bogs) to be used in rituals there. Another characteristic feature of
passage graves is that the chamber was divided into sections by means of
long, narrow stones. Unfortunately, it has been difficult to determine how
many individuals the bone fragments in each section represent (cf.
Strömberg 1968, 1971; Tilley 1996). Even though it is not possible to
reconstruct the treatment of the skeletons exactly, it is obvious that the
manipulation of the ancestors’ bones was a significant element in the
ritual at the grave monuments. Anthropologists have often pointed out
how the human body has contributed a multitude of symbols in rituals
intended to create order and reproduce the world (e.g. Mauss 1973;
Huntingdon & Metcalf 1979). The body is intimately associated with
personal identity and therefore functions as a natural link to the world
outside. Death is an individual occurrence but also a social happening. A
death means that an individual is separated from the collective world of
which he or she was once part, but the funeral ritual also restores the
social bonds broken by death and creates the conditions for the social
order to survive by emphasizing the prevailing social positions. The death
of an individual thereby becomes an instrument for reinforcing the social
values of the community. In modern nation states continuity between
generations is ensured through existing institutions such as the state
administration, courts, armies, police, and so on. In societies lacking this
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state apparatus, traditional values are maintained partly through rituals
invoking the ancestors and the past. The rituals to do with the dead are
thus at least as much about the living. By making the individual’s death
into a social event, death and the funeral ritual are simultaneously
associated with the renewal of life. In many low-technology societies, it
is the dead ancestors who renew the world of the living and forge social
bonds. Several scholars believe that there is a correlation between the
type of social organization and how the body is perceived in the burial
ritual (Douglas 1973; Needham 1973; Ellen 1977). The treatment of the
bones in the passage graves reveals the symbolic value of the human
body in MNA II–III, when some of the bones were sorted and cremated,
or in some cases moved, after the body had decomposed. A dead body
undergoes changes, and the transformation of the body, regardless of
whether it takes place through natural mouldering, skeletalization, or
cremation, is a source of symbols. The separation of the flesh from the
bones may be the crucial event that carries a person to his or her final rest
and/or permits the soul to leave the material world. As symbols, the
bones can represent the ancestors, continuity, order, fertility, or
community. Control of the ancestors’ bones has been important in
different ways in many societies. In China the bones were put in
prominent places to give symbolic control of the environment, while in
New Guinea the bones were stored in “head-houses” and considered to
give access to the ancestors’ souls. Just as with the relics of Christian
saints, the physical bone remains can be moved and circulated to
maintain contact with the ancestors (Thomas 1999b:136). I therefore
believe that the ceremonies to do with the bones of the dead in the Middle
Neolithic should probably be regarded as a reflection of the growing
significance of the ancestors’ cult. The social élite, consisting of a group
of elders, ensures its power position in the collective by means of
complex rituals in which they invoke the ancestors and legitimize their
own position.
In addition, the ceremonies served to camouflage social inequalities.
Both cremation and the stacking of bones destroyed individual identity.
The process of breaking up the skeleton meant that the individual body
was transformed into a social body represented by the accumulation of
bones in the chamber. The social differences that they expressed in life,
in the form of age, gender, or status, were thus repressed. Collective
rather than individual identity was accentuated in death (Tilley 1999a).
The fact that some of the ancestors’ bones circulated in the society, both
at settlements and at the megalithic tombs, indicates that they were
indeed an integral part of the social community.
It occurred already in parts of the Neolithic that a number of
households or families lived on the same site. On the other hand, there
now seems to have been a more deliberate concentration in special
places. This phenomenon is also documented in the Malmö area, where
several small settlements seem to be combined on a large site, namely,
the Hindby site (Svensson 1986). The big main settlements should not be
compared with the economic units of later periods, the traditional villages
with communally farmed fields and meadows and organized fallow
systems (cf. Olsson & Thomasson 2001). Although the livestock grazed
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the same lands, the individual households could still have functioned in
large measure as independent production units. In an economy in which
hunting and fishing were probably still of significance, and cultivation
was confined to small “garden plots”, it is difficult to see any economic
advantages of large group settlements. If the group was not brought
together to generate economic gain, the question is why individual
households chose to move together to an area where the social hierarchy
was expressed more clearly. The settlement pattern should probably be
understood as the product of a social system and an ideology in which
collectivism assumed more permanent forms. The assembly of several
households in a main settlement can, I think, be seen as yet another
expression of collective thinking and increasing social integration. The
agglomerated settlement should be interpreted in terms of the successful
strategy of an élite to establish social control, which was legitimized in
the collective ritual. The whole point of dominance is to master other
people and their assets, and it was based on social and esoteric control
rather than economic control (cf. Hodder 1990). As an element in the
exercise of control, the élite makes the different households in the district
move together to one main settlement. When several households were
combined on one site, the conditions were better for the élite of elders to
legitimize and exercise their social and economic control through various
rituals. In addition, it is likely that competition between different local
groups in the region had increased. Through the consolidation, each
group’s area was more clearly defined, and people chose to move closer
to each other to strengthen the group identity.
As settlement was consolidated and the number of inhabitants of the
main settlements increased, with growing complexity in social relations
as a consequence, strict rituals were required on the dwelling site as well.
Pit offerings on the site are represented at Dagstorp 19 and Norra
Nöbbelöv 13. The quantity of deposited objects and the size of the pits at
Dagstorp 19 are a reflection of conditions on the dwelling sites. Just as in
the preceding phases, the material is a representative cross-section of the
tools and artefacts of a settlement. The special combination of vessel
forms in the pits on the site suggests a deliberate selection for deposition.
The set of vessels represents a portion of “everyday ceramics” but
deposited in combination with special pots such as the brim beaker. The
purpose of the pit offerings was probably the same as in the Early
Neolithic and the start of the Middle Neolithic. The deposited objects
were fragments of activities on the site, so the pits were a metaphor for
the daily tasks. Through a manifestation of everyday work, the sense of
social community was reinforced and differences were concealed.
Digging a pit and depositing fragmented objects in it is also a way to
transform and strengthen the bonds to the site. Votive actions help to
create a relationship between the human and the divine (or the ancestral
spirits). Communication between human and divine is proclaimed in
several cases through the selection, justification, and destruction or
deposition of an object, an animal, or a human being (Lévi-Strauss 1987).
In the pits at Dagstorp 19 the ritual was further reinforced through
deposits of a brim beaker in A68613 and the stone structure in A68431.
This should probably be interpreted as meaning that digging pits and
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filling them with objects was no longer just the result of the use of the
place but an event in itself. This might be a sign that the ceremony on the
dwelling site increased in significance.
The dissolution of the landscape spaces
In the archaeological record at the end of MNA we notice changes from
the preceding phase which indicate a breach with earlier traditions. The
occupation of the big main settlements in the interior ceased, and
habitations in general were more confined to the coast. In the material
culture we see changes in the flint inventory, which in several places
takes on distinct Pitted Ware influences, and in the pottery, which shows
partly different vessel forms and decorative patterns. Votive rituals at the
megalithic tombs decrease considerably, and instead large central places
are established, as at Stävie and Dösjebro. The societal process that began
in the Late Mesolithic, with increased permanence of settlement, the
adoption of agriculture, and ancestor worship can be said to culminate in
MNA III. When more permanent main settlements were established in
EN I, people were more bound to time and place. Sowing and harvesting
were planned, and people became dependent on what former generations
had done, for example, by clearing forest. An area had been created and
was then inherited by the succeeding generation. The care of the
ancestors’ spirits therefore became an important part of people’s lives.
The ancestors were not just the source of a society’s solidarity; they also
asserted the right of the society to the resources. The relationship to the
place was marked through various rituals at the main settlements, such as
burial ceremonies and pit offerings. People were buried in flat-earth
graves with an individual in each grave. The elders, who were considered
to be closest to the deceased kin, led the rituals and thereby established a
kind of power in the society. Population growth, together with heightened
internal tension because of the increasing social control, meant that some
groups moved to colonize new areas. These new landscapes were
socialized and defined by the triad formed by the dwelling sites, the
votive sites, and the megalithic tombs. They were places with different
meanings but closely interwoven as parts of the same system, in which
each part could not function without the other two. The functions that
were formerly confined to main settlements were relocated at places out
in the landscape space, which can thus be regarded as a macro settlement
site. The first monumental graves in the form of long barrows and
dolmens were intended for single individuals in the upper stratum of
society. After the burial the graves were closed and the dead were
physically inaccessible to the survivors. Shared rituals in memory of the
ancestors were nevertheless carried on at the monuments. The
consolidation of settlement gradually had the effect that the prevailing
power relations were legitimized. For this purpose, the ritual performed at
the graves was made more complex. The ceremonies were enacted by an
élite who made increasing claims on the control of ritual knowledge and
relations with the sacred, and hence also on social and economic control.
The passage grave gave access to the ancestors’ bones, but only for the
select few. To conceal the increasing inequality, an ideology was
advocated which emphasized the collective and sought to strengthen the
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sense of solidarity. The Funnel Beaker society had developed a system
whereby large resources were channelled into rituals which conformed
the prevailing order. In MNA III this policy seems to have been taken to
its extreme, and the situation finally became untenable, as a larger
production surplus was required for these ceremonies. The finds at
megalithic tombs show that large quantities of pottery were made for the
purpose of being used in the rituals there. The number of potsherds at
Västra Hoby and Gillhög is among the largest in the whole of north-west
Europe (Tilley 1999a). It is not impossible that grain and livestock were
used as sacrifices. The osteological material is limited, but burnt animal
bones occur together with burnt human bones at several graves in Skåne,
e.g. Gillhög, Trollasten, Tågarp, and Jarladösen (Tilley 1996).
The expansive and centralized tendency of the organization had
exacerbated inherent tensions between generations and kindreds – within
and between groups. A state was reached where the quantity of the
material and human resources required to maintain and conceal social
inequalities went beyond the pain threshold. This social environment
favoured the growth of alternative power relations. The archaeological
evidence suggests that society at the end of MNA was not as cohesive as
it had formerly been. In Skåne and Denmark there is often talk of several
variants of late Funnel Beaker culture and/or Pitted Ware culture (cf.
Edenmo et al. 1997). Several ceramic styles with partly different
geographical distribution have been found in Denmark. The MNA IVb
style defined by Ebbesen is above all concentrated in southern Sjælland
(Ebbesen 1975:136), while the MNA V/Valby pottery has its main
distribution in the eastern and northern parts of Jutland and in north-west
Sjælland (Davidsen 1978:11). In Bornholm a number of places have been
documented with pottery which resembles the Danish MNA V but which
also shows shared features with Funnel Beaker ceramics in Skåne
(Nielsen & Nielsen 1985). Partly contemporary with these groups there
are thus sites, such as Kainsbakke and Kirial Bro in north-eastern Jutland,
with finds showing influences from the Pitted Ware culture (Rasmussen
1984). In Skåne Pitted Ware material is represented at sites like Nymölla
and Siretorp in north-eastern Skåne and Blekinge, Jonstorp in north-west
Skåne, and Pitted Ware–influenced flint at Stävie in south-west Skåne
(Bagge & Kjellmark 1939; Malmer 1969; Wyszomirska 1988; Larsson,
L. 1992a, 1998). The late Funnel Beaker culture is represented by places
like Karlsfält and Långåker (Larsson, L 1992a). Variations in ceramic
styles between these sites may, in my belief, indicate the emergence of
more independent groups which marked their group identity. Evidently
the late MNA saw a break with the organization through which social
relations were maintained by a group of elders legitimizing their social
and economic control through sacred knowledge and ritual activities.
Places with material which can be placed both in the Stävie group
(Stävie 3 and Stävie 17) and in the Karlsfält group (Barsebäck 48 and
Västra Karaby 101) have been documented in the investigation area. In
addition, there are several sites where surface finds of flint of Pitted Ware
character indicate that these sites should be assigned to the Stävie group.
The pottery at Västra Karaby 101 in Dösjebro and Barsebäck 48, as
mentioned previously, shows great similarities to the pottery from
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Karlsfält in southern Skåne. Two crusts of food and a cereal grain from
Karlsfält have been 14C-dated and yielded the results 4100±125 BP
(2880–2490 cal. bc, Ua-81), 4370±220 BP (3400–2650 cal. bc, Ua-82),
and 4190±60 BP (2890–2670 cal. bc, AA-1842) (Larsson, L. 1992a:102).
From Stävie we have 14C datings from an oven, a pit, and food encrusted
on a potsherd. These have given the dates 4055±90 BP (2860–2460 cal.
bc, St-6003), 3930±90 BP (2570–2280 cal. bc, St-6000), and 4360±85 BP
(3260–2880 cal. bc, Ua-26016) (Nagmér 1979; Larsson, L. 1982; Nagmér
& Räf 1996). It is also reasonable to imagine that the huts at Saxtorp 23
and the possible building at Lackalänga should be placed in the Stävie
group. The two 14C analyses that can be presumed to date the huts at
Saxtorp have given values of 4000±85 BP (2850–2340 cal. bc, Ua-9845)
and 4160±90 BP (2880–2610 cal. bc, Ua-8985), that is, MNB and the end
of MNA (Andersson & Pihl 1997; Andersson, M. 1999). The feature and
the surrounding occupation layer at Lackalänga have given the dates
4180±90 BP (2888–2611 cal. bc, Ua-7341) and 4060±70 BP (2823–2526
cal. bc, Ua-7642), which also correspond to late MNA or early MNB
(Munkenberg 1996).
With the exception of the dating of the food crust (Ua-26016), the 14C
results from Stävie thus hint that the Stävie group is slightly later than the
Karlsfält group. However, it cannot be ruled out that we are really dealing
with two different groups which may partly have existed simultaneously,
but that the Stävie group continued to exist – parallel to the early Battle
Axe culture – after the Karlsfält group had disappeared. The datings may
thus mean that the characteristic ceramic style of the Stävie group can
have existed at the same time as parts of both the tooth-stamp period and
later also the early Battle Axe culture. According to the 14C datings of
MNA V/Valby sites in Denmark, this phase too existed over a relatively
long period. Danish material has placed the MNA V/Valby pottery in the
time-span 4300–4100 BP (Malmros & Tauber:81; Davidsen 1978:170;
Tauber 1986:table I). This indicates that the manufacture of MNA
V/Valby pottery in Denmark began at an early stage, partly contemporary
with “earlier” styles belonging to the Funnel Beaker culture (cf.
Lagergren-Olsson 2003).
The growing social tensions may possibly have brought out the
incompatible interests of different factions, leading to an inevitable
conflict in which groups or families who found the situation more and
more strained broke out of the Funnel beaker society. It is in this
connection that the depopulation of the interior should be understood.
Disfavoured groups left the district and the landscape spaces were
dissolved. In the closing phase of the Funnel Beaker culture we
consequently see a period in which collective manifestations were less
important. Rituals at the megalithic tombs decline, and where they do
occur they seem to be on a limited scale. At the end of MNA (IV–V) and
also in MNB it seems to be chiefly flint axes that were deposited at
megalithic tombs. This is shown by the occurrence of thick-butted, thinbladed, and hollow-polished flint axes at several of the passage graves.
The deposits are nevertheless more limited than the pottery, indicating
that they might be of a more private character. Deposits of objects in
wetlands are still rare in this period. The occurrence of B-axes in votive
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bogs, however, is an indication that deposits in wetlands did increase in
the late MNA and that the private ritual became more significant. The
emphasis on the collective as the prevailing societal ideology probably
collapsed, and the individual households broke out of the community.
The majority evidently made their way to the coastal areas. The move
may have been further impelled by the deterioration in climate at the
same time, with the transgression that is assumed to have favoured
marine food resources (Christensen 1993). It is now also clear that
elements of the Pitted Ware culture made their entry into areas which had
formerly been exclusively characterized by classical Funnel Beaker
culture. Perhaps there were structural similarities between the Funnel
Beaker and Pitted Ware cultures and possibly a common origin, which
enabled an assimilation between the two traditions (cf. Larsson, L.
1998:443). Several scholars have claimed that the rise of the Pitted Ware
culture should be explained as an internal development within the Funnel
Beaker culture. They were supposedly groups which largely based their
subsistence on marine resources and gradually developed a material
culture and a social system of their own (e.g. Nielsen, S. 1979; Burenhult
1991, 1999). Arguments in favour of this are that the Pitted Ware pottery
seems to be a continuation of Funnel Beaker pottery and that Pitted Ware
dwelling sites are usually in areas previously inhabited by the people of
the Funnel Beaker culture. The hypothesis seems probable since the
groups in the Funnel Beaker society (the Stävie group) that later moved
to the coast seem to have incorporated parts of the material culture that
characterized the coastal Pitted Ware culture.
Unlike the increasingly hierarchical organization of the Funnel Beaker
society, it seems as if the Pitted Ware culture maintained a more
egalitarian form of society. At least, there is nothing in the Pitted Ware
mortuary practice – as it is known from central Sweden, Öland, and
Gotland – to indicate a more stratified society. As a rule, burials were in
simple flat-earth graves, where we sometimes find red ochre and simple
stone structures. The grave goods chiefly have the character of personal
belongings such as simple tools and ornaments. The graves often cut
across each other and they are oriented in most directions, seemingly
regardless of gender or age, and they lack markers above ground
(Knutsson 1995). I believe that the egalitarian social system of the Pitted
Ware culture was perhaps a temptation for the groups that broke away
from the increasingly centralized social system of the Funnel Beaker
culture. If the two traditions derived from a common origin, with partly
similar social and ideological structures, there could also have been an
assimilation within certain regions. Basic underlying structures and
values, which can be traced back to Late Mesolithic and Early Neolithic
times, survived in both cultures. The close association between graves
and dwelling sites in the Pitted Ware culture (Malmer 1962, 1975;
Wyszomirska 1984; Knutsson 1995) shows us that the ancestors were
significant for the surviving kin. Although a hierarchical order like that in
the Funnel Beaker culture never arose in the Pitted Ware culture, the
veneration of the ancestors here too was probably a way to assert rights to
land and to legitimize the prevailing order. The organization of the
settlement also displays similarities between the cultures. At dwelling
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sites like Jonstorp (Malmer 1969), Nymölla (Wyszomirska 1988),
Kainsbakke, and Kirial Bro (Rasmussen & Boas 1982), large occupation
layers on the site indicate a liberal attitude to dirt. Neither Ertebølle,
Funnel Beaker, nor Pitted Ware dwelling sites were cleaned – a striking
difference from the subsequent Battle Axe culture and Late Neolithic
culture. The waste was a by-product of their way of life, and in the
creation of order dirt was therefore regarded as a natural part of the
settlement.
The fact that the collective votive ceremonies declined at megalithic
tombs indicates the start of a time when power relations were no longer
built up on the basis of the same hierarchical structure. The decoration on
pottery became more spare, which may mean that the need to express
group affiliation had declined (cf. Tilley 1984). At the same time, as we
have seen, there were variations in ceramic styles between different
regions, which could suggest the development of independent groups. A
transformation from homogeneous to heterogeneous style would thus
indicate a transition from a collective to a personal or individual identity.
Although it is not self-evident that different ceramic styles indicate the
formation of more independent groups, the hypothesis is also
strengthened by the settlement pattern, with a tendency to division and
more settlements being located on the coast, which paints a picture of
more independent household units. There are few remains of houses from
this period to reveal how permanent settlement really was. Perhaps
people moved between several different places and therefore did not
leave distinct traces behind them. Saxtorp 23, with its small circular huts,
can be envisaged as having been one such place, used for short periods.
There are, however, two larger sites, probably main settlements
(Barsebäck 48 and Stävie 17) documented in the investigation area from
the closing phase of the period. Since collective places of assembly do
not seem to have functioned as before, some of the settlements are likely
to have served as meeting places. Barsebäck 48 had presumably had a
crucial role as a main settlement back in MNA III. A large proportion of
the pottery from the site has great similarities to the Karlsfält pottery,
thereby showing that the site was also occupied in the latter part of MNA.
In addition, there is flint showing influences of Pitted Ware culture which
further reinforces the role of the site at the end of MNA. At Stävie 17 the
finds seem to be fully comparable to those from the adjacent Stävie site
(Stävie 3) and can be securely placed in the late MNA. Unfortunately, the
excavations at the two places focused only on the occupation layers,
which means that any traces of buildings have not been documented. To
some degree the organization of society in the late MNA resembles what
prevailed at the start of the Early Neolithic. It was a partially coastal
population with autonomous household units, and authority lay with
some elders in the kin group, whose identity was linked to the settlement.
After the dissolution of the landscape spaces formed late in the Early
Neolithic and early in the Middle Neolithic, the landscape once again
became socially open for a period, without fixed settlement districts or
distinct landscape spaces. There was no longer an obvious triad of
dwelling site, votive place, and burial place in the closing phase of MNA
(fig. 94).
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This new order of social segregation gradually contributed to the rise
of the big central places intended to bring about integration once again.
They came to represent the symbolic integration between autonomous
household units. The people who at the end of MNA lived scattered in the
landscape could not live in isolation from each other. The reproduction of
each group was of course dependent on the establishment of wider
contacts. The construction of the central places at Dösjebro and Stävie in
the late MNA served to institutionalize the links between the groups. It is
likely that regular assemblies were held at fixed times at these places and
that they were the scene of a number of different activities and events
which formalized alliances between different kindreds. It is also evident
that the ideology behind the assembly places was different from the
ceremonies at the megalithic tombs. The rituals associated with the
monumental graves aimed to legitimize the supremacy of the élite
through the sacrifice of a production surplus to the ancestors. The
megalithic tombs were in themselves also symbols of permanence. The
stone monuments were a mediator between past, present, and future. The
palisaded enclosures, on the other hand, were an expression of something
that was impermanent. Their function was to serve as a venue for present
events. The excavations in Dösjebro, south of the Välabäcken, also
showed that the palisaded enclosure there probably only functioned for a
brief period (Andersson & Svensson 1999). It was in the later part of
MNA that the site at Dösjebro seemingly acquired a special significance.
The activities in “the pointed-oval space” are difficult to interpret, but
they were obviously not of ordinary dwelling site character. Perhaps the
site had already functioned in the closing phase of the Funnel Beaker
culture as a place of assembly for those who had not yet left the united
community. The Stävie site, and the finds there, show that this place was
used as a node by the people of the Stävie group. In connection with the
transition to MNB the actual palisaded enclosure was built in Dösjebro
and, as we shall see, probably by population groups who had adopted
new continental ideas. Mac Svensson has pointed out that the axemanufacturing places at the palisade in Dösjebro, together with the
deposits of axes and flakes from axe manufacture at Dösjebro and other
contemporary palisaded enclosures such as Hyllie outside Malmö,
Sigersted I in central Sjælland, and Helgeshøj outside Copenhagen
(Svensson 2002), show that the places had an important role in the
manufacture, distribution, and consumption of axes. It was probably at
Stenbocksvallar that the first stages of axe production from blank to
quadrilateral plank took place. At any rate, the large quantity of preforms
of axes and chisels from there is a hint of that. The supply of flint at
Stenbocksvallar may have been sufficient for this production. Anders
Högberg has discussed in an article (2002) the occurrence of a large
number of axe preforms at three special places along Järavallen in Skåne:
Sibbarp and Östra Torp in south-west Skåne and Stenbocksvallar on the
Barsebäck foreland. He believes that the first steps in axe production
were taken at these places and that the preforms were then transported to
other places for continued working. At different periods, however, a large
part of the production was deposited on the sites at Järavallen. Högberg
shows that this is not a matter of discarded items; the deposited preforms
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would have been perfectly suitable for continued working. The act of
leaving some of the production at these places should instead be viewed
as an act to manifest the significance of the places. This hypothesis
harmonizes with my idea put forward above, that it was customary in
Funnel Beaker society for parts of the production to be left or buried as a
way to strengthen bonds with the site. It is also conceivable that there
many have been some flint import along the coast from the Malmö area.
From there the distribution could have continued to the palisaded
enclosure at Dösjebro, which was a node in the handling of axes.
Although the axe may have lost its role at the collective ceremonies at
the megalithic tombs at the start of MNA, its practical significance and
symbolism for personal status was probably still important. Axes
continued to occur, to a more limited extent, at rituals which were
probably of a more private character at the monuments and votive bogs.
The exchange of goods in low-technology societies is a matter of
maintaining diplomatic relations and therefore cannot be regarded solely
in economic terms (e.g. Mauss 1950; Sahlin 1972). This activity should
rather be understood as the creation, preservation, and manipulation of
social relations. The management of axe distribution probably had a
central role in the mediation of marriages, in the maintenance of kinship
ties, and as a symbol of status. What we see manifested at the palisaded
enclosure at the transition to MNB can be changed power relations in the
community. In the old power structure, leadership was based on sacral
control, through direct links with the ancestors’ spirits, which thereby
also exerted power over the social and economic aspects of the society.
When this authority, which emphasized social integration, was broken,
control was transferred to individuals and families. Instead of
emphasizing the collective, the stress was now on individual prestige,
personal networks, long-distance exchange, and specialized craft. As we
have seen, this found expression in the break-up of settlement. A hint that
there was also a change in mortuary practice comes from Flädie 7, where
flat-earth graves from MNA have been documented. Perhaps it was much
more independent families and individuals that now met at the central
places than in earlier phases of the Middle Neolithic. I shall develop this
line of thought in the next chapter.
Two ways
The landscape spaces created at the end of the Early Neolithic were
maintained through the triad of dwelling sites, burial places, and votive
sites. Things which had largely been done at the dwelling site in the
initial phase of the Early Neolithic were moved out into the landscape,
where they defined and socialized “space”. The landscape spaces were
established in the formerly open countryside. Power was gradually
concentrated in a few selected elders. With the aim of controlling and
maintaining the prevailing social relations, the ritual was collectivized
and focused on the megalithic tombs and settlements. Collectivism
gradually led to settlement being concentrated around a main settlement.
The increased social coercion, however, caused families and groups to
break out of the united community. The landscape spaces were dissolved,
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and once again we see a tendency to a more open landscape. The old
traditional way was abandoned and the population sought alternative
ways. Influences from the more egalitarian Pitted Ware culture enticed
some groups to make their way to the coastal zones, making up what we
know as the Stävie group. Other population groups, in connection with
the transition to MNB, as I have already hinted as regards the palisaded
enclosure in Dösjebro, would adopt continental ideas with completely
different power structures. It was no longer a stratum of elders that
dominated through sacral control and reference to the ancestral spirits;
positions in the community were offered to individuals and groups
possessing special social and economic skills. Large central places were
established which functioned as centres for commerce in axes and other
goods, but also as places where the population of the district met to form
and maintain social bonds.
New ideas and different customs
In connection with the transition to MNB and the rise of the Battle Axe
culture in southern Scandinavia, changes in the settlement pattern, site
organization, grave forms, and material culture can be detected. The
known Battle Axe settlements are small and poor in finds, there are few
house remains, burials are now mostly in flat-earth graves, and new types
of artefacts such as hollow-edged flint axes, boat-shaped battle axes, and
spherical pots are noticeable in the material culture. Scholars claimed for
a long time that the changes were brought by immigrating peoples (e.g.
Müller 1898; Almgren 1914, 1919; Rydbeck 1930; Forssander 1933;
Glob 1944), whereas the more recent view has usually been that instead
of actual immigration there was a cultural change, as new customs were
adopted by the old Funnel Beaker culture (e.g. Malmer 1962; 1975). In
the next section I will show that the late Funnel Beaker culture in the
investigation area was a society that was receptive to new ideas which
were able to take root in the existing society.
Settlement pattern
In the investigation area, 32 settlements have been documented as
belonging to the Battle Axe culture during MNB. In addition there are a
further ten sites where the only datable artefact is the B-axe. Fragments of
B-axes occur both on sites with Pitted Ware flint and on sites with Battle
Axe material. It is obvious that the axe type was used in both the Stävie
group and the Battle Axe culture, which may also have existed partly
parallel. This of course entails problems in determining the culture of
sites where the only datable object is the B-axe. For this reason, the
places in the investigation area with fragments of B-axes as the only
identifiable artefact must be rather vaguely described as belonging to the
late MNA (the Stävie group) or MNB. Remains from MNB are
dominated by surface-surveyed sites, since only a few have been
excavated. There is a noticeable decrease in the number of settlements in
relation to the preceding phase, although the period is much longer than
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MNA III–V (see table I). It should be pointed out, however, that several
of the coastal sites where flint with Pitted Ware influence has been
identified (the Stävie group) may very well have functioned as
settlements into MNB.
Battle Axe graves have been excavated at four sites, and at least six of
the passage graves in the area have evidence of use in MNB as well.
Deposits in wetlands once again increase significantly, with 27 known
deposits from this period (fig. 95). In five of the cases the only deposited
object is a B-axe, which means that the sacrifice may have been made
already in the late MNA.
Settlement
The distribution of settlement in MNB shows no clear departure from that
in the late Funnel Beaker culture. Dwelling sites are found in the same
areas as in the Funnel Beaker culture (fig. 95). It seems, however, as if
the distribution in the investigation area was slightly more limited; at any
rate, there are no remains from the north-west parts of the area, along the
Saxån bay. In this area, however, the Pitted Ware influences on
settlement site material are clearly visible. The majority of the Battle Axe
settlements (65%) are on sites previously occupied in EN or MNA. Just
over 30% were built in places where settlement has been documented in
the preceding period, MNA III–V, so that direct continuity is
theoretically possible.
With only the scanty material found by surface survey it is difficult to
establish a fine chronology for the settlements from MNB. It is therefore
hard to determine with certainty which parts of the region the Battle Axe
culture was first established in. The indications that we have, however,
show that the earliest Battle Axe culture is found right from the start in
the traditional core areas of the Funnel Beaker culture. The 14C datings
and pottery finds show that the palisaded enclosure in Dösjebro was
probably built in an early phase of the Battle Axe culture. A battle axe
that typologically is likely to belong in the early Battle Axe culture has
been identified at the passage grave in Gillhög. All in all, this indicates
that the bearers of the Battle Axe culture populated the same districts as
the Funnel Beaker people right from the start. Anna Lagergren-Olsson’s
studies of the Middle Neolithic pottery from Dösjebro have also
demonstrated that “There is no TRB [Funnel Beaker] pottery in the
material from the Saxån/Välabäcken valley to indicate the presence of yet
another style between the later tooth-stamp period and SYK [Battle Axe
culture]. This and the early SYK datings mean that it is possible that SYK
immediately succeeded the period of tooth stamps in the local area”
(Lagergren-Olsson 2003:207).
The settlement pattern thus shows that the bearers of the Battle Axe
culture used the same parts of the landscape as the earlier population in
the Funnel Beaker culture, and, as before, the dwelling sites were located
on sandy soils beside lakes and rivers. However, it is not possible to
identify any dwelling sites like the big main settlements that arose in
MNA III – at least not in the first part of MNB. The site at Västra Karaby
7 contained pottery from seven pots and a varied range of flint which
indicates that this place could have been a main settlement. The material
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is too small, however, to allow any certain assessment. The pottery dates
the site to the middle or latter part of the Battle Axe culture. In the other
dwelling site material from the period it is difficult to detect any main
settlements. The Battle Axe culture mostly occurs on a very limited scale
at excavated Neolithic sites, usually in the form of occasional potsherds
or a fragment or two of a tool. It is obviously the case that the Battle Axe
culture has left fewer visible traces in the landscape than the preceding
Funnel Beaker culture. This tendency was also seen at the end of MNA,
when some of the bigger settlements were abandoned. It is not until the
closing phase of the period and the transition to the Late Neolithic that
remains of stable houses are found in the investigation area (fig. 96) and
that some of the sites may have functioned as main settlements. Whether
the houses at Dagstorp 11, Dagstorp 19, and Västra Karaby 101 should be
placed in MNB or the Late Neolithic is uncertain. Based on the 14C
datings it is reasonable to assign at least the house at Dagstorp 19 to a late
phase in MNB and, if so, this indicates that the typical Late Neolithic
rectangular long-house has its roots in MNB. At the same time, the
houses suggest that population had once again become more sedentary.
The limited amount of finds means that it is unusually hard to grasp
the economy of the period. The few grain impressions from Skåne show
that people mainly grew barley, and the domesticated animals they kept
were cattle, sheep, and pigs. A rise in sheep breeding can be documented
(Welinder 1998:100f). Various pollen diagrams show that the later part of
the Middle Neolithic is a period of clear decline in trees and bushes in
favour of an increasingly open grazing landscape (Digerfeldt 1975;
Berglund 1991:111, 1999). This expansion phase for plants indicating
meadow and pasture is probably due to intensified animal husbandry
(Kristiansen 1988; Larsson, L. 1989, 1998; Welinder 1998). As
previously suggested, this process was presumably started early in the
Middle Neolithic, when the so-called regeneration phase in the
development of the Neolithic landscape need not necessarily have meant
a total regrowth of the forests; it may illustrate a phase of coppice forests
used intensively for grazing and leaf foliage (Göransson 1996). The
continued expansion of animal husbandry and the need for open grazing
land in MNB gradually also reveals itself in the pollen diagrams. The
osteological material from the graves shows that people hunted, among
other animals, red deer and roe deer. The material is small and it is
difficult to determine how large the element of hunting, fishing, and
gathering was in relation to agriculture and animal husbandry.
It is probably in the light of the increasing livestock keeping that many
of the smaller settlements should be perceived. It is reasonable to assume
that animal husbandry in the initial phase of the Battle Axe culture was
pursued in a way that corresponds to true nomadism (cf. Larsson, L.
1989:73). Brief stays at different places at different parts of the year can
be a partial explanation for the often diffuse remains of settlement.
Since the Battle Axe culture settlements have left such vague
archaeological traces in the landscape, it is tricky to speculate about the
organization of the dwelling site. Nevertheless, it is perhaps precisely the
lack of dwelling site remains that can lead to speculations as to how the
settlements were organized – at least if the culture is put in relation to the
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Funnel Beaker culture. That the bearers of the Battle Axe culture to a
high degree lived as herding nomads is probably not the whole
explanation for the lack of settlement site remains. Even though a group
of people had a mobile way of life, traces of their different activity sites
should be visible in the form of tool manufacture, huts, hearths, etc. We
have seen this among Mesolithic hunter-gatherer populations. Malmer
has argued that, since the population was settled on the best arable soils,
which are still farmed, only the deepest pits, such as the graves, are
preserved. After a number of centuries, the organic material decomposed
and the pottery crumbled (Malmer 1975:53). I believe that this too is only
part of the truth. At several of the Funnel Beaker culture settlements in
the region, which were also located on the best agricultural land, large
occupation layers and house remains have been documented. It is more
likely that the attitude to waste was different in the Battle Axe culture
than in the Funnel Beaker and Pitted Ware cultures (cf. Svensson
2002:47). The dwelling area was cleaned in a completely different way
from the customs in the preceding phases. At Västra Karaby 101 no
occupation layer could be documented adjacent to the house. An
occupation layer was excavated which partly overlayered the house at
Dagstorp 11. However, it contained a relatively small amount of pottery
and flint in relation to excavated layers from the Funnel Beaker culture in
the investigation area. The pottery with decorative elements in the form
of pits, impressions, lines and stamped decoration, and finds of flatflaked arrowheads and a fragmentary sickle show, moreover, that some of
the finds were deposited both during the Funnel Beaker culture and in
later periods. The situation is the same on other sites where finds from the
Battle Axe culture have been discovered. Usually the material is
dominated by finds which can be assigned to the Funnel Beaker culture,
as, for example, at Dagstorp 18, Dagstorp 19, and Västra Karaby 7. The
dwelling areas were probably cleaned and the majority of the objects
taken away. Unlike the funnel beaker, the spherical Battle Axe pots were
designed so that they could be set down in each other and were thus easy
to transport (Lindahl 2000:170).
It may also be observed that pit offerings of the kind we know from
the Early and Middle Neolithic Funnel Beaker culture are rare in the
Battle Axe culture. A characteristic of the Funnel Beaker culture
settlements is the pits whose function may vary, but the actual occurrence
of them illustrates the permanence of settlement and the marking of a
place. In the eastern part of the house at Västra Karaby 101, two shallow
pits were documented, one of which contained charred seeds. The dating,
however, is at the transition from MNB to LN, and these are pits which
can probably be connected to the actual house. At the other Battle Axe
settlements in the investigation area there are no pits in the dwelling area
which can be securely dated to the period. An excavation at Västra
Karaby 21 (about 200 m west of the cemetery Västra Karaby 39)
documented a pit containing pottery of Battle Axe type (Olsson 1971).
The documentation, however, provides no information about whether the
objects are primary deposits or ended up there in connection with later
activities: the site also has remains from the Late Bronze Age and Vendel
Period.
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Surface survey finds of fragmentary hollow-edged flint axes,
quadrilaterally polished thick-butted, thin-bladed axes and thick-butted
rock axes show that Battle Axe sites occur frequently in the investigation
area, while excavations simultaneously reveal that ground structures on
these sites are diffuse. The reasons for this are presumably that the
population in the Battle Axe period largely lived as nomads and stayed
for brief periods in each place, but also because the attitude to the
dwelling site and its activities was different. The significance of the site
did not have to be marked through pit offerings, and the waste left by
dwelling site activities was not left as it had been in the Funnel Beaker
tradition.
Votive sites
In MNB and possibly already in the late MNA there is a revival in the
custom of depositing objects of stone – above all axes – in wetlands (fig.
72). The distribution of votive activities in the landscape agrees in large
measure with what was seen in earlier phases, since it is in the northern
and eastern parts of the region that the deposits occur with the greatest
frequency. In several cases continuity of deposits in the same wetland is
attested. At almost 40% of the wetlands used in MNB there are deposits
documented from earlier Neolithic phases, and EN II is always
represented among these. Just as Karsten pointed out in his study of
Neolithic votive finds, there are similarities between MNB and EN II in
the frequency of deposits and the choice of site (Karsten 1994:181). The
great difference from the immediately preceding phase is of course that
votive activity in wetlands almost ceased in much of MNA since the
votive ritual was instead steered chiefly towards the megalithic tombs. It
is nevertheless not the case that the old votive sites were totally
abandoned. Occasional axe deposits are also documented from MNA III–
V, and in four cases of six these are located in wetlands that were also
used in both EN II and MNB. It is in particular the wetlands at Norra
Nöbbelöv and Stångby that were used as votive sites in MNA III–V,
where there probably were no grave monuments.
There are no excavated wetlands in the area with deposits that can be
dated to MNB. This means that it is difficult to understand what the
deposition tradition really was like, since it is only whole stone objects
that are noticed by people working the land. It is difficult to determine
whether fragmented objects were deposited to the same extent as in
certain periods of the Funnel Beaker culture.
There is great variation as regards the types of artefacts deposited in
wetlands in MNB. The most common are different types of axes.
Nineteen thick-butted, hollow-edged flint axes occur in votive contexts,
fourteen of them as accumulated single finds, three as single finds, and
two in hoards. Ten of the axes were unpolished and nine were polished.
Of the nineteen hollow-edged axes, six were fragmentary. Seven
quadrilaterally polished thick-butted, thin-bladed axes have been
documented as deposited in wetland, five of them as accumulated single
finds, one as a single find, and one in a hoard. All the thin-bladed axes
were polished and only one was fragmentary. Twelve B-axes have been
found deposited in wetlands, six of them as accumulated single finds,
187
three as single finds, and three in hoards. Only one of the B-axes was
fragmentary and seven of the twelve axes were polished. Three rock axes
have been found as accumulated single finds in wetlands. In addition,
there is a medium-bladed flint axe, a grindstone shaped like a thighbone,
a blade arrowhead of type D, the butt section of a battle axe documented
as accumulated single finds. The majority of the votive finds are single
finds, just as Karsten has shown for the whole of Skåne (Karsten 1994).
This does not mean, however, that they were the sole object to be
deposited; this is just the registered find circumstances. Since none of the
votive sites have been excavated, it cannot be determined with certainty
whether one or more object was once deposited. There do not appear to
have been any set rules for which objects could be combined in hoards or
in what context an axe had to be polished or unpolished.
Graves
In the investigation area there are sixteen documented flat-earth graves
from the Battle Axe culture, distributed in four places, one of which, the
grave at Västra Karaby (Ålstorp), must be considered uncertain (fig. 67).
It is likely that only a few of the presumed Battle Axe graves in the
region have been discovered. Unlike the megalithic tombs, they did not
leave any trace above ground. Even when topsoil has been stripped, the
graves can be difficult to detect if they have no stone structure. After the
burial, the graves were mostly filled again with the original dug-up earth,
which makes them difficult to distinguish from the surrounding subsoil.
With this insight, it is not likely that our picture of the distribution of
Battle Axe graves in the landscape is fully representative. It can
nevertheless be observed that the graves are located in two of the areas
where settlement was densest during the period, namely, at the
confluence of the Välabäcken and Saxån and around Stångby Mosse.
This picture can be supplemented with the inclusion of activities at
passage graves in MNB. Artefacts which can be associated with MNB
have been found at Gillhög, Storegård, Hög, Lackalänga, Södervidinge,
and Västra Hoby. The finds at the first three passage graves show that
burial activities took place even in the densely settled areas around the
Mare Bäck and Lödde Å.
As in the rest of southern Scandinavia, the placing of the graves in the
landscape is not entirely uniform. At Västra Hoby 5, Västra Karaby
(Ålstorp), and Västra Karaby 39 they are on a flat sandy rise, while the
Dagstorp cemetery is on a sandy, south-facing slope. They are all located
close to rivers or wetlands.
The datable graves can be placed in the middle or later part of the
Battle Axe culture on account of their design, the pottery, and the battle
axe types. Some of the graves with a stone structure or grave goods could
hypothetically be older, but in the absence of datable material this cannot
be determined. The earliest grave find, in the Gillhög passage grave,
comes from a battle axe.
The cemeteries at Dagstorp 11 and Västra Hoby 5 corroborate the
view that Battle Axe culture graves were usually placed in lines (Malmer
1962:239, 1975:47). This means that the excavations which uncovered
only one or two flat-earth graves probably did not discover the whole
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cemetery. For that reason, the graves at Västra Karaby 39 and the
possible Battle Axe grave at Västra Karaby (Ålstorp) may very well be
part of a larger linear cemetery. It is also possible that the cemeteries in
Västra Hoby and Dagstorp comprise more graves than those excavated.
The topographical conditions at Dagstorp nevertheless indicate that the
cemetery was demarcated to the south by the Välabäcken and to the north
by the rise in the terrain with the soil changing to clay.
Excavations of the linear cemeteries in Lilla Beddinge, Svarte, and
elsewhere show that they were often used for a long period of time
(Malmer 1975:46). It is also common that the longitudinal axis of the
graves is in the same direction as the line of graves of which it is part.
The position of the oldest was thus known to the people making later
burials. There are also several indications that Battle Axe graves had a
visible marking above ground. At least one of the inhumation graves at
Dagstorp had post-holes which could be associated with the grave
structure, indicating some form of superstructure. A grave at Ullstorp in
southern Skåne was surrounded by four post-holes whose profile showed
that the posts seemed to have been angled towards the centre of the grave
(Larsson, L. 1988a:87f). At grave 53 in Lilla Beddinge there were stains
which may have been part of a wooden structure (Malmer 1975:157).
Adjacent to a grave at Löderup 15 and one at Hagestad 44 in south-east
Skåne, post-hole stains have also been observed which have been
considered to belong to the grave structure (Strömberg 1989:83). Nor can
it be ruled out that small barrows or cairns originally covered the graves,
just as in Denmark (Hansen & Rostholm 1993).
Several scholars have put forward hypotheses that the cemeteries were
placed along contemporary communication routes (e.g. Müller 1904;
Malmer 1962; Jørgensen 1977; Svensson 2002). The localization of the
cemetery in Dösjebro in the direction of the Välabäcken indicates that
there was a ford here during the Middle Neolithic. Unfortunately, there
were no remains of Neolithic roads, but today’s bridge is in the vicinity
just as the medieval one was. Reconstructions of the Viking Age and
medieval road network have moreover shown that one of the main roads
in Skåne during this period probably ran immediately south of the
palisaded enclosure and the cemetery while another ran west of the
cemetery in Västra Hoby (Blomquist 1951; Stenholm 1986; Svensson
2002).
Central places
It seems likely, as Svensson has pointed out in his article about palisaded
enclosures in northern Europe, that the palisaded enclosure in Dösjebro
(Västra Karaby 101), the axe-manufacturing sites north and south of the
Välabäcken, and the cemetery (Dagstorp 11) should be regarded as
belonging to one and the same activity complex (Svensson 2002). The
axe-manufacturing sites were documented adjacent to both the palisaded
enclosure and the Battle Axe cemetery. At least the palisade and one of
the knapping places seem to be contemporary. The close spatial
association between the palisaded enclosure and the axe-manufacturing
place is further accentuated by the deposits of flakes from axe
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manufacture which have been documented in pits and post-holes
belonging to the palisade.
The dating of the manufacturing sites south of the Välabäcken rests on
finds and on the find context. The occurrence of flakes from the
manufacture and reknapping of quadrilateral flint axes and chisels give an
unambiguous dating to the Neolithic. The other find material in the form
of transverse arrowheads, scrapers and so-called gaming pieces supports
this dating. Exactly which type of axe or chisel was made is more
difficult to determine, however. Since Danian flint predominates among
the axe-manufacture flakes, this gives some support for a Middle
Neolithic dating, since the properties of this type of flint seem to have
been preferred for the manufacture, above all, of certain types of thickbutted axes (Vang Petersen 1993:111). At the knapping place north of
Välabäcken 11, moreover, a small axe fragment has been identified as
belonging to a thick-butted flint axe of Nielsen’s group B (Månsson &
Pihl 1999). The existing basis for the dating thus shows a
contemporaneity between the palisade and axe manufacture.
Although some of the 14C datings from the cemetery indicate an
overlap in time with the palisade, the pottery and the form of the graves
suggest that at least parts of the cemetery are slightly later than the
palisade and axe-manufacturing activities. The burials should
nevertheless be regarded as a part of the central events that took place on
the site in the Battle Axe culture. The significance of the site as a meeting
place in connection with the activities that went on at the palisaded
enclosure probably lay in the awareness of the people who used the area
as a burial place.
The location of the Dösjebro complex is central in relation to how the
MNB settlements are distributed along the Saxån and Välabäcken. As a
meeting place it was easy to reach. The placing of the palisaded enclosure
in the valley is natural in a longer temporal perspective as well. The site
was important at least since the early Middle Neolithic, as attested by
such things as the pottery deposits and the U-shaped trench beside the
cemetery. Pit offerings and post-built structures east of the palisade can
be dated to the late MNA. It was natural for the bearers of the Battle Axe
culture to take over a site of traditional significance.
In a similar way, the site in Stävie is centrally located along the Lödde
Å. It is not impossible these two central places may have functioned
partly simultaneously at the transition from MNA to MNB. The palisaded
enclosure in Dösjebro was a meeting place for the Battle Axe culture
people, while the Stävie site was the place where the people of the Stävie
group assembled. The majority of Stävie group sites are located in the
south-west parts of the area and the valley of the Lödde Å. It is
reasonable to assume that the two sites had an overall function as places
of assembly, but the variation in the form of the two sites also suggests
that they had partly different functions and/or that they mark two
different groups with different cultural features.
Unlike the palisaded enclosure, which was built with posts, the feature
in Stävie demarcated a tongue of land by means of a ditch or pits. This
structure can best be compared with the Sarup sites. If the dating in
Stävie is correct, it means that this feature is about 500 years later than
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the Danish counterparts. This is not so strange, however, in view of the
fact that the site at Sarup was also used in the late MNA. There is
evidence of settlement on the site in MNA V and traces of ditch systems,
at least in MNA III–IV (Andersen 1997). This type of feature appears to
have been known in the late Funnel Beaker culture as well, and when
there was a need to assemble the people of an area, outside the context of
megalithic tombs, one such structure was erected in Stävie. Flakes from
axe manufacture were documented in one of the pits, but above all it
seems as if people deposited whole pots or large parts of them in the pits.
It is interesting that a fairly large number of pits with flint and pottery
dated to the late MNA were also found on the Stävie tongue (Larsson, L.
1982). At the palisade in Dösjebro there were only a few contemporary
features inside the enclosure, and these were right beside the row of
posts.
The palisade, which was built of a single row of posts, shows no traces
of repair or rebuilding. Moreover, soot stains in the top layer of the postholes show that the whole feature burnt down. The lack of reset posts in
the palisade and the fact that the complex was destroyed by fire and not
rebuilt suggests that the enclosure was used for only a short period. The
excavation covered a rather small part of the interior of the enclosure. In
this part there were no remains that could be associated with the palisade.
This agrees with other excavated palisaded enclosures from the Battle
Axe culture, such as Hyllie (Svensson 1991, 2002). It seems as if the
activities – at least those which have left traces – were carried out at the
actual row of posts and the entrance areas. The finds from the post-holes
and the trenches in the palisade consist of flint and small quantities of
pottery and burnt clay. Apart from a small number of tools, the flint is
totally dominated by small flakes and debris. Among the flakes, many
can be diagnosed as residual products from the manufacture of
quadrilateral axes/chisels. It is noteworthy that the proportion of burnt
flint (approx. 30%) is much higher in features belonging to the palisade
than in surrounding structures and in Neolithic finds in general. This high
proportion of burnt flint in combination with the find circumstances and
the stratigraphy must surely show that the majority of the finds were in
the post-holes/trench when the palisade burnt down. Moreover, the fact
that the finds almost exclusively occur in the upper part of the filling of
post-holes/trenches and in clear concentrations shows that the objects are
deliberate primary deposits and not older material which ended up in the
post-holes secondarily. The placing of the objects also shows that they
were deposited in the foundation pits and ditches of the palisade when the
holes were refilled and the posts stabilized (Svensson 2001 et al.). In
certain cases flakes from axe manufacture were found close together,
vertically standing in conical piles. The find circumstances gave the
impression that the flakes had been placed in a container of organic
material which has not survived, beside the posts in connection with the
construction of the palisade. In certain cases, however, flakes were also
found in the colouring left by the posts, but only in the very top part of
the filling. These finds may have primarily derived from the now
ploughed-out top filling of the post-holes and through mechanical
processes secondarily ended up in the post-hole colouring. However, the
191
find circumstances may also indicate that objects were placed on the
ground surface immediately beside the palisade and then secondarily
ended up in the depression formed in the ground surface as the post rotted
away (Andersson et al. 1999).
The significant proportion of debris in the deposits may indicate that
flint knapping took place right beside the post-holes where the finds were
placed. Several of the flakes in one and the same post-hole were also
struck from the same nodule, but flakes from several different
planks/nodules are represented in the larger concentrations of finds,
which shows that the finds do not come from just one knapping session
but are parts of several events, and perhaps the flakes were gathered
together to be deposited together. Traces of the manufacture of axes
undoubtedly occupy a prominent place among these events, and the
deposits of axe-manufacture flakes emphasize the close chronological,
spatial, and functional relationship between the enclosure and the axe
manufacture. This is further emphasized by the unpolished, thick-butted
axe that was placed in a shallow pit right beside one of the openings in
the palisade (Svensson 2002).
The axe-manufacturing areas at the palisade and at Dagstorp 11 show
both similarities and differences. The composition of the flint is similar in
the two areas, although the find material from Dagstorp 11 is much
larger. Above all it is characterized by a low proportion of tools in
relation to the total amount of flint (approx. 1%). This can be compared,
for example, with the excavated Middle Neolithic dwelling site of
Dagstorp 19 where the proportion of tools varies between 4 and 8%. Also
noteworthy is the almost total absence of flakes from axe manufacture on
the sites. The distribution of the size of axe-manufacture flakes in the two
areas is similar, with a clear predominance for the later phase of the
manufacturing process. Big flakes from the start of the manufacturing
process are totally lacking, which suggests that this part of the production
took place elsewhere. A clear difference between the manufacturing areas
is seen in the choice of raw material, with a dominance of Danian flint in
the manufacturing area at the palisade and Senonian flint at Dagstorp 11
(Svensson 2001 et al.).
Society
Towards the end of MNA it is clear that an ideology with an emphasis on
collectivism weakened in favour of a more individualistic society. This is
noticeable both in the material culture and in the organization of dwelling
sites, burial places, and votive sites. In the mid MNA power had been
increasingly centralized with an élite who legitimized their supremacy
through sacral knowledge in which they were considered to stand close to
the ancestral spirits. This was accentuated in the rituals performed for the
ancestors, which simultaneously concealed the inequalities by
emphasizing the collective and the cohesion of the society. The rituals at
the megaliths became increasingly refined, the ceramic decoration was
further elaborated, and the settlements grew. People’s actions in everyday
life and their rituals reproduced and reinforced the underlying structures
in the society which asserted the right of the collective above that of the
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individual. This order can be said to culminate in MNA III. The
dominance in society, however, gradually heightened the internal
tensions between different groups. The social and economic resources
required to maintain the swelling rituals went beyond the limits of what
the population was able to produce. Small groups left the community and
adopted a way of life which had been maintained by the coastal Pitted
Ware populations in north-west Skåne, forming the Stävie group. The
structures of the society fell apart and receptiveness to outside influences
grew. The continental currents that usually go under the name Corded
Ware culture gradually reached southern Scandinavia and were
assimilated in the form of the Battle Axe culture.
Landscape spaces
It is likely that the bearers of the Battle Axe culture were not bound to the
“space”, in the same way as the population of the Funnel Beaker culture,
at least in the sense that they led a more mobile way of life. The visible
traces in the landscape both above and below ground level are more
diffuse than in earlier (and later) periods. It is nevertheless clear that
people occupied the same parts of the landscape as in the Funnel Beaker
culture, since the settlements, the graves, and the votive sites are partly
distributed in the same areas. The Välabäcken valley, the bays at the
estuaries of the Mare Bäck and Lödde Å, the valley at Hög, and the
gently undulating landscape at Stångby Mosse were evidently most
densely settled.
The continued settlement concentration around the Välabäcken valley
is striking in MNB (fig. 97). In the valley there are settlements, graves,
votive sites, and a central place in the form of the palisaded enclosure.
The dwelling sites lie like a necklace along the Välabäcken and Saxån. It
is also within this area that the most distinct remains of structures can be
distinguished on the sites. This can of course be explained, at least in
part, by the fact that it is here that Battle Axe settlements have seen most
excavations. Houses were documented at Västra Karaby 101, Dagstorp
11, and Dagstorp 19 (figs. 62, 63, and 64). These structures are late,
however, probably from the transition to the Late Neolithic. The only
structure that can with certainty be placed in the early Battle Axe culture
is the palisaded enclosure at Västra Karaby 101 in Dösjebro. The
structure is probably proof of continuity in the area, emphasizing that this
place was for a long time not considered suitable for settlement. The early
Middle Neolithic remains, in the form of the pottery deposit, the stone
packings, and the U-shaped trench north of the Välabäcken, indicate that
the land on either side of the river here had a special meaning beyond the
ordinary dwelling site functions. In a mobile settlement system the site
was probably an important meeting place at the MNA/MNB transition. In
the middle and later parts of MNB the site north of the stream acquired
the function of a cemetery, and it seems to have been at the transition to
the Late Neolithic that ordinary settlements were first established on
either side of the river. Ceramic finds at the mouth of the passage grave in
Södervidinge suggest that this was still the scene of rituals in MNB.
Objects deposited in wetlands, separated from the dwelling sites, show
that they functioned as votive sites.
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The increasing density of settlement in the Välabäcken valley
indicates that the landscape space that arose there at the very start of the
Early Neolithic nevertheless continued into the Battle Axe culture.
Although the settlement pattern in MNB was more mobile, the
demarcated, enclosed spaces in the valley had a special attraction for
people.
The area around Stångby Mosse and Västra Hoby is yet another
district populated at an early stage by bearers of the Funnel Beaker
culture, but also displaying plentiful remains from the Battle Axe culture
(fig. 98). The settlements are on either side of the bog and in the wetlands
along the Kävlingeån. The dwelling sites in the area are known from
flakes found by surface survey, including fragmentary hollow-polished
axes or chisels. Even whole hollow-polished flint axes have been found at
Västra Hoby 12. This can, of course, also be an indication of ploughed-up
graves or votive deposits. Just over 500 m north of Västra Hoby 12 is the
linear cemetery of Västra Hoby 5. It cannot be entirely ruled out that
these two sites do in fact make up a unit, that is, a continuous elongated
linear cemetery. Between these two places, about 100 m north of Västra
Hoby 12, is the votive site of Västra Hoby 18. Both fragmentary and
whole hollow-edged and thin-bladed axes were found here in dried-out
wetland. The find spot is interpreted as a votive site (Karsten 1994:249).
The landscape context could mean that some of this find instead belonged
to ploughed-up graves which may have been part of a linear cemetery.
Reconstructions of the Viking Age road network indicate that the road
between Lund and Kävlinge ran in a north-west to south-east direction
west of the three sites (Blomqvist 1951). Since the linear cemetery is also
oriented in this direction, it may be hypothesized that the graves were laid
along a contemporary road. A long time elapsed between MNB and the
Viking Age, but the Late Iron Age road network may in any case be a
hint of the location of even older communication routes.
It is difficult to find any link between dwelling sites and burial places.
Based on the available archaeological material, it does not seem as if
graves were dug right beside the settlements. If anything they were
placed beside and along communication routes (as at Dagstorp 11 and
Västra Hoby 5). Finds of axes in the passage graves at Västra Hoby and
Lackalänga show that these were a part of the community in this period
too. The votive deposits in wetlands, just like those in the Välabäcken
valley, seem to be located away from contemporary settlements and
perhaps also away from the roads.
The former bays at the estuaries of the Mare Bäck and Lödde Å were
still important for settlement in MNB (fig. 99). Several places which were
occupied in the late MNA were also visited during this period. It is above
all on the Barsebäck foreland that we see continuity in settlement. The
find of a battle axe of type A in the passage grave in Gillhög is a sign that
the Battle Axe culture gained an early foothold here. The few excavations
which have touched on Battle Axe settlement in this area have not
identified any remains of houses. Nor have the excavations here been of a
sufficiently large area to identify the buildings. There are no known flatearth graves which can be dated to this period. The difficulty of
discovering this type of feature may explain the lack of graves. The
194
tendency towards a decline in wetland offerings in this part of the
investigation area seems to apply to MNB as well. In his work on
Neolithic votive finds, Karsten mentions three places where blade
arrowheads have been found in bogs, one of type A and two of type C
(1994). It is uncertain which culture these belong to, and they could also
have been shot away by people hunting. Votive deposits in which the
object is an axe, on the other hand, are completely missing in the area.
Continuity can also be discerned in the settlement at Stävie and Hög
(fig. 100). A number of settlements were located in the valley of the
Lödde Å. The central place at Stävie probably ceased to function some
time in the course of MNB. Finds of Battle Axe pottery at the passage
grave in Hög nevertheless show that the area was still of significance for
the population.
Social organization
The lack of remains of structures at the settlements, as we have seen,
means uncertainty about how the sites were organized and makes it
difficult to interpret the social organization. As a whole, it is only in
exceptional cases that excavations of Battle Axe sites in southern
Scandinavia have given such results that it has been possible to discuss
dwelling site organization (Adamsen & Ebbesen 1986; Larsson, L.
1989a). I nevertheless believe that the few traces that exist, together with
the remains of graves, votive sites, and central places, give some clues to
an understanding of MNB society. At the transition between MNA and
MNB and in the early MNB there are only occasional remains of
settlement in the investigation area. The circular huts at Saxtorp 23 and
the round-oval concentration of post-holes at Lackalänga can probably be
ascribed to the Stävie group. Houses thus seem to be wholly lacking in
the archaeological material from the early Battle Axe period in the
investigation area. The palisaded enclosure and the find in Gillhög are
nevertheless clear evidence that bearers of the Battle Axe culture were
represented in the region. The occurrence of these remains also
presupposes that some of the surface-surveyed settlements, where
artefacts usually dated to MNB have been identified, could probably
derive from an early part of the Battle Axe culture. The existing traces of
Battle Axe culture settlements are scarce, however. I have interpreted this
as a combination of a relatively brief use of each site together with an
attitude to waste different from that prevailing in the Funnel Beaker
culture, that is, a different deposition tradition. The element of animal
husbandry in the Battle Axe culture seems to have been large and may
have been pursued in a way that is comparable with nomadism (cf.
Larsson, L. 1989b:73). Thus, nothing in the existing settlement site
material suggests the existence of large sites where households lived
simultaneously. Presumably people moved in rather small groups the size
of one or two nuclear families.
I believe that there are indications that the old form of organization of
kin groups was dissolved at the transition to MNB. In Funnel Beaker
society the single family was the base that was united with others via
shared ancestors. One or more kin groups formed a local community
under the leadership of an élite consisting of some elders from special
195
families. These power structures had been reproduced and reinforced ever
since the opening phase of the Early Neolithic through shared rituals in
which the collective was emphasized and inequalities were concealed.
The scene and the design of the rituals varied, but the aim was to
legitimize the power vested in a few by asserting the bonds to the
ancestors. In this way the leaders affirmed their power over time and
place. I discussed the reasons for changes in Funnel Beaker society in the
preceding chapter. Several groups within the Funnel Beaker culture
gradually adopted a way of life practised by the coastal populations who
had formerly lived further to the north (the Stävie group). Others,
presumably the majority, assimilated somewhat later ideas prevailing on
the continent (the Battle Axe culture). Two groups with different cultural
features thereby came to coexist during a period of MNB. By this I mean
population groups who regard themselves as belonging to a delimited
category of people and who share fundamental cultural values.
During this period of internal division, the Funnel Beaker society was
in a state where new influences from outside had greater opportunity to
make themselves felt. The unifying forces, in the form of a stratum of
leading elders, were weakened, as was the collective ideology. The
communal ceremonies at the megalithic tombs ceased and the settlement
was split up into smaller units. I therefore believe that the new elements
noticeable in society at the transition to MNB were not the result of largescale immigration; the seedbed of change probably existed within the
Funnel Beaker society. Similarities in mortuary practice and in material
culture over much of northern and central Europe show that there were
wide-ranging contacts. The increased links with the people of the
continent are also noticeable in a growing number of metal objects of
various kinds in the middle and later part of the Battle Axe culture
(Janzon 1986:126f). In addition, battle axes made of volcanic rocks have
been found in the Hagestad area and elsewhere, which can probably be
traced to central Europe (Strömberg 1975:267; Hulthén, B. pers.com.). It
is thus reasonable to assume that influences and innovations were spread
within an existing and well-developed network of contacts without large
movements of people.
The society that emerged – alongside the coastal populations that I
have chosen to call the Stävie group (cf. Larsson, L. 1989b) – was built
up just as before, with the family as the smallest unit of production. The
archaeological evidence nevertheless contains hints that the structural
principles for power relations had changed.
The scattered and small settlements contributed to the avoidance of
relations of dominance between different groups. There were
opportunities for the individual, the household, or the little local group to
improve their social position as far as the prevailing social system
permitted. The more mobile way of life was expressed in the way that
places were no longer so clearly marked. Battle Axe sites seem to lack
the pits of various kinds that characterized many Funnel Beaker sites.
Whether these pits were primarily used for waste, storage, or votive
activities, they mark a sense of belonging to the place. In certain cases we
may suspect that the deposited objects were a cross-section of the
everyday activities as a manifestation of these tasks. The deposits were a
196
ritualized routine which reproduced the prevailing structural principles
that tied the individual and the group to the place. Waste at Funnel
Beaker sites was regarded as a product of the maintenance of the
prevailing order on a site. There was no need to clean the area. For the
people of the Battle Axe culture, on the other hand, who only set up
short-term camps, identity was not linked to the site. Belonging to a place
did not need to be expressed in the form of special rituals whereby
objects were buried in the ground, and people probably carried the
majority of their everyday artefacts with them. Perhaps their mobile way
of life meant that the landscape did not need to be permanently reshaped
and socialized in the way expressed by the Funnel Beaker culture with its
grave monuments of stone. If there are no distinct traces in the landscape,
this may of course be because people deliberately chose not to reshape
their surroundings. Natural formations in the terrain could function as
nodes in the landscape, and some of the old monuments could still be
used for private rituals. While it is true that the palisaded enclosures
meant a major reshaping of the landscape, as I have pointed out before,
they were not of a permanent nature but were raised for special events in
the present.
The changed mortuary practice, with the flat-earth grave as the form
now prevailing, can also be seen as an expression of changed power
structures. Although some of the megalithic tombs were also used in
MNB, it was not at all on the same scale as in earlier parts of the Middle
Neolithic (MNA I–III) and of a more private character. The large
ceremonies assembling many people at the monuments had ceased.
Instead the linear cemeteries should perhaps also be seen in the light of a
more mobile pattern of life and individual thinking. As I have previously
pointed out, there is some evidence that the linear cemeteries were placed
along contemporary roads. For a people in movement it was natural that
the graves should lie where communications ran. The older grave
monuments were also probably located on communication routes, but
these did not express a movement forwards in the terrain in the same way
as the linear cemeteries must have done. The Battle Axe graves may also
be said to emphasize the individual or the family. Unlike the collective
burial space which the passage graves probably constituted, the Battle
Axe graves were intended for one or just a few individuals. When the
collective ideology broke down, burial customs changed. The leading
stratum no longer consisted of elders who legitimized their power
through a close relationship to the ancestors.
The new power relations seem to have been based on secular and
economic experience rather than on sacred knowledge. At the
MNA/MNB transition a new form of central places was established, with
a design and finds showing other activities and values than those
prevailing at the megalithic tombs in an earlier phase of the Middle
Neolithic. A general aim of the sites at Stävie and Dösjebro was of course
to maintain regional and perhaps supraregional social contacts. In a kind
of society where there were no large settlements consisting of several
household units and where the megalithic tombs no longer functioned as
formal ceremonial sites, the new meeting places satisfied the need to
achieve social integration. A closer study of the sites indicates special
197
functions. The complex at Dösjebro reveals an environment where the
production and distribution of axes played a major role. Both east and
north of the palisaded enclosure, on other side of the Välabäcken, axemanufacturing places have been documented which have been assumed
on reasonable grounds to be contemporary with the palisade. Deposits of
flakes from axe manufacture at the palisade posts and of whole and
fragmentary axes beside the enclosure also illustrate the important role of
the axe on the site. At the Stävie site there are ovens which may possibly
have been intended for firing pottery (Larsson, L. 1982:88). Over a
hundred fragmented axes have been retrieved from here, and a new look
through the finds showed that axe-manufacture flakes occur in the
occupation layer and in one of the pits. The craft seems to have been
important at these central places. The production, distribution, and
deposition of axes and axe waste gives insight into the new ideology in
MNB. They also demonstrate the existence of a comprehensive network.
The manufacturing process was not just a matter of shaping axe
blanks; it also produced a quantity of waste. At the knapping places at the
palisaded enclosure in Dösjebro can we observe the last two steps in the
process of manufacturing flint axes. The large amount of polished
fragments suggests that production also included the reknapping of axes.
The total absence of big flakes from the initial manufacturing sequence
indicates that this took place elsewhere. I believe that the flakes should
not be regarded as waste but as a product of cultural value like the axes.
The deposits of some of the axe-manufacture flakes corroborate this, and
may be seen as a procedure whereby the flint was returned to the earth
(Cooney 2000). As a whole, the production and distribution of axes
should be regarded as a significant activity surrounded by various rules.
The choice of manufacturing sites illustrates that this activity was not
linked to the settlement but to significant places in the landscape. The
knapping places around Dösjebro are located in an area that had been
characterized since the end of the Early Neolithic by ceremonial
activities. It is likely to have been a part of the mythology long before axe
production was started. The location of production beside the palisaded
enclosure suggests that it was an integral part of large social gatherings.
The fact that large flint nodules for axe manufacture are lacking in the
area of the Välabäcken valley means that they must have been brought
from the areas where the raw material could be found, namely, on the
raised beaches along the coast. It may have been on the shore at
Barsebäck, at Stenbocksvallar, that the flint nodules were reworked into
quadrilateral axe planks before they were transported further to places
like Dösjebro. Some nodules were perhaps brought from the flint mines
in the Malmö area or even from flint-rich areas in Denmark.
The axe-manufacturing places were thus centrally located in the
landscape, the knapping places show that production was probably on a
large scale, the treatment of flakes from axe manufacture suggests strict
rituals in connection with the manufacturing process, and production took
place outside the primary flint areas – all of which is evidence of a welldeveloped distribution network. There are powerful reasons to assume
that those who controlled this activity enjoyed a powerful position in
society. Renewed interest in depositing axes in wetlands in the late MNA
198
and MNB highlights the significance of the axe as a prestige object.
Deposits of axes at the megalithic tombs reinforce this picture. This also
shows an ideological change, with the emphasis shifted from the
collective to the single family or the individual. As I discussed above,
pottery and complicated decorative styles may indicate an emphasis on
belonging to a group, while an axe is better regarded as a personal
attribute. The axe was an object to be carried on the person, and was
probably of great significance in the exchange of gifts and the forging of
alliances (Tilley 1996:101; Cooney 2000). The custom of private
sacrifices thus seems to have undergone a renaissance in MNB. An
interesting difference from previous periods is the occurrence and
deposition of several different axe types (hollow-edged, thin-bladed,
medium-bladed, and B-axes). In EN I it was the pointed-butted axe that
was sacrificed, while the thin-butted axe and the thick-butted A-axe were
the most commonly deposited types in wetlands in EN II–MNA II and in
MNA III–V. In addition, deposits of battle axes and faceted grindstones
have been documented in the investigation area in MNB. The battle axe,
the hollow-edged thick-butted axe, and the thin-bladed flint axe also
occur frequently in the flat-earth graves of the Battle Axe culture.
Regardless of functional differences between the axe types, their
occurrence means that the number of prestige objects increased. An
increase in individual status objects may be connected to the changed
power relations. It was now important for individuals to mark their
position or status, partly through these artefacts.
Unlike the situation during the Funnel Beaker culture – possibly with
the exception of its initial phase – it thus does not seem as if status
positions in the Battle Axe culture were kin-based and given from birth.
This is noticeable, among other things, in the way the population is no
longer as tied to place. In the Funnel Beaker culture people had made
communal investments in newly colonized land, with the result that
subsequent generations lived on the work of the previous generation. The
elders in society, who were closest to the ancestral spirits, acquired a
position of power and controlled the means of production and the
productive resources. This had given rise to a one-sided dependence and
obligations for the young vis-à-vis the old. The megalithic tombs and the
collective ceremonies held at them were an expression of this. Instead, in
the Battle Axe culture, an individual or family probably acquired prestige
and status in the eyes of other members of the community through
different types of social strategies. The scattered and mobile settlement
broke the hereditary dominance, and the mortuary ritual asserted the
individual or the family rather than the collective. Acquired status was
based on the special knowledge of certain individuals (cf. Nordquist
2001:29f). The prominent position of the flintsmith is noticeable through
the localization of knapping places in the landscape and the link to the
palisaded enclosure, as well as through the ritual treatment that seems to
have been associated with the axe manufacture. Those who controlled
this activity presumably had a significant power position and represented
the unity of the local community. In reciprocal relations between
communities, they represented the economic interests of the group, and
the most important task of this leading stratum was probably to establish
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and maintain alliances which satisfied the group’s need for necessary
resources. The ceremonies at the central places in Dösjebro and Stävie
were important because different groups met here to forge alliances. The
meetings between the groups were an opportunity to strengthen the
respect and prestige of one’s own group. Competition was also expressed
in efforts to better one’s position in relation to the spirit world. Deposits
of axes-manufacture flakes at the palisade posts should probably be
viewed in this light – as a deliberate act to create and reinforce bonds
with the gods. Fragments of axes or pots identified adjacent to the
enclosure may be the result of deliberate destruction of some of the
surplus production with the aim of asserting one’s own importance and
that of the group and favouring the relationship to higher powers.
The renewed tradition of depositing offerings in wetlands can
probably be associated with the new individual ideology. Since
individuals and families had the opportunity to acquire social status
independent of kin affiliation, the private relationship to the gods was
once again important. In his work on Scanian Neolithic votive finds,
Karsten shows that it was to a large extent the older votive sites that came
into use again after an interruption of a few hundred years. He says that
“The oral tradition that enabled the content of the rituals to be passed on
thus did not only have information about which wetland people used to
make offerings in, but the exact location of the votive site in it” (Karsten
1994:180). This is of course an argument that the Battle Axe culture, in
combination with continental influences, evolved within the framework
of the Funnel Beaker tradition. The material that we associate with the
Battle Axe culture signalled a breach with an older social system (cf.
Damm 1993:200). The new groups that emerged locally wanted to show
their social and symbolic distance from the old traditions and people in
power. It was important for the new leaders to free themselves from the
preceding Funnel Beaker society, which can explain the material
differences between the two cultures. One way for the new power group
to show its rivalry and distance openly was to use material culture to
stress their differences.
The material culture that grew up was not a local phenomenon; it had
its foundation in a shared cultural complex which in central and eastern
Europe goes under the name of the Corded Ware culture, whereas in
western Europe it is known as the Bell Beaker or Beaker culture. In
Denmark, Holland, and western Germany, the mortuary practice has
given the name Single Grave culture, while the Swedish, Norwegian, and
Finnish counterparts were originally called the Boat Axe culture, but in
recent years the term Battle Axe culture has become the most common
designation for the culture in this area (Malmer 1962, 1975; Larsson, L.
1989b). The wide distribution should not be seen as reflecting large-scale
migrations; instead, when the local social structures broke down and a
new identity was built up, it was natural to adopt already existing
symbols. The European network was well developed and innovations
spread rapidly. People thus showed their solidarity with other continental
groups while simultaneously being in opposition to the old system.
I thus believe that the population group that broke away from the
Funnel Beaker culture and followed the continental currents had its origin
200
in the Funnel Beaker culture. The foundation had been laid for new ideas
to grow as a consequence of the changes in society and shifts in power
that had begun at the end of MNA. This explains why the earliest Battle
Axe settlement seems to have gained a foothold in the old core areas of
the Funnel Beaker culture (fig. 101). The fact that the palisaded enclosure
in Dösjebro, which can be dated to the early Battle Axe culture, was built
on the same site as the late Funnel Beaker culture’s place of assembly
also demonstrates similarities and continuity in the organization of
society. The structures are a form of central place which functioned
during the period when the settlements split up. To a certain extent the
megalithic tombs were still used for votive and/or funeral ceremonies
during the Battle Axe culture. This can be seen as a way for the new
people in power to take over the sacred places of the Funnel Beaker
culture and thereby confirm the change of power. But it also shows that
there seems to have been a hereditary solidarity and kinship with the old
sacred places and that perhaps more private votive rituals were performed
at the monuments.
On the basis of the finds, the Stävie structure should be linked to the
Stävie group. The site at Stävie shows structural similarities to Sarup sites
(causewayed enclosures) and the customs of the Funnel Beaker culture.
The ditches and the pits with objects on the tongue of land follow the
deposition traditions of the Funnel Beaker culture. The Stävie group
seems to have arisen through an assimilation of Pitted Ware and Funnel
Beaker populations. The two cultures probably had a shared origin in the
early Funnel Beaker culture, so it is not surprising that their assembly
places had a structure corresponding to that of the earlier Sarup sites. The
Battle Axe culture was likewise a local development from the Funnel
Beaker culture. The difference is that the Stävie group consists of
populations who had broken out of the Funnel Beaker society already in
the late MNA and adopted and assimilated a Pitted Ware way of life,
while those who turned to the traditions of the Battle Axe culture at the
start of MNB totally broke away from the older kin-based social
organization and identified with currents on the continent.
Parts of the Stävie group probably continued to exist at least in the
early MNB. Datings from Stävie 3, Saxtorp 23, and Lackalänga suggest
this. The settlement pattern can also be interpreted in this way. Whereas
the Battle Axe populations mainly moved within the core areas of the
Funnel Beaker culture in the interior in the south and north-east, the
Stävie group lived in the coastal areas in the west and also along the
Lödde Å. The two populations evidently inhabited partly different areas,
although they overlap, above all in the south-west. Ideologically these
two groups were probably quite far removed. The Stävie group, which
partially adopted the lifestyle of coastal Pitted Ware people, practised a
mixed economy in which coastal hunting and fishing was probably
important. Although they had broken with the hierarchical power
relations of the Funnel Beaker culture which were legitimized through
lavish ceremonies at the megaliths, several of the older principles of
power structure originating in the Ertebølle culture still survived. In the
Pitted Ware culture there is often a close association between graves and
dwelling site (Malmer 1962, 1975; Wyszomirska 1984; Knutsson 1995).
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The ancestors were probably significant for the descendants, and as in the
Funnel Beaker culture, the veneration of their spirits was a way to assert
one’s rights to land and legitimize the prevailing order. The organization
of dwelling sites, as we have seen, also shows similarities between the
culture groups. In the Battle Axe culture, on the other hand, the old power
structures had been completely changed, and status was instead acquired
through various skills. The material culture clearly shows that the world
of symbols had continental influences while the artefacts of the Stävie
group incorporated elements from the older Funnel Beaker and Pitted
Ware cultures.
The finds, together with differences in the structure of the two central
places, indicate, as I have pointed out, that their aim, alongside the
unifying function, was partly different. It is likely that the production and
distribution of axes did not have as significant a position at the Stävie site
as at the palisade in Dösjebro. The commercial activities that took place
at the palisaded enclosure were perhaps not as prominent at Stävie.
Instead, the focus may have been on older traditional forms of ceremony.
The deposition of pottery in particular in pits on the tongue of land and in
systems of ditches follows the deposition tradition of the Funnel Beaker
culture. The aim was no longer to legitimize ancient power structures but
still to achieve integration in a divided settlement through traditional
ceremonies.
There is nothing in the evidence at the Stävie site or the palisaded
enclosure to suggest extensive contact between the two groups. There is
no Battle Axe pottery at Stävie and there is no pottery characteristic of
the Stävie group at the enclosure. Perhaps the ideological antagonisms
were too great to allow profound contacts to be maintained. The Stävie
pottery also displays great differences from the pottery of the Funnel
Beaker culture and the Battle Axe culture in the Välabäcken valley as
regards vessel forms, decoration, and technique (Lagergren Olsson 2003;
Stilborg 2003). It seems as if different population groups developed
different ceramic traditions. Of course two groups cannot live so close to
each other without some kind of mutual influence. Different cultural
groups are not built up from the absence of interaction; this is in fact the
basis on which a society is built (Barth 1969b). Distinct material
differences may exist between groups even if there is an exchange of
goods and services. Material culture is used as an active element in social
interaction. Different groups with distinctive cultural features can use
material culture to emphasize their differences, while a group wishing to
use a different group’s resources can try to tone down the material
expressions of such differences (Hodder 1982:119ff). To some extent the
two populations probably used different parts of the landscape and
different ecological niches. Both presumably practised a mixed economy,
but the Stävie group exploited marine resources to a greater extent while
the Battle Axe people carried on animal husbandry. Although it was
important to emphasize one’s ethnic affiliation through material culture,
there may have been an exchange of goods in any case. Anthropology has
many examples of coexisting groups using different ecological niches but
still trading with each other (see e.g. Barth 1969a, 1969b; Tilley 1982a).
202
It is clear that the process that gradually led to what we know as the
Late Neolithic was started during the Battle Axe culture. New crops in
the form of barley were grown on a significant scale. There was probably
also an increase in the importance of sheep as wool was used more for
spinning and weaving (Hedeager & Kristiansen 1988:83f; Larsson, L.
1989:74). The new design of houses probably took shape in the late
MNB. At the same time the Stävie group probably lost people to the
Battle Axe culture. In the long run the rather small groups of people
living along the coast could not resist the continental influences that
gained an increasingly strong foothold through growing long-distance
contacts at the end of MNB.
In the closing phase of the Battle Axe culture the population seems
once again to shift to a more permanent settlement pattern. It is precisely
in the late MNB or early Late Neolithic that there is evidence of large
houses in the investigation area. The three buildings at Dagstorp 11,
Dagstorp 19, and Västra Karaby 101 show clear similarities to Late
Neolithic houses, but the 14C analyses and the finds, at least at Dagstorp
19, show that this should be dated to the late MNB. It is during the Late
Neolithic that a uniform and almost standardized building tradition
emerged in much of southern and central Scandinavia (Björhem &
Säfvestad 1989). This Late Neolithic building tradition can evidently be
traced back to the late Battle Axe culture. The manner of building
changed in that considerable labour was devoted to making houses more
durable. This change is probably connected not just to the increased
permanence of settlement but can also be associated with a change in the
view of the buildings as such.
It seems as if continental influences increased at the end of the south
Scandinavian Battle Axe culture. Three houses excavated at Myrhøj in
northern Jutland have shown the link between the late Single Grave
culture and the continental Bell Beaker culture. Pottery of Single Grave
type occurs on the site together with pottery showing clear similarities to
that of the Bell Beaker culture. Apart from this there are other artefacts,
such as a wrist guard of stone and flat-flaked arrowheads, which display a
clear connection between the Bell Beaker culture and the late Single
Grave culture (Jensen 1973). In Jutland there are a number of other
houses and graves containing Bell Beaker material (Skov 1982;
Simonsen 1983; Apel 2000:47). From Sjælland and Skåne too, there are
occasional finds suggesting that the Bell Beaker culture may have had an
influence on development in these areas. The occupation layer at the
house at Dagstorp 11 contained a flat-flaked arrowhead with a short tang
which is considered characteristic of the Bell Beaker culture (Vang
Petersen 1993:92). In addition, two potsherds with Bell Beaker–inspired
decoration were identified in the layer. About a kilometre south-west of
Dagstorp 11, Bell Beaker pottery was excavated from a post-hole near a
Late Neolithic farm consisting of a long-house and a small outhouse
(Västra Karaby 35) (Pettersson 2000:53f). There were evidently contacts
between the Bell Beaker culture and the Battle Axe culture which may
have been of crucial significance for the emergence of the Late Neolithic
culture in southern Scandinavia.
203
It is interesting that the houses we know from the late MNB/early Late
Neolithic in the investigation area were built on sites with a long
continuity and a special significance. The house at Dagstorp 11 was built
virtually parallel to the linear cemetery. The cemetery must surely have
been known when the house was built, at least if the graves had some
marking above ground. South of the Välabäcken a long-house was built,
cutting across the southern side of the palisaded enclosure, and the house
at Dagstorp 19 was placed on a site where settlements had existed more
or less uninterrupted since EN I. The Bell Beaker influences in the
Välabäcken valley and other parts of southern Scandinavia illustrate how
the long-distance social network continued to grow. In the Välabäcken
valley, which was a centre for the production, consumption, and
distribution of axes, particularly successful groups may have been
established, in tougher competition. These groups founded settlements in
places with a tradition, which shows their awareness of the past. The
original significance of the place gave the new settlements a special
status, thereby legitimizing the prevailing political organization. The
permanence of the existing structures and a more stable way of life were
constructed through the new houses and later in the new form of grave,
the stone cist. This came at a time when people were once again starting
to be more or less settled compared with the more mobile way of life in
the Battle Axe culture. The stone cist, alongside the houses and like the
megalithic tombs, thus symbolized a link to the land, investments made
in it, and access to its resources. Once again, people thus began to make
collective graves in the form of megalithic structures, although the stone
cist differs in design and size from its Middle Neolithic counterparts.
*
At the end of MNA the Funnel Beaker society had within it the seeds of
the changes which meant that new continental ideas could gain a foothold
in southern Scandinavia in the form of the Battle Axe culture. The social
organization that emerged in the Early and Middle Neolithic had
developed a system with increasing central control, the structures of
which were legitimized and concealed through collective rituals at the
megalithic tombs. The resources required to maintain these ceremonies
were a strain on the people, some of whom broke out of the organization.
They adopted the more egalitarian way of life of coastal groups in south
Scandinavia. This Stävie group lived in small, autonomous groups but
still maintained old Funnel Beaker traditions.
The bearers of the Battle Axe culture thereby made a complete break
with the old society and instead adopted an ideology and a symbolic
language that took inspiration from the continent. In this society, power
was structured not on the basis of kin relations but was acquired through
social competence. The new individual ideology was emphasized and
reproduced via flat-earth graves, long-distance contacts, status objects,
and mobility in settlement.
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6. A wider geographical perspective
“Go out in your country where the land meets the sun”
(Bob Dylan, 1963)
The Funnel Beaker culture and the Battle Axe culture are the designations
given to Early and Middle Neolithic population groups in northern and
central Europe with a partially shared material culture and a similar way
of life. The Neolithic meant not only a new element in the economy but a
whole new way to order both the social world and the natural
environment (see chapter 5). The domestication of resources was part of
the conceptual world that concerned social relations and the link between
the community, the ancestors, and the landscape. The new ideology was
about the mastery of time and place, and the domestication of plants and
animals was a part of this control, with tillage and animal husbandry
involving a transformation of the landscape. Later, monuments were
constructed which further dominated the landscape and which created a
lasting relationship between time and place. In my account of Neolithic
societies in western Skåne, however, I have considered it important to
proceed from the regional situation. The form of a society is dependent
on the specific culture-historical background of each area, and despite
shared supraregional structures, the way in which innovations arise,
spread, are accepted and used can vary from one region to another.
In the Mesolithic we see relatively extensive settlement in the valley
landscape of coastal western Skåne (Jennbert 1984a:103ff), and in the
Early and Middle Neolithic it is clear that the area was a significant
population region in Skåne. In my work I have found how similar
structures were active, governing the form of organization of the societies
that inhabited the west Scanian valleys. Geographically the region
comprises the gently undulating areas around the two river valleys from
the Öresund coast about twenty kilometres inland, and it is demarcated by
the transition to more highland terrain to the north-east and south-west
(figs. 1 and 3). The definition of this region is thus based on obvious
geographical conditions, but it is of course chiefly the archaeological
observations that determine the interpretation. A greater density of
Neolithic settlements, votive finds, and graves was already documented
in the area (Malmer 1962; Strömberg 1980; Karsten 1994; Tilley 1996),
and my investigation has shed light on the special organization of
Neolithic settlement and society in the region. Large, increasingly
permanent settlements had already arisen in the Late Mesolithic along the
bays at the estuaries of the Saxån and Lödde Å, at Tågerup and
Löddesborg respectively, with continuity into the Early Neolithic. The
places functioned as main settlements to which the society’s various
secular and sacred activities were attached. The number of similar main
settlements seems to have increased in the Early Neolithic, and the link to
the Late Mesolithic traditions and power structures was strong. The
identity of the local community was thus bound in time and place to the
205
settlement, but the landscape was open in so far as no demarcated
settlement districts existed yet. Settlement gradually expanded inland and
the landscape was socialized. It has been possible to follow how different
landscape spaces or settlement districts were formed within the region,
within which special places intended for different activities arose, and it
was the relationship of these places to each other that defined the
landscape spaces. The different landscape spaces, which were built up in
a similar way with one or a few large dwelling sites (main settlements),
grave monuments, and votive sites, functioned as the spaces within which
a local community performed its different activities over the annual cycle.
It should be emphasized, however, that prehistoric societies rarely had
clearly defined borders, whether geographical or mental, although they
can be associated with a specific area (Giddens 1984:163).
I have defined a society as consisting of a group of people who feel
that they have a shared identity which differs from that of surrounding
societies. The existence of the society is therefore based in part on the
occurrence of external relations, in that an internal identity is partly
created through contacts with other groups. The organization in time and
place on and between sites in the valley landscape spaces thus shows the
similar structural principles that prevailed, which meant that the area can
be regarded as a united region in which different local communities
interacted closely.
The geographical region, and the people who live there, functions like
a living process in that places, regions, and identities are products of
people acting within a historically constituted network of power relations
and exchange of knowledge. Communication is expressed in the transfer
of goods and people, of thoughts and ideas. Ceramic craft, house types,
modes of production, and so on, were once innovations that were adopted
and became part of the culture of the regions. In the following discussion
I intend to place certain decisive events in the Neolithic of western Skåne
in a broader Scanian and Danish perspective. The expression taken by
different phenomena in different areas may give an understanding of the
significance of the culture-historical background of particular regions for
the spatial distribution of innovations.
Even before a Neolithic way of life was established in southern
Scandinavia (see chapter 5), the Late Mesolithic groups were in contact
with continental populations who had adopted cultivation and animal
husbandry. The ceramic craft is clear evidence of these contacts. Finds of
shaft-hole axes of rock, known as Schuhleistenkeile, are examples of
direct imports reaching Scandinavia. Finds of bones from domesticated
livestock in layers which can probably be dated to the Late Mesolithic at
Löddesborg (Jennbert 1984a:90f) and impressions of cereal grains in
Ertebølle pottery at Löddesborg and Vik (Jennbert 1999) are further signs
of links with the south.
Although relations with continental farming groups were evidently
significant, the hunter-gatherers of southern Scandinavia did not adopt
many Neolithic elements in their economy until much later (Tilley 1996).
Most scholars agree that agriculture in some form was not pursued in
southern Scandinavia before about 5000 BP (3950 cal. bc) (Kristiansen
1988; Hodder 1990; Welinder 1998), although cultivation on a small
206
scale may have occurred already in the Late Mesolithic. The first
agriculture was probably only a small part of the total economic activity.
Perhaps the cereals and livestock, as Jennbert has suggested, functioned
as goods consumed at feasts or as “productive gifts” used to maintain
diplomatic relations (Jennbert 1984a:141f).
The region of south Scandinavia which has seen the largest
archaeological investigation in recent years is probably the Malmö area,
in connection with large projects to construct housing, industry, roads,
and railways in and around the city since the 1960s (Björhem 2000). A
large number of the excavated remains have included Neolithic material.
Here too, several of the Neolithic settlements which can be dated to
the start of the Early Neolithic were located on the coast and at places
previously used by Late Mesolithic people, such as Soldattorpet,
Gränsstigen, Kvarteret Nore, and Elinelund (Kjellmark 1903;
Salomonsson 1960a, 1971; Larsson, M. 1984:211; Jennbert 1984a:64f).
Soldattorpet was excavated by Knut Kjellmark in 1901–1904. He
believed that the dwelling site may have extended over a long narrow
area for about 450 m on the Järavallen ridge. It is uncertain whether
Soldattorpet may have been connected with Gränsstigen, immediately
north of the dwelling site, which was excavated in 1960 by Bengt
Salomonsson. The stratigraphy of the two sites was very similar. On the
two sites, bones of domesticated animals were found in the same layer as
Early Neolithic pottery belonging to the Oxie group (EN I). At Kvarteret
Nore and Elinelund, pottery was likewise identified in the upper layers
which can be placed in the Oxie group. Occasional tooth fragments from
cattle have been identified in features which can be dated to the transition
from the Late Mesolithic to the Early Neolithic at Elinelund (Jonsson
2002). The four sites are evidence that settlement on the coast was
probably still important at the start of the Neolithic. At the same time, as
Mats Larsson has noted (1984), a move of settlement to the freshwater
systems of the interior can be observed at places like Björkesåkra, Sturup,
Oxie, Skabersjö, Värby, and Hässleberga. This movement probably does
not mean that the coast was abandoned for settlement, but that different
parts of the landscape were claimed in a new way, earlier, and on a larger
scale than further north in Skåne. Unlike the valley landscape in western
Skåne, there are clearer indications that long barrows were constructed
here already in the initial phase of the Neolithic. At Kristineberg there
was an excavation in 1977 of the remains of settlements and two long
barrows which have been dated by 14C analyses and pottery to EN I
(Rudebeck & Ödman 2000). Elisabeth Rudebeck and Katarina Ödman
say that it is hypothetically possible to imagine on the site three or four
phases in EN I and at the transition to EN II. The oldest phase represents
activities at the transition between the Late Mesolithic and the Early
Neolithic. A piece of charcoal in a feature from this phase has been dated
to 5320±120 BP (4327–3985 cal. bc, LuA–4538). If this value can also be
used to date a potsherd with impressions of emmer or spelt wheat found
in the feature, it is the earliest date of Funnel Beaker pottery with grain
impressions in southern Scandinavia (Rudebeck & Ödman 2000:99;
Gustavsson 2000). Probably belonging to the second phase are several
periods of occupation and burial with brief intervals between them.
207
During this phase, work began on the construction of the two long
barrows. In the third phase, at the transition to EN II, a burial chamber
was built in the southern long barrow (Rudebeck & Ödman 2000:99f;
Rudebeck 2002:104f). In connection with the archaeological excavations
in 2002 preceding the construction of the City Tunnel in Malmö, four
ploughed-out long barrows and two presumed dolmen sites were
excavated at Almhov, just a few hundred metres from the coast as it was
then. In all four long barrows it was possible to document stone-lined
ditches or post-holes at the east façade, and a few metres west of the
façade there were stone structures which probably represent the primary
graves. One of the graves contained skeletal parts belonging to one
individual; fragments of the top of the skull suggest that the skull was
placed at the feet. Parts of the filling were preserved in one of the long
barrows. A thin-butted axe was retrieved from here adjacent to the
primary grave. A charcoal sample taken from a façade post-hole has
yielded a date in EN I, 4990±70 BP (3940–3700 cal. bc, Ua-17158).
Early Neolithic pits have been found in the vicinity of the long barrows
(Gidlöf & Johansson 2002:12; Gidlöf, K., Johansson, T. and Sarnäs, P.,
pers.com.). It is uncertain, however, whether these are connected to
rituals held at the monument or are the remains of a settlement phase.
Two more partly excavated long barrows in south-west Skåne are
Örnakulla at Skabersjö and Jättegraven outside Trelleborg, both of which
are assumed to have been built early in the Early Neolithic (Larsson, L.
2002). In relation to the situation in western Skåne, Neolithic elements
seem to have been adopted earlier in the area around present-day Malmö.
The interdisciplinary Ystad Project has charted the prehistory of parts
of south-east Skåne (Larsson, L. et al. 1992). In this area too, the earliest
phase of the Early Neolithic saw continued settlement along the coast, at
places like Mossby in Västra Nöbbelöv parish, Kabusa in Stora Köpinge
parish, and Ystad Sandskog in Ystad parish. In the lagoon environment at
Ystad Sandskog, site continuity can be followed from the Late
Mesolithic, while the settlements at Mossby and Kabusa by river mouths
seem not to have been established until the Early Neolithic. The distance
between Mossby and Ystad Sandskog is just over 15 kilometres, and
from there it is four more kilometres to the Kabusa site. It is reasonable to
presume that these places were used by different populations. A
settlement pattern similar to that in western Skåne can possibly be
discerned, with different groups establishing themselves at estuaries or
lagoons. Places which were already inhabited in the Late Mesolithic were
chosen, but other areas were also claimed as time passed. The distribution
of pointed-butted axes suggests that the inner hummocky landscape was
also used (Hellerström 1988; Larsson, M. 1992; Larsson, L. 1998). A few
kilometres north of Kabusa, a long barrow has been excavated. When a
ploughed-out Bronze Age barrow was excavated at Skogsdala it was
found that it had been preceded by both a long dolmen and a long barrow.
The pottery which can probably be associated with the long barrow
suggests that it was built at the end of the Early Neolithic (Jacobsson
1986). The archaeological evidence shows that contacts between southeast Skåne and above all Bornholm were close in much of prehistoric
time – a natural consequence of the fact that south-east Skåne is the
208
nearest mainland for the people of Bornholm. In clear weather it is
possible to see the Scanian coast from the cliffs at Hammeren in northern
Bornholm. Since there is no primary supply of flint in Bornholm, this raw
material had to be imported, which presupposes the maintenance of
regular contacts with the mainland. Settlement in the earliest part of the
Neolithic also seems to have been structured according to principles
similar to those in south-east Skåne. There are several settlements and
stray finds which can be placed in the first part of the Early Neolithic,
both on the coast and inland (Nielsen, F. O. 1996). At Limensgård in
southern Bornholm, remains of two two-aisled houses have been
documented in an occupation layer with Early Neolithic pottery. The
most complete of the two houses had gently rounded gables and an
estimated length of 18 m and a width of almost 6 m. A cereal grain from
one of the roof-bearing post-holes in one of the two houses has been 14Cdated to EN I. There are no datings of long barrows in Bornholm (Nielsen
& Nielsen 1990; Nielsen, P. O. 1999; Nielsen, F. O. 2001).
Despite the size of the excavated areas, no certain Early Neolithic twoaisled houses have been documented in the Malmö region. The
excavations of Fosie IV in Malmö yielded only small and highly
uncertain evidence of houses from the Early and Middle Neolithic
(Björhem & Säfvestad 1989:16ff). Two buildings, houses 14 and 82,
have been considered as possible Early or Middle Neolithic structures,
but their dating is uncertain. At Valdemarsro a house of trapezoidal form
has been excavated. It was about 12 m long and 6 m wide. The length is
uncertain, however, since the eastern part was right at the edge of a
trench. The highly unsure dating of this house to the Early Neolithic is
based on a small amount of pottery found in one of the post-holes
(Lindahl Jensen 1992). The lack of house remains may of course be due
to the houses actually lying outside excavated areas in Malmö. Yet such
large areas have been excavated that it cannot be ruled out that a slightly
different settlement organization prevailed in the Early Neolithic in this
part of the country. In the areas around the valleys of western Skåne we
have seen that the Late Mesolithic tradition of large settlements where the
majority of the society’s activities were performed survived into the Early
Neolithic. The main settlements were central places to which the identity
of the group and the individual was attached and the significance of the
place maintained and manifested through pit offerings and burial
ceremonies. There are no large excavated dwelling sites which can be
dated with certainty to EN I in south-east Skåne, but the Mossby site, just
over 15 kilometres west of Ystad, with its two-aisled house, suggests that
the southern and south-east parts of Skåne can also have had main
settlements of the same character as in western Skåne. In Bornholm the
houses at Limensgård, one of which was about 18 m long and may have
functioned as a multi-family house, suggests a similar state of affairs.
Perhaps the settlements in the Malmö region never attained this status
during the Early Neolithic, which simultaneously meant that they are
more difficult to identify in the archaeological record. The evidence at
Late Mesolithic coastal sites, such as Kvarteret Nore, Gränsstigen,
Elinelund, and Soldattorpet, shows that they were also used in the Early
Neolithic, but it is hard to determine the character of the occupation.
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Since the excavations were concentrated on occupation layers and finds,
it is impossible to judge the scope of remains of settlement on these
coastal sites. We find a varied inventory of tools at some inland sites
(Larsson, M. 1984), perhaps showing that they functioned as main
settlements. It is uncertain, however, whether they were the scene of the
different activities of the society. In an early phase of the Early Neolithic,
large gatherings, where social and spiritual activities were performed,
may perhaps have been located in places where long barrows were built –
places which may of course previously have functioned as settlements.
The dating of the Scanian long barrows is uncertain, but one can detect a
tendency for the earliest of them to have been constructed in the Malmö
area and south-west Skåne. The long barrow at Skogsdala was probably
erected in a later phase of the Early Neolithic, while the dating of
Krångeltofta is uncertain.
Perhaps it is reasonable to imagine that a Neolithic way of life gained
a foothold first and more distinctly in the south-west of Skåne and
gradually spread to the north and east. This idea is corroborated by the
excavations at the Early Neolithic site of Nymölla III, by the Hanöbukten
bay in north-eastern Skåne, which showed that the element of new
Neolithic subsistence here was virtually non-existent (Wyszomirska
1988). The rich occurrence of flint and mining in the Malmö area
probably meant that this region acquired special significance early on.
The demand for high-quality flint, particularly necessary for axes,
increased in the Early Neolithic. Proper flint mines were opened at
different places in southern Scandinavia where flint was accessible
(Rudebeck 1998).
In Denmark too, the population in the initial phase of the Early
Neolithic chose largely to live along the coasts and the fjords (Nielsen,
P. O. 1985; Skaarup 1985; Andersen 1993). Often these were places with
an ancestry – earlier generations had lived there. Nielsen (1985) has
shown that almost 30% of the settlements in Denmark and Skåne which
can be associated with the Oxie group (ENA/EN I) were located in places
also used by Late Mesolithic populations. The assumption that the coastal
sites were used solely for short-term seasonally occupied fishing places,
as suggested by Madsen (1982:203–205) and others, is contradicted by
the excavations of Bjørnsholm on Limfjorden in northern Jutland. “The
presence of a habitation area and a rich grave behind the shell-mound
(S. H. Andersen & E. Johansen 1992) indicates that this site must have
had a high economic and social importance in the Early Neolithic.
Therefore, it could not have been a short term seasonal catching site”
(Andersen 1993). Apart from the settlements on the coast, special inland
areas on lakes and rivers were gradually occupied. Unlike the situation in
Skåne, a large number of Early Neolithic flat-earth graves are known in
Denmark. Ebbesen (1994) has documented 86 graves from 71 sites. In
several cases it was difficult to judge whether the graves were covered by
a long barrow or not. What is clear, however, is that in the Early
Neolithic there were graves both under flat earth and under long barrows.
The majority of the flat-earth graves have been found in Jutland. In
several cases the link between dwelling site and graves is not fully
elucidated because of small excavation areas or insufficient
210
documentation. There are nevertheless some sites where remains of Early
Neolithic settlement are registered beside the graves, which could
indicate there was an intimate connection after all. There are a number of
examples of long barrows being built on earlier settlements (Liversage
1981, 1992). It is conceivable that some of the main settlements, which
also had functions as places for social and ritual gatherings, later had
grave monuments erected on them. The place was thus transformed from
a settlement into a wholly ceremonial site. A plausible hypothesis is that
flat-earth graves were dug on or beside special main settlements in the
opening phase of the Early Neolithic. The graves were a part of the rituals
to confirm the group’s identity which was linked to the place through the
ancestors, and in this way the prevailing social order was legitimized and
reaffirmed. The construction of a barrow over the graves presumably only
happened at certain places in special circumstances. In connection with
the socialization of the whole landscape, when some of the activities
formerly associated with the main settlement were relocated, material
from a dwelling site was gathered in a mound which sealed the graves.
The significance of the place was thereby marked physically and it was
transformed into a venue for religious ceremonies. What then were the
circumstances that led to grave monuments being built earlier in some
regions than in others – and not at all in some places?
It is striking that Late Mesolithic society in southern Scandinavia was
evidently characterized by tenacious structures. Neolithization came
much later here than on the continent, and the transition seems to have
been protracted and fairly undramatic. The majority of scholars believe
that the economic conditions in southern Scandinavia in the fifth
millennium BC were so favourable that a switch to a food-producing
lifestyle was not necessary. It was only in connection with a minor
change to a cooler, damper climate around 4000 cal. bc that
Neolithization, according to this school, got under way. A reduction of
the salt content in the sea impaired conditions for oysters and possibly for
other marine resources as well (e.g. Rowley-Conwy 1983, 1984, 1985;
Zvelebil & Conwy 1984). I have previously touched on the uncertainties
in this line of thought. Since the Late Mesolithic population evidently
used such a varied range of resources, small ecological changes probably
did not affect their subsistence. Moreover, cultivation and animal
husbandry never acquired any great economic significance in the initial
phase of the Neolithic. To begin with the changes in the social and
economic organization were probably limited. It is presumably also the
case that Late Mesolithic society was in equilibrium, with harmony in the
interaction of the social organization, the environment, and the
cosmology (cf. Tilley 1996:68f). Although Late Mesolithic skeletons
show that a large share of the population seem to have been victims of
violence, this should perhaps be seen primarily as reflecting disputes
between different groups (cf. Fischer 2002:372). In the material from
graves and dwelling sites there are no clear signs of any serious tensions
within the group – between different factions such as men–women, old–
young etc. – which could lead to abrupt changes. The structural principles
were maintained and reproduced in everyday pursuits and through the
funeral rituals; the status is preserved through particularly active deeds.
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This state of affairs may have prevailed in the initial phase of the Early
Neolithic.
Despite the tenacity of a society’s structural principles, change
nevertheless seems to be something that always exists, even though we
do not always note it. We choose change in preference to absence of
change to avoid saturation processes in our everyday life (Asplund 1967;
Nilsson 2001:69f). The transformation of society at the transition from
the Late Mesolithic to the Early Neolithic was a slow process whereby a
new ideological concept gradually led to new perceptions of time and
place and a change in the power structures of society. It was not a sudden
event; the contact maintained between different groups, both within the
Ertebølle culture and with the populations on the continent who had
adopted agriculture, functioned as a catalyst whereby ideas were
inevitably spread along with the traded commodities.
However, it was not a ready-made “Neolithic package” that was
delivered to southern Scandinavia, but various expressions of the
continental farming societies, the meaning of which was received and
transformed in various ways in the different regions of southern
Scandinavia. This probably explains why the Neolithization process went
on at varying speeds and with varying expressions in different parts of
Skåne and Denmark (cf. Tilley 1996:73). Receptiveness to different
Neolithic elements was dependent on conditions in each specific society.
For example, the need to construct megalithic tombs varied from one area
to another.
In Denmark, as in the Malmö area, there are early datings of longhouses and they are concentrated in densely settled areas. One of the
oldest known long barrows is from Bjørnsholm in northern Jutland,
which has been dated to 5100±160 BP (3990–3650 cal. bc) (Andersen &
Johansen 1992:52). Like Barkær, which is also dated to EN I (Liversage
1992), the two long barrows are adjacent to primary deposits of flint and
not far from the flint mines in Thisted and Blegvad. At least two of the
mines in Thisted were in use in the Early Neolithic (Madsen, B.
1993:127). Elisabeth Rudebeck suggests that flint mining in the opening
phase of the Early Neolithic should perhaps be regarded as a rare and
esoteric pursuit. An analysis of pointed-butted and thin-butted flint axes –
made of Senonian flint probably deriving from the mines at Södra
Sallerup – showed that the majority of the pointed-butted axes, unlike the
thin-butted ones, had kept a small part of the cortex at the butt section.
According to Rudebeck, this could be interpreted as showing that it was
considered important to leave a “trademark” indicating the origin and
quality of the flint. It also suggests, possibly, that the flint obtained by
mining was in demand not just because of its physical properties as raw
material but was also significant as a symbol of special events within the
social sphere. Cortex was therefore not only a guarantee of quality and
origin but also showed the importance of the actual flint mining as a
social ritual (Rudebeck 1998).
In south-west Skåne and northern Jutland, then, there is evidence of
flint mining in the Early Neolithic and, at least in south-west Skåne, at
the very start of the Early Neolithic. I believe that the communities in
these areas had yet another dimension in their organization. The flint
212
circulated as raw material between different communities, and it is
possible that these regions, by selling flint, established early longdistance contacts, which included the continental farming cultures to the
south. The belief that flint taken from deep mineshafts possesses special
qualities apart from purely physical ones gave the raw material a special
exclusiveness. Skill in mining and flint technology therefore gave
authority to local experts in these areas, which contributed to a more
distinct social hierarchy here than in other regions. The exchange of
goods is an important medium through which social obligations and debts
are built up and a higher social position is attained. The growing social
complexity together with the far-reaching contacts with groups on the
continent led to “Neolithic power monuments” like the long barrow being
established earlier in certain flint-rich areas in southern Scandinavia.
These groups thus adopted the tradition of building grave monuments,
partly as a way to assert the right to a particular territory and its
resources. This took place in areas which were probably fairly densely
populated already in the Late Mesolithic. The mining areas may have
functioned as centres from which the innovations were passed on to other
parts of southern Scandinavia.
The population in western Skåne, in contrast, adopted the custom of
building megalithic tombs in connection with the occupation of new land
(see chapter 5). Tensions between different groups arose when an older
élite acquired social control which they legitimated at ceremonies. Some
of the population sought freedom from this supremacy and settled new
areas which had only been temporarily visited before this. Grave
monuments were erected, probably not until the second half of the Early
Neolithic, as a stage in the socialization of the “new” landscape and not,
as in south-west Skåne or northern Jutland, to confirm and strengthen the
“old” lands and resources. The basic power structures of society
nevertheless persisted, and rituals at the megalithic tombs served to
legitimize the new people in power.
In some places, then, it seems that monument building took place later,
while other areas did not adopt the tradition at all. It is striking that the
grave monuments in Skåne are concentrated in the most densely
populated areas – where we have the most numerous and most distinct
remains of Neolithic settlement. In the central and northern parts of the
province there are few or no megalithic tombs. Randsborg (1975) has
linked the occurrence of megalithic tombs to densely populated areas. It
is probably the case that a relatively large population was a necessary
condition for the social and ideological environment required for the
construction of these monuments. Building megalithic tombs was a part
of the ideological concept which involved a new perception and control
of time and place. A Neolithic economy and ideology were interwoven,
but not all population groups adopted all the elements. The building of
the monuments presupposed the formation of established settlement
districts or landscape spaces. Neolithic settlements, votive sites,
megalithic tombs, and stray finds show a clear distribution in coastal
areas and possibly in the area around Ringsjön as well (Malmer 1957;
Sjöström 1992; Karsten 1994). Excavations in the interior of Skåne are
limited in number, but it is reasonable to imagine that there was never a
213
need in these areas to socialize the landscape since settlement in the
interior was perhaps of a more temporary kind and the transformation of
the landscape was limited. The few votive sites and the megalithic tombs
might suggest that these activities were still concentrated at the
settlements.
At the end of the Early Neolithic, changes in the settlement pattern can
be observed in many parts of southern Scandinavia. The changes vary
from area to area, but generally speaking it may be said that the number
of settlements increases and that they are concentrated in special areas.
In the south-west parts of Skåne, according to Mats Larsson, there was
a shift of settlements from the hummocky interior to the rich clay soils on
the coast at places like Bellevuegården, Stolpalösa, and Elisedal (Larsson,
M. 1984). The coastal areas, as we have seen, were also inhabited during
EN I at places like Soldattorpet, Gränsstigen, Kvarteret Nore, and
Elinelund, sites already used during the Late Mesolithic. On the other
hand, it seems as if settlement became denser on the coast in EN II. In
addition, there are elements of pottery belonging to the Bellevuegården
group (ENC/EN II) at Soldattorpet and Gränsstigen which suggest site
continuity. In south-east Skåne too, we see a concentration of settlements
on the coast, and continuity from EN I can be discerned at some places,
such as Kabusa. In both areas of southern Skåne there is distinct site
continuity between the late Early Neolithic and the early Middle
Neolithic (Larsson, M. 1984, 1985, 1992; Svensson 1986; Larsson, L.
1992a, 1998). It is thus also during this period that the first megalithic
tombs are built and deposits in wetlands increase significantly (Karsten
1994). South-west and south-east Skåne are two of the areas in the
province with the greatest density of megalithic tombs, and several
excavations have demonstrated a link between settlement and megalithic
tombs within these regions (Larsson, M. 1988a, 1988b, 1992; Larsson, L.
1992a, 1992c, 1998; Strömberg 1988b). In Bornholm too it is striking
how well the distribution of settlements from EN II–MNA II agrees with
the distribution of megalithic tombs and votive deposits (Nielsen, F. O.
1996). In Denmark, Madsen (1982), Skaarup (1985, 1993), Andersen
(1997), and others have pointed out the link between dwelling site, burial
place, and votive site in the late Early Neolithic and the early Middle
Neolithic in central Jutland, on the islands south of Fyn and in south-west
Fyn. In these regions too, we can probably discern the rise of special
landscape spaces. The number of long barrows, dolmens, and passage
graves, however, is much larger in Denmark than in Skåne. Of the
roughly 7,000 known megalithic tombs in Denmark, dolmens account for
about 90%, which can be compared with the situation in Skåne, where we
know of approximately 45 dolmens and 50 passage graves (Skaarup
1993; Bägerfeldt 1993; Burenhult 1999; Tilley 1999a). Above all, the
megalithic tombs are concentrated in eastern Denmark and northern
Jutland. A partial explanation for the large number of grave monuments
in Denmark in relation to Skåne can be given if we also study other
phenomena such as votive activity at the big central places.
It seems as if there are regional differences in Early and Middle
Neolithic votive customs. In most areas of southern Scandinavia the
frequency of deposits shows a considerable rise late in the Early Neolithic
214
compared to the preceding period. On the other hand, dissimilarities can
be discerned as regards the type of objects deposited. I have previously
dealt with the aspects of source criticism associated with finds from
votive sites, since the majority have been found by people working with
the land and few sites have been excavated. With these considerations in
mind, it may be observed that it was evidently much more common to
deposit pots in wetlands in Denmark than in Skåne. Finds of deposited
pots are rare in Skåne, with only a few known sites (Karsten 1994:61f).
The pottery from the votive fen at Saxtorp 26 is highly fragmented. The
sherds are estimated to represent at least 32 pots. However, only
fragmented pots have been found in the fen, which might suggest that
whole vessels were not deposited, only parts or sherds (Nilsson &
Nilsson 2003). At the Neolithic votive fen at Hindby outside Malmö,
three Early Neolithic pots were deposited. They were placed at the
northern edge of the fen (Svensson 1993). At Röekillorna, parts of Early
Neolithic pots were placed in the spring (Stjernquist 1997). Single pots
have been documented at four other places (Karsten 1994:61f). In
Denmark deposits of pots are common alongside flint axes, amber and
bones of animals and humans in the late Early Neolithic and the early
Middle Neolithic. In the Danish wetlands the finds are often whole pots
or large parts, although small sherds also occur (Becker 1947; Koch
1998).
I have previously discussed the possibility that the varying forms and
decoration of the pots emphasized the differences between different
groups in a way that axes did not. Dissimilarities in the combination of
decorative patterns on the pottery could be an expression of group
affiliation. In western Skåne the need to mark social control and group
affiliation was not particularly strong at the end of the Early Neolithic.
Some of the coastal population had broken up from their old kin groups
and established themselves in the interior. In western Skåne – and many
other parts of the province – we therefore see that private sacrifices seem
to dominate at the end of the Early Neolithic, with deposits of axes. It is
only when the inland settlement districts are established at the start of the
Middle Neolithic that the demand once again grows for institutionalized
rituals, where group identity is marked and the prevailing order
confirmed. Pottery now acquires greater significance in the ritual, chiefly
at collective activities held at the megalithic tombs, which now acquire a
significant role as meeting places as well. In northern Jutland and eastern
Denmark this period of “independence” never seems to occur. There are
clear signs that the social groups were held together more firmly here,
without the same opportunity for breakaway groups as in western Skåne.
In EN II–MNA I a number of enclosed places, known as Sarup
enclosures, were established, chiefly in eastern Denmark and northern
Jutland. Just over twenty of these are known to date. The design of the
enclosure at Sarup, with sections of several smaller enclosures, according
to Niels H. Andersen (1997, 2000), can be interpreted as a reflection of
the social organization. He believes that the population was organized in
a segmented tribal system with each tribe occupying an area of roughly
the same size. The different tribes in a given area were politically and
economically united, and one expression of this was their assemblies at
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the big central places – the Sarup sites. Each enclosed section at the
central place would thus correspond to one family unit, settlement, or
tribe. This regulated organization, in my opinion, could have
counteracted the breaking away of certain groups which can be
distinguished in western Skåne in the same period.
These structures can thus be viewed as testimony to how formalized
the organization was in these parts of Denmark in the late Early
Neolithic. For the individual, identity and belonging to the tribe or the
local community were important, and it was also essential to mark one’s
distinctiveness vis-à-vis other societies. It is thus reasonable to assume
that the role of pottery in the ritual both at the Sarup enclosures and at the
megalithic tombs and votive sites had a powerful symbolic meaning in
the late Early Neolithic and the early Middle Neolithic. This of course
does not rule out the possibility that offerings of a private character could
also have occurred in Denmark. The large number of dolmens was thus
required to satisfy each society’s need for an identity and to maintain the
internal balance within the group. Perhaps each family strove to be
represented by one dolmen. Like the situation in western Skåne, the
dolmen was a guarantee of the prevailing conditions and tied the past
together with the present and the future. In the strictly regulated
organization in eastern Denmark and northern Jutland, on the other hand,
the dolmens marked, in a more significant way than the case was in
Skåne, the distinctive character of each local community within the larger
union that regularly met at the assembly places. In contrast to the
megalithic tombs, rather few Early Neolithic flat-earth graves are known
in Sjælland. The majority have been found in Jutland, above all in the
northern part of the peninsula (Ebbesen 1994). As in the areas in Skåne
which lack megalithic tombs, this might be an expression of the existence
of a slightly different social and economic environment. Burials took
place adjacent to the dwellings in areas where lasting settlement districts
were never established.
There is still no securely documented Sarup enclosure in Skåne in the
period. I think that there is no evidence that the Stävie site was
constructed in the period EN II–MNA II, although the system of ditches
does resemble that of the Sarup-type sites. The material in the ditches at
Stävie can be unambiguously dated to the late MNA. Another place
which has been proposed as a conceivable Sarup enclosure is Kärragård
in southern Halland. On a prehistoric promontory, remains of a ditch
about 50 m long (within the excavated area) were excavated and found to
contain pottery and flint which can be dated to EN II–MNA II (Wattman
1996). The excavated area was too small, however, to allow a secure
assessment of the character of the place. It nevertheless seems likely that
in Skåne it was usually the grave monuments and in certain cases the
settlements that functioned as assembly sites or central places at the end
of the Early Neolithic and the start of the Middle Neolithic.
Thanks to the large areas excavated in connection with the
construction of the West Coast Line, it was possible to dig and document
large parts of Early and Middle Neolithic settlements along the Saxån and
Välabäcken valleys. This meant that a more varied and nuanced image of
the organization of a Neolithic dwelling site emerged, and at some of the
216
sites it was assumed that several households could have coexisted on the
same site. Our image of Scanian Early and Middle Neolithic settlements
has previously been that they were small, with an area of 400–600 m²,
and consisted exclusively of single farms (e.g. Larsson, M. 1984, 1992;
Edenmo et al. 1997). This view, however, is usually based on limited
excavation areas, where perhaps only remains of a single house or parts
of an occupation layer have been excavated. These digs have been able to
give answers about matters such as the appearance of the material culture
and sometimes of buildings, but scarcely about the organization of a
dwelling site. Excavations along the West Coast Line showed a varied
picture of Early and Middle Neolithic settlement, with both single farms
and coexisting farms seemingly occurring. Saxtorp 23 and Dagstorp 19
demonstrated that already in EN I there are examples of several
contemporary household units standing on the same spot. At Dagstorp 19,
where at least four houses are supposed to have functioned
simultaneously, it is reasonable to speculate about the existence of a
conglomerate of different farm units in an early phase of the Middle
Neolithic. The results from Dagstorp 19 agree with the knowledge we
have about Danish dwelling sites from the early Middle Neolithic. The
settlements in Langeland illustrate clearly the occurrence of dwelling
sites covering large areas. Troldebjerg covered least 30,000 m² and
Klintebakken has been estimated as at least 37,000 m² (Skaarup
1985:363). At Troldebjerg a number of horseshoe-shaped houses stood
partly dug into the slope. Along the shore are the vestiges of two postbuilt structures which have been interpreted as long-houses but should
perhaps rather be considered as remains of an enclosure or palisade.
There have therefore been attempts at a reinterpretation. A small-scale
excavation beside the suspected palisade was aimed to ascertain whether
there was a pit system similar to that at the central place of Sarup. No
such system could be observed at Troldebjerg, so it is still uncertain
whether it is a dwelling site or some form of enclosed central place with a
ritual function (Skaarup 1985:47). On the site of the big Sarup enclosure
in south-west Fyn, a settlement was established in MNA II comprising
roughly 40,000 m² (Andersen 1997:115). In Jutland too, there are
excavations showing that Middle Neolithic settlements can cover areas of
several hectares (Madsen 1982).
The general tendency of settlements varying in area in several parts of
southern Scandinavia is probably connected with the general
development towards an increasingly collective ideology in MNA. It is
likely that several people were tied to one and the same place. This made
it easier for the leading stratum to supervise social relations and maintain
the prevailing structures. We see that this trend seems to culminate in
some areas of Skåne in MNA III. The settlement at Dagstorp 19 probably
had its largest population in this period. In Malmö it seems as if
settlement was agglomerated on a larger site, namely, Hindby Mosse.
Several smaller settlements were concentrated here in a larger unit,
located in a naturally well-protected place. The settlement at Hindby was
circular with a diameter of about 100 m, a central section virtually
without finds, and a division into two demarcated areas (Svensson 1986).
In Denmark several of the settlements from this period are likewise large
217
in area with numerous finds, such as Bundsø (Mathiassen 1939),
Trelleborg (Mathiassen 1944), Lindø (Winther 1926), Sarup IV
(Andersen 1997), and Tøvelsø, which is estimated to have covered an
area of 150,000 m² (Skaarup 1985:365). At Lindø remains of at least two
houses were documented, one measuring roughly 8×5 m, the other 7×4 m
(Winther 1926:24).
I am aware of the problem of determining whether different remains
on a site are contemporary. It cannot be ruled out that the large dwelling
sites may be the result of repeated visits over a long time. The available
radiometric datings and finds, in the form of flint and pottery, do not
allow the fine chronology required to decide whether different remains on
a site functioned simultaneously. Moreover, the remains, in the form of
fences and proper farm structures, are of such a character that the
organization of the sites does not give any clear answers. I nevertheless
think that the visible traces of settlement, in the form of site organization
and patterns, together with theories about social relations, strengthen the
hypothesis that the big sites are a result of settlement being concentrated
in one place. While the number of settlements both in western Skåne and
in areas around Malmö and Ystad was decreasing in MNA III, some of
the remaining sites grew in area, which could be viewed as the result of a
contraction of settlement (Svensson 1986; Larsson, L. 1998:441).
Andersen makes the same reflection about the settlement pattern around
Sarup in the period MNA II–III (Andersen 1997:115–125). For
Langeland, Skaarup describes a settlement situation in which the
population was grouped in “village-like communities” (Skaarup
1985:365). In places where several buildings not overlapping each other
have been documented, as at Dagstorp 19, Lindø (Winther 1926), and
Troldebjerg (Winther 1935), or where a regulated site organization can be
demonstrated, as at Hindby (Svensson 1986), I believe that there is reason
to speak of an agglomerated and contemporary settlement unit.
The absolute zenith in the whole of southern Scandinavia as regards
votive deposits – in the form of stone, pottery, and bone objects – in
wetlands is reached in EN II. In Denmark, unlike Skåne, pottery is of
great significance in the votive ritual, being important for showing group
affiliation. This is manifested in the construction of Sarup sites which
show the fixed organization that existed here. At the same time, the
building of megalithic tombs began in the most densely populated areas.
At the start of the Middle Neolithic the votive ritual was redirected to the
megalithic tombs and pottery dominated at collective ceremonies. Private
sacrifices continued to be made on a small scale, however. At the same
time, we see a growth in the size of settlements as the people of a district
are brought together in larger units. In Skåne it seems as if this process
reached its climax in MNA III, with large settlements such as Dagstorp
19, Barsebäck 48, and the Hindby Mosse site.
Ebbesen has shown that depositions of pottery in grave chambers
continued throughout MNA in Denmark, while the customs of offering
pottery outside the megalithic tombs, with few exceptions, took place
only in MNA I–II on the Danish islands and slightly longer, MNA I–III,
in Jutland (Ebbesen 1975, 1978). Hårdh’s chronological study of the
pottery from the megalithic tombs of western Skåne showed that
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deposition continued outside these in MNA I–IV, culminating in MNA I–
III (Hårdh 1986, 1990b). Deposits of pottery in wetlands likewise reached
their zenith in the late Early Neolithic and the early Middle Neolithic in
Denmark, after which they decreased sharply (Bennike et al. 1986; Koch
1998). Instead it is deposits of axes that now dominate both away from
the megalithic tombs and in the wetlands (Ebbesen 1975; Andersen
2000). In Skåne axes were likewise deposited in front of megalithic
tombs in the late Funnel Beaker culture (Strömberg 1968). The changes
in the ceremonies at the grave monuments and in the votive practices
around the wetlands are thus observed in both Skåne and Denmark in the
middle part of MNA, albeit not exactly at the same time. In the period EN
II–MNA II votive ceremonies were generally more varied and
comprehensive than in later phases. Pottery was important throughout the
whole phase in Denmark and the early Middle Neolithic at the passage
graves in Skåne. At the end of MNA the flint axe stands out as the most
important object to deposit throughout southern Scandinavia. How can
the changes in votive activity in the latter part of the Funnel Beaker
culture be linked to settlement in the different parts of southern
Scandinavia?
In the closing phase of the Funnel Beaker culture and at the transition
to the Battle Axe culture there was a change in the settlement pattern in
Skåne. The large agglomerated settlements ceased to function, and
instead the population lived in small groups. The society consisted of
small, autonomous groups which were integrated on special occasions at
major central places like those at Dösjebro and Stävie in western Skåne.
In Malmö too, within a limited area at Hyllie, two palisaded enclosures
have been documented – Hyllie beside Annetorpsleden (Svensson 1991;
2002) and Bunkeflo at Skjutbanorna (Jonsson 1995; Svensson 2002). The
latter was on the coastline as it was then, while the other was located
beside a wetland area about four kilometres inland. The two sites were
located on small elevations in an otherwise flat landscape. The palisades
presumably formed oval, completely closed enclosures with an area of
between 30,000 and 50,000 m². They consisted of a complicated system
of three to five rows of palisades. The finds in the enclosures are limited,
but deposits of axes in post-holes have been registered at both places. The
large number of preforms for thick-butted and hollow-edged flint axes
collected on the Järavallen ridge at Sibbarp close to Bunkeflo is
interesting. These suggest contemporary axe manufacture on a significant
scale at the enclosure. The two palisaded enclosures outside Malmö have
been dated by means of finds and 14C analyses to the first half of MNB,
that is, the Battle Axe culture (Jonsson 1995; Svensson 1991, 2002). In
south-east Skåne there is at least one site which could have functioned as
a Middle Neolithic central place. In 1995 a palisade structure was
excavated in Stora Herrestad outside Ystad, located on a slight rise which
in the Neolithic was a promontory surrounded by wetlands. The structure,
which consisted of closely placed post-holes, extended for 110 m over the
whole excavation area. The dating of the structure is problematic since no
deposited artefacts or charcoal remains of posts were observed
(Andersson, T. 1999). The topographical situation of the palisade,
however, suggests a Neolithic date (Svensson 2002). At none of these
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palisaded enclosures have remains of ordinary settlements been found,
nor at Stävie. At Hyllie virtually the whole enclosed area was excavated
without revealing traces of contemporary houses. It is clear that the sites
in Skåne were not used as dwelling sites but functioned as special places
of assembly.
In relation to Skåne, the situation in Bornholm seems to have been
partly different in the late Funnel Beaker culture. The dwelling sites at
Limensgård and Grødbygård in Bornholm have yielded a large amount of
material with a great many house remains from the end of MNA and the
start of MNB (Nielsen & Nielsen 1985, 1990; Nielsen, P. O. 1999:155).
The dwelling sites were used for a long period, and in several cases the
houses overlap each other, which makes it difficult to analyse the site
organization. At Grødbygård 16 houses have been assigned to MNA V
and the first part of MNB. The circumstances at Limensgård are similar,
with 18 documented houses, several of which overlap each other. The
number of houses on the two sites from MNA V and the first half of
MNB is so large that it is likely that some of the units which do not
overlap may have been in use simultaneously. Alongside the big
settlements, two palisaded enclosures from MNA V have been the subject
of trial digs, one at Rispebjerg, the other at Vasagård Øst in southern
Bornholm (Nielsen, F. O. 1996, 2000, 2001). The investigations have
above all concerned Rispebjerg, where the enclosure and the quantity of
finds are much larger than at Vasagård Øst. Systems of several different
palisade ditches enclosed an area of about 60,000 m². Traces of
settlement in the form of occupation layers with finds of habitation
character and remains of houses have been documented inside the
enclosures. Perhaps the palisaded enclosures here, unlike those in Skåne,
also functioned as settlements. Buildings, in the form of round post-built
structures, between seven and eight metres in diameter, also occur at the
palisaded enclosures. Whereas the sites in Skåne were used as places for
gathering people together from their scattered settlements, their function
in Bornholm may also have included habitation. It is interesting that all
four sites – Limensgård, Grødbygård, Vasagård Øst, and Rispebjerg – are
in a zone stretching just ten kilometres. It is thus clear that settlement in
southern Bornholm was concentrated during the late Funnel Beaker
culture and the early Battle Axe culture. Bornholm is the only area in
southern Scandinavia where clear house remains from MNA V and early
MNB have been documented (Nielsen, F. O. 1989).
The pottery on the Bornholm sites from the late MNA and early MNB
shows a partly separate development, although there are similarities in
form and decoration between late Funnel Beaker pottery from Bornholm
and pottery from the Hagestad area in south-east Skåne, which was
previously designated Pitted Ware (Hulthén 1977:123ff). Vasagård and
Grødbygård have been nominated as type sites for two phases of the late
Funnel Beaker culture on the island (Nielsen & Nielsen 1991). In this
connection it has been proposed that the Valby phase should be divided
into an early and a late part, represented by Vasagård and Karlsfält for the
early phase and by Grødby and Stävie for the late phase (Nielsen and
Nielsen 1991:63f). Vasagård and Karlsfält are dated by Nielsen and
Nielsen (1991:64) to MNA and Stävie and Grødby to MNB. The
220
differences in form and decoration between the material from Vasagård
and Grødby are significant, however. It is therefore uncertain how the
house remains and dwelling sites should be interpreted in terms of
cultural history. Judging by the 14C datings, however, the Grødby phase is
contemporary with the early Battle Axe culture in southern Sweden. The
settlement concentration in southern Bornholm is thus evidence that the
split-up of settlement that seems to have taken place in Skåne in the late
MNA did not take place in Bornholm until the middle part of MNB
(Nielsen, P. O. 1999:156). It seems as if the influences of the Battle Axe
culture on the social organization reached Bornholm slightly later than
the rest of southern Scandinavia. Only a small quantity of pottery which
can be defined as belonging to the Pitted Ware culture has been found on
the island (Nielsen & Nielsen 1991:64).
The special conditions prevailing on the island of Bornholm may have
meant that the structural principles behind the social organization were
more tenacious here than on the mainland. The social environment on the
island favoured a reproduction of the dominating organization, and the
traditional values prevailing in the Funnel Beaker culture could therefore
survive longer. Since the groups lived closer together in a defined
geographical area, it may have been easier to maintain the existing power
structures. Although the people of Bornholm did not live in isolation
from external contacts, new ideas may have reached the island with a
slight lag. The leading stratum preserved their social control, so we see
the big settlements at the same time as the adoption of the tradition of
building large places of assembly, as the palisaded enclosures were, and
their possible use as settlements as well.
Settlement development in Denmark, just as in Bornholm, has been
considered to lead to increasingly large sites, culminating in MNA V
(Skaarup 1985). Rather few of the excavated Danish settlements have
yielded information about the internal organization of the sites, however.
It is probable that some of the “big settlements” also, or perhaps solely,
had a function as places of assembly like the Scanian central places. At
Sigersted I in central Sjælland a double palisade was documented in the
1970s. The site is at the confluence of three rivers beside an older Sarup
site (Nielsen, P. O. 1985). Only a small part has been excavated, and the
feature was initially interpreted as being part of a long-house (Davidsen
1978) but has subsequently been interpreted by Andersen as a defensive
structure (Andersen 1997). The date of the structure (MNA V), the
occurrence of a palisade with axe offerings and pottery deposits, and
small votive pits make it more likely that the site should be compared to
the palisaded enclosure in Dösjebro. A fresh analysis by Henrik Pihl and
Mac Svensson of the large amount of flakes from the post-holes showed
that a large share were flakes from axe manufacture. This means that the
site can be compared with the palisaded enclosure in Dösjebro (Svensson
2002). At Spodsbjerg in Langeland, about fifty post-holes from an
enclosure system have been documented along the former shoreline. The
place was at the foot of a hill that in the Neolithic was partly surrounded
by the sea and a fjord. The enclosure, which measures 16 m within the
investigation area, led down to a dam. The site, which is dated to MNA
V, has extensive finds in the form of fragments of thick-butted axes and
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chisels, flake scrapers, transverse arrowheads, and so on. In addition,
objects of bones and antler were found, such as chisels, pressure tools,
shafts, and pointed weapons (Skaarup 1985:41f; Sørensen 1998). The
function of the enclosure is uncertain, but theories about livestock pens
have been put forward (Sørensen 1998:52). The topography of the site,
the enclosure, and the dating indicate that the site can be compared with
the Scanian palisaded enclosures. Troldebjerg, also in Langeland, is
another site where a palisade-like enclosure has been documented. The
place is on a promontory surrounded by wetlands. The majority of the
finds from the site can be dated to MNA I, but elements of MNA V have
been observed (Davidsen 1978:21; Skaarup 1985:47f). The function of
the palisade and the Neolithic dating are uncertain, but similarities to the
sites mentioned above can be pointed out.
The above places indicate that the concept of dwelling site in
Denmark, above all at the end of the Funnel Beaker culture, can be
discussed, since the function of the big sites has not been sufficiently
elucidated. The excavations of palisaded enclosures in Skåne and
Bornholm give new perspectives on the big Danish settlements in MNA
V. The lack of house remains at Spodsbjerg and Sigersted I may of
course be ascribed to the limited excavation areas, but might also suggest
that the sites, like Dösjebro, Hyllie, and Bunkeflo, did not function as
traditional settlements but were places of assembly for scattered
settlements. Evidence that palisaded enclosures really did occur in
Denmark as well in MNA V and at the transition to MNB comes from
two recently discovered structures. At Helgeshøj, between Copenhagen
and Roskilde, two parallel palisades were documented in 1999 which
may have enclosed about 40,000 m² of a hill beside a small watercourse.
Finds from several phases of the Funnel Beaker culture have been
registered, but remains from the closing phase of the Funnel Beaker
culture predominate and are regarded as contemporary with the palisade
structure. Pits have yielded, among other things, axe planks, some of
them burnt, fragmentary axes, flakes from axe manufacture, and pottery.
Pottery of Valby type from MNA V occurs together with butt sections of
B-axes. Because of this combination of artefact types, the feature has
been dated to the MNA/MNB transition (Giersing 2000). Only a
kilometre from Helgeshøj, at Bakkegård, yet another palisade has been
excavated; it could be followed for about 150 m. It probably surrounded a
hill (Staal 1999). It has not been possible to date the feature, but the
proximity to three megalithic tombs and the design of the palisade makes
a Neolithic dating reasonable. It is also known that some of the big
Middle Neolithic settlements were established on sites of Sarup type, for
example, at Trelleborg in Sjælland, where a large number of pits were
identified, with material belonging to MNA V (Becker 1957).
The picture above suggests that different variants of assembly places
can be discerned in the late Funnel Beaker culture and early Battle Axe
culture in southern Scandinavia. The ceremonies at the megalithic tombs
did not occur as regularly as in the early Middle Neolithic, and they had a
more private character, with individual status objects like the axe being
deposited. Palisaded enclosures, and – depending on the social
environment – perhaps also large settlements with extended functions,
222
served as central places where the population of the district met on
special occasions.
The transition to MNB and the introduction of the Battle Axe culture
seem to have unfolded differently in different parts of southern
Scandinavia. Several scholars have pointed out that Funnel Beaker
society developed towards a system whereby power was concentrated
with fewer persons and increasingly large resources were required to
preserve the prevailing power structures (Tilley 1984; Damm 1991). The
resource-demanding social system finally resulted in its own dissolution,
and the emergence of new power structures was dependent on the culturehistorical background of each region. On the island of Bornholm, as we
have seen, the new continental influences caught on later than on the
mainland.
In Denmark, as in Skåne, one can observe the existence of three
different material cultures at the MNA/MNB transition. Apart from the
encounter of the Funnel Beaker and Battle Axe cultures, material
influenced by the Pitted Ware culture also appears, above all in the northeastern and eastern parts of Denmark (Rasmussen 1993:114). In the
1980s the sites of Kainsbakke and Kirial Bro in Djursland, eastern
Jutland, were excavated (Rasmussen 1984). This yielded important
information about the Pitted Ware culture in this area. The finds from the
two sites display similarities to the Pitted Ware culture in south-west
Sweden, but it is also clear that they represent a local tradition. Points of
contact with the Funnel Beaker culture are noticeable, for instance, in the
clay discs and the thick-butted axes of Valby type. A series of 14C datings
indicate that the two sites were used at the same time as the early Single
Grave culture and possibly also the latest phase of the Funnel Beaker
culture (Tauber 1986; Rasmussen 1986, 1993).
The archaeological material, together with the datings from
Kainsbakke and Kirial Bro, suggests that the rise of the Pitted Ware
culture in Denmark has parallels with the way it emerged in Skåne. I
believe that the Funnel Beaker society dissolved as part of the population
assimilated a way of life which had been practised for a long time by
groups living on the coasts of central and southern Sweden. The earliest
Pitted Ware settlement in Denmark, like that in Skåne, is later than the
coastal settlements of western and central Sweden (Tauber 1986; Edenmo
et al. 1997). Most coastal MNA V settlements in Jutland are located on
the east coast south of Århus (Davidsen 1978:11; Rasmussen 1986:168).
The movement towards north-eastern and eastern Denmark may have
been further propelled by the contemporary deterioration in climate and
the transgression which is believed to have favoured an economy based
on marine resources (Christensen 1993). The other part of the population
who did not adopt this way of life accepted the continental ideas spread
by the Corded Ware culture.
The distribution of the Single Grave culture in Jutland seems, by and
large, to comprise the areas not inhabited by the bearers of the Pitted
Ware culture. Charlotte Damm paints a picture of how the Funnel Beaker
culture in Denmark in the later part of MNA was divided into two distinct
groups – one in western and central Jutland and one in eastern Denmark –
chiefly expressed in different mortuary customs (Damm 1993). The
223
western group, which is associated with the stone packing graves, is
contrasted with the eastern group, where burial in megalithic tombs
continued. The approach to resolving the dissatisfaction with the
increasing social control varied between the two regions. In eastern
Denmark the solution was to allow a larger share of the population to be
buried in the megalithic tombs. The cult of the ancestors was thus
continued here, and collectivism was strengthened at the expense of
individualism. In western Denmark a tradition arose instead of individual
burials in stone packing graves. The intention was probably to let part of
the population have a formal burial in which status was marked by the
grave goods placed in the adjacent mortuary houses. In this society the
individual was asserted more than the collective, and a contrast was
created vis-à-vis those who were buried in megalithic tombs. The focus
on the individual was accompanied by a similar development in other
spheres of society. Ox teeth have been noted at several places adjacent to
the stone packing graves, which indicates that ox heads were placed here.
Perhaps the ox was an important symbol in the ritual, reflecting the
increased significance of animal husbandry. Damm believes that a
situation may have arisen in which the power structure in eastern Danish
society was based on control of esoteric and ritual knowledge while
power in western Denmark was based on control of the material world,
for instance livestock. Within the latter area a breach with the traditional
Funnel Beaker society is noticed more clearly and perhaps earlier, and the
symbolism of the continental Corded Ware culture was adopted on a
large scale. Power was not structured on the basis of kin relations but
acquired through social competence and control over material valuables.
The pollen diagrams from here testify to a significant amount of forest
clearance. Changes in mortuary practice and in material culture thus
suggest radical changes in society. In eastern Jutland and the islands,
these upheavals are not as noticeable. Analyses of the finds here suggests
a relatively calm and continuous development from MNA to MNB
(Skaarup 2001).
Conditions in western Skåne in the early MNB can be compared, in
part, to the situation in eastern Denmark. Although the bearers of the
Battle Axe culture broke away from the old society and adopted an
ideology and symbolism which derived inspiration from the continent, we
see some continuity in settlement. The very earliest Battle Axe settlement
in the valley landscape seems to have gained a foothold in the old core
areas of the Funnel Beaker culture, and at least some of the megalithic
tombs were still used. In southern Skåne, studies of distribution maps
have shown a somewhat different picture. Larsson points out that the
archaeological evidence here indicates that the early remains of the Battle
Axe culture can be found in the hummocky landscape, outside the
traditional Funnel Beaker districts, while the later remains are more
concentrated on the coastal plain. The distribution of finds in the
landscape, according to Larsson, reflects an initial situation of
competition, with the bearers of the Battle Axe culture at first assigned to
marginal areas and later expanded into the core areas of the Funnel
Beaker culture. This thesis is based on 14C datings which indicate that the
Funnel Beaker culture existed parallel to the earliest phase of the Battle
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Axe culture. In the later part of MNB the bearers of the Battle Axe
culture took over the coastal plain from the declining Funnel Beaker
culture. Larsson views the distribution of the Battle Axe culture as a kind
of missionary movement, representing a new ideology with powerful
religious overtones (Larsson, L. 1989b). It is possible that part of the
population in southern Skåne in a transitional phase preserved the
customs of the Funnel Beaker culture, while another group broke away
from the traditional society, adopted continental ideas, and settled in the
marginal areas.
In the last phase of MNA, in connection with the dissolution of the
Funnel Beaker culture, we thus see that part of the population preserved
the traditional values and a power structure in which the social control
was based on ritual and spiritual knowledge, and they did so by becoming
assimilated to the Pitted Ware way of life, as in western Skåne and northeastern Denmark, or by sticking to the Funnel Beaker tradition, as in
southern Skåne and Bornholm. Other population groups in western and
central Jutland made an outright break with the old and adopted the
continental way of life represented by the Corded Ware culture, in which
social control was maintained through power over material objects and
individual status. Although the new social organization in all regions can
be derived in part from the existing Funnel Beaker society, this change in
power structures took place in different ways in different areas. In central
Jutland the structural principles behind power changed as early as the late
MNA towards a focus on control of the material world. Here the breach
with the old had a greater impact on material culture. In eastern Denmark
and much of Skåne the coming of the Battle Axe culture is more
influenced by the old traditions in that the old monuments were still used
and continuity in settlement is noticeable. This does not mean that the
power structures did not change radically; the new ideology adopted and
partly re-evaluated the old symbols.
Apart from the houses in Bornholm, the lack of distinct house remains
in southern Scandinavia in the early and middle Battle Axe culture is
striking. This should be understood in the same way as the development
of settlement in western Skåne at this time, namely, that a relatively brief
occupation on each site, together with a different outlook on the
landscape and an attitude to waste that differed from that in the Funnel
Beaker culture, in other words, a different deposition tradition, influenced
the occurrence of remains of the Battle Axe culture. Animal husbandry
seems to have been an important element of the Battle Axe culture and
may have been pursued in a way comparable with nomadism (cf.
Larsson, L. 1989b:73). The available evidence from dwelling sites
consequently indicates that people moved in fairly small groups of one or
a few nuclear families and that there were no big sites where several
households coexisted.
There are, on the other hand, a few dwelling sites with more or less
sure houses from the later part of the Battle Axe culture and the Single
Grave culture, such as the houses at Dagstorp described above. A partly
sunken structure from Kabusa in southern Skåne surrounded by postholes has been interpreted as a house. This interpretation is highly
uncertain, but there are some similarities to structures from the late MNB
225
and Late Neolithic from Denmark and Skåne. The presumed house at
Kabusa has been 14C dated to the late MNB, which agrees well with the
typological dating of pottery from the site (Larsson, L. 1989b,
1992a:103ff). A few houses have been documented in Jutland. One of the
clearer buildings was excavated at Hemmed Kirke (Boas 1993). It has
been dated on the basis of the finds to the MNB/LN transition. At
Enderupskov in southern Jutland a house has been found with pottery
which allows a probable dating in the Single Grave culture (Ethelberg et
al. 2000:120ff). The houses at Myrhøj in northern Jutland, where the
finds show influences from the Bell Beaker culture, have already been
mentioned.
It is obvious that the building tradition that was developed in the Late
Neolithic in southern Scandinavia had already started in the closing phase
of the Battle Axe culture and the Single Grave culture. A more uniform
and almost standardized building tradition emerged very quickly in much
of southern and central Scandinavia (see e.g. Björhem & Säfvestad 1989;
Artursson et al. 2003). In the late MNB the house and dwelling site
probably grew in social and economic importance once again. The
increased contact with people on the continent which can be suspected
because of the appearance of material showing influences from the Bell
Beaker culture, together with the growing number of metal finds,
probably led to the rise of more complex social relations, as those who
exerted control over the flow of goods between different regions acquired
increasing influence. Their status was materialized in the houses, which
functioned as power symbols. The significance of the megalithic tombs in
the Middle Neolithic – defining the group’s social identity and
functioning as a stabilizing factor which symbolized the permanence of
social identity – seems to have been partly transferred to the house and
the dwelling site.
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7. The society and the landscape
Men and women are not only themselves;
they are also the region in which they were born
(Somerset Maugham 1944)
In my study I have sought to understand the emergence, organization, and
change of Neolithic societies in the river valleys of western Skåne:
Saxån-Välabäcken and Lödde Å-Kävlingeån. Archaeological excavations
and surveys of ancient monuments have shown that the area contains
extensive remains of Neolithic settlement complexes – in the form of
dwelling sites, cemeteries, megalithic tombs, deposits in wetlands, and
central places – ranging from the earliest to the latest phase of the Funnel
Beaker culture and the Battle Axe culture. The surroundings of the two
valleys thus saw long-term use in the Neolithic. Recent years’
excavations in connection with the expansion of the West Coast Line
have given new and valuable insight into how Neolithic people organized
themselves in social space, both within places and between places in the
landscape space. In particular, the major excavations of dwelling sites
from several different Early and Middle Neolithic phases have allowed us
completely different insight into the organization of Funnel Beaker sites.
People’s way of life, both in the Neolithic and today, varies through
time and place. Although there are shared supraregional structures in the
areas inhabited by the bearers of the Funnel Beaker culture and later the
Battle Axe culture, regional differences in the spread and reception of
innovations can be observed in the archaeological evidence. It is equally
obvious that the identity of individual regions changed in the period of
more than 1,500 years that the Early and the Middle Neolithic
constituted. The human landscape has meaning in each specific culturehistorical context and thus has a dynamic, meaning-bearing role in
interaction with the people living in it. Alongside – and as a part of – the
ecological conditions, the landscape is filled with social memories and
meanings created by the work of previous generations. The historical
landscape must therefore be read, interpreted, and perceived not only in
terms of different patterns in space but also with a temporal perspective.
Time and place are active forces in the formation of the structural
principles that shape the social organization and hence the key to an
understanding of societal development. My interpretation of the
organization of society in the investigation area has therefore taken its
point of departure in the region’s Neolithic remains, and the manner in
which the Neolithic way of life was adopted and developed here has been
considered in terms of the distinctive regional conditions and the Late
Mesolithic background.
Ethnographic sources have shown that spatial patterns on a dwelling
site and in the landscape are often ordered according to rules which are in
part a reflection of the social organization. Important traditions leave
traces in the landscape and in the material culture because the
227
preservation of the social order must be ensured through repeated social
acts and rituals. The meaning of customs is passed on to subsequent
generations through buildings, social relations, and rituals. In this way
patterns arise at different places in the landscape which can be regarded
as signs for the archaeologist to combine and read. Spatial patterns which
repeat themselves in the archaeological evidence have therefore been
investigated with the aim of distinguishing the society’s underlying
structures and achieving an understanding of the people’s acts. The social
organization, however, is not static and permanent; instead, there is
constant interaction between actions and the underlying structures. My
line of thought has been influenced by theories of action developed in
sociology and anthropology in that I seek to give consideration equally to
the diachronic, the subject, the structure, and its dualism. Structures act as
a series of rules and resources which direct, initiate, or prevent action, but
they are also in turn a product of the action: they are constantly shaped,
reproduced, and reshaped through active actions. It may be debated to
what extent individuals as single agents can affect the structural
principles of a society, but I believe that, in the relationship to other
individuals and to the surroundings, the dynamic is created that
determines people’s actions and can thereby change the underlying
structures. The form of social relations and the power structure has
therefore been studied here in relation to the development of society, and
breaks in the spatial patterns have been considered just as important to
consider as the regularities that we perceive. We may expect that tensions
and antagonisms existed even in small social formations where unequal
relations can occur, as between, say, men and women, children and
parents, old and young, or between social groups such as kindreds etc.
Generally speaking, the exercise of power can be divided into two forms:
those aiming at control of the material world and those referring to
control over the social and cultural world – and it is the ideology that is
the foundation for the reproduction of the prevailing social and political
order.
My study has found that the social and economic organization in
western Skåne in the opening phase of the Early Neolithic largely
followed the same lines as the closing phase of the Mesolithic. The
transition was not a dramatic and sudden event but rather a long-drawnout, continuous process. The society was one of tenacious structures, with
changes coming slowly and gradually. Links with the farming societies of
the continent nevertheless led to innovations, and ideas were inevitably
spread along with trading commodities. It was thus not a complete
“Neolithic concept” that arrived in southern Scandinavia but various
expressions from the continent, the meaning of which was received and
transformed in different ways in the different regions of southern
Scandinavia.
In several cases it can be shown that Early Neolithic settlements were
located in places which had previously been used in the Late Mesolithic.
Tradition was evidently important when dwelling sites were established.
The coastal settlements were not abandoned at the transition to the
Neolithic; several of the big Late Mesolithic sites were also occupied in
EN I. In this way the ancestors’ sense for and knowledge of the landscape
228
were passed on and a social landmark was created, constituting a
permanent place in a partly mobile way of life. This understanding was
not just a matter of the physical landscape but also of the landscape as a
social construction.
There is still no sure evidence that monuments were erected in the
valleys of western Skåne in the opening phase of the Neolithic to mark
the specific territory of a people. Perhaps there were no clear landscapes
in this phase, in the sense that a population group was socially tied to a
specific area of land in its activities. The wooded landscape was also an
open landscape in that the populations could move freely in the area in
their seasonal pursuits. The distribution of settlements indicates that five
or six groups of dwelling sites were active synchronously in the
investigation area. The four groups of dwelling sites along the Saxån and
Välabäcken may have functioned as a local community while the groups
at the Barsebäck foreland and the Saxån bay may have made up one
community. The figure is intended to show how the populations probably
moved over relatively large areas, with no distinct boundaries (Fig. 102).
A long place-based tradition was nevertheless particularly important
for the group’s identity, intended to manifest and confirm its origin. In
terms of cultural history, for people’s identity it is probably just kinship
than can be said to be as important as place. Even nomads attach
memories, myths, and collective self-images to topography and
landscape. In accordance with the prevailing structural principles in the
Late Mesolithic and Early Neolithic, the settlement acquired a rich
symbolic meaning, which was reproduced through people’s actions.
Some of the Early Neolithic main settlements were much larger in area
than previous archaeologists had found for Skåne. Both large and small
dwelling sites appear to have existed in parallel. At least Dagstorp 19 and
Saxtorp 23 seem to have been big enough to be occupied by groups larger
than a single family, perhaps a whole kin group. The size of dwelling
sites shows that space was required for different activities and that there
was successive expansion. The big settlements in EN I were not just
places for dwelling; they were also the scene of burials and votive
ceremonies which meant that larger areas were claimed.
The distribution of settlement in the landscape and the organization of
dwelling sites do not reveal anything to contradict the accepted opinion of
Early Neolithic society as having been organized on the basis of kinship.
The structural principles behind social relations were established and
preserved through various bonds of kinship and friendship between
individuals and groups. Studies of traditional societies have shown that it
is usually the elders who possess the highest power. Because of their age
they were considered to have close ties to the ancestors’ spirits and the
founders of the society. They were thus the intermediaries in the transfer
of the ancestors’ knowledge to the contemporary members of the society.
Since the ancestors still had a role to play in everyday life, it was
important to retain their benevolence through recurrent rituals. The
organization of some Early Neolithic settlements in the investigation area
illustrates this state of affairs and gives some, albeit vague, hints as to
what the power structure might have been like. There was a distinct and
deliberate division of the site into different activity areas. Burials and
229
associated rituals took place close to the habitation areas. The close link
between dwelling site and burial place can be seen as a territorial marker,
with the concrete remains of the ancestors justifying the society’s claim
of its right to the site. The ancestors did not just confirm the solidarity of
the society, but also asserted its right to the resources. It is likely that the
power of the dominant group in Early Neolithic society was legitimized
and passed on through the rituals to do with burial. They maintained their
social dominance by controlling the spiritual and social world. The
collective activities, both profane and sacred, were performed on the
dwelling site. The link between the group and the place, between the
everyday activities and the social processes in the society as a whole, is
clearly seen at the settlements.
Although it must have meant a sacrifice to abandon a coastal way of
life, new settlements were also established further inland in the first part
of the Early Neolithic, chiefly along the rivers. In the coastal region there
was a long tradition and knowledge of how to organize the landscape. At
lagoons and bays, people exploited the diversity of food resources in the
sea and on land. The establishment of inland settlements has sometimes
been explained in terms of a minor change in climate affecting the
ecological and economic conditions for the coastal populations and
forcing a transition to a cultivation economy and movements inland. The
Late Mesolithic and Early Neolithic economy, however, was flexible, and
a minor ecological change probably did not mean that people altered their
way of life. Nor is there anything to suggest that cultivation became of
any great importance for subsistence. The movements inland must have
been propelled by other causes than purely economic ones.
I believe instead that it is necessary to explain the changes in terms of
conditions within the society. Since there are always tensions of some
kind in social relations, there is always a seedbed for the conflicts that
can lead to changes in society. To a certain extent the dominant class in
the opening phase of the Early Neolithic could legitimize its supremacy
through special rituals. At some point in time, however, the repressed
people in western Skåne became aware of increasing social coercion.
When settlement became more permanent in the Late Mesolithic and the
Early Neolithic, the population grew and hence also the social unit. The
increasingly stationary way of life together with a new Neolithic
mentality gave the possibility for new production conditions so that the
landscape was gradually transformed. Cleared areas were created for
tillage and livestock, although on a limited scope. In this landscape there
was a greater need to assert a sense of belonging to a place. The social
traditions which highlighted the length of time and the social memory of
a place were reinforced. The social power that was the result of acquiring
the past and using it with reference to the present and the future was
attached to the settlement. Ties to the place were therefore emphasized
with increasing strength through rituals associated with the cult of the
ancestors, in which the significance of the place and the social relations
were confirmed. The result was a structure in which one-sided ties of
dependency and obligations arose for the younger generation vis-à-vis the
older generation. The power and social control vested in the elders, the
leaders of the ritual, thus increased. Social relations became more
230
complex and internal tensions became obvious. It is important in this
context to bear in mind that people in prehistoric societies were probably
much more tied to the past than we are in today’s modern society. Those
in power in the Funnel Beaker culture accentuated bygone times to
legitimize and reproduce prevailing conditions. Those in possession of
power – probably some of the elders – were those who had the
knowledge about the past and the ancestors. This is a fundamental
difference from today’s society where power is instead associated with
the ability to quickly create and assimilate new technology, to look
forwards instead of gazing backwards.
Awareness of the growing social coercion made the social control
more fragile. At the start of the Neolithic, however, there was scope for
the younger generation to avoid subjection to the elders by migration and
expansion to new, previously unoccupied areas. The coastal society was
consequently split up and some of the population settled inland along the
water systems. This meant that the bonds and obligations between the
generations were weakened. The ancient norm system, the underlying
structures, were thereby partly transformed. In reality, as we have seen,
this did not mean that the power structures were changed, but that the
inequalities in society were temporarily mitigated. The ancestors’ role
and influence remained important, and power was obtained through
control of social and spiritual knowledge. On the other hand, the view of
the landscape changed, As the familiar coastal areas were left behind, it
became necessary to socialize the new and partly unknown landscapes.
This could be done by taking some of the activities formerly tied to the
main settlements and moving them out into the landscape. Votive
activities outside the settlement increased greatly in the form of deposits
in wetlands; in other words, the customs of depositing objects in pits
acquired a wider meaning. The burial ritual was no longer automatically
tied to the dwelling site; instead, the western European tradition of
erecting burial monuments was now adopted by the communities in the
valleys. The entire landscape space within which people moved can
therefore be regarded as a kind of macro dwelling site.
It has been possible to distinguish in the archaeological evidence how
Neolithic settlement districts or landscape spaces were gradually
established along the Saxån and Välabäcken, and subsequently
southwards to the Kävlingeån and Stångby Mosse, finally occupying the
area around the Mare Bäck and Barsebäck. The spatial distribution of
dwelling sites, burial places, and votive sites indicates that there may
have been three or four different landscape spaces in the area in the early
part of the Middle Neolithic. A landscape space corresponds to the
geographical area in which a group of people, a local community,
performed their seasonal and annual activities. However, it is possible to
detect dissimilarities between different areas in the organization of
dwelling sites. At the main settlement of Dagstorp in the Välabäcken
valley, several house remains were documented which could correspond
to more than one contemporary household unit. This organization lacks
parallels in the other areas, where isolated farms seem to have been the
prevailing form of settlement. In these latter landscape spaces it seems to
have been possible to make divisions into smaller spaces consisting of
231
one or a few households around one of the megalithic tombs or groups of
megalithic tombs. The landscape spaces that have been proposed are of
course hypothetical constructions based on available evidence about the
functions of the places, their mutual relations, their location in the
landscape, and the nature of the terrain. Even more source material would
perhaps change the picture somewhat, but the important thing in this
context is that a picture has been sketched of how people perceived and
moved in the landscape in different phases of the Early and Middle
Neolithic (Fig. 103).
The new landscape spaces were created, preserved, and reproduced
through the rituals performed at settlements, wetlands, and grave
monuments. Those who controlled the establishment of the new spaces
thus also acquired power over social reproduction, that is, the
maintenance of relations of power between individuals and groups.
Whereas power had formerly been based on rituals at the dwelling site,
these were now relocated in a larger space – the macro dwelling site or
what I have called the landscape space. The megalithic tombs can be
regarded as steering the social relationship between and above all within
different local groups, rather than as territorial markers. They served to
define the group’s social identity and acted as a stabilizing factor
symbolizing the survival of social identity. The lack of exceptional
monumental locations lets us understand that it was not the intention that
the graves should be visible from far away; they were instead exposed
towards the settlements and the groups that built them. Death is of course
an individual event but simultaneously a social happening. While death
means that an individual is separated from the society to which he or she
once belonged, the social order is recreated or reproduced in a lasting
form through the funeral rituals. In the initial phase of the Early Neolithic
these activities were carried out at the settlement itself, to which the
identity of the group was linked. As new areas of land were established,
the group marked a larger space through these places and rituals
connected with them. The votive deposits in wetlands, at secluded
locations away from the dwelling sites, were not as obviously meeting
places for the whole collective, but could have been performed by
individuals or small groups. It is clear from similarities in the
composition of depositions that the different categories of place had a
shared origin as different activities at the settlements and that they are
parts of a cohesive whole. Fragments of human bones do not just occur at
the megalithic tombs but are also often found on the dwelling sites and
votive sites of the Funnel Beaker culture. Perhaps the ancestors’ bones
were moved around between the sites precisely to emphasize that the
places belonged together. There is reason to suspect that fragmented
objects underwent the same treatment.
As the landscape spaces were established, there was a growing need to
confirm the prevailing conditions. The significance of collective rituals
thereby increased. In the early Middle Neolithic there was an emphasis
on rituals at passage graves, and richly decorated pottery – which
probably marked group affiliation – was an important constituent
element. At the same time, there was a decrease in votive deposits in
wetlands, which were presumably of a more private character. The
232
passage grave with its narrow passage suggests that access to the “holy of
holies” was permitted only to a small, exclusive group. As yet another
effect of the growing collective ideology, there is a tendency, at least in
some of the landscape spaces, for the main settlements to expand.
Dwelling sites become fewer in number and more concentrated around
some big main settlements (Fig. 104).
By gathering the population of the district at a main settlement, it was
easier for the people in power to maintain their social control. Since more
people occupied the same space, the complexity of social relations also
increased. There is a tendency for deposits of both whole and fragmented
objects in pits to become even more important in MNA III. The deposited
artefacts were reflections of the activities pursued on the site, and the pits
were therefore a metaphor for everyday chores. Through a manifestation
of everyday work, the social community could be strengthened and
inequalities could be masked.
The institutions of the traditional Funnel Beaker society may be said to
culminate in MNA III. The consolidation of the settlement districts thus
gave greater power to the leading stratum. In the reproduction of the
social order, the ritual through which an élite made increasing claims to
control over the sacred – and hence also to social and economic control –
became more complex. Inequalities were concealed by an ideology which
emphasized the collective and sought to strengthen the sense of solidarity.
The Funnel Beaker society had developed a system in which great
resources were channelled into rituals which confirmed the prevailing
order. In the latter part of MNA this policy seems to have reached a point
where it was impossible to produce the surplus required for the
ceremonies. We see once again a situation where the aroused
consciousness of the social coercion created an explosive situation which
finally led to a break-up of society. In EN I the social pressure was
relieved when certain groups moved to establish settlements in new areas.
This possibility did not exist in the late MNA, when far-reaching changes
in the society’s underlying structures were necessary.
There are several indications in the archaeological evidence of a
watershed in this phase of the Funnel Beaker culture. Settlement was split
up and a movement towards the coast is gradually noticeable. The big
main settlements in the interior were abandoned, and it seems as if the
landscape spaces created in EN II were now broken up. Shared rituals at
megalithic tombs also became less important. The flint inventory at the
settlements along the coast begin to show clear Pitted Ware influences,
and the pottery shows partly different vessel forms and decorative
patterns. It is clear that the older social and economic organization broke
up and was replaced with new forms and power relations. The internal
tensions in the society had become too great, and consequently parts of
the population left the kin groups to settle in other areas.
At the end of MNA the Funnel Beaker population no longer lived in
an equally cohesive society. Variations in pottery styles between different
places may indicate that more independent groups existed, marking their
group identity in their pottery, among other things. There has also been
speculation that there were several different “variants” of Funnel Beaker
and/or Pitted Ware culture in Skåne and Denmark in this phase. In the
233
investigation area there are places with material which can be regarded as
belonging to both the Stävie group (Stävie 3 and Stävie 17) and the
Karlsfält group (Barsebäck 48 and Västra Karaby 101). The unequal
social relations that arose in the late MNA had the consequence that some
of the Funnel Beaker population joined the groups living along the coasts
of southern Scandinavia. These Pitted Ware groups probably continued to
live in more egalitarian forms but shared a common origin with the
Funnel Beaker culture. The cult of the ancestors occupied a major place
in the ritual, and social relations were confirmed and maintained through
ceremonies in which the ancestors were invoked. Élite rule, however, did
not take on such extreme forms as in the Funnel Beaker culture. The
coastal groups had never created landscape spaces confirmed by the
construction of large grave monuments (Fig. 105).
Even the part of the population that still continued the Funnel Beaker
traditions for a time eventually abandoned the old customs. On the
continent, different expressions of the Corded Ware culture had spread
over much of northern and central Europe. The ideologies prevailing in
these groups advocated a more individual way of thinking than the
Funnel Beaker culture. For the people in the highly traditional Funnel
Beaker society, the new ideology that spread through various trading
links was probably enticing. The structural principles behind the
organization of the society were fundamentally changed. The tensions in
society facilitated the adoption of a new ideological system.
There are few traces of Battle Axe culture settlements in the province.
A partial explanation for this is that the people simply did leave any
distinct traces behind them. This is probably due to two circumstances.
Firstly, they led a mobile way of life with short-term camps which did not
leave any remains of post-built structures and which was probably based
mainly on animal husbandry. Secondly, and as a consequence of the first
circumstance, a great deal of the stock of artefacts was carried on to the
next place. It also seems as if the attitude to waste was different from
what we saw in the Funnel Beaker/Pitted Ware culture. In the latter
cultures waste was a part of the activities. By-products of the
manufacture of tools, cooking, and other chores were a part of site life
and did not need to be cleared away. Moreover, the waste marks a sense
of belonging to the place. Place was also important for the Battle Axe
people, of course, but it was marked differently. Natural formations in the
landscape or already existing monuments may have functioned as nodes.
To begin with, their identity was attached to the big central places, the
palisaded enclosures, like that in Dösjebro and those in Malmö. It was at
these places that the scattered groups gathered at set times to carry out
activities, probably with both an economic and a social content. The
production, consumption, and distribution of axes was particularly
important. These features also illustrate how the power structures in
society had changed. Social status and power were no longer based on
inherited control of the spiritual sphere but on individual ability and craft
skills. Those who possessed these qualities and/or controlled the
distribution of goods were the social élite. Perhaps the linear cemeteries,
along ancient communication routes, should also be regarded as
symbolizing a people in movement, with the emphasis on the individual.
234
At the end of MNA and the start of MNB both the view and the use of
the landscape changed. The old landscape spaces were broken up and the
people returned to a mentally more open landscape where they could
move freely in small groups. There was no total breach because old sites
continued to be used. It is probable that both the Stävie group and the
bearers of the Battle Axe culture emerged within the old Funnel Beaker
society, due to external influences. Continuity between the Funnel Beaker
culture and the Battle Axe culture in the investigation area is noticed in
the way that the megalithic tombs are still used, albeit to a limited extent.
The new culture also arose right from the beginning in the core areas of
the Funnel Beaker culture. My sketch of settlement in the Battle Axe
culture should illustrate that virtually the same areas were used as during
the Funnel Beaker culture, but that the spaces in the landscape were
probably loosely tied together. There were not as clear relationships
between different categories of place as in the late Early Neolithic and the
first part of the Middle Neolithic (Fig. 106).
Unlike the groups that assimilated a Pitted Ware way of life, what we
call the Stävie group, however, the power structures changed, as we have
seen.
This group was to retain the old power structures for a time, although
they were much less rigid than in Funnel Beaker society. Because they
lived in small groups, the social coercion never became too heavy to
tolerate. Even the coastal Stävie group needed places of assembly,
however. Since the underlying structures of the society were basically the
same as in the Funnel Beaker culture, it was natural that their assembly
place in Stävie should resemble the Sarup sites.
It is not until the closing phase of MNB that we find traces of
structures on dwelling sites which once again suggest increased
permanence of settlement. Influences from continental Bell Beaker
cultures can be detected in the material found at some of the houses in
southern Scandinavia which can be dated to the MNB/LN transition. A
growing import of metal strengthens the hypothesis of significant longdistance contacts. As a consequence, the complexity of social relations
increased. An upper class emerged, marking its social status in the houses
and later in the new form of grave, the stone cist.
*
It may thus be concluded that people’s use and perception of the
landscape and the place varied through the Early and Middle Neolithic in
a way that can be related to the form of the social organization (Table
III). Changes in the organizational structure of society influenced the way
in which people moved socially and physically in the landscape and made
their impact on it. At the same time, the use of the environment involved
its transformation, so that it took on a different, meaningful role which in
turn affected the social sphere.
235
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