Archaeologists have discovered two Viking burials with swords buried upright and standing next to them.
Experts contend that the weapons were deliberately positioned at the 1,200-year-old site.
In central Sweden's Västmanland, they found the two sword burials, and they consider the unusual find essential.
Two farms once surrounded the cemetery field; experts told Mirror.
Other experts claim that sharp things were formerly inserted into graves as "a way to prevent the dead from rising," which may explain why the swords were standing on tips next to the Vikings' bodies.
A statue of the Viking legend Leiv Eriksson (R) and the tower of the landmark Hallgrim church are silhouetted, 13 May 2002 in Reykjavik, the capital of the north Atlantic island of Iceland. Leif Eriksson is believed to be the first to discover America sailing from the neighboring island of Greenland to the North American coast.
2 Viking Weapons Buried Upright Found
The weapons, which were unaltered for over 1,200 years, reveal details about the inhabitants' way of life.
Why this site was so well preserved was explained to Newsweek by Anton Seiler, an archaeologist from Sweden's State Historical Museums who participated in the excavation.
Viking-era graves are frequently found atop slopes, where they have escaped destruction from later farming practices.
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According to Seiler, prior excavations have revealed that many of the area's Viking Age tombs include weapons and horse accouterments. This suggests that a network of armed individuals may be operating in the area to protect commerce routes and farm productivity.
Although hundreds of graves were unearthed between the 19th and 21st centuries, only about 20 Viking Age burials with swords from Västmanland are known. This demonstrates unequivocally how unusual these tombs with blades from Viby/Norrtuna are.
The actual swords were positioned in the center of the burial rooms, standing straight. Although it is difficult to tell their precise length because they were both fractured when forced into the ground, they are constructed of big iron and are around 3 feet long. Additionally, the weapons have endured more than a millennium of deterioration.
Why It Was Buried Upright
The reason the swords were positioned standing up is unknown, but one theory is that it was done to honor the dead in front of Odin; ground-stuck swords (and in some cases, spears and arrowheads) may have been supposed to ease the passage to Valhalla, according to the researchers.
The team noted that some scholars hypothesized that sticking pointed things into graves might stop the dead from emerging.
"We do not think that applies to these graves, as the swords were such precious objects. Instead, knives or arrowheads could have been used, which would have been significantly cheaper," the experts told LiveScience.
The swords probably also acted as a reminder of the dead to the living, whatever the motive is.
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