Journal articles on the topic 'Middelalder'

Tile production in the Danish Middle Ages and RenaissanceEveryday life in the Renaissance and Early Modern times has long been a neglected area in archaeology and much evidence has been lost. When the Department of Medieval Archaeology at the University of Aarhus, Moesgård added Renaissance Studies to the teaching curriculum in 2005, this provided an opportunity, together with new Danish museum legislation, to redress this situation.In the Renaissance, fundamental changes took place in housing, due in part to the introduction of the tile stove as a “bilægger”, i.e. a stove fed from an adjacent room. This provided an opportunity for the creation of a private, comfortable living room. In rural areas, however, the tile stove was also seen in direct association with a bread oven or as a smoke oven. Among the upper echelons of society – royalty, the Church and the aristocracy, with their strong links to European culture south of the Baltic – the tile stove became known as early as the 13th century. The earliest evidence of this is from the Cistercian Monastery at Sorø. Here, sherds have been found ofhandmoulded deep beaker-shaped vessel tiles. The outer surfaces of these were decorated with wavy lines and encircling grooves, as seen on typical 13th century Baltic-ware pottery from Zealand (fig. 1). When built into an oven, the decoration would not have been visible (fig. 2). From the episcopal/royal castles of Søborg and Gurre there are thrown, glazed beaker-shaped vessel tiles from the 14th century (fig. 3). The handmade, unglazed vessel tiles with a square rim from the royal castle ofVordingborg are broader and shallower (fig. 4); on some the base is rounded. Similar tiles were manufactured as late as the 19th century as “jydepotter”, i.e. black pots from Jutland (fig. 5). In the houses of wealthier citizens, such as Kragsnap’s House in Nykøbing Falster and Branda Huset in Helsingborg in Scania, there were stoves constructed of Late Gothic deep vessel tiles with specially formed openings (fig. 6). At the beginning of the 16th century, these developed into a green glazed, relatively shallow turned vessel tile with a reinforced rim, often with a flower or several concentric circles at the base. This type continued up into the 17th century (fig. 7). In terms of the skill needed in their firing and glazing, all these various vessel tiles were consistent with the abilities of a local potter and they are probably all of domestic origin, modelled on foreign examples.From Late Medieval times, there are imported concave panel and niche tiles, such as Den grønne sten fra Nielstrup and archaeological examples from Vridsløsemagle, Ribe and Gurre. Most of them carry a religious, Catholic message. However, two fragments of matrixes for concave panel tiles, dated to around 1500 and found in Aalborg, bear witness to an early production of moulded stove tiles in Denmark (fig. 8).With the Reformation, relations to Protestant Germany via Kings Christian III and Frederik II were strengthened. Danish students in Wittenberg and Greifswald and itinerant German craftsmen brought with them new furnishing traditions to Denmark. The tile stove became commonplace. The heyday of these stoves began around 1550 when domestic production became profitable. German potters settled in Denmark, bringing with them their moulds and their expertise, also as stove fitters. Production began of concave, quadrangular and rectangular panel tiles bearing images with a religious or political message. On the reverse they had a rumpe, a shallow funnel-shaped protrusion, which had an important function when fitting the tiles to form the stove.From around 1600, the tile stove was gradually replaced by the iron stove, although the latter did retain for some time an upper tower-like section clad in rectangular tiles. Initially, iron stoves were imported from Germany, but with the introduction of a Danish protectionist policy in the 1640s, production was started in Norway.Despite local production in the 16th century, imports of stove tiles and matrixes increased. Sometimes the origin of these can be determined on the basis of the ware; greyish-white Halle clay, for example, indicating Central Germany. Some polychrome stove tiles can be identified as imports from the Upper Weser area. No workshops producing polychrome stove tiles have been demonstrated in Denmark. Even though a workshop in Næstved was familiar with tin glaze and metallic-oxide colours, only polychrome floor tiles were produced there.Often the date of the stove tiles, or more correctly of the patrixes, can be determined on the basis of the motif and the graphic source on which it is modelled.For instance, the patrix for a matrix found in Copenhagen bearing the picture of HERSI HANS must have been carved after 1547, when he lost his title as Elector of Saxony, and prior to his death in 1554. On a stove tile modelled on a medal struck on his appointment in 1532 and attributed to Matthes Gebel, he is referred to as Johann Friedrich Kurfürst. Patrixes, and probably also most matrixes, were imported, but the origin of a patrix for the Fortuna stove tile from Næstved from 1585, attributed to Abel Schroder the Elder, is perhaps open to discussion (fig. 9). A patrix for a medallion tile from about 1550-80 from Århus (fig. 15), and patrix frames and a mould for patrix frames for arcade tiles from about 1600 from Flensburg (fig. 19), are the only definite indications we have oflocal production. Re-working of newly-made matrixes, pirate copies and potters’ botching also occurred (figs. 16, 17 and 21). On the basis of this, and inspired by Der Hafner from Jost Ammen’s Ständebuch (fig. 12), the author has experimented with the production of matrixes and stove tiles (figs. 10 and 11). Accounts are then given of seven localities where traces of stove-tile production have been found. Potters’ kilns have been excavated in Lund and Aalborg, (figs. 13 and 14). In Århus, there were layers containing rejects, kiln shelves and matrixes (fig. 15). In Næstved, deposits have been excavated containing rejects which include tiles bearing Fortuna and the West Zealand version of Judith (figs. 18.4 and 16). Clay pits backfilled with rejects from the workshop have also been discovered there. In Slagelse, an area has been excavated containing workshop refuse in the form of old or broken matrixes, reject stove tiles, kiln shelves and tools (figs. l7 and 18). In Flensburg, a potter’s workshop was excavated, revealing a great number of tiles, a few patrix frames and more than 90 matrixes, of which several are clear evidence of potters’ botching (figs. 19, 20 and 21). Impressions of matrixes from this workshop were used by the bell-caster Michel Bibler as ornamentation on bronze fonts for churches in Flensburg and Eckernförde (fig. 22). In Holbæk, layers containing rejects and matrixes from a potter’s workshop in the neighbourhood have been located. A rectangular stowe tile from 1611, showing the upper body of a lute-playing prince, was produced in a matrix trixwith a two-piece picture area. The upper part of this was used for a stove tile in Slagelse, but in a different frame (fig. 18.6). All the workshops investigated proved to belong to the second half of the 16th century, with the main weight of activity around 1600. From Køge, however, there are matrixes bearing the inscription 1662MB on the reverse. These indicate an active workshop there in the late 17th century, (fig. 23). Several of the workshops were located in association with a demolished ecclesiastical institution where the immediate area had apparently been assigned to workshops carrying out hazardous activities using fire, such as potteries and bell-casters. Finally, research results obtained over several years are presented and there is a discussion of the possibility of more detailed examination and recording to demonstrate the regionality of the individual stove-tile types and perhaps locate individual workshops. More recent scientific methods for the identification of clay types might make it possible to determine their provenance, which would be of crucial importance. Formal collaboration with countries south of and around the Baltic would probably be able to demonstrate trade routes and cultural links and the origin and distribution of stove tiles and matrixes. Closer collaboration between scientists, historians and archaeologists is strongly recommended.Ole KristiansenSlagelse

Formålet med artiklen er at sætte fokus på forholdet til kroppen, tabu og renlighed ud fra kendskabet til vikingetids- og middelalderlatriner og at efterprøve fortærskede teorier om, at man skulle have gået rundt i sit eget skidt.

Skjern A mighty manor and center of power from the 14th to the 17th centurySkjern Castle is mentioned for the first time in a document from AD 1340, where it appears under the name ‘Karmark.’ This wasthe name later given to an important subordinate (home) farm. In 1340, the castle was the property of the powerful nobleman Peder Vendelbo, but under the control of the counts of Holstein as part of the ongoing struggles concerning control over Denmark. Peder Vendelbo regained his castle shortly afterwards, and it very probably remained in his family for the remainder of the century, even though nothing is directly known about the castle and estate during this period. The family remained extremely powerful and held very high office.In AD 1400 or 1401, Hans Podebusk, a member of a very powerful family, inherited Skjern through his previous marriage to the late Arine Vendelbo. Another of Peder Vendelbo’s heirs made claims and in 1409 it was arranged that Hans’ son Henning Podebusk and Kirsten Falk, heir to the other claimant, should marry and have Skjern. This arrangement provides us with the information that the estate must have comprised c. 100 tenant farms plus property given to Henning’s sister Johanne.Contrary to his father and the Vendelbos, Henning Podebusk held no high political position. During a war with Holstein, he was taken prisoner in 1431 or 1432 and a very high ransom was demanded. This was probably the primary reason for a drastic decline in the position of the family. After the death of Henning Podebusk, both his widow and four daughters married men of the lower gentry, despite their aristocratic descent, and their properties crumbled. They also lost Skjern, but we do not know how this occurred.From 1464, one of the mightiest men of the time, Lord High Steward Erik Ottesen Rosenkrantz, is known to have been in possession of Skjern. But the actual change of lord very probably happened some years before. In 1474 the king recognised Erik Ottesen as sole proprietor, and during the final years of his life (1495-1503) Skjern was his official residence. Sources dating from c. 1525 and later make it possible to reconstruct the estate at the time of the death of Erik Ottesen Rosenkrantz. It then comprised the entire parishes of Skjern and Vester Velling (c. 40 farms in all) and a further c. 110 farms in the remaining parts of the surrounding districts of Middelsom and Sønderlyng (c. 25% of all farms in the area), plus probably another c. 50 more scattered farms lying further away. Furthermore, the lord of the manor possessed the jus patratus over the two village churches of Skjern and Vester Velling, and these parishes were made a private manorial court district – both privileges highly exclusive in the Denmark of the time.In addition to this, Erik Ottesen Rosenkrantz also functioned as royal district governor (lensmand) of the district. His father had already built up a solid position as governor of 5-6 districts in the area in the 1450s, and control over the three most important of these was passed on to Erik Ottesen. In this way, the private castle of Skjern functioned de facto in the same way as royal castles: as the seat of the royal administration of the district.After the death of Erik Ottesen, the Skjern estate was divided up among many heirs, but the eldest son Niels Eriksen took over the nucleus: Skjern Castle, the properties in the two central parishes with all their pertaining privileges and the position of district governor over the surrounding districts of Middelsom and Sønderlyng. This property and position remained with his heirs until 1562. By that time, the estate was split up among several heirs and its position as seat of royal administration had come to an end. In the subsequent century the castle was given up and the manor completely disintegrated. Even though a new manor was established in 1692, it never regained the size and position it had held from 1340 to 1562. Anders BøghCarsten Porskrog RasmussenInstitut for Historie og Områdestudier Aarhus Universitet

The early history of the mouldboard plough – from the Late Roman Iron Age to the Middle AgesUntil quite recently, the introduction of the mouldboard plough to Denmark was seen as being closely linked to a new efficient Medieval cultivation system, the open-field system, which was considered to be the foundation for dynamic social changes evident in the area from c. AD 1000-1300. The open-field system is often explained in the context of a Medieval agricultural and technological revolution, whereby the mouldboard plough, ridge-and-furrow cultivation and crop rotation were introduced as a kind of package solution. Studies of Danish Medieval written sources suggest that these agrarian changes took place in AD 1000-1200, with use of the mouldboard plough consequently not being thought of as much older.Until the late 1990s, this idea was not contradicted by the significant body of evidence in the Danish archaeological record relating to the mouldboard plough, which in many ways is unique in a European perspective. Subsequently, new archaeological finds of well-preserved furrows made by a mouldboard plough have been discovered which clearly show that this implement was introduced to Denmark about 700-800 years earlier than previously thought, i.e. in the Late Roman Iron Age, c. AD 200-400. This challenges our understanding of the introduction of the mouldboard plough and the history of cultivation systems in Denmark prior to the Middle Ages and the evidence has therefore been subjected to new investigations.Archaeological finds of plough componentsThe archaeological record contains the only known finds of wooden plough components such as the beam, sheath, sole and mouldboard, as well as finds of the coulter, draught chains and shares (fig. 1). These finds can be dated to the period from the Late Viking Age to the Late Middle Ages or Renaissance.The archaeological record, together with pictorial representations on frescoes and seals from Denmark, provides a relatively tangible picture of the plough as basically a quadrilateral construction with the mouldboard attached to the right side. How far back in time this plough construction was used is not known for sure, but it is possible that it was developed by farmers as far back as the Iron Age, possibly being best suited to the asymmetrical function of the plough. It is obviously unlikely that an implement which was used for more than 1500 years remained static and unchanged in every way. As a consequence, the possibility cannot be ruled out that other versions of the mouldboard plough, either simpler or more complex, have existed over time.Ploughing tracesArchaeological investigations have unearthed several minor occurrences of fossil ploughing traces dated to between the Late Iron Age and the Middle Ages. These take the form of ridge-and-furrow systems, turned furrows and furrow strips possibly correlated with the plough (fig. 6).In the light of the traces found at Tating-Haferacker, St. Peter-Ording, Joldelund and Danevirke, it must be assumed that the mouldboard plough was known and used across larger parts of South Schleswig in the Late Roman Iron Age. It may be possible to show that the plough was used even further north Jutland at this time, as the ploughing traces found in Henneby may date from the Late Roman Iron Age rather than the Germanic Iron Age. Notwithstanding the uncertainty regarding Henneby, the traces from Dommerhaven in Ribe and Klinkerne (figs. 2 and 3) show that the plough was known and used in significant parts of western Jutland by the Late Germanic Iron Age at the latest. There are presently no ploughing traces from other parts of Denmark dating from this period, although the furrows found beneath the burial mound Grydehøj on Zealand could have been produced by this plough. Similarly, the traces dated to the Viking Age, found at Hedeby, Fjand, Viborg (fig. 4), Lindholm Høje and Löddeköpinge, show that the plough must have been known and used across significant parts of Jutland and in Scania before the end of the Viking Age. Early Middle Ages ploughing traces have been found at Filsø and some other locations in Jutland and on Funen, but so far no definite ploughing traces are known from Zealand and Scania. There are only a few localities with ploughing traces dating from the rest of the Middle Ages: Ringkøbing, Puggårdsgade in Ribe, Amrum and Südfall in the western part of Denmark. The traces found at Ulbjerg Klint are unlikely to be later than the 15th-16th centuries (fig. 5).At first sight, this review of the fossil ploughing traces can be broadly interpreted as showing that the introduction of the plough to Denmark was an extended process, which began in South Schleswig no later than the Late Roman Iron Age and continued into the western parts of Denmark no later than the Germanic Iron Age, and reached the remaining parts of Denmark no later than the Viking Age. The question is, however, whether the review has given a better basis for determining when and how the mouldboard plough became a regular implement in various parts of Denmark. All things considered, the archaeological record only shows where the conditions for preservation have been particularly good for these specific types of finds, and where excavators happen to have found turned furrows when carrying out archaeological investigations. In western Jutland, peaty/boggy soils and sand drift have given good conditions for the preservation of fossil turned furrows, while the same conditions seldom exist in other parts of Denmark. This is emphasised by the fact that the finds of turned furrows dating from the Middle Ages have almost exclusively been found in western Jutland, even though the plough is considered to have been common across most of Denmark at this time. Consequently, the absence of fossil turned furrows cannot be used as evidence of the plough not having been known and used in the area in question. It would therefore be irresponsible to make dogmatic unambiguous statements about regional variations in the introduction of the plough to Denmark.Rye cultivation as an indicator of the use of the ploughThe problem can be addressed indirectly by turning to another source material. Perhaps the the more widespread cultivation of rye may be used as an indicator of the presence of the plough in a given area.Rye, as known from historical times, does not make great demands as to the type of soil, but it does require that the soil has been loosened and is not waterlogged; surface water can also destroy the rye. The mouldboard plough has therefore been considered as a prerequisite for more widespread and systematic cultivation of rye, especially winter rye, on the wet northwest European lowlands. This is because the plough could efficiently loosen the soil and gather it into ridged strips, facilitating field drainage.General developments clearly show that, after a cautious start in Late Roman Iron Age, rye was found increasingly during the Germanic Iron Age and subsequent periods. It would be irresponsible to draw too far-reaching conclusions with respect to relations between rye and the plough. However, if we accept the idea of a connection between the mouldboard plough and the more widespread and systematic cultivation of rye – especially winter rye, then it is tempting to claim that the results of the present review reflect a form of agriculture in which the mouldboard plough was in use across most of Denmark during the Germanic Iron Age.Perspectives on the early introduction of the mouldboard ploughThe mouldboard plough is interesting in both an ecological and a socio-economic context, because it was of major significance for tillage and prompted a reorganisation of field structures that, with time, had a knock-on effect on the structures of settlements and properties.The idea of a technological revolution around AD 1000 acting as a catalyst for dynamic social changes is no longer tenable. The earlier dates now established for the mouldboard plough, the ridged strips and crop rotation clearly show that these significant agricultural prerequisites for a new and effective Medieval system of cultivation, the open-field system, were very well-known in Denmark before this form of agriculture took shape at the beginning of the Early Middle Ages, AD 1000-1200. There is, therefore, no reason to stick to the idea of a technological revolution at this time. The dynamic changes evident in the Middle Ages are, instead, more likely to be a consequence of a general economic expansion, which saw expression for example in an increase in new villages and an associated expansion of the cultivated landscape during the Early Middle Ages.The context in which the earlier introduction of the mouldboard plough should be understood is as yet far from clear. Our knowledge of the plough is still very inadequate and unevenly distributed in time and space, and the archaeological record relating to the cultivation systems of the Late Iron Age, AD 200-1050, is similarly very sporadic.It seems that the introduction of the plough was very likely associated with the significant changes that took place at the transition between the Early and Late Roman Iron Age, c. AD 200, and which characterised society in the subsequent centuries.The earlier introduction of the plough and of ridged- and/or flat-field systems of cultivation must have influenced the organisation of the infield and gradually rendered it impractical to move the settlement around within the resource area, as had been the case since the last centuries BC. Estimates of the percentage of cultivated land at different locations in Denmark show that some settlements must have had cultivated areas corresponding to those of Medieval times as early as the Germanic Iron Age, while other settlements had far smaller areas. This could be one of the reasons that some villages clearly became fixed at their present location already in Late Germanic Iron Age, and not exclusively at the transition between the Viking Age and Middle Ages, c. AD 900-1100, as was previously thought.There are a number of indications that the agrarian society of the Late Iron Age was increasingly able to generate a surplus, which could mobilise an ever more complex social structure: For example, the establishment of large, rich productive sites, especially in the 6th and 7th centuries AD, the founding of the earliest towns, such as Ribe, Aarhus and Hedeby in the 8th and 9th centuries, the emergence of regional kingdoms and the waging of several wars for resources in the period AD 200-600. The earlier introduction of the effective mouldboard plough fits well into this sequence of developments – as one of several significant factors.Lars Agersnap LarsenViborg Museum

The Voldbæk cemeteryThe Late Iron Age, Viking and High Medieval periods by Brabrand SøThe Viking period cemetery at Voldbæk in Brabrand, about 6 km west of Århus, was investigated by Aarhus Museum in the period 1926-36, and the results of these investigations were published in 1936 in ­Johannes Brøndsted’s overview of Viking Age inhumation graves in Denmark. This site will be subjected here to a re-analysis on the basis of archival material from Aarhus Museum.The cemetery was discovered in 1926, during gravel extraction a short distance to the west of Brabrand. Up until 1931, 23 graves were examined as they appeared (fig. 1). It is these graves which were published by J. Brøndsted in 1936. The cemetery lay on a slope running down to the north shore of Brabrand Sø (Lake) (fig. 2). Across the cemetery as a whole, it is stated that the predominant orientation of the graves was east-west, and that the deceased were most commonly placed with their head to the west. The skeletons, of which some were well-preserved, lay most often in a supine position. Some were, however, laid in hocker position. No traces of coffins were found. Some graves were covered with large stones. Many of them were found to contain a single, worn iron knife and a whetstone, most commonly placed at the hip. Occasional graves contained richer and more diverse equipment. In addition to this general account, there is also a meticulous description of the graves, supplemented by numerous photographs and drawings that have not previously been made public. Collectively, this information forms the basis for the following account of the cemetery where reference is made to the revised site plan (fig. 3). In total, 26 graves were examined at the Voldbæk cemetery (figs. 12-43), but the actual number of graves was greater. In connection with graves 3 and 26, mention is made of remains of child graves, and close to grave 24 there was a further grave which was apparently not investigated. This brings the total up to 29 graves. Further to these, skeletons had been found prior to the museum being contacted. The cemetery was therefore at least 1/3 greater than the 23 graves presented by Brøndsted.The skeletal material from the Voldbæk cemetery was not retained, but on the basis of descriptions of the individual graves, together with the photos, a certain amount of information can be obtained concerning those interred. In connection with the accounts of the individual skeletons there is, repeatedly, an evaluation of sex and age (young or old) as well as a statement of height. The basis for this information is unknown – only in two cases (graves 20 and 26) is it mentioned that a doctor was present at their excavation. In five cases (graves 2, 8, 9, 13 and 24), the deceased is identified as being a man, whereas three graves (graves 3, 7 and 20) are said to be those of women. For three of the skeletons said to be men, their height is given, respectively, as 1.72 m (grave 2), 1.80 m (grave 8) and 1.73 m (grave 24). For one of the skeletons said to be a woman, her height is given as 1.55 m (grave 20). Grave 19 (height 1.40 m) should probably be assigned to the women’s graves as research in recent times has revealed that Thor’s hammers occur primarily in female graves. Even though the information should be taken with some reservation, it is apparent that the skeletons considered to be those of men are taller than those considered to be of women. This is consistent with the most recent investigations of Danish finds of skeletons from the Viking Age where the average height for men is given as 1.71 m, while that for women is 1.58 m. The information given on the dental state of the deceased is significant as it can be considered to be based on very reliable observations, in some cases confirmed by photographs. In six of the skeletons (graves 2, 3, 9, 20, 22 and 23), extensive tooth loss has been recorded as well as overgrown tooth alveoli. Conversely, in six other instances (graves 8, 13, 18, 19, 21 and 25) mention is made of a complete set of teeth which is, in several cases, described as “beautiful”. In a single case (grave 21), heavy tooth wear is mentioned. A nationwide investigation of skeletal material from the Viking period has shown that poor dental health with more or less expressed tooth loss was common. The toothlessness seen in some of the skeletons from the Voldbæk cemetery is therefore not remarkable.With regard to the dating of the Voldbæk cemetery, Brøndsted mentions a disc brooch in grave 3 as the only date-conferring find. This ornament in Jelling style is assigned by him to the end of the 10th century. More recent research, however, dates the Jelling style to most of the 10th century, with its beginning just prior to AD 900. This type of disc brooch also occurs in a coin-dated grave from Birka, with the latest coin being from AD 951-54. This date also corresponds to that of the Voldbæk cemetery’s grave 19, containing the Thor’s hammer. This amulet type is found primarily in graves from the 10th century. In addition to the above-mentioned examples from Birka and Brabrand, disc brooches of this kind have also been found at Haithabu and the Viking period cemetery at Stengade II on Langeland. Brøndsted believes that graves 21-23, with the deceased laid in hocker position, might be older than the Viking period. Two stray finds from the area are perhaps able to support this presumption. These comprise two fibulas from the 7th century (fig. 4). They were found immediately east of the Viking period cemetery, and they could belong to an earlier phase of the cemetery.The Voldbæk cemetery was probably sited in the vicinity of a settlement. If it does contain graves from both the Late Iron Age and the Viking period, as presumed, then there are a couple of settlement sites near Brabrand which could be of relevance (fig. 5). In 2005, two settlement pits from the Late Iron Age were discovered immediately NE of Brabrand Sø. One of them contained pottery (fig. 6) and a complete rotary quern (fig. 7). The other pit lay a few metres away and is interpreted as a well. The two pits undoubtedly reflect the presence of a settlement at this location and this settlement can, on the basis of the pottery, be assigned to the late 6th century. The distance from the Voldbæk cemetery is c. 3 km. This considerable distance, and the dating of the settlement, makes it seem unlikely that there was a direct link between cemetery and settlement. The settlement finds do demonstrate, however, that in the area immediately north of Brabrand Sø there was habitation during the Late Iron Age, and a later phase of this settlement perhaps lies closer to the cemetery.With respect to settlement traces that can be linked to the Viking period graves, the situation is very interesting. In connection with construction work in Brabrand in 1981, a large pit was partially uncovered. In this were found potsherds (fig. 8), a horse tooth and two small fragments of rib bones – probably of pig or sheep. The pottery dates the find to the Viking period. It could represent a refuse pit or a pit-house. Regardless of how the pit should be interpreted it reflects the presence of a Viking period settlement c. 500 m east of the Voldbæk cemetery (fig. 2). A distance of this order between the settlement and cemetery appears very likely if a comparison is made with the results of Moesgård Museum’s investigations at Randlev, SE of Odder. Here, a Viking period settlement and its cemetery were excavated in full and the settlement lies a few hundred metres from the cemetery. The settlement comprises a single farmstead dated to the 9th-10th century, and the associated cemetery contains rather more than 100 graves. Seen against this background, the Voldbæk cemetery, with its c. 30 burials, must undoubtedly also represent a single farmstead and it must have existed at least until the Late Viking period, 10th century. The sparsely equipped graves say nothing of the status of this farmstead. The cemetery at Rand­lev was generally very sparsely equipped, and here the settlement itself demonstrated a surprising richness in metal.The finds described above show that, perhaps in the Late Iron Age, and certainly in the Late Viking period, there was a settlement in the area lying immediately to the west of the village of Brabrand. The site’s possible relationship to the continuing settlement history in the area is interesting. Here, attention falls quite naturally on “Hovgaard” which lies detached directly on the north shore of Brabrand Sø, 300 m SW of the village and c. 450 m east of the Voldbæk cemetery (fig. 9). Historians have demonstrated that Hovgaard represents the remains of a village manor or home farm which belonged to a noble family in the Middle Ages. Excavations at Hovgaard in 1966 revealed foundations of granite boulders which, on the basis of pottery finds, can be dated to the 13th-14th century (fig. 10). The extent to which the site’s history extends further back in time cannot be determined on the basis of the excavation results. However, if this is the case, it is conceivable that this isolated farmstead on the north shore of Brabrand Sø is the successor to a farmstead which lay in this area, with its cemetery, in the Late Viking period. If Hovgaard’s special status has its origin in Viking times then it seems obvious to make comparisons with the situation at Lisbjerg, 7 km to the north of Århus. Excavations here have demonstrated that it was the site of the first church construction associated with a large isolated farmstead from the Late the Viking period. If the same were the case in Brabrand, this could explain the remarkably low-lying position of Brabrand Church relative to its village, being sited almost down on the shore of Brabrand Sø (figs. 2 and 11).The new analysis of the Voldbæk cemetery presented here shows that significant information can be added to this site. By involving evidence from settlement traces found around Brabrand, an attempt has been made to put the cemetery into a broader perspective. As a result, it seems likely that the medieval power centre, which historians have demonstrated in the area, could have its origins in the Viking Age. As a consequence, finds from the district become of interest relative to Viking Age Århus as the relationship between the town and its hinterland could have influenced development in both places.Jens JeppesenMoesgård Museum

Before Irenæeus: The making of Grundtvig the medievalist.[Før Irenæus: Hvordan Grundtvig blev middelalder-forsker]Af S. A. J. BradleyI Grundtvig-forskningen støder vi i disse ar pa stadig flere vidnesbyrd om det forhold, at Grundtvigs mode - i arene 1815 og frem - med den tidlige kristne middelalder via den oldengelske litteratur bragte ham i kontakt med oldkirkelige kristendomstolkninger, der havde fundet nedslag i digte og prosatekster, der var skrevet pa det daværende angelsaksiske sprog. Derudover åbnede disse tekster hans øjne for nye perspektiver og sammenhænge, præsenterede nye ideer og føjede nye lag til i det symbolfyldte sprog, han livet igennem gjorde brug af i såvel prosa som digtning. Blandt de betydningsfulde tekster, Grundtvig mødte, bor nogle stykker fremhaves. Det galder først og fremmest hele det komplekse felt angående Beowulf, et dansk legendepræget historie-epos, et mytisk epos, en historiefilosofi iklædt en kristen forsynstro og bragt i anvendelse pa Norden, en forestilling om kongens herredomme under ansvar over for Gud, om folket, det folkelige, om menneskeligt fællesskab som skueplads for kampen mellem sandhed og løgn. Det gælder endvidere Beda, der har forfattet den tidligste skrevne historie om det kristne Norden, en af kristen forsynstro præget historiefilosofi. Via Beda galder det desuden Kadmon, en historisk skikkelse, den tidligste kristne skjald i Norden, som har bevidnet, hvordan Helliganden inspirerer digterprofeten til at oplyse folket. Det galder desuden de Kadmon-påvirkede digte i Junius-manuskriptet, der ligeledes udtrykker en kristen forsynstro som baggrund for historieforstaelsen og forbinder den skrevne historie med kirkeårets liturgisk-historiske kredslob. Det galder Exeter-bogen, som i hovedsagen er religiøs digtning, der udførligt er knyttet sammen med kirkens liturgiske ar, en skriftsamling, som Grundtvig transskriberede i fuld udstrækning og studerede indgående. Alt imens Grundtvig gennemførte disse studier, stiftede han bekendtskab med, hvad vi kunne kalde den oldengelske kirkes insulære oldkirkelige tekster, kort sagt det oldkirkelige, den sarlige nordisk-kristne arv som vi moder i den tidlige kristne middelalder. De samme perspektiver blev han samtidig præsenteret for gennem det udvalg af tekster, som George Hickes og Humphrey Wanley som udgivere havde forelagt i deres tobindsværk, Thesaurus, hvilket Grundtvig benyttede i Det Kongelige Bibliotek som en væsentlig kildesamling. Der kunne han for eksempel finde religiøse og eksegetiske poetiske tekster, der star i umiddelbar sammenhang med tema, billedsprog og den retoriske udtryksform, som vi moder i De Levendes Land. Stort set hele læsningen af Thesaurus åbnede således for Grundtvig en rig skat af det oldkirkelige, såvel i prosa som i digtning, lange inden han opdagede Irenæus.Derfor bor enhver undersøgelse af Grundtvigs ambivalente, men ofte slående indfølende svar pa overleveringen forud for reformationen inddrage hans oldengelske mode med arven fra den tidlige middelalder og give det en betydningsfuld plads.

I K&K nr. 117 finder man en artikel af Michael Böss med den prægnante titel ’Nationalhistorie efter modernismen’ (Böss). Den modernisme der henvises til, er den historiske tolkning af moderne nationer – herunder den danske – som resultat af statsbygnings- moderniserings- og integrationsprocesser og ideologiske reorienteringsprocesser i det lange 19. århundrede efter ca. 1750. Det, der træder i stedet efter modernismen, er en etnosymbolsk tolkning, der ser moderne nationer i forlængelse af etniske samfund etableret i den tidlige middelalder.

Emma Bentz: I stadens skugga. Den medeltida landsbygden som arkeologiskt forskningsfält(Mette Svart KristiansenLine Bjerg: Romerske Denarfund fra Jyske Jernalderbopladser – En Arkæologisk Kulegravning(Thomas Grane)Helen Clarke & Kristina Lamm (red.): Excavations at Helgö XVII(Margrethe Watt)Walter Dörfler & Johannes Müller (red.): Umwelt – Wirtschaft – Siedlungen im dritten vorchristlichen Jahrtausend Mitteleuropas und Südskandinaviens. Internationale Tagung Kiel 4.-6. November 2005(John Simonsen)Peter Gammeltoft, Søren Sindbæk & Jens Vellev (red.): Regionalitet i Danmark i vikingetid og middelalder. Tværfagligt symposium på Aarhus Universitet 26. januar 2007(Karl-Erik Frandsen)Annika Larsson: Klädd Krigare. Skifte i skandinaviskt dräktskick kring år 1000(Ulla Mannering)Henriette Lyngstrøm: Dansk Jern: en kulturhistorisk analyse af fremstilling, fordeling og forbrug(Jørgen A. Jacobsen)Søren Olsen: Udflugt til fortiden. Guide til 80 gådefulde fortidsminder i Danmark(Palle Eriksen)Ditlev L. Mahler: Sæteren ved Argisbrekka. Økonomiske forandringer på Færøerne i vikingetid og tidlig middelalder(Hans Skov) Peter Rowley-Conwy: From Genesis to Prehistory. The Archaeological Three Age System and its contested reception in Denmark, Britain, and Ireland(Anne Katrine Gjerløff)Henrik Skousen: Arkæologi i lange baner. Undersøgelser forud for anlæggelsen af motorvejennord om Århus 1998-2007(Lotte Hedeager)Dagfinn Skre (red.): Means of Exchange. Dealing with Silver in the Viking Age(Jens Christian Moesgaard)David M. Wilson: The Vikings in the Isle of Man(Ray Moore)

Interessen for og fascinationen af middelalderen er for tiden så stor, at Umberto Eco i Slagmark nr. 5 ( 1) ligefrem kan opstille ti forskellige "middelaldre", der rumsterer i den bølge, som ikke mindst hans egen "Rosens navn" er en vigtig del af.

I artiklen undersøges fodtøj i et affaldsperspektiv ud fra især arkæologiske fund af sko fra 1300-tallet til slutningen af 1700-tallet og det samtidige underlag i det offentlige rum. Formålet er at afsøge om fodtøjets udviklingshistorie var påvirket af de lokale gadeforhold herunder urenhed – med København som case.

AbstractTom Kristensen’s travel book En Kavaler i Spanien (1926) was the result of a stay at the Danish explorer Knud Rasmussen’s house, where Kristensen not only met his physical and psychological superior, he also began his artistic development and personal breakdown towards the novel Hærværk (1930). The article argues that with a departure from this context, En Kavaler i Spanien can be read as an original and complex subgenre of the sentimental novel and it suggests that the work might best be categorized as ‘hard sentimentalism’. This subgenre of the travel novel can be identified in the intertwinement of the core thematic of the book — eroticism, medieval Spain and identity loss — with style and form. The paradoxical generic notion of ‘hard sentimentalism’ is used to connect medieval Spain with the erotic, but in an increasingly dangerous way, which threatens the traveler’s identity by increasing homosexual attraction and opening an abyss of degeneration and distorted emptiness behind the flirt.

Våren 2020 undersøkte arkeologer fra Norsk institutt for kulturminneforskning (NIKU) kongsgårdsanlegget på Avaldsnes prestegård i Karmøy kommune. I forbindelse med den pågående konserveringen av ruinen ble kirkegårdsjord og kulturlag fjernet, og 30 skjeletter ble avdekket og dokumentert i og rundt bygningen kalt Tårnet (Nordlie og Ødeby 2021). Tre skjeletter ble 14C-datert til perioden mellom slutten av 1200- og slutten av 1300-tallet. Dette er de første gravene datert til middelalder på Avaldsnes, et viktig funn siden sannsynligheten for å påvise middelalderkirkegården har blitt vurdert som lav ved tidligere undersøkelser (Nordlie og Sand-Eriksen 2019:61). I denne rapporten legges det fram en oversikt over gravene avdekket ved NIKUs undersøkelse, med et hovedfokus på middelaldergravene, som settes i sammenheng med Tårnets funksjon.

It is the later years recorded and excavated extensive traces of activities like iron production, hunting and farming in areas, which today are forests and mountains. This paper discusses how these monuments are distributed in the landscape and how they relate to the historically known organization of the landscape. Geographically, the article is limited to the inner parts of Eastern Norway, with emphasis on Hedmark and Oppland counties, and given a temporal limitation to the medieval and historic times. Landownership in the outland in historic times is studied by the use of written sources like laws, diplomas and court records. The article puts forward a model for how the landscape was organized, with a split in in two, with the valley side as the area for farming and related activities, and the higher lying land as the area for hunting, shieling and iron production. This model is discussed based on four specific valley sides with clearance cairns fields.

Forholdet mellem kvalitet og kvantitet har været et væsentligt tema i kritikkenaf den moderne arkitektur. Kritikken har rettet sig mod de kvantitative faktorersdominans: Forenklet sagt det, at funktionalistisk arkitektur er styret af tal, vedtypisk at gøre brug af masseproduktion, kalkulen som en ufejlbarlig metode, ogeksakte talmæssige normer for konstruktioner.Mit bidrag til denne diskussion har hentet inspiration et helt andet sted iarkitekturhistorien. Eksempler fra græsk filosofi og den tidlige middelalderstænkere viser, at tallene har haft mange betydninger og roller. I dag optræder detypisk under fællesbetegnelsen kvantitet. Til forskel fra dette generiske niveaubevæger jeg mig på et historisk plateau, hvor de oldkristne forfattere fortolkedenogle bestemte tal. Med denne tænkning fik de to betydninger: 1) tal som et praktisk redskab, fx ved afsætning af mål på byggepladsen, og 2) en dybere, skjult betydning, ofte brugt i kombination med privilegerede, geometriske former.Den sidste modus knyttede en metafysisk dimension til tallene. Dette tankestofinddrager jeg i en analyse af udvalgte tidligmiddelalderlige bygningsværker afcentralplantypen.

Skjern Castle – an archaeological investigation of a castle through the Middle Ages and RenaissanceIn the very middle of the river Nørreå’s extensive meadowlands, 15 km west of Randers, lies the striking castle mound of Gammel Skjern. During the Middle Ages and Renaissance period this site was the centre of a manorial complex which at times was one of the largest in Denmark and some of the country’s most influential noble families resided here. Its location, where the highway between Viborg and Randers crosses the river today, was one of the few good crossing points over Nørreå (fig. 1). A major transport junction such as this was of strategic interest; here it was possible to both display and exert power.Concentrated around this ford location we find two rune stones, the parish church, the significant fortification of Gammel Skjern itself and its successor, the manor Skjern Hovedgård. In addition, there was also settlement here during Viking times and the Middle Ages, as well as a mill. Skjern parish extends along both sides of Nørreå. This is unusual as watercourses often form boundaries, and it must be presumed to reflect the family’s strong position of power in the area during the Late Viking period and Early Middle Ages. The area’s cultural topography shows that very extensive changes took place in settlement structure during the course of Viking times and the Middle Ages.Skjern Church is a small Romanesque ashlar building from around AD 1200. Today, it stands alone, but metal detector finds and aerial reconnaissance show that there was a settlement here from the 8th to the 14th century (fig. 2). This settlement can presumably be linked to the high-ranking farming family which, in the Late Viking Age, permitted itself to be commemorated on two rune stones. These stones stand today by the church: a monumental and well-preserved stone bearing a mask (fig. 3) and a slightly smaller fragment on which only a few words can be deciphered. The large mask stone was found in 1843 at the castle mound and the fragment in the church’s foundation wall at the end of the 1830s. They probably originally stood by the ford. Here people passed by, here the stones were seen, the family remembered and the power demonstrated and consolidated.In connection with the turbulent times of the 14th century, the magnate farm moved for defensive reasons away from the church and out to a stronghold in the bog (fig. 4). In the 1840s, a large amount of earth was dug away from the fortification and on this occasion the east wing of the castle and a little of both the north and south wings were exposed. From Kruuse’s survey, carried out in 1843, we know that a four-winged structure stood on the platform (figs. 5-6). In the summers of 2001-4 and 2006, the Department of Medieval and Renaissance Archaeology at the University of Aarhus carried out a small archaeological investigation of the structure. As a significant proportion of the fortification is scheduled, the excavations took place by special permission and on the condition that fixed constructions were not removed. In parallel with this, a detailed contour survey was carried out of the area (fig. 7), as well as a geophysical/magnetometer survey of parts of the site and a number of dendrochronological dates were obtained from bridges and bank constructions (fig. 8). As the excavation only constituted a minor intervention, the extent of the finds and the building components located is very limited and these give only a small insight into the life and the activities which have taken place at the castle (figs. 22-29).On the basis of the archaeological investigations it is possible to sketch the development of the stronghold from a single platform to a striking defensive complex with several banks and ditches (fig. 30). The front and middle bank, and also the main platform, were. Many of the posts are still visible in the wet meadow, and the closely-spaced stakes show that the bridge piers were replaced as many as six or seven times. Samples were taken for dendrochronological dating from the posts in two bridge piers, one pier from each bridge. The earliest dendrochronological date is AD 1335 and the latest is after AD 1492. The fact that the earliest bridge phase is not represented in both of the bridge piers investigated, and that the castle’s 16-17th century phase is not represented at all, shows that the bays were moved somewhat through time. Accordingly, the dates do not, thereby, cover the total life of the castle.The stronghold was constructed in the meadows in AD 1335, or perhaps even earlier. Consequently, it is finally possible to link Lord High Steward Peder Vendelbo’s previously unknown ‘Karmark Castle’, as it is referred to in AD 1340, and the Skjern Castle, which are mentioned in the Lord High Steward’s estate in 1347 as being one and the same structure. The excavation provided a tiny glimpse of the surface of the oldest castle, almost 2 m below the courtyard of the Renaissance castle, the present-day surface of the main platform. The platform was in its first phase only about 1 m high. The magnetometer survey of the main platform revealed weak and deeper-lying deflections, presumably from an earlier structure of approximately the same extent as the familiar structure from the Late Middle Ages and Renaissance. The earliest castle appears merely to have consisted of this platform, linked to dry land and the farm buildings by a 60 m long wooden bridge and a 175 m long turf-built causeway in continuation of this.In 1392/93, Kristian Vendelbo extended the structure with a lateral bank to the east of the main bank. He was probably also responsible for a corresponding (undated) bank to the west as well as a bank to the north of here, the middle bank. He was loyal to Queen Margrethe at a time when the magnates of Jutland were against her, and he needed a strong castle. In the construction of the left lateral bank, use was made of a natural sand bank in the terrain. Only very few traces of activity were preserved here. The eastern lateral bank was constructed of turf. The inner side of the bank was partially reinforced with hammered-in posts which have been dated dendrochronologically to AD 1392 and AD 1392/93 (fig. 12). On the middle bank, which functioned as a paddock, foundations and floor layers relating to four buildings were recorded. One of the buildings could be identified as a gateway; another was probably a tower (figs. 9-11). Due to the limited extent of the excavation, it has not been possible to relate these buildings to Kruuse’s plan. This was also the case with the results of the magnetometer survey. The bank was built of turf and slightly raised in height using demolition material from brick-built buildings. A reinforcement of the edge comprising large field boulders was supplemented with a row of robust posts. Dendrochronological dating of these to AD 1461/62 shows that the middle bank was either established or reinforced at this time.In AD 1465/66, Lord High Steward Erik Ottesen Rosenkrantz carried out a further extensive reinforcement of the castle, this time with a cover bank to the east and west of the front bank in continuation of the causeway. Structures in the terrain suggest that a building stood in the eastern part of the front bank. To the west, the cover bank had a robust post construction, presumably a palisade. A corresponding construction is not seen at the eastern cover bank. Whether this is due to the posts having been removed, or whether the bank facing out towards the open bog was not as heavily fortified, is unknown. The eastern cover bank was built on to the eastern lateral bank, and the increased width provided sufficient space for a building (fig. 13). Dendrochronological dating of the constructional timbers to after AD 1465 shows that this could have been built immediately following the extension. Faint traces in the terrain to the south of the main bank indicate yet another cover bank.During this phase at the latest, the height of the main platform was raised to around 3 m above the surrounding terrain. The complex had four wings and two stair turrets towards the north around an enclosed castle courtyard. Towards the west, remains of standing walls can still be seen. It is not inconceivable that at least the core of the building complex can be attributed to Erik Ottesen. On the latter’s death, the value of the buildings was assessed at 7000 marks, a considerable sum. The archaeological investigations have only touched upon the east wing which was the part most exposed by the earth removal in the 19th century (fig. 14). A comparison between Kruuse’s elevation plan of the east wall and its present state reveals the degree of the destruction (figs. 15-16). The best preserved wall was that in towards the castle courtyard, with 12 courses. The building was built with a cellar covered by a flat barrel vault (fig. 17). The west wall had subsided very heavily, and this definitely contributed to or was the main reason that the cellar vault and possibly also parts of the wing at some time or other collapsed. The cellar was subsequently filled up with building materials. Pieces of the painted window panes and a terracotta base from a facade ornament from the final quarter of the 16th century show that the building may have been beautifully fitted out according to the latest fashion of the times (figs. 18-20). On top of the filled-in cellar, new light foundations were laid as the basis for joists for a floor or internal partition walls on the ground floor. After 1561, when Christoffer Nielsen died, the manor estate underwent a drastic process of division, and there appear not to have been obvious investors for new prestige building works. It is therefore interesting that several alterations could have been carried out during this period. The excavation also touched upon parts of foundations belonging to the castle’s NE stair turret (fig. 21). The tower proved to be secondary to the east wing, and its tile floor was laid on top of the existing cobbled pavement of the castle courtyard.During the second half of the 16th century, a hurried division of the manor began, and by the 17th century only three large farmsteads remained.Jan KockMette Svart KristiansenAfdeling for Middelalder- og Renæssancearkæologi Aarhus Universitet

Indhold: Tyverierne fra Det Kongelige Bibliotek før 1978 under opklaring; Musikafdelingen 12 5 år; Klippoteket og Arkiv for Dansk Jazzhistorie - oversigter nu online; Ny jazzdiskografi på cd The jazz Discography afTom Lord er nu tilgængelig som cd på Center for Musik og Teater; Danske nodeskriftprøver på nettet; Rischel og Birket-Smiths samling af trykte noder nu online; Middelalder korbog på nettet; Poul Reumerts samling kan søges online; Præsentation af Albansk Samling i Contessa Entelina på Sicilien; Orfeus online; Tegninger fra Georgia på nettet; Tilvækst i registrering af Udenlandske Ældre Samling på nettet; Brugerundersøgelse af Det Kongelige Bibliotek som universitetsbibliotek; Ny udlånsaftale i Øresundsregionen forbedrer de studerendes adgang til litteratur; Bogudgivelser og nye tidsskrifter; Carl Nielsen Studies; Diamanten - nyt kulturblad; Føreren har ordet! – boglancering; Nyt nummer af Fund og forskning; Et leksikon bliver til; Ny bog om nybyggeri og udviklingslinier for biblioteker i Østersøområdet; Foredrag; Brunch på Biblioteket; Udstillinger; Musikarrangementer; Erhvervelser

ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Buddhism's history can be seen as a succession of reformisms. To focus the relevance of the concept, it is understood in this article as a concept measuring significant change within the religion itself and the surrounding community. With three examples from different contexts: ‘Protestant Buddhism' in the 19th century Sri Lanka, the Shin Buddhist reform movement in the Japanese Middle Ages, and Japanese diaspora Buddhism in Hawaii, the relevance of the term is investigated in relation to both genealogical and analogical reference to the Christian Protestant Reformation. DANSK RESUME: Buddhismens historie kan ses som en lang række af reformismer. For at afgrænse begrebets relevans anvendes det i denne artikel om markante forandringstiltag med betydning for religionen selv og det omkringliggende samfund. Med tre eksempler fra forskellige kontekster: ‘Protestantisk buddhisme' i det 19. årh-. på Sri Lanka, shin-buddhistisk reformbevægelse i den japanske middelalder samt japansk diasporabuddhisme i Hawaii, undersøges begrebets relevans med genealogisk og analogisk reference til den kristne, protestantiske reformation.

In recent years we have seen a marked rise in private metal detecting in Møre og Romsdal, especially in Sunndal where numerous finds have been delivered to the county archaeologists. In this article, we aim to study these metal finds and look closer at what new potential knowledge of trade, meeting places and farm settlements dating from the Viking Age to the medieval period are implied. We have also discussed the relationship between the artefacts found by metal detectorists and the associated structures found beneath the topsoil, and if these items indicate or represent automatically protected heritage sites. Despite numerous detector finds from the Viking Age/medieval period, there is a scarcity of structures from this period. Hence, such items cannot automatically be assumed to indicate that structures and sites are located in close vicinity, beneath the topsoil. Instead the focus of study should be on the potential represented by the artefacts themselves, and how the concentrated find-spots could represent automatically protected sites. We have therefore suggested a new set of criteria based on grouped concentrations of artefacts with broadly similar dating and functions to try to detect, limit, interpret and understand such sites, and suggest a base model for further management.

“Denne Gaade er godt gjort” - Grundtvig’s encounter with the riddles of the Exeter Book[”Denne Gaade er godt gjort” - Grundtvigs behandling af gåderne i Exeterbogen]Af S. A. J. BradleyGrundtvigs beskæftigelse med angelsaksisk litterar kultur gik ind i en intensiv fase i tiden omkring hans Englandsrejser (1829-31), hvor han med offentliggørelse for øje transskriberede de digteriske dele af et håndskrift i Exeters klosterbibliotek fra det 11. århundrede. I betragtning af den grundliggende rolle, det symbolske og metaforiske spiller i Grundtvigs skrifter og i hans fremstilling af sin egen identitet, har det interesse at gennemgå og analysere hans forsøgsvise behandling af de omkring hundrede gader, der star i håndskriftet. Det ledte ham nemlig ind i en drøftelse af de intellektuelle strategier, der ligger bag såvel gåders udsagn som deres løsning, indbefattende litterære virkemidler som fortælling i 1. person og omskrivninger (kenninger), kryptisk brug af runer samt motiver fra folkesagn og folkelig overtro. Hans tilegnelse af denne kristelige kultur fra tidlig nordeuropæisk middelalder far utvivlsomt stor betydning for hans mytologiske arbejder, men rækker også videre frem. Den intellektuelle beskæftigelse med det gadefulde slår for Grundtvig bro mellem det verdslige og det religiøse, som det også skete for de angelsaksiske munke i Exeter.

Grundtvigs I Kveld: Nogle overvejelser fra et angelsaksisk perspektivMed henblik på udgivelse i første bind af Sang-Værk til den Danske Kirke(1837) skrev Grundtvig en række digte, der var inspireret af emner, tankerog udtryksformer anvendt af digtere fra den tidlige middelalder inden forden angelsaksiske kirke. Denne indoptagelse af en stemme fra den angelsaksiskekristenhed var udsprunget af hans grundlæggende ønske om atillustrere den kristne kirkes katolicitet (universalitet). Samtidigt opnåedehan at skænke den danske kirke et stort antal salmer, der kunne udtrykkedenne universelle virkelighed, inden for hvilken også den danske kirkehavde sin egen helt særlige rolle.Tre af disse angelsaksiske tekster og Grundtvigs brug af dem kommenteresher på grundlag af angelsaksiske studier. Formålet er at identificere ogvurdere nogle af de sammenhænge, hvor Grundtvig fra oldkirkelige kilderikke alene øser inspiration og vejledning til gavn for samtidens menighed,men også gives våben i hænde til at fastholde et markant særstandpunkt isit aktuelle teologiske, liturgiske og kirkepolitiske opgør.De tre danske tekster, der var inspireret af angelsaksisk digtning, er IKveld blev der banket paa Helvedes Port, Kommer Sjæle, dyrekiøbte og Himmel-Farten saae i Løn / Salomon, Kong Davids Søn. En ny metrisk, urimetengelsk oversættelse af I Kveld bliver her fremlagt ledsaget af nogle nødvendigekommentarer. Herunder inddrages Grundtvigs forhold til hansvigtigste litterære kilde, det apokryfe Nicodemus-Evangelium. Nogle afde vigtigste og mest afgørende emner drøftes særlig udførligt, herunderGrundtvigs behandling af Eva-skikkelsen.Endvidere inddrages Grundtvigs vedholdende og i samtiden omdiskuteredesammenkædning af Kristi nedstigning til helvede og derpå følgendehimmelfart. Denne sammenkædning spiller også en væsentlig rolle i K.E.Bugges redegørelse.

Nicolai Carlberg og Søren Møller Christensen (red.): Kulturmiljø – mellem forskning og politisk praksis.(Jytte Ringtved)Anders Fischer & Kristian Kristiansen (eds.): The Neolithisation of Denmark. 150 Years of Debate. (T. Douglas Price)Gérard Franceschi, Asger Jorn og ­Oddgeir Hoftun: Stavkirkene – og det norske middelaldersamfunnet.(Lotte Hedeager)Bo Gregersen og Carsten Selch Jensen (red.): Øm Kloster. Kapitler af et middelalderligt cistercienserabbedis historie. (Stig Bergmann Møller)Ingrid Gustin: Mellan Gåva och marknad. Handel, tillit och materiell kultur under vikingatid. Lund Studies in Medieval Archaeology 34.(Søren M. Sindbæk)hikuin 29. Nordeuropæisk dyrestil 400-1100 e.Kr. (Ulla Lund Hansen)Axel Degn Johansson: Stoksbjerg Vest. Et senpalæolitisk fundkompleks ved Porsmose, Sydsjælland. Fra Bromme- til Ahrensburgkultur i Norden.(Berit V. Eriksen)Rud Kjems: Anders på Hvolris – Arbejderen der blev museumsmand. (Palle Eriksen)Jan Klápštì (red.): The rural house from the migration period to the oldest still standing buildings.(Marie Klemensen)Anne Hedeager Krag (red.): Dragt og magt.(Mytte Fentz)Anne-Christine Larsen (red.): The Vikings in Ireland.(Else Roesdahl)Gordon Malcolm og David Bowsher med Robert Cowie: Middle Saxon London. Excavations at the Royal Opera House(Søren M. Sindbæk)Hans Mikkelsen: Vor Frue Kloster. Et bediktinernonnekloster i Randers.(Hans Krongaard Kristensen)Peter Hambro Mikkelsen & Lars Christian Nørbach: Drengsted. Bebyggelse, jernproduktion og agerbrug i yngre romersk og ældre germansk jernalder.(Lotte Hedeager)Stig Bergmann Møller: Aalborg gråbrødrekloster. Marked, by og kloster.(Hans Mikkelsen)Lars Nørbach (red.): Prehistoric and Medieval Direct Iron Smelting in Scandinavia and Europe. Aspects of Technology and Science.(Jørgen A. Jacobsen)Bodil Petersson: Föreställningar om det förflutna. Arkeologi och rekonstruktion.(Ole Thirup Kastholm Hansen)Else Roesdahl (red.): Bolig og familie i Danmarks middelalder..(Peter Carelli)Henrik Thrane (red.): Diachronic Settlement Studies in the Metal Ages.(Per Ole Rindel)Christopher Tilley: An ethnography of the Neolithic. Early prehistoric societies in southern Scandinavia.(Torsten Madsen)Frauke Witte: Archäologie in Flensburg. Ausgrabungen am Franziskanerkloster.(Hans Krongaard Kristensen)Nicolai Carlberg og Søren Møller Christensen (red.): Kulturmiljø – mellem forskning og politisk praksis.(Jytte Ringtved)Anders Fischer & Kristian Kristiansen (eds.): The Neolithisation of Denmark. 150 Years of Debate. (T. Douglas Price)Gérard Franceschi, Asger Jorn og ­Oddgeir Hoftun: Stavkirkene – og det norske middelaldersamfunnet.(Lotte Hedeager)Bo Gregersen og Carsten Selch Jensen (red.): Øm Kloster. Kapitler af et middelalderligt cistercienserabbedis historie. (Stig Bergmann Møller)Ingrid Gustin: Mellan Gåva och marknad. Handel, tillit och materiell kultur under vikingatid. Lund Studies in Medieval Archaeology 34.(Søren M. Sindbæk)hikuin 29. Nordeuropæisk dyrestil 400-1100 e.Kr. (Ulla Lund Hansen)Axel Degn Johansson: Stoksbjerg Vest. Et senpalæolitisk fundkompleks ved Porsmose, Sydsjælland. Fra Bromme- til Ahrensburgkultur i Norden.(Berit V. Eriksen)Rud Kjems: Anders på Hvolris – Arbejderen der blev museumsmand. (Palle Eriksen)Jan Klápštì (red.): The rural house from the migration period to the oldest still standing buildings.(Marie Klemensen)Anne Hedeager Krag (red.): Dragt og magt.(Mytte Fentz)Anne-Christine Larsen (red.): The Vikings in Ireland.(Else Roesdahl)Gordon Malcolm og David Bowsher med Robert Cowie:Middle Saxon London. Excavations at the Royal Opera House(Søren M. Sindbæk)Hans Mikkelsen: Vor Frue Kloster. Et bediktinernonnekloster i Randers.(Hans Krongaard Kristensen)Peter Hambro Mikkelsen & Lars Christian Nørbach:Drengsted. Bebyggelse, jernproduktion og agerbrug i yngre romersk og ældre germansk jernalder.(Lotte Hedeager)Stig Bergmann Møller: Aalborg gråbrødrekloster. Marked, by og kloster.(Hans Mikkelsen)Lars Nørbach (red.): Prehistoric and Medieval Direct Iron Smelting in Scandinavia and Europe. Aspects of Technology and Science.(Jørgen A. Jacobsen)Bodil Petersson: Föreställningar om det förflutna. Arkeologi och rekonstruktion.(Ole Thirup Kastholm Hansen)Else Roesdahl (red.): Bolig og familie i Danmarks middelalder..(Peter Carelli)Henrik Thrane (red.): Diachronic Settlement Studies in the Metal Ages.(Per Ole Rindel)Christopher Tilley: An ethnography of the Neolithic. Early prehistoric societies in southern Scandinavia.(Torsten Madsen)Frauke Witte: Archäologie in Flensburg. Ausgrabungen am Franziskanerkloster.(Hans Krongaard Kristensen)

Adam af Bremens krønike. Oversat og kommenteret af Allan A. Lund.(Kurt Villads Jensen)Claus Ahrens: Die frühen Holzkirchen Europas. Tekst & Katalog. Schriften des archaologischen Landesmuseums, Band 7.(Jens Jeppesen)Michael Andersen og Goran Tegnér (red.): Middelalderlige seglstamper i Norden.(Per lngesman)Søren H. Andersen: Oldtiden i Danmark. Jægerstenalderen.(Lars Larsson)Mark Brisbane & David Gaimster (red.): Novgorod: the Archaeology of a Russian Medieval City and its Hinterland.(Michael Andersen)Anders Bæksted: Nordiske Guder og Helte. 3. udg.(Lotte Hedeager)Tom Christensen og Michael Andersen (red.): Civitas Roscald – fra byens begyndelse.(Connie Jantzen).Palle Ove Christiansen: Kulturhistorie som opposition – træk af forskellige fagtraditioner.(Henrik Hatt Jensen)Torben Dehn, Svend I. Hansen og Flemming Kaul: Klekkende høj og Jordehøj. Restaureringer og undersøgelser 1985-90.(Niels H. Andersen).Berit Valentin Eriksen (red.): Flintstudier. En håndbog i systematiske analyser af flintinventarer.(Esben Kannegaard)Per Ethelberg, Erik Jørgensen, Dirk Meier og David Robinson: Det Sønderjyske Landbrugs Historie. Sten- og bronzealder.(Helle Vandkilde)Jøgen Jensen: Rav. Nordens guld.(Helle Vandkilde)Jørgen Jensen: Danmarks Oldtid. Stenalder 13.000-2.000 f.Kr.(Lars Larsson)Jørgen Jensen: Danmarks Oldtid. Bronzealder.(Kristian Kristiansen)Jørgen Jensen: Oldtiden i Danmark. Bronzealderen.(Kristian Kristiansen)Ole Lass Jensen, Søren A. Sørensen og Keld Møller Hansen (red): Danmarks Jægerstenalder – Status og Perspektiver.(Helle Juel Jensen)Lutz Klassen: Frühes Kupfer im Norden. Unthersuchungen zu Chronologie, Herkunft und Bedeutung der Kupferfunde der Nordgruppe der Trichterbecherkultur.(Torsten Madsen)Inger-Lise Kolstrup (red.): Aspekter af dansk klostervæsen i middelalderen.(Susanne Nissen Gram)Hartvig Lüdtke & Kurt Schietzel (Hrsg.): Handbuch zur mittelalterlichen Keramik in Nordeuropa.(H.J. Madsen)Michael Müller-Wille, Valentin L. Janin, Evgenij N. Nosov & Elena A. Rybina (red.): Novgorod. Das mittelalderliche Zentrum und sein Umland im Norden Rußlands.(Michael Andersen)Poul Otto Nielsen: Oldtiden i Danmark. Bondestenalderen.(Lars LarssonViggo Nielsen: Oldtidsagre i Danmark. Bornholm.(Peter Hambro Mikkelsen)Per Persson og Karl-Göran Sjögren: Falbygdens gånggrifter. Del 1. Undersökningar 1985 till 1998.(Niels H. Andersen)Bodil Bundgaard Rasmussen, Jørgen Steen Jensen og John Lund (red.): Christian VIII og National museet, Antikker, mønter, medailler.(Karen Løkkegaard Poulsen)Else Roesdahl: Vikingernes verden. Vikingerne hjemme og ude. 7. udgave.(Tom Christensen)Mats Roslund: Gäster i huset. Kulturell överföring mellan slaver och skandinaver 900 till 1300.(Per Kristian Madsen)Wijnand van der Sander & Torsten Capelle: Mosens Guder. Anthropomorfe træfigurer fra Nord- og Nordvesteuropas fortid.(Lotte Hedeager)Jens B. Skriver: Moesgård. Historien om en herregård.(Anders Myrtue)Gro Steinsland: Den Hellige Konge. Om religion og herskermakt fra vikinge tid til middelalder.(Lotte Hedeager)Bjarne Stoklund: Bondefiskere og strandsiddere. Studier over de store sæsonfiskerier 1350-1600.(Nils Engberg)Birger Storgaard (red.): Military aspects of the arisrocracy in Barbaricum in the Roman and Early Migration periods.(Ulf Nasman)Anne C. Sørensen: Ladby – A Danish Ship-Grave from the Viking Age.(Knut Paasche)Christopher Tilley: The Dolmen and Passage Graves of Sweden.(Niels H. Andersen)Stine Wiell: Kampen om oldtiden / Der Kampf um die Vorgeschichte.Jens Villiam Jensen)W. Haio Zimmermann, Dusanka Kucan, Karl-­Ernst Behre, Norbert Kühl & Erwin Strahl (red.): Probleme der Küstenforschung im südlichen Nordseegebiet.(Hans Skov)

Fedor Androŝuk & Vladimir Zocenko: Skandinavskie drevnosti Ûžnoj Rusi. Katalog(Johan Callmer)Jette Arneborg, Georg Nyegaard og Orri Vésteinsson (red.): Norse Greenland – selected papers from The Hvalsey Conference 8 (Poul Baltzer Heide)E. Baudou: Oscar Montelius. Om tidens återkomst och kulturens vandringar (Klavs Randsborg)Felix Bittman, Johannes Ey, Martina Karle, Hauke Jöns, Erwin Strahl & Steffen Wolters (red.): Marschenratskolloquium 9. Flüsse als Kommunikations- und Handelswege / Marschenrat Colloquium 9. Rivers as Communication and Trade Routes. 5.-7. November 9, Deutsches Shiffahrtsmuseum, Bremerhaven(Katrine Balsgaard Juul)Stephan Borgehammar og Jes Wienberg (red.): Locus Celebris. Dalby kyrka, kloster och gård(Martin Wangsgaard Jürgensen)Palle Eriksen (red.): Erik Westerby, Arkæolog og politifuldmægtig i Ringkøbing(Trine Kellberg Nielsen)Geir Grønnesby (red.): Graver i vejen. Arkeologiske undersøkelser E6 Steinkjer(Jens Ulriksen)Uta Halle & Dirk Mahsarski (red.): Graben für Germanien – Archäologie unterm Hakenkreuz(Lars Schreiber Pedersen)Ulla Lund Hansen & Anna Bitner-Wróblewska (eds.): Worlds Apart? Contacts across the Baltic Sea in the Iron Age. Network Denmark-Poland 5-8(Birgit M. Rasmussen)Henrik Harnow, David Cranstone, Paul Belford & Lene Høst-Madsen (eds.): Across the North Sea. Later Historical Archaeology in Britain and Denmark, c. 0-0 AD.(Jes Wienberg)Michaela Helmbrecht: Wirkmächtige Kommunikationsmedien. Menschenbilder der Vendel- und Wikingerzeit und ihre kontexte(Josefine Franck Bican)Rud Kjems: Stonehenge(Jeanette Varberg)Lene Heidemann Lutz: Die Insel in der Mitte. Bornholm im 2.-4. Jahrhundert: Regionale und vergleichende Untersuchungen der jüngerkaizerzeitlichen Grabfunde(Birgit M. Rasmussen)Niels Algreen Møller, Sarah Skytte Qvistgaard og Steen Frydenlund Jensen (red.): Nyt fra Vestfronten. Nord- og vestjyske bebyggelser fra ældre jernalder. Beretning fra et colloquium i Ribe, 4.-5. oktober 0(Mette Løvschal)Påvel Nicklasson & Bodil Petersson (red.): Att återupptäcka det glömda. Aktuelle forskning om forntidens förflutna i Norden(Inge Adriansen)Mads Peder Nordbo: Odins labyrint. Et glasbarns fortællinger(Kent O. Laursen)Rikke Agnete Olsen: Danske middelalderborge(Lars Krants)Hans Sachs: Renæssancens Stænder og Håndværk i Tekst og Billeder(Jette Linaa Larsen)Anne Birgitte Sørensen: Østergård – vikingetid og middelalder(Lars Krants)Jens Vellev: Jelling. Sommeren 1. Frederik 7.s og J.J.A. Worsaaes udgravninger(Bodil Leth-Larsen)L. Volmer & W. Haio Zimmermann (eds.): Glossary of Prehistoric and Historic Timber Buildings. French, English, Dutch, German, Danish, Norwegian, Swedish, Polish and Czech(Lars Krants)

Ringkøbing in the Middle Ages The last 25 years have seen frequent archaeological excavations in the medieval market town of Ringkøbing. In this paper, the author presents the results and weighs them against the written and cartographic sources in order to gain an overall picture of the emergence and development of the town during the Middle Ages (Fig. 1). Over the years, several local historians have dealt with the history of Ringkøbing. They based their investigations exclusively on the few medieval sources referring to the town, however, and the main issues they concentrated on were the reason for the town being situated exactly there, the origin of its name, its age, and whether it had grown out of an earlier settlement or had been a planned construction. In the first known reference to Ringkøbing, the town is called “rennumkøpingh,” or “the town at Rindum” (Fig. 2). Rindum, or “rennum,” was the rural parish, which had transferred some of its land to the town. A town prospect from around 1677 depicts the small town as seen from the north, with ships anchored on the fjord (Fig. 3). It gives a good impression of the number of streets and their directions. Nevertheless, the first reliable survey of the market town is from the early 19th century (Fig. 4).Ringkøbing is situated on the northern coast of Ringkøbing Fjord, on the edge of a moraine hill, well protected against floods. From the early days, Ringkøbing’s existence was inextricably linked with the navigation conditions on the fjord. Geologists have pointed out that during the Middle Ages the present islands in the tidal area south of Blåvandshuk continued further north, to Bovbjerg. This row of islands is visible on a chart from the mid-16th century (Fig. 5). On the chart, one of the islands is called “Numit,” which is interpreted as “Nyminde,” or “the new mouth.” Huge floods during the 17th century started a major process of drifting of material from the north along the coast, and the channels between the islands sanded up. Just one channel remained navigable, but it moved southward and eventually closed up completely (Fig. 6), which was a disastrous development for Ringkøbing. Nevertheless, during the Middle Ages, ships could still pass unhindered from the sea into the fjord and to Ringkøbing, where they could trade and take in supplies and water.Ringkøbing is situated in an area which has been inhabited since the last Ice Age, and which was especially rich during the Iron Age. By the mid-13th century the area was divided into districts and parishes, and the market town sprouted up in the middle of a well functioning agricultural region. The first actual excavation took place in Ringkøbing in 1978, when the property of Vester Strandgade 14 was investigated by Ringkøbing Museum. An area measuring 44 square metres was examined, and the excavation revealed part of the medieval town (Fig. 7). At the bottom of the excavated area, several furrows observed in a 15 to 20-cm thick humus layer indicated that the area had been farmed right up until the beginning of the activities there in the medieval period. Of the two ditches registered in the area, the earlier one had been dug into the ploughed field, whereas the later ditch was situated approximately in the middle of the medieval culture layer (Fig. 8). Twenty-three post-holes were found, but unfortunately their relationships to each other could not be determined. An extensive layer with a 3.4-metre diameter turned out to be the remains of a well, the shaft of which had been built from granite boulders (Fig. 9). A small bronze buckle was found at the bottom of the well (Fig. 10), and several sherds of imported pottery from around 1300 were found in the filling around the well shaft.The layer sequence was visible in the walls, with the yellow-brown moraine gravel at the bottom, then the above-mentioned humus layer with furrows, and then the homogeneous, grey, medieval culture layer. Above this an earthen floor from the 17th century was visible in several places. The upper layer, with a thickness of c.60 cm, was modern.The medieval layer contained large amounts of pottery sherds, mainly from locally produced grey-brown globular vessels. The rim sherds were from two main pottery types, A and B. Type A, which constitutes the largest group, has the classical, almost S-shaped rim (Fig. 12), whereas type B is characterized by an outward-folded edge creating a flat inner rim (Fig. 13). Both types exist concurrently throughout the medieval culture layer.The glazed pottery sherds represent two types, locally produced earthenware (Fig. 14), and imported pottery. Both types were present in the Vester Strandgade excavation. Of the imported sherds, 39 are from green-glazed jugs with a “raspberry” decoration (Fig. 15). These jugs were produced in the Netherlands around 1300. Sherds from German stoneware found in the medieval layer date from the same time (Fig. 16).The Vester Strandgade excavation was followed by several large and small investigations in the town centre (Fig. 17). “Dyekjærs Have” contained several traces of medieval structures, for instance a large number of post-holes, some of which were from a small building. The pottery material was abundant and consisted mainly of sherds from greyish-brown globular vessels (Fig. 18), but there were also sherds from imported and locally manufactured jugs. Other important town excavations include that of Marens Maw’, where the numerous traces of medieval structure included a row of post-holes interpreted as the outer wall of a house, and the excavation of Øster Strandgade 4, which revealed a late medieval turf-built well (Fig. 19). The excavation of Bojsens Gård also gave interesting results. It was very close to the street, and in this area the medieval culture layer had a depth of up to 60 cm. A ditch dug into the ploughed medieval field represented the earliest activity on this spot. Several structural traces reflected a continuous settlement going back to the early days of the town. Here, too, sherds from globular vessels dominated, but glazed ceramics and stoneware were also represented. The written sources from the Middle Ages reveal nothing about the medieval appearance of the town. The archaeological excavations, on the other hand, have shown that the settlement consisted of houses made from posts dug into the ground, probably half-timbered constructions with wattle-and-daub outer walls, earthen floors, and thatched roofs. The archaeological excavations have also revealed that Ringkøbing sprang up on a ploughed field during the second half of the 13th century. There are no signs of any settlement prior to this, and it is most likely that the town was laid out all at once according to a fixed town plan. No building traces were found in the streets, on Torvet (the market square), on Kirkepladsen (the church square), or on Havnepladsen (the harbour square), and so these squares must have been planned as such from the beginning. The numerous grooves and ditches are interpreted as boundary markers made when the plots were first established. The earliest ones are dug into the ploughed field, and so they must indicate the very first land-registration of the town.In order to found the new market town, an oblong part of Rindum parish had to be confiscated, and the town was marked out in the western part of this as an area measuring approximately 550 by 250 metres (Fig. 20). The streets were laid out in the still existing regular network. There was no harbour, and the ships would anchor in the shallow water off the town. Goods were transported by barge or horse-drawn carriage.In the town centre the market square was laid out, and behind it the square by the church. Ringkøbing’s church is a small Gothic brick building from around 1400. The townsmen probably used the parish church in Rindum during the first 150 years.At the time when Ringkøbing was founded, the Crown was establishing several small coastal towns throughout the kingdom. There was a notable lack of towns along the west coast of Jutland, and the founding of Ringkøbing probably represents a wish to fill this vacuum. At the same time, it was a friendly gesture directed towards the merchants from Northwest Europe whose large merchant ships sailed along the west coast on their way to and from the major markets in the Baltic. It was in the king’s interest to control the trade in the country, as it enabled him to levy taxes and to oppose the Hanseatic League’s attempt to monopolise foreign trade.Life in medieval Ringkøbing was based on trade and crafts, and the king controlled both through his assignment of privileges. The first preserved trade licence concerning medieval Ringkøbing is from 1443, but that document is in fact a confirmation of a privilege previously granted.The archaeological excavations and the written sources have informed us that the town’s trade interests lay across the North Sea. The town’s own merchants travelled overseas, and foreign merchants passed through. Foreign goods such as glazed jugs, stoneware jugs, and woollen cloth were imported from the Netherlands, Flanders, and Germany. The sources also indicate that a hinterland reaching far into Jutland used Ringkøbing for disembarkation. After the Middle Ages, the sources describe Ringkøbing as a small town, at times rather poor, which often had to ask permission to postpone the tax payments for which it was liable. The earliest depictions and maps also give the impression of a small town taking up less space than it did during the Middle Ages (Fig. 21).It will be interesting to learn whether future excavations in Ringkøbing will radically change the picture of the town presented here.Helle HenningsenRingkøbing Museum Translated by Annette Lerche Trolle

Bath-houses in medieval Denmark – a cultural historyThe subject of this article is bath-houses in medieval Denmark. The text is based on all available written sources from Denmark, but in order to obtain a fuller perspective on some aspects of the history of bath-houses it has also been necessary to use German sources as a supplement.Based on the scant historical records dealing with the course of actual bathing activity, it is argued that the most common bath was the sweat bath (similar to a ­modern sauna) rather than tub baths. A stove covered with granite boulders was heated and the bathers would produce sweat using either the direct heat of the stove or from steam produced by pouring cold water onto the hot stones. Sweating was further stimulated by beating the body with bundles of birch twigs and the bath culminated with rinsing in cold water (figs. 2-4). It is argued that, similar to the situation in both Germany and Sweden, bath-house staff would offer haircuts, bleeding and the treatment of wounds in addition to an actual bath (figs. 5-6). ­Referring to specific medieval illustrations, some argue that men and women bathed together in the public bath-houses, leading to sexual excesses. However, the relevant illustrations often depict brothels and not public baths (fig. 1).It is evident from historical records that members of all social classes frequented the public bath-houses – even royalty. From the early 14th century onwards we have historical evidence of so-called soul baths i.e. sums of money bequeathed by wealthy people to the poor to enable the latter to take a bath, often accompanied by a meal. Such bequests were common in the late 15th century but disappeared abruptly with the Reformation. According to medieval records, the use of bath-­houses was also considered important in order to maintain health.The earliest indications in historical records of the existence of bath-houses in Denmark are found in Saxo’s Chronicles from the end of 12th century. From the 1260s onward specific bath-houses in towns appear in the historical records. Judging from the number of bath-houses mentioned in Danish towns it is argued that public bath-houses were a common feature in the urban landscape of medieval Denmark.The number of public bath-houses in towns declined at the beginning of the 16th century and even though a few existed in the major cities up until the 18th century the popularity of these institutions declined. The reasons for this are epidemics of syphilis occurring from the 1490s onward, the phasing out of soul baths and possibly a change in attitudes towards ­nudity and personal hygiene that resulted in a decline in general cleanliness in post-­medieval times.Mikael Manøe BjerregaardVejle Museum