Meet the Hillesøy people – life and death year 800

Temporary exhibition

Two boat graves tell about life and death in the early Viking Age.

Twelve hundred years ago, a man and woman were buried on Hillesøy, an island near Tromsø in Northern Norway. Accompanied by the finest clothing and equipment, they were each carefully placed in a boat. In this way, everyone could see them as important individuals from high status families.

The graves contain finds that are unusual in Norse burials. As a link in the trade between Sami suppliers in the north and Scandinavian trade partners in the south, the buried individuals would have been powerful persons.

The skeletons, boats and artifacts were all unusually well preserved, and have provided a considerable amount of new knowledge. They tell stories about them, their achievements and contacts. Researchers from different disciplines have used different methods to find out as much as possible about the deceased, their lives and the society in which they lived.

The two graves lie close to one another and have many similarities. Did those buried die at the same time or many years apart? Did they know one another personally or only through stories?

Visit the exhibition and tell us what you would like to know more about?

 

Last changed: 18.06.2020 10.52