During the Iron Age, Öland was a rich and important trading metropolis, but in the 6th century many of the island’s castles were abandoned.
In a unique research project, archaeologists will now find out why.
– We can learn lessons from this time to today in what happens to societies when they go through war, disease and climate disasters, says Ludvig Papmehl-Dufay.
Researchers believe that in the Åland crowd, there are around 16 ring castles from the migration period, 400-550 AD. Some of them have received a lot of attention, such as Eketorp and Sandby, but most have not been investigated.
In a large research program, which has been granted SEK 43 million from the Riksbank’s Jubilee Fund, archaeologists will now try to get a comprehensive grasp of all the island’s ring castles and what they can tell us about their contemporaries.
The archaeologist: “This is huge”
– This is huge and provides a completely different opportunity to get a greater grasp of Öland’s history. I think we will turn some of what we think we know upside down, says Ludvig Papmehl-Dufay, docent in archeology at Linnaeus University.
For eight years, researchers from Stockholm University, Linnaeus University and Kalmar County Museum, with the help of archeology students, will excavate parts of the burghers and then analyze the findings.
Was characterized by wars, epidemics, and climatic disasters
It is known that the world during the era was characterized by wars, epidemics, and climate disasters, among other things volcanic eruptions in what was then El Salvador caused ash clouds that obscured the sun for several years.
During this time, many of Öland’s castles were abandoned and now the archaeologists will try to find out the reason and what benefit we can derive from the events of that time today.
– Climate disasters, diseases and violence characterize our own time and by highlighting a period that was characterized by this, we may be able to gain perspective on how we can handle crises today, says Ludvig Papmehl-Dufay.