8 August 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

Mythical Viking stronghold Jomsborg could be on Hangman’s Hill near Wolin, archaeologist say

A new hypothesis about the location of the mythical Viking stronghold on Hangman’s Hill near Wolin (West Pomerania) has been put forward by archaeologist Dr. Wojciech Filipowiak.

According to archaeologist Dr. Wojciech Filipowiak from the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnology PAS, Jomsborg was a fortress, and at its foot was the city of Jom.

Wolin is an island at the mouth of the river Oder. It was almost certainly the location which the sagas depict as the home of the Jómsvikings: a band of elite Vikings who sold their services to the highest bidder.

Sagas tell of a magnificent fortress with an artificial harbor that could hold 360 ships. However, archaeological evidence yet does not bear this out. Soon this may change.

Hangman’s Hill is one of the largest early medieval cemeteries in northern Europe, located south of Wolin.

‘During the research, we conducted there in 2021 and 2022, we were surprised to discover almost entire burial mounds under a half-meter layer of sand. The hill was covered with forest until World War II, the sand was carried there by the wind. This means that there may be more objects that still have their original form, but they are not visible on the surface, Dr. Filipowiak tells PAP.

He adds that the archaeologists also found two objects that did not resemble burials. One of them is located on the top of the hill, on the side of the city, and has the shape of a ring(in cross-section there are two embankments). The second one, several meters away, is a linear embankment with burn traces and fragments of wood on both banks.

Archaeological research at the Hangman’s Hill Cemetery near Wolin. Photo: PAP/Marcin Bielecki

‘They could be a part of a burnt fortification, for example, an embankment,’ says Dr. Filipowiak. He adds that the possible course of the embankments is difficult to determine without further research. The archaeologist explains that he compared the topography of Wolin with two Viking centres – Hedeby in Denmark and Birka in Sweden, and points out that there are great similarities between the three.

In Hedeby, there is Hochburg Hill covered with burial mounds to the north of the centre, and there is also a small rampart dating back to the Viking period. ‘According to one theory, there was a garrison on the hill that controlled the city,’ says Dr. Filipowiak.

To the south of the center of the trade center Birki, on a rock, surrounded by a 350-meter semi-circular embankment, there is the Borgen Fortress. Next to it, on the terrace, there was (as confirmed) a garrison of warriors.

Hangman’s Hill is located south of the city, at the mouth of the Zalew Szczeciski to Dziwna, i.e. on the main shipping route to Wolin; it provides a panoramic view of the entire city. As the archaeologist pointed out, this is an ideal location for a fortress controlling a trading center.

He explains that after formulating the hypothesis, he also looked at the earlier findings of researchers (work on the hill had been carried out since the 19th century) and written sources about Jomsborg.

The only alleged Scandinavian burial under the barrow is at Hangman’s Hill. A skeletal grave without a head and tied hands was also discovered nearby; it was previously associated with the hill’s name and interpreted as a convict’s grave. The archaeologist speculates that the Vikings may have performed a ritual burial here.

One of the arguments for the location of Jomsborg on Hangman’s Hill is the topography.

Hangman Hill range is alongside Dziwna, south of Wolin Center. Photo: Wolin Museum

‘The power of Wolin was based on sea trade. The main route to it runs not through Dziwna from the north and through Świna and Piana from the west. Controlling the entrance to Wolin would therefore be most effective from Hangman’s Hill,’ Filipowiak says.

He adds that in the sources there is also the name ‘Jom’, which caused interpretation problems for chroniclers, skalds, and researchers. The proximity of the fortress and the city may have been the reason for confusing the names Jom and Jomsborg. The archaeologist extended the hypothesis to include this issue, pointing out that Jomsborg is a fortress on Hangman’s Hill, and the city at its foot is Jom, after which the entire region was also named.

He also says that in his opinion, the establishment of the fortress in the place of burials was neither accidental nor dictated only by defensive value.

‘I think there was also symbolic violence at play here. Placing military force literally on the graves of ancestors must have carried a huge message for the local population,’ he says.

Researchers are currently planning an extensive project, consisting of several stages, including large excavations in the city center and Hangman’s Hill, which could clarify the relationship between the city and the fortress (if it did exist).

PAP

Cover Photo: Hangman Hill Barrows. Wolin Museum

Related Articles

5,000-year-old Settlement Unearthed in Al Mudhaibi, Oman

3 January 2023

3 January 2023

The Oman News Agency announced that a 5,000-year-old settlement was discovered during archaeological excavations at the Al Gharyein archaeological site...

1,800-year-old wooden mask likely used in farm festivals found in Japan

25 April 2023

25 April 2023

Archaeologists have unearthed an almost perfectly preserved wooden mask from the early third century at the Nishi-Iwata ruins in Osaka...

Ancient Hebrew “Incantation Bowls” discovered in a home in Israel

8 March 2022

8 March 2022

The Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) said Monday that 1,500-year-old magical “incantation bowls” and other rare and ornate bone and ivory...

The historic Egyptian Palace is being demolished, it may hold a surprise underneath

27 August 2021

27 August 2021

The cause for the evacuation and demolition of the ancient Tawfiq Pasha Andraos Palace, located in the precincts of the...

Archaeologists discover innovative 40,000-year-old culture in China

2 March 2022

2 March 2022

Ancient hunter-gatherers living in what is now China may have been the first people in East Asia to process mustard...

Ancient city site unearthed in Central China produces fortune-telling relics

8 February 2024

8 February 2024

Bone slips used for “fortune-telling activities” and “ancient sacrificial ceremonies” were unearthed during excavations at an archaeological site in Puyang,...

Dog Kajtuś uncovers Poland’s biggest treasure of the past 100 years

21 April 2022

21 April 2022

A dog named Kajtuś discovered the biggest treasure found in Poland in the last 100 years. The treasure was found...

More than 100 bronze mirrors found at Sakurai Chausuyama burial mound in Japan

3 October 2023

3 October 2023

Archaeologists in Japan have unearthed more than 100 ancient bronze mirrors from the Sakurai Chausuyama burial mound in Sakurai, Nara...

A 4,500-year-old rope remains were discovered at Turkey’s Seyitömer mound

26 December 2021

26 December 2021

In the rescue excavation carried out in the mound, which is located within the license border of Çelikler Seyitömer Electricity...

Archaeologists discover traces of ancient Jalula, the city that witnessed the famous battle of the same name 1386 years ago

23 November 2023

23 November 2023

The  Iraqi State Board of Antiquities and Heritage (SBAH) has announced the discovery of the boundaries and various structures of...

Ancient Greek Marble Workshop Unearthed on Paros Island

20 May 2025

20 May 2025

The world of ancient Greek art continues to amaze modern scholars, with recent excavations on Paros Island unveiling a long-lost...

Ancient gypsum furniture was discovered in a fire temple in the ancient region of Vigol in Iran

1 June 2021

1 June 2021

Sets of gypsum furniture, including a carved table and chairs, were discovered during an archaeological dig in central Iran. According...

Artificial Intelligence Project That Will Revolutionize Archaeology

5 April 2021

5 April 2021

Polish Scientists to opening a new era in archeology They plan to use artificial intelligence to detect prehistoric cemeteries, castles,...

In Fraueninsel in Lake Chiemsee: Romanesque a central building hidden underground for 1,000 years discovered

25 February 2024

25 February 2024

On Fraueninsel, an island in Germany’s Lake Chiemsee, archaeologists discovered a cult site that may have been slumbering underground for...