28 August 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

Unusual Iron Age Female Grave Found in Pryssgården, Sweden

In an Iron Age cemetery in Sweden, archaeologists found a woman’s grave buried with a small needle and an iron folding knife directly into her burial.

One of the country’s largest archaeological excavations has been underway for a year and a half at Pryssgården outside Norrköping. The area is close to Motala ström and people have lived here for 6,000 years, but now it is to become industrial land instead.

The area has been investigated in the past, but during the new excavations, archaeologists have rediscovered a burial ground from the early Iron Age. The burial ground, with around 50 graves, was known in the 17th century but was forgotten when it became arable land. Among the finds is a female skeleton.

Although there are at least 50 burials in the cemetery dating from 500 BC to 400 AD, this woman’s grave is particularly unusual. Archaeologists have discovered an ancient iron pocketknife jabbed into the burial of this Iron Age woman.

The people who buried the woman centuries ago “stuck the knife in; we don’t know why, but it is clear that it is meant for the woman,” Moa Gillberg, an archaeologist at Sweden’s National Historical Museums, said in a statement.

Some of the graves were covered with tiny, symmetrically laid stones, but the majority were pits where cremated remains were placed, a common burial practice during the Iron Age.

Archaeologist Moa Gillberg in the process of excavating one of the graves. Photo: Henrik Pihl, Archaeologerna
Archaeologist Moa Gillberg in the process of excavating one of the graves. Photo: Henrik Pihl, Archaeologerna

Two graves close to each other were investigated at the same time. One contained no grave goods, was less sooty, and also contained some animal bones.

– The other grave was extremely sooty and had a thick layer of fire. When we dug down, we saw that an iron curved knife had been inserted straight into the ground with its edge. It was probably used for preparing hides. They had collected everything from the fire and then stuck the knife in the ground, we don’t know why but it is clear that it was meant for the woman. It is also very well preserved and may have been on the pyre before it was stuck down,’ says Moa Gillberg:

– ‘There is a woman buried here and she also has a small needle with her. Part of a toe bone showed that she probably had osteoarthritis in her big toe. Similar female graves have been found at the Fiskeby burial ground, where the dead were also given needles and knives of the same type.

In total, the archaeologists believe that there are around 50 graves in the area, but there may be more or turn out to be fewer.

Using metal detectors, archaeologists from the National Historical Museums discovered some jewelry during their initial investigations this past spring. In addition to dozens of graves, they discovered a storehouse, a well, and ancient dwellings during the excavation process.

Arkeologerna

Cover Photo: Henrik Pihl, Arkeologerna

Related Articles

Rich Votive Deposit Discovered in the Valley of the Temples of Agrigento

10 August 2023

10 August 2023

At least sixty terracotta figurines, female protomes, and busts, oil lamps, and small vases, a rich votive deposit of bronze...

In the ancient city of Syedra: a unique mosaic with the 12 labors of Heracles depicted on a single panel found

25 July 2022

25 July 2022

During the excavations in the ancient city of Syedra in the Alanya district of Antalya, approximately 164 square meters of...

World’s Smallest Stegosaurus Track Found

14 March 2021

14 March 2021

The smallest trace of stegosaurus in the world that lived 155 million years ago was found. Stegosaurus, a herbivorous dinosaur,...

Remains of a 5-year-old girl found under Real Alcázar in Spain

9 May 2021

9 May 2021

The body of a five-year-old fair-haired girl who lived in the late Middle Ages and was most likely of noble...

A 3300-Year-Old Canaanite Shipwreck Ever Discovered with All Its Cargo off Israel’s Coast

21 June 2024

21 June 2024

An Energean natural gas surveying vessel operating about 90 kilometers (56 miles) off the coast of Israel discovered a ship...

Mysterious Mongolian Arc in Eastern Mongolia Studied for the First Time

30 December 2023

30 December 2023

Researchers have studied the 405-km wall system in eastern Mongolia known as the Mongolian Arc to learn more about its...

3,500-Year-Old Opal Workshop and Rare Lithophones Unearthed in Vietnam

17 August 2025

17 August 2025

Archaeologists in Vietnam’s Gia Lai province have uncovered a remarkable prehistoric site dating back more than 3,500 years. Excavations at...

Gold coin hoard discovered in a cup beneath a North Yorkshire kitchen floor is being auctioned off

7 September 2022

7 September 2022

A couple in North Yorkshire found an early 18th-century gold coin hoard buried under the floorboards of their kitchen. The...

3,700-Year-Old Bronze Age Ceremonial Site Discovered in Derbyshire, in Northern England

23 March 2025

23 March 2025

In a remarkable revelation, archaeologists have uncovered that the Farley Moor stone, previously thought to be a solitary monument, is...

2,000-year-old Roman pewter hoard discovered in Suffolk

4 July 2023

4 July 2023

A rare hoard of Roman pewter has been discovered in Euston, western Suffolk, in eastern England. The rare discovery includes...

16th-Century Compass Possibly Belonging to Nicolaus Copernicus Unearthed in Poland’s Frombork

8 August 2024

8 August 2024

Researchers have discovered a 16th-century compass that is thought to have been used by astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus in the canonical...

Paleontologists say world’s oldest-known burial site found in South Africa

6 June 2023

6 June 2023

American explorer and scientist Lee Berger in South Africa said they have found the oldest-known burial site in the world,...

Evidence of the Birth of Archaic Monotheism in Anatolia found at Oluz Höyük, “Havangah prayer at Oluz Höyük”

27 March 2022

27 March 2022

Oluz Höyük, located 25 kilometres west of Amasya, is an ancient city which has rich findings of religious structuring. During...

The 3,000-Year-Old Ancient City is Under Danger

8 February 2021

8 February 2021

For the port planned to be built in Izmir’s Aliağa district, a part of the 3,000-year-old ancient city is in...

A Baptismal Surprise: Triton Baths in Southeastern Rome Converted into Early Christian Church

7 May 2025

7 May 2025

Recent archaeological excavations within the monumental complex of the Villa di Sette Bassi, situated in the southeastern outskirts of Rome,...