15 July 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

Was Stavanger Cathedral Built on a Viking Settlement?

Archaeologists have discovered animal bones and habitation evidence underneath the northern part of Stavanger cathedral that they believe date from the Viking Age. This might finally resolve the question of what existed on the site before the church was erected.

Stavanger Cathedral is Norway’s oldest cathedral. The gray, stone church was built in a long church style around the year 1125 using designs by an unknown architect. It has been in continuous use since it was built.

Archaeologists are investigating the crawl space in Stavanger cathedral. The work is being done in conjunction with the cathedral’s restoration in preparation for the city’s centennial festivities in 2025.

The project was carried out by archaeologists from the Norwegian Institute for Cultural Heritage Research (NIKU) and the Archaeological Museum of the University of Stavanger (UiS).

The crawl space in Stavanger Cathedral is being examined before a new floor is laid in the church. Photo: Kristine Ødeby / NIKU
The crawl space in Stavanger Cathedral is being examined before a new floor is laid in the church. Photo: Kristine Ødeby / NIKU

Pig bones and settlement traces

“In the northern chambers of the church we have found thin, dark soil layers with a completely different character than in the rest of the areas we have investigated so far,” said excavation leader Kristine Ødeby.

Animal bones were found within the soil layers, most notably skeletal remains of a pig. Archaeologists believe they date the find to the first half of the 11th century, or older. This is before the cathedral was built.

Pig bones from before the cathedral was built. Photo: NIKU.
Pig bones from before the cathedral was built. Photo: NIKU.

“What we have found is the bones of a pig, which were clearly placed with meat and skin intact. They have been lying there until now,” said UIS’s Sean Denham.

Helps to prove a Viking settlement

The construction of the church started in the second half of the 11th century. Archaeologists believe it would have been very unlikely that the pig bone was placed in the church after this.

Denham explained that there is no tradition of placing relics into Norwegian medieval churches: “Everything indicates that the bones must have ended up exactly where we found them before the  present church was built.”

NIKU’s Halldis Hobæk said the theory of a Viking Age settlement at the site corresponds well previous findings. During the 1960s, UiS conducted archaeological research under the church.

“In 1968, they found a layer of burnt wood under the altar area. This was dated to Viking times, and is interpreted as a remnant of a burnt down building,” she said.

The finding confirms that the cathedral was not built in an uninhabited and desolate place, but rather a place where there was already human activity.

medieval-graves-in-stavanger
Archaeologists have found far more graves than expected.

Archaeologists have also found far more graves than expected. There’s also evidence that much archaeological material was removed in the 19th century.

Kristine Ødeby said that the preliminary results are very exciting: “We knew that we would find graves under the floor in the cathedral, but the number and extent of them is currently greater than we imagined.”

There were graves in all chambers examined so far. The graves have not yet been formally dated but the team already has a good idea of when they are from.

“The tombs we assume are both from the Middle Ages and from the 16th to 18th centuries. Some may be older than this,” said Ødeby.

The grave finds go well beyond skeletons. In addition to bones, the graves include fragments of wooden coffins, iron nails assumed to be from coffins and some objects including remnants of jewellery and bronze needles.

“A particularly interesting find is several blue, white and black pearls. We wonder if these came from a rosary, and if so it is reasonably certain that it is from the period when the church was still Catholic, ie before the Reformation in 1537,” said Ødeby.

In the six chambers examined so far in the study, the so-called “cultural layers” are  not particularly deep. Cultural layers refer to areas in which remains of human activity are found.

The cultural layers discovered so far are no more than 15cm deep, which leads archaeologists to believe a lot of material was dug away in the Middle Ages.

Source: Life in Norway

Related Articles

Recent excavations reveal the complete water conservancy system of the nearly 5000-year-old Liangzhu Ruins

26 November 2024

26 November 2024

In recent excavations around the Liangzhu Ruins in east China’s Zhejiang Province, researchers have discovered about 20 ancient dams. Seven...

New Discoveries on the İsland of Skokholm

29 March 2021

29 March 2021

New discoveries dating back 9000 years have been found in Skokholm, located in the Celtic Sea two miles off the...

Horse cemetery in Westminster revealed as likely resting place for elite imported animals

25 March 2024

25 March 2024

Archaeological analysis of a medieval horse cemetery discovered in London nearly 30 years ago has revealed the international scale of...

Excavations in and around Yazıkaya, one of the monumental works of the Phrygians, start again after 71 years.

23 July 2022

23 July 2022

Archaeological excavations at Midas Castle in Yazılıkaya Midas Valley in the Han district of Eskişehir, located in northwest Turkey, will...

A Mysterious Partially Submerged Structure in Ireland is a Prehistoric Tomb, archaeologist says

25 October 2022

25 October 2022

New research has revealed that a mysterious structure found many years ago on the eastern shore of Cork Harbor in...

Archaeologists, First-ever Roman-era Tombs Dug Directly into the Rock Uncovered in Al Bahnasa, Egypt

8 January 2024

8 January 2024

Spanish archaeologists made a ground-breaking discovery of rock-hewn Ptolemaic and Roman tombs, mummies, coffins, golden masks, and terracotta statues in...

Archaeologists discover complete armored 14th-century gauntlet in Switzerland

18 January 2024

18 January 2024

Excavations in Kyburg in the canton of Zürich, northeastern Switzerland have discovered a 14th-century fully preserved gauntlet of armor in...

Medieval Weapon Chest Found on Sunken Medieval Flagship Gribshunden

20 April 2024

20 April 2024

An extensive exploration of the wreck of the royal flagship Gribshunden has unearthed a trove of new findings: new insights...

In the “Siberian Valley of the Kings”, archaeologists have discovered a burial mound containing ornate treasures dating back 2,500 years

20 January 2022

20 January 2022

A Polish-Russian team of archaeologists, excavating in the “Siberian Valley of the Kings” have announced the discovery of a burial...

In Switzerland, a Roman amphitheater was discovered during the construction of boathouse

21 January 2022

21 January 2022

Archaeologists from Aargau Cantonal Archaeology have announced the discovery of a Roman amphitheater in Kaiseraugst, located in the canton of...

Storms uncover precious marble cargo from a 1,800-year-old Mediterranean shipwreck in Israel

15 May 2023

15 May 2023

Numerous rare marble artifacts have been found at the site of a 1,800-year-old shipwreck in shallow waters just 200 meters...

Amateur divers discover ‘enormously valuable’ hoard of Roman coins

27 September 2021

27 September 2021

Two amateur free divers have found one of the largest collections of Roman coins in Europe off the east coast of Spain. Luis Lens...

Ancient Latin texts written on papyrus reveal new information about the Roman world

11 January 2023

11 January 2023

Researchers funded by the European Union have deciphered ancient Latin texts written on papyrus. This work could reveal a lot...

Women with Sart Renovate Largest Synagogue of Ancient World

4 August 2023

4 August 2023

Village women take part in the renovation works of the largest synagogue in the ancient world, located in the ancient...

Britain’s first Roman funerary bed is discovered in central London after 2,000 years

7 February 2024

7 February 2024

Archaeologists excavating a construction site in London have unearthed the first Roman “flat-packed” funerary furniture – a fully intact Roman...