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A skeleton was found in Trondheim, Norway, in the bottom of an old castle well, providing proof for a tale from the old Viking sagas.
Sverre’s Saga, a history of a Norwegian ruler, is the saga in question. In fact, it is one of the very few that explains what happened in Norway during the Viking and Middle Ages.
There were uncertainties about the veracity of the saga’s stories prior to this finding. However, this discovery demonstrates that there is at least some truth to the saga’s narrative.
“As far as I know, there is no known example of the discovery of an individual historically associated with an act of war as far back as the year 1197,” said Anna Petersén, the project manager at the location. The Norwegian Institute for Cultural Heritage Research’s website states, “It is absolutely astounding that this truly corroborates an occurrence mentioned in Sverre’s Saga (NIKU).
Archaeologists at work. Photo: Norwegian Institute for Cultural Heritage Research (NIKU)
The story of King Sverre Sigurdsson
The story goes that in the year 1197, King Sverre Sigurdsson and his Birkebeiner mercenaries were attacked and subsequently defeated by his rivals, the Baglers, in his castle stronghold called Sverresborg.
The Baglers did not only destroy the buildings there but also the freshwater supply of the castle. This was done by throwing one of King Sverre’s dead men into the well, which they then filled with stones.
READ MORE: What you need to know about Norse sagas
Now that the archaeologists have excavated the well, they have been able to confirm that this story is, in fact, true.
Radiocarbon dating
After radiocarbon dating parts of the skeleton which they found at the bottom of the well, it showed that this person had both lived and died in the late 12th century.
Interestingly enough, this was also the same time that the saga’s story took place. These excavations also showed the timber posts and the lining that belonged to the castle’s walls.
As Petersén concludes, “this is a unique glimpse of an important historical event. You can almost feel it. It’s almost as if you were there”.
Source: thevikingherald.com
