AUGUST 13, 2008...(DAY 21)...MAKING OUR WAY TO STOCKHOLM

On our way to Stockholm, we stopped at Gamla Uppsala to tour the Royal Burial Mounds. These mounds belonged to the royal demesne of Gamla Uppsala. This was land held by the Swedish king which he was not allowed to sell. The mounds are graves from the 6th century A.D.

Pagan temples and sacrificial graves, mounds bearing the names of Odin, Thor, and Frey, an assembly site, royal graves...Few places in Scandinavia are mentioned in early sources as often as Gamla Uppsala. The oldest records go as far back as the 8th century.

Royal Burial Mounds: These burial mounds have been here for 1500 years. This is one of the most important historic settings in Sweden. This area was the chief cult site of the Svear and the seat of their kings. There used to be 2,000-3,000 prehistoric graves in the area, and today about 250 are visible above ground. The three biggest mounds are graves from the 6th century (500s). A Norwegian poem Ynglingatal from the 10th century says that three kings were "howed" (buried in mounds) here during the Migration Period (375-550 A.D.).

In 1874, a large shaft was dug into the side of one of the mounds. A cairn was found, containing a grave with bones, ashes, and molten objects. Parts of combs, ivory, gold threads, a small stylized animal head, a sword hilt of gold with inlaid garnets, and three cameos of onyx from the Near East (present-day Iraq), among other things. These objects suggest that the mound was the grave of a man, perhaps a chieftain.

Gamla Uppsala Church: This Christian church was erected early in the 12th century when it was the seat of the diocese for a short period of time. I love the stone work.

Gamla Uppsala Church Ceiling: I am continually awed by the beauty of the painting on the walls and ceilings of the ancient churches we visited.

Gamla Uppsala Bell Tower: This design is certainly reminiscent of Viking architecture. This area was a center for worshiping the Norse gods back in the 11th century (1000s).