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Navigating Inland: Bronze Age Watercraft and the Lakes of Southern Sweden

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  14 October 2019

Courtney Nimura Open the ORCID record for Courtney Nimura [Opens in a new window] ,
Peter Skoglund Open the ORCID record for Peter Skoglund [Opens in a new window]  and
Richard Bradley
Courtney Nimura
Affiliation:
Institute of Archaeology, University of Oxford, UK
Peter Skoglund
Affiliation:
Faculty of Arts and Humanities, Linnaeus University, Kalmar, Sweden
Richard Bradley
Affiliation:
Department of Archaeology, University of Reading, UK
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Abstract

The rock art of southern Scandinavia is characterized by depictions of watercraft. The majority are close to the coast, and they have been the primary focus of research. Less attention has been paid to similar representations associated with two large inland lakes in southern Sweden. In this article we present the results of fieldwork around Lake Vänern and Lake Vättern and consider the relationship of this rock art to the better-known images on the coast. We explore the practicalities of navigating between the sea and the interior and suggest that there was an important contrast between an early eastern sphere extending to Lake Vättern from the Baltic and a later western sphere connecting Lake Vänern with the Atlantic.

Les représentations d'embarcations caractérisent l'art rupestre de la Scandinavie méridionale. La plupart se trouvent en zone côtière et les recherches ont principalement porté sur celles-ci. On a accordé moins d'attention à des images semblables associées à deux grands lacs intérieurs du sud de la Suède. Dans cet article, les auteurs présentent les résultats d'enquêtes menées autour des lacs Vänern et Vättern et considèrent les liens qui auraient pu exister entre les représentations de cette région et celles, mieux connues, des côtes suédoises. Ils examinent les aspects pratiques d'une navigation entre les côtes et l'intérieur du pays et proposent qu'un contraste significatif existait entre une sphère orientale précoce allant de la Baltique au Lac Vättern et une sphère occidentale plus tardive reliant l'Atlantique au Lac Vänern. Translation by Madeleine Hummler

Bilder von Wasserfahrzeugen prägen die Felskunst Südskandinaviens. Meistens befinden sich diese Darstellungen in der Nähe der Küsten und deswegen haben diese den Schwerpunkt der Forschung gebildet. Es gibt weniger Forschungsarbeiten über ähnliche Bilder, die mit zwei großen Binnenseen in Südschweden verbunden sind. In diesem Artikel werden die Ergebnisse von Feldarbeiten rund um den Vänern und Vättern vorgestellt und den Zusammenhang zwischen den Darstellungen der Gegend und den besser bekannten Bildern der Küsten betrachtet. Die praktischen Aspekte der Schifffahrt zwischen den Küsten und dem Binnenland werden erwogen und den Standpunkt, dass es einen deutlichen Unterschied zwischen einem frühen östlichen Kreis von der Ostsee bis zum Vättern und einem späteren westlichen Kreis vom Vänern bis zur atlantischen Küste gab, wird vertreten. Translation by Madeleine Hummler

Keywords

Bronze Agerock artsouthern Scandinaviaship motifsinland rock artprehistoric artâge du Bronzeart rupestreScandinavie du sudmotifs de bateauxart rupestre dans l'arrière-paysart préhistoriqueBronzezeitFelskunstSüdskandinavienSchiffsmotiveFelskunst im Binnenlandurgeschichtliche Felskunst
Type
Article
Information
European Journal of Archaeology , Volume 23 , Issue 2 , May 2020 , pp. 186 - 206
Copyright
Copyright © European Association of Archaeologists 2019

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