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Spatial and Temporal Trends in New Cases of Men with Modified Teeth from Sweden (AD 750–1100)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  25 January 2017

Anna Kjellström
Anna Kjellström*
Affiliation:
Osteoarchaeological Research Laboratory, Department of Archaeology and Classical Studies, Stockholm University, Sweden
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Abstract

Vikings with artificially modified teeth have previously been documented in the south-eastern parts of Scandinavia and in England. In a project dealing with life in the Mälaren Valley in Sweden during the period AD 750–1100, new cases of people with modified maxillary teeth were observed. The hypothesis that the practice was entirely associated with adult men dating to the Viking Age was tested. The new cases demonstrate that the habit extended to eastern-central Sweden, including the proto-town of Birka, perhaps as early as in the middle of the eighth century. Additionally, cases from Sigtuna show that the practice may have ended as late as the beginning of the twelfth century. A microanalysis, using a scanning electron microscope, showed the heterogeneous character of the modifications. The affected individuals were all adult men, similar to previously published cases. Some of the men are associated with weapons and violent acts and the cases from Sigtuna were all from cemeteries with a possible association with lower social strata. However, discrepancies in archaeological contexts and in the characteristics of the modifications suggest temporal and spatial variation in the social meaning of the modifications.

Des découvertes de Vikings aux dents artificiellement modifiées avaient déjà été documentées dans les régions du sud-est de la Scandinavie et en Angleterre. Un projet traitant de la vie dans la vallée de Mälaren en Suède durant la période de 750 à 1100 apr. J.C. dévoila de nouveaux individus aux maxillaires modifiées. On mit à l'essai l'hypothèse que cette pratique était uniquement associée à des hommes adultes de l'Âge des Vikings. Les nouveaux cas montrent que cette habitude était probablement déjà répandue jusqu'à l'est de la Suède centrale, y compris la proto-ville de Birka, au milieu du 8e siècle. De plus, des exemples de Sigtuna montrent que cette pratique pourrait même avoir perdurée jusqu'au début du 12e siècle. Une microanalyse à l'aide d'un microscope électronique à balayage témoigne du caractère hétérogène de ces modifications. Les individus affectés étaient tous des mâles adultes, comme dans les cas publiés antérieurement. Quelques-uns des hommes étaient associés à des armes et des actes de violence; et les exemples de Sigtuna proviennent sans exeption de cimetières montrant une possible association aux couches sociales inférieures. Toutefois, les divergences dans les contextes archéologiques et dans les caractéristiques des modifications suggèrent que la signification sociale des modifications était soumise à une variation temporelle et spatiale. Translation by Isabelle Gerges.

Zusammenfassung

Zusammenfassung

Wikinger mit künstlich modifizierten Zähnen wurden zuvor in den südöstlichen Teilen Skandinaviens und in England dokumentiert. Im Rahmen eines Projektes, das sich mit dem Leben im Mälaren-Tal in Schweden während des Zeitraumes 750–1150 n. Chr. befasst, wurden neue Fälle von modifizierten Zähnen des Oberkiefers beobachtet. Es wurde die Hypothese überprüft, dass diese Praxis ausschließlich mit erwachsenen Männern aus der Wikingerzeit in Verbindung gebracht werden kann. Die neuen Fälle zeigten, dass sich diese Sitte wahrscheinlich bereits in der Mitte des 8. Jh. n. Chr. unter Einbeziehung der Proto-Stadt Birka in den Osten Zentralschwedens ausbreitete. Weiterhin zeigen Fälle aus Sigtuna, dass diese Praxis nicht vor dem Anfang des 12. Jh. endete. Die Mikroanalyse mit einem Rasterelektronenmikroskop zeigte den heterogenen Charakter der Modifikationen. Die betroffenen Individuen waren, in Übereinstimmung mit den bereits zuvor publizierten Fällen, stets erwachsene Männer. Einige dieser Männer wiesen Waffen und Spuren von Gewalthandlungen auf. Die Fälle von Sigtuna stammen zudem von Gräberfeldern mit einer möglichen Verbindung zu niedrigeren sozialen Schichten. Allerdings deuten Unterschiede in den archäologischen Kontexten und in den Charakteristika der Modifikationen auf zeitliche und räumliche Unterschiede in der sozialen Bedeutung hin. Translation by Heiner Schwarzberg.

Keywords

teethdental modificationskeletonsVikingmenSwedenDenmarkdentsmodification dentairesquelettesVikinghommesSuèdeDanemarkZähneZahnmodifikationenSkeletteWikingerMännerSchwedenDänemark
Type
Articles
Information
European Journal of Archaeology , Volume 17 , Issue 1 , 2014 , pp. 45 - 59
Copyright
Copyright © European Association of Archaeologists 2014 

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