Another day in the wild

The work continues outside of Halmstad, Halland County, in the southwest of Sweden. The area is perhaps not the most exiting if one wants to find ancient monuments, instead we’ve found several croft ruins and ruins of poor houses and of course the small fields surrounding them.

Today was a beautiful day, sunny, a light breeze and about 15-20 degrees Celsius. As I was walking over a small ridge scared the wits out of this elk (moose), as he ran away I managed to get a photo, though poorly.

They’re mighty animals, and I think I got as shocked as he or she, and fanatic to see in their own habitant, in the wild – though I kind of like to see them on plate as well.

Now it’s resting and mending for a new go tomorrow, I got a tender knee from slipping on wet root and having the fortune of landing on my knee just where a stone happened to be – it’s a bit swollen but should be fine after a few hours rest.

Magnus Reuterdahl

Quantum GIS

This weekend I’ve been playing a bit with Quantum GIS (QGIS) an open source Geographic Information System that can be downloaded for free, though they are happy to accept donations. I’ve been and currently am working with ESRI based products such as ArcView 3.2, ArcView 8.2, ArcGIS, Arcpad etc. Quantum GIS has many similarities with these, with that I mean that the milieu is familiar and even though it’s a different program you’ll get the hang of it rather quickly as an Esri user. QGIS is also available with Swedish menus.

I’ve just started to play with it but so far I’m impressed, it’s user friendly and can, at least seemingly, do what ArcView 8.2 can – I’ve found several good applications that I see is there but still haven’t figured out – as yet – such as coordinate transformation possibilities, for example from RT90 (the old but still used coordinate system in Sweden) to SWEREF 99 TM, (the new coordinate system in Sweden) and loading GPS data straight into QGIS.

More info on QGIS can be found here

As my company is currently, and always, look for improvements in the products we use, this might very well be one that I’ll recommend them taking in as it’s cheaper than the ArcView/GIS products but also seems to work as good as them.

In the coming weeks I’ll explore it further – if you use QGIS and have tips I’ll gladly accept them.

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A letter of discontent

Discontent with the weather gods that is! Come storm, come rain, come thunder – whatever have I done to piss of the weather gods? The last few days I’ve been working a few miles east north east of Halmstad with a survey and it’s been pouring down, add to that winds of 15-20 m/s and some thunder and you don’t really want to be outdoors.

A Swedish saying goes “There’s no bad whether, only poor choice of clothes” – to that I say bah! double bah! and triple bah! Even if your rain coat happens to actually keep the rain from your body, they work like a sauna and you’ll end up wet anyways, and if you’re wet you’re bound to be cold – and so I got.

When you’re working outdoors during stormy days, it really wears you out, not so much the wind but the constant sound of the wind; it’s like working by a jet-engine all day long – and then you’ll need to keep a look out for falling branches and trees! After a day like this all you want is to get dry and warm – so I’ll go get myself another cup of coffee and pray for sunny day tomorrow.

Magnus Reuterdahl

Skokloster Abbey

A few days ago I wrote about a visit to Skokloster castle and published some photos, now it is time for some interior shots.

Sko church was built by the order of Cistercians as the nuns at Byarum in Smaland started to move to Uppland in the 13th century. It’s believed that work started ca 1230, ca 1280 is the inauguration of the high altar of the church, by then the nuns might have moved to Sko. As most medieval churches it has been added to, restored and changed over the centuries.

Interior Skokloster Abbey

Crucifix, made of oak, mid-1200s.

Madonna, made of oak, the child’s head of hardwood, possible from Gotland, first quarter of the 1300s.

The Herman Wrangel monument in the grave Wrangelska choir. The sculpture is made by Daniel Anckermann (German) ca 1650.

Herman Wrangel golden armor

There are two artistic representations of the Battle of Gorzno in Skokloster Abbey, an oil painting and the stucco on the wall of the Wrangel tomb chapel.

The stucco is divided into a lower lot, where the battle scenes take place in a forest and river scenery, and a top where Swedish and Polish armies are seen in bird’s eye view, the Poles on the left and the Swedes on the right side. The stucco is based on a drawing preserved in the war archive, in Stockholm.

The information on the stucco is from an article in Fornvännen 1939 by Wilhelm Nisser; Daniel Anckermans stuckaturer i de Gyllenhemska och Wrangelska gravkoren (pdf in Swedish).

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Some 17th and 18th century copperplate engravings

Once again in Jonkoping and once again finding myself on a shopping spree. This weekend I’m visiting my parents before going on a job in the southwest of Sweden. And as luck has it I picked up some 17^th and 18^th century copperplate engravings and prints, if coloured they’re hand coloured.

These two lovely copperplate engravings by Briot, 1672 or 1676, from Histoire de L’Etat Present de L’Empire Ottoman.

To the right, “Vin Spahis”(Tome 2, Fol. 33). Spahi or Kapu Kuli was one of the finest horsemen of the six corps of the Ottoman and later Turkish army. To the left Le Ianisar Agasi, General des Ianissaires (Tome 2 Fol. 45). The Ianissaires where one of the greatest strengths of the Ottoman (and Turkish?) armed forces.

A black and white copperplate engraving of the Chinese wall, in the background is the city Xogon Koton (not sure of its current name or the Pinyin transcription).

The Embassadors entry through the famous Chinese Wall. Near 1200 miles in length from John Harris’s Navigantium atque Itinerantium Bibliotheca or A Complete Collection of Voyages and Travels 1748.

The next engraveing is also on a Chinese view of the Porcelain tower of Nanjing or Bao’ensi.

Prospect of the Porcelane tower at Nan King in China (Sparrow sculp), ca 1790.

The last one with a Chinese motive is named the procession at a Chinese funeral (vol II pag.217) from The general history of China : containing a geographical, historical chronological, political and physical description of the Empire of China, Chinese-Tartary, Corea and Thibet including an exact and particular account of their customs, manners, cermonies, religion, arts and sciences by Jean Baptiste du Halde 1739. (volume the second, The Second edition Corrected)

I also bought a map of the north part of Scandinavia; the Norwegian coast Sweden from Medelpad, the north part of Finland, the north west of Russia. On the map Laponie Suedoise is especially marked. The map is named Carte des courones du Nord, dédiée au tres-puissantet et trees-invincible prince Charles XII roy de Suede des Gots et des Vandales, grand duc dr finlandie &c, &c, &c. Par son tres humble et tres obeissant serviteur Guillaume De l’Isle de l’Academie Rle. des Sciences, 1706. A Paris, chez l’Auteur sur le Quai de l’Orloge a avec Privilege du Roy. Grave par Liebaux le fils.  The map was made by Guillaume de Lisle (1675-1726), this map is printed in Paris 1780.

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Heritage board’s course on Historic Landscapes day 3

It’s been a long day, and I’m rather tired so this just a quick update of the day.

We started off looking at the area around Sagaån (Saga river) where lots of time and effort has been put in over the years concerning a new route for the highway E18. One alternative was to put the route between two great mounds and the assumed place for the medieval king’s road Eriksgatan and the passage where the king left Västmanland and entered Uppland. The other alternative was to place the route in a landscape which shows a well-worked-industrial agricultural landscape. The issue has been resolved and the new route is being built but it was an interesting discussion on how to different values sometimes clashes.

From there we continued north towards Bergslagen and Norberg – on the way we stopped by the grave field at Anunds mound at Badelunda – an amazing site – well worth a visit. Anunds mound is the largest burial mound in Sweden measuring 60 m diameter and 14 meters in height. On the grave field are also several smaller mounds, ship settings and a line of stones, including a rune stone, a monument called a bridge. The grave field is dated to the Iron Age and the rune stone bridge monument to the late Iron Age or the middle Ages.

After this we stopped at the UNESCO world heritage site Engelsberg Ironworks – a part of Bergslagen (http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/556) Engelsberg is one of the best preserved ironworks from the 17th and 18th centuries. The complex is more or less complete, with a manor, with smithies, and blast-furnace among other things.

Though I don’t have a photo – the worlds oldest, still standing, oil refinerie is also in Engelsberg , built during the early 1800s.

From here to Norsberg and a visit to Nya (New) Lapphyttan – Nya Lappnyttan is a reconstructed medieval village, Blast furnace and Iron production open-air museum based on an archaeological excavation of Lapphyttan, during the 80’s, of one the oldest blast furnace remains in Sweden and Europe. It’s been dated to the 12^th century.

This is all for now

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Heritage board’s course on Historic Landscapes day 2

Today we visited Västra Syninge (Syninge west) a farm with several interesting features, with the help of a map from 1630s and a modern map one can trace a lot of the 17^th century landscape – a farm that has moved, across the road?, traces of fossilized fields in form of clearing cairns field edges. Lots of interesting discussions concerning how to interpret these traces, for example their age, how to classify them, what scientific and pedagogic value they have and so fourth. The most rewarding discussion, according to me, was that concerning the remains of an earlier farm. According to Swedish Cultural heritage act, a monument or remain classified as ancient monument/remain must be permanently abandoned. This particular farmstead is permanently abandoned and can be traced back at least to medieval times. On the historic map are two adjacent farms, of which this is one, the other is still where it once was and in use. As the remains are a part of the remaining farm the area isn’t abandoned – how it categorizes relic?

This might seem as an easy question but isn’t, should a part be classed as ancient monument? That would be as putting a dead mans hand on it making it impossible or next to impossible for the farmer to use. Should we class it as something else with another or lower protection risking that it gets destroyed or are there other ways? Lots of interesting questions that has no straight answer.

I’m sorry to say I have no photos of the area, as it was bit rainy and several of the remains were very difficult to photo.

After this we went to Finsta – visiting the, assumed, birth place of  Birgitta (Bridget) Birgerstotter or Saint Bridget (Birgitta) of Sweden in 1303,  a more likely place is Fresta,  according to ledgend Birgitta had her first holy vision here in a place called Birgittas Bönegrotta (a cave in which she prayed).  Here we discussed the importance of accuracy, it is more or less clear that Birgitta wasn’t born here and therefore didin’t have her first vision here – – So how do that influence on the historic value of this site? Does it loose or reduces its historical value if Birgitta was not born here? Or does the tradition in itself a historical background which gives it a historical value? I think the latter – over long time people has connected this place with Birgitta, and come here as a pilgrimage or as interested tourists and that makes the place a site of interest.

So not to lure people to Finsta – there are no remains of the medieval Finsta that Birger Persson , Birgittas father, owned though there is a small cave that tradition call’s Birgittas. But if you do visit don’t miss the wonderful Iron Age grave fields just a few hundred meters away and the medieval church.

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Heritage board’s course on Historic Landscapes day 1

Oxhagen in Rimbo

First day of the National Heritage board’s course on Historic Landscapes (Landskapshistorisk utbildning) we visited Oxhagen (the Ox pasture) in Rimbo, some miles north of Stockholm. I’ve been there a few years ago but had more or less forgotten about it, it situated in a rural landscape and we got some friends tagging a long for the ride.

Within the pastures are the remains of an late Bronze Age/early Iron Age landscape with clearing cairns, small fossilized fields, cairns of fire cracked stones, a grave field with stone settings and so forth – these remains is in part “disturbed” by newer features, such as younger fossilized fields and clearing cairns, military buildings etc.

An interesting area with gave cause to lots and lots of discussions – where why and how are important words. What makes you determine if something is a prehistoric remain or not– if in doubt use the rule of three:

Location – where is it situated, form – does it have the right shape and material - is it built by the right material.

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Skokloster castle

Yesterday me and my fianceé visited Skokloster castle, ca 65 km from  Stockholm, by lake Mälaren. The castle is beautifully situated on the waterfront and the roads leading up to the castle are surrounded by old farms and crofts – a treat in it self. The castle is mainly built during the years 1654-1676 by Carl Gustaf Wrangel, but the work never really ends on building such as this.

The castle is more or less built upon an earlier Cistercian nunnery  convent, Sko kloster, which gave named the castle. The monastery was founded in the 1230s, not much is left of the nunnery but the Abbey is situated just next to the castle and the there is the Stone house. The church was consecrated in the 1280s, it has been rebuilt several times and its present appearance came during a renovation in the 1620s.

The Stone house is  a big stone house just next to the castle, its oldest parts are from the 14th century, in form of a basment. The house has since been extended and changed several times and today’s appearance is from the 1740s when Erik Brahe built out and rebuild the house .

Around the castle is a park, in the French style, which is lined with impressive avenues.

The avenue trees are old, crocked and bent, as you can see in these pictures.

The castle and the church is open for visitors, I will return with pictures of the interior in a coming post.

Magnus Reuterdahl

Skokloster castle

Today I’ll go visit Skokloster castle a few miles from Stockholm. Skokolster is Carl Gustaf Wrangel’s (1613-1676) 17th century castle, a beautiful building and a beutiful place. I thought I’ll play with my new camera for a few hours so I hope I got some nice shots when I return.

Magnus Reuterdahl