Paper abstracts. Monday 26 th August. Session: Heritage Politics

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1 Paper abstracts Monday 26 th August Session: Heritage Politics Cultural heritage and conflicting values Arson and arson attempts in the Evangelical Lutheran church buildings in Finland between the years 1990 and 2010 Heidi Wirilander This presentation approaches cultural heritage as value statement and contested issue through six case studies, in which the Finnish Evangelical Lutheran church buildings were the subjects of arson and arson attempts. The cases occurred in Finland between the years 1990 and Four of the arson acts and arson attempts happened in stone churches from the 14 th and 15 th centuries that represented the oldest of Finland s historic buildings. One of the arson attempts occurred in a 19 th century wooden church situated in a rural area of southern Savo. The sixth arson case involves a 1950s Finnish modern suburban church near the capitol of Finland. From these six arson and arson-attempt cases, questions arise: Why have churches been targeted for acts of arson or arson attempts? What do these actions means for the heritage sites authenticity and for the society? Have these churches as heritage sites become contested issues in Finnish society? The topic of this paper arises from the author s doctoral research in museology that examines the protection, rescue, evacuation, and aftercare of immovable and movable objects as well as documentary heritage collections in accident and disaster situations in Finland between 1990 and Traditional craft skills as a source to historical knowledge - Reconstruction in the ashes of the medieval wooden church Södra Råda Gunnar Almevik, Niklas Alexandersson, Göran Andersson, Anna Johansson, Christina Persson Karl- Magnus Melin & Börje Samuelsson In November 2001 the medieval church Södra Råda burnt to the ground in an act of pyromania. The church had a log timbered structure dating to 1320 and world famous wall paintings by Master Amund from Among Sweden s 3400 churches and chapels, only 10 medieval log timber churches remains. Hence, the Swedish national heritage board initiated a process, still ongoing, proclaiming that the church should be reconstructed as a pedagogical example to enhance craft practice and historical knowledge of medieval churches. This paper investigates the new findings on medieval wooden church building as well as the methodology in full-scale reconstruction, using craft skills as means of interpretation of historical knowledge. The reconstruction functions as a trans-disciplinary laboratory, testing findings from archaeological excavations, archive studies and in-depth survey and dendrochronology analysis of the remaining medieval wooden churches. 1

2 Danmarks Kirker the publication of Danish Churches. 80 years and still going strong Michael Andersen In 1933 the first publication in the series Danmarks Kirker was published. Until now two thirds of the total amount of Danish churches have been published making Danmarks Kirker the largest single publication project in the country. The number of pages adds up to approx The publication is still researched and written according to the principles laid out 80 years ago. The inspiration for the project came from German publications such as Bau-und Kunstdenkmäler and the church projects in Sweden and Norway that were initiated a little earlier. Danmarks Kirker works on the island Funen and in Jutland right now according to the plan that was laid out more than 80 years ago. However, new scientific methods are applied, such as archaeology and dendrochronology. This means that new volumes are larger than the earlier ones. The challenge is to implement new scientific methods and standards and at the same time to be loyal towards the original concept. In September 2013 all volumes will be available without any cost on the webside The main text is in Danish with summaries on English and German. The website also offers additional material. It is the plan to continue to print the future volumes, making the publication available in both print and on the web in order to serve as many readers as possible. The present staff numbers 9 academic researchers. The project is part of the National Museum of Denmark. Session: Saints and Relics Churches and Pilgrimage in the Baltic Region: assumptions and sources Christian Krötzl What do we know about the pilgrimage function of medieval churches in Northern Europe? In local histories the importance of the own church as a site of pilgrimage is often taken for granted. Written sources on actual pilgrimages are however in most cases very rare. Is one mentioning enough to proof regular pilgrimages? What can we make out of indulgences granted to churches? Or dedications of patron saints and altars? Are there other types of written sources we can use? In my paper I will try to give some answers to these questions, presenting a number of cases from various regions. New Spring for an Old Saint the Late Medieval Surge of the Cult of St Olav in Northern Europe Øystein Ekroll St Olav ( ), the patron saint of Norway, enjoyed a great popularity in Scandinavia during the 11 th -13 th centuries. Like other holy early medieval warrior kings one would expect that his popularity would fade away during the 14 th century, when a new type of saints became dominant in Europe. Quite to the contrary, the popularity of St Olav rose steeply and most of the artworks, 2

3 guilds, churches and chapels dedicated to him date from the late medieval period. St Olav became especially in the Baltic region, not least in Finland and Estonia. It seems to be the Hanseatic merchants and craftsmen who most actively promoted the cult of St Olav, but countless images of the saint are found in churches from Flanders in the west to Tallinn in the east. Much of the iconography stems from legends that originated outside Norway, and was only introduced to the Norwegian heartland at a later date. My lecture will explore the paradox of why a dusty old saint from a small country experienced such a renaissance, surpassing the other Scandinavian holy kings like St Erik and St Knud, and which forms his cult took in the Baltic region. The presence of Saint Francis of Assisi in the churches of the medieval diocese of Turku Marika Räsänen Francis of Assisi became a saint among wealthy Italian town-dwellers. A central theme of his saintly image was poverty; he was perceived as a poor follower of Christ. Further, because of his stigmata, his own Order, the Franciscans, considered him an alter Christus. As in other parts of Catholic Europe, Francis cult was successful in the diocese of Turku as well. The diocese was poor and in the outskirts of Catholic Europe and it is unlikely that voluntary poverty spoke to people as a counterpoint to the luxurious life. It is plausible that Francis s cult received other, locally more interesting significance among the parishioners of the diocese. The present paper aims to study the ways in which Saint Francis was celebrated and made present in medieval church space through liturgy on his feast day 4 October. I will discuss the standardized Dominican based liturgy of the medieval diocese of Turku and the image it presents on Francis. I will compare both Francis official image and liturgy to the surviving parish calendars and iconographical evidence in churches and contextualise them to the possible Franciscan influence in the diocese. All in all, I will make an attempt to understand the local features of Saint Francis saintly image and cult as well as their significance in the medieval religious culture of the diocese. Turku Cathedral revisited and the anonymous relics of the 11th and 12th centuries Jussi-Pekka Taavitsainen The lecture presents an interdisciplinary project launched at the Department of Archaeology, University of Turku, in 2007 to study the surviving mediaeval relics of the Turku Cathedral. It examines closer the anonymous relics dated to the 11th and 12th centuries and discusses some central issues of conversation period in Finland and the problems of identification of Saints. A Dress of a Saint? A Medieval Textile Find in Turku Cathedral Heini Kirjavainen An interdisciplinary The Turku Cathedral Relic Project was launched in It studies the medieval relics which were found during the renovation of the cathedral in the 1920 s. A piece of a woollen rag was found among the other relics, human bones, some silk cloth, and silk reliquaries in the relic casket of the Saint Hemming. A piece of a dress is a part of an upper shoulder and bust, of which neckline and armpit, some gussets of the sleeve were preserved. The fabric was radiocarbon dated to the end of the 14th century. Due to some specific details in the cut and 3

4 sewing of the seams of the dress it was fitted better for dressing up a statue rather than a human body. Already in the 1300 s it was a custom to dress up the statues of the Virgin Mary for veneration at the Catholic Church. It is possible that this practise was also suited for veneration in Turku at the turn of the 15th century. The Medieval Skull Relic in Turku Cathedral Aki Arponen The Department of Archaeology / University of Turku began in 2007 a project to study the relics kept in Turku Cathedral since the Middle Ages. Among the relics there is a so-called skull relic. It has been constructed of pieces of bone which have been wrapped into cloth and sewn together. The construction has been covered with additional layers of cloth which can be considered as the reliquary. So far the main issue has been the dating of the separate pieces of the skull relic and the analyzing of the textiles. Some 30 samples have been taken for radiocarbon dating. According to the results the bone material is heterogeneous: the oldest bones come from the time of Christ, and the youngest ones are some 1000 years later. The dating results do not support the assumption according to which the skull relic would contain remnants of either Saint Eric of Sweden or Saint Henrik of Finland. The dating results of the textiles and the threads in the skull relic indicate a fairly short construction period in the beginning of the 14 th century. Among the textiles there is Chinese silk and some 60 fragments of linen or linen/cotton cloth with technical details unique in medieval Finland. Session: Burials & Early Christianity In the Eastern Neighbourhood: Monastic Practices and Parish Customs in Burial Archaeology of Medieval Novgorod and its Hinterland Alexander Musin The paper provides an account of studies in the development of burial custom(s) of the Novgorod lands in the 11 th 15 th century both urban and rural. It also deals with methodological limits of retrospective approach in the study of Church culture. The formation of provincial rituals as barrow cemeteries of the 11 th 13 th century frequently existed near rural churches was under the influence of the 10 th century tradition of necropolis of protourban centers. In Novgorod itself the enigmatic absence of 11 th 12 th century church yard cemeteries should be explained by late introduction of intra muros custom in parish life. The formation of the new urban tradition within churches was linked to local elites under monastic impact which buried their representatives in stone sarcophagus. The early inhumations of ordinary citizens under different forms could be situated near rural settlements. Such peculiarity could be motivated by social organization of the Novgorod which demonstrates high interactivity between city and country. Only in the mid-13 th 14 th century important changes in burial rituals can be attested. The reliable date for church yard 4

5 cemeteries in Novgorod is the 14 th /15 th 16 th century when necropolis with strong ranges of burials came into being in the rural area. During the 13 th 15 th century historical sources show the influence of monastic burial culture on different and large social groups which later unified funeral rituals. This process should be cold the second Christianization. The private devotional objects, cross pendants etc., well known in Russian burials during the early Christianization began to be widely used again in funeral practices nearly simultaneously with the introduction of new devotion including rosaries and religious medals in Latin Christianity. As a result we can assume that Pax Baltica Christiana existed in the 10 th 11 th century and collapsed later into Pax Baltica Romana and Pax Baltica Orthodoxa kept some common features which allow continuing to regard it as a relatively homogenous phenomenon. Medieval bestiary as a source of Liv Zoomorphic Pendants interpretation. Smolensk-typ example Roberts Spir is & Ginta Orinska- Spir e One of the most distinctive characteristics of Liv culture is the great profusion of zoomorphic pendants, which are traditionally considered as pagan symbols. However, zoomorphic symbols are also widely used in Christianity. How to solve this issue? I suggest using medieval encyclopaedias and bestiaries in order to clarify the semantics of, for example, widely distributed plane horse-pendants ( Smolensk-type ). In bestiaries one can find miniatures and descriptions of such animals which correspond to contemporary Liv artefacts. Especially surprising is the similarity between the image of one of the fantastic creatures and that of the horse-pendants. The fantastic creature is leucrota. The leucrota of the bestiaries is derived from the works of Classical scholars. According to the bestiaries, the leucrota lives in India and is a fast runner. It is the size of a donkey, with hind legs like those of a deer, and a breast like that of a lion. It has a horse s head, a cloven hoof and a large mouth stretching from ear to ear, with a single bone in place of teeth. The beast makes sounds similar to a human voice. This new interpretation of the semantics of the Smolensk-type pendants overturns the traditional view of them as horse-pendants linked to local paganism. As is known, the main purpose of the medieval bestiaries was to create impressive images for preaching, and the animal world was the favourite and most easily comprehensible source for didactic comparisons. It was a rich source of imagery that could be used by missionaries. Thus, the leucrota pendants and other zoomorphic Liv pendants can be linked to the arrival of a Christian mission in the East Baltic. Warrior s burials in the Polish lands in early medieval period. Demonstration of status, Christian symbolic or pagan tradition? Alina Wilczy ska At the end of the tenth century in the Polish lands a breakthrough was began. Creation of the Polish State and the adaption of Christianity initiated a series of transformations in all aspects of human life. The change in the method of burying the dead is particularly visible. Earlier cremation burials were replaced by skeletal burials. Also remarkable is the number of warriors graves in this 5

6 period. Despite of the prohibition of equipping the dead in Christian tradition, men were buried with the elements of their armament. Whether it was a part of the earlier pagan tradition or the weaponry in men s graves should be treated not as a burial gift, but as an integral part of the warrior s outfit? Session: Church and its surroundings Continuity or change? Selecting the sites for early churches Finland Ville Laakso There are two opposite views among Finnish archaeologists and historians on whether the medieval churches of the country were built on the sites of previous pre-christian cemeteries, or intentionally away from them. The present paper reviews the basis for the different opinions, presents a statistical overview of existing material, and introduces fresh case studies that are partly based on recent field-work. Possible differences in continuity between various time periods and areas of the country are discussed. Current research in the neighbouring countries is considered. Medieval and early modern market places sites of contacts, trade and religious activities Georg Haggren, Timo Ylimaunu, Risto Nurmi & Paul R. Mullins Medieval market places are often located on river estuaries or other sites that were easily approachable places both for the local peasants and foreign traders. One important element of the contemporary everyday life was related religious aspect of the medieval market places. The Roman Catholic churches or chapels were built on or nearby the market places during the medieval period; therefore, we may assume that the religious activities were connected to the trade. The market places along the coast of the Bothnian Gulf were probably the best-known market places in medieval northern Fennoscandia, but the coastal area of the Gulf of Finland in south had also important medieval market places. Trade was naturally the main activity in the market places, but several other activities were taking place in these sites, like commodity production, administrative activities, and religious practices. In this paper our aim is to discuss this two-fold role of market places between trade and religion in medieval and early modern Northern and Southern Fennoscandian contexts. Guest houses in church yards Christian Lovén There are a few late medieval sources indicating that Swedish parish churches could have a guest house (hospicium) in the cemetery. This phenomenon has not been investigated. Guest houses were established where main roads passed through large unhinhabited areas, but these church 6

7 yard houses lay in populated farming districts. That the cemeteries were used for more than funerals is well known, and the existence of guest houses further enriches the picture. Tuesday 27 th August Key note speaker Conspicuous architecture medieval round churches in Scandinavia Jes Wienberg Medieval round churches are often seen as riddles in need of special explanation. Deviant architecture has been explained by three major theories fortification, multi-functionality and symbolic copying. However, I claim that all the three theories fail in practice for methodological reasons, and furthermore, that the round churches were normal except for their elite context and extraordinary plan. I then argue, that the elite consciously choose a conspicuous architecture, to use a concept inspired by Thorstein Veblens, as a social strategy of status and rivalry. The round plan referred to Jerusalem and other prestigious places. During the lecture I also shortly present an updated overview of the medieval round churches in Scandinavia as the latest overview for many still is the influential dissertation by Hugo F. Frölen from , which wrongly stated, that all round churches were fortified. Session: Danish Church Archaeology Danish church archaeology the potential of redundant churches. Nils Engberg In Denmark only very few and limited archaeological excavation are allowed in our old churches. When dealing with medieval history the information s we can get from churches themselves and churchyards are at present a limited source. But we have an alternative. In a recent study 460 redundant medieval churches a. 400 is no longer visible - has been recorded and they leave us with a rich archaeological source for information regarding the church buildings: parish churches in villages and cities, cloisters, hospitals and chapels. Where do we find wooden predecessors? Etc. In the churchyard and it s nearest surrounding: An aristocratic residence, the priest s residence, school building, a barn for the church taxes and other building with a relation to church life. Of these relations during the middle age we know very little. From the burials a lot of information about the dead persons and whole parishes can be deduced: gender, age, family relations (DNA), immigration (strontium) and more. The paper will present a Danish strategy on church archaeology and discuss problems and potential. 7

8 Two Medieval Twin Towers Henriette Rensbro A new tower is found and the tradition of another has been disproved. This information raises once again two fundamental questions: How widespread is twin towers at medieval village churches and how old are they? Snesere Church is an unusually long village church. Two times the choir has been extended and two times a new tower was added to the west. In 1982 Birgit Als Hansen from Nationalmuseet excavated remains of a possible twin tower in the west end of the current nave. Results of recent excavations support the theory of a rectangular tower with an entrance hall and an arcade. In Kirke Hyllinge Church remains of a building was excavated beneath the floor of the current tower. It does not fit into the 18th C descriptions of a medieval twin tower. Session: Fortified, Travelling and Extinct The fortified churches in Estonia as a refuge. Myth or reality? Kaur Alttoa Armin Tuulse was first, who suggested in two articles, that in Estonia there have been several fortified churches. Tuulse points to two aspects: - elements of active defence: rampart walks, loop-holes (?) (=ampuma-aukko) etc; - there is an area - as a rule above the vaults - as a hiding-place or refuge. It seems that in some cases that theory needs some corrections. The travelling church of the Klaip da Town in historical and topographical context Raimonda Nabažait Dynamical territorial development of the Klaip da City determined continuous change on its sacral topography. This is witnessed by an example of the St. Jonh s Church and new locations chosen for it, which shall be subject of this report. Primarily, the previous scientific discussion covering critical evaluation of historical sources spanning from the St. John s Church first mentioning in 1258 till its demolition during the WW2 is reviewed. Correlating historical, cartographical and topographical data the following St. John s Church location shift scheme has been developed. 1) The first St. John s Church of the 13 th the 1 st half of the 14 th century could have stood in the environment of the Klaip da Castle and the Old Town. 2) During the castle fortification system reconstruction the church was relocated to a new town island at the intersection of the Dan old and new watercourse. Historical data implies that it could have happened in In the early 18 th century when defensive bastions were started to be built around the city the church was cleared off. Archaeological excavations of 2006 have enabled identification of the precise location of the church, its size, construction of the basement, internal layout and the burials. Research of 2010 and 2012 provided additional data on the church yard pavement and plot environment before 8

9 construction of the church and during its clearance. 3) As the St. John s Church was blocking construction of the defensive fortifications, in 1706 it was moved to another site and continued to exist till the mid 20 th century. Its localisation makes no scientific problem. Its historical location has been proved by historical, cartographical and archaeological data. The later are going to be supplemented in the nearest future due to the St. John s Church planned reconstruction. Building Uppsala Cathedral a new investigation, new results and some remarks Gunilla Malm Three years ago the Swedish Churches published a grand volume on Uppsala Cathedral. Publishing was made possible by a donation from a Huzelii fund administered by the Royal Academy of Letter and Antiquity. The authors of the publication call themselves the Huzelius-group. I have read the volume and can testify that it is filled with solid knowledge and magnificent story-teller s art. The figures have a very high quality. In connection to the publishing-work a ground penetrating radar (gpr) investigation inside the Cathedral was made. That investigation has given new interpretations of ground-plans before building the Cathedral started. Some interpretations are well worth considering, others are doubtful. In my paper I will present my doubts and give alternative interpretations. My arguments mainly will have an archaeological and building-archaeological base even if also written material will be used. Session: Monasteries and Convents Cistercian and Praemonstratensian Monasteries and their Churches in Cispomerania from an Archaeological Point of View Felix Biermann From the second Half of the 12 th to the 16 th Century existed in Cispomerania North-Eastern German Part of Pomerania west of the Oder estuary several Cistercian and Praemonstratensian Nun s and Monk s Monasteries, which were Important Religious, Economic and Cultural Centres of the Lands at the Baltic Coast in late Medieval Times. Because all of them have been abolished in Reformation Period ( ), none have preserved until our days. Most of the Monasteries are Ruins or completely destroyed and (on the surface) traceless lost. Therefore Archaeological Prospections and Excavations in the Monasteries and in their Churches play a prominent role for the cultural-historical investigation. Several Projects delivered interesting Information on the Building History and Architecture, the religious Meaning and the all-day Live in the Abbeys. Beneath else have been realized excavations in the monasteries of Altentreptow ( ), Hiddensee ( ), Grobe/Usedom ( /9) and Seehausen/Uckermark ( ies). The paper will give an overview to the Archaeology of the Monasteries in Cispomerania, with the Focus on the Foundation of the Abbeys in the late 12 th and 13 th Century, 9

10 the Layout and Construction of the Churches and other Monastic Buildings and the meaning of the Monasteries in the Spatial-Economic System of late-medieval Pomerania. Earliest building remains in the monastery of Padise Villu Kadakas Padise Cistercian monastery, established in the early 14th century, ca 50km south-west from Tallinn, is nowadays preserved as one of the largest medieval ruins in rural Estonia. The surviving complex of limestone buildings was erected during the late 14th and 15th centuries probably on the site of a 13 th century grange and was continuously used after the dissolution as a castle and a manor house until the 18 th century. Outlining the building remains of the earliest construction phase is difficult and challenged by complicated stratification. In addition to earlier hypotheses, recent field-work in , studying both soil and walls has helped to specify a group of earlier buildings, incorporated into the late medieval western range. Analysis of details and context enables to draw limited conclusions about their plan and function, as well as guesses about the extent and layout of the whole original complex. The church of the Bridgettine convent Naantali / Nådendal in 15th century - archaeological studies in years Kari Uotila In paper will focus the most modern fieldwork which has done in Naantali church in past twenty years. In paper will shortly summaries the results from excavations in 1990 and 2000 to English reading audience. The results were publishing earlier in Finnish and Swedish and this paper is opening material to wider scientific audience. The second and the main target is new information about the building history of the church with based fieldwork and dating s which has done in Results are focusing specially the western part of the church and its use as a main chorus of the monastery church. In paper will open also question about written sources and other information about the building time of the Naantali church. From Fragments to Spatial Logic Reconstructing the Plan of the Dominican Convent in Turku Visa Immonen Humbert of Romans wrote in the 13th century that the Dominicans have nearly as many different plans and arrangements of their buildings and churches as there are priories. This presents a challenge for reconstructing the plan of an individual priory, particularly when the medieval Dominican Convent of St Olof in Turku, Finland is concerned. A number of irregularities, e.g. the almost triangular cloister, make the interpretation of various architectural spaces difficult. Moreover, the research history complicates the situation. The site was identified in the early 20th century after which the convent was excavated a bit by bit with varying degrees of quality in the course of several decades. The first reconstruction was presented in the early 20th century, but 10

11 later fieldworks proved it to be fundamentally erroneous. The present paper attempts to provide a new reconstruction of the convent, combining all the information available. It is assumed that despite its architectural peculiarities, the convent in Turku displays a certain spatial logic typical of medieval Dominican priories. Not confining to the central building complex alone, the paper also analyses the use of environment around the convent, and the artefacts discovered at the site. Session: Preserving, restoring, excavating Archaeological Research on Churches in Latvia: issues in prospection, excavations and preservation of Medieval and Early Modern Churches Andris Šn The paper offers a survey about the archaeological research done on medieval and early modern (13 th 17 th centuries) churches in Latvia. This is the first attempt aiming to form summary of the achievements, shortages and current challenges in the church archaeology in Latvia. The beginnings of archaeological investigations in churches in Latvia go back to the late 19 th century but up to now most of the research was conducted in towns and cities while very little is known about rural churches and wooden churches. Alongside churches in urban areas, a lot of research had been carried out also in the first church in the Eastern Baltic, Uexküll. The main issues discussed in the paper concerns character of archaeological research, particularly excavations (they mainly have been done in conjunction with architectural research or reconstruction works) and archaeological surveys and prospections (for example, a lot of churches and chapels, mentioned in the written sources are not identified in situ, therefore oral tradition and folklore gain high importance in the localisation of sacral sites as well as geophysical methods). The questions of preservation are among the key issues of archaeological and architectural heritage management, and particular challenge there is posed by the ruined churches. Bälinge parish church from Romanesque church to neo-classical temple Joakim Kjellberg & Linda Qviström During a large scale restauration of Bälinge parish church in 2008 one of the largest archaeological excavations ever inside a functional church in Sweden was conducted. The results greatly changed our view on the history of the church, as well as its role in the heartland of the Swedish archdiocese. The project extended well outside the archaeological sphere and the report, turned into a book, was published earlier this spring. The book features the work of five of Upplandsmuseets departments, all relating to different stages in the renovation process. Apart from the results of the archaeological investigation the book features both an historical and archeological exposé of the surrounding area, a comprehensive new and revised building chronology, a detailed research of the inventory up until the 18th century as well as a description of previous restaurations from the 18th century onwards. The presentation will summarize some of these results. 11

12 Session: Churches, Magic and Artefacts Church for priests and church for witches a church as a place for inofficial/magical rituals Tõnno Jonuks & Kristiina Johanson Churches have traditionally been considered as holy places where only official and dogmatic activities can be conducted under fixed rules. Nevertheless, the actual folk religion is far more complicated and doctrinal rules and beliefs have always been (re)interpreted. As a result of this a church as a holy and powerful place becomes also a place for inofficial rites. We will focus on material remains of different inofficial religious practices. When discussing those, it is mostly coin finds that have been referred to, interpreted often as offerings. Small smooth pebbles, deliberately brought to churches are much less known. We will discuss those and some other examples of the same kind. In addition, symbolic graffity has been found on walls of several churches. Most often they consist of simple crosses carved in plaster or stones but can also result in a single case as a more complicated picture. The main aim of the presentation is to stress the role of a church not only for the official Christianity but simultaneously as a powerful and sacred place to conduct folk religion rituals which often seem to be far away of the original purpose of the building. Lost, sacrificed or buried? A story of coins found under the church floor Frida Ehrnsten Coins found under the floor boards in churches have been a popular theme of research in Scandinavia for several decades. The layer of earth under the churches has served as a depository for coins from the Middle Ages up to recent times. From Finland more than 13,500 coins have been registered from 77 churches. These coins can be seen to reflect the use of money on a grassroots level. The main question is, however, why did all these coins end up under the church floor? They can have been accidentally dropped, sacrificed or deposited in connection with burials. When coins were lost accidentally, practical reasons must have played their part, such as the condition of the floor, the lighting and the amount of people in the church. The low value of most of the coins may well have discouraged people to look after their lost pennies. Apparently, however, other than the smallest denominations were seldom used for offering the act seems to have meant more than the value of the coins. The coins found in churches thereby don t reflect only the economy but also cultural and social customs. Title and abstract for paper suggested to the Conference on Church Archaeology in the Baltic Sea Region to be held in Turku, Finland August 26th 30th Frogs in miniature coffins and other puzzling finds from churches in Finland Sonja Hukantaival When the Kuopio Cathedral was repaired during the 1890s almost thirty miniature coffins with the remains of a frog inside were found concealed under the floor. Similar finds were later discovered 12

13 in the Tuusniemi church and even one in the Turku Cathedral. In Kiihtelysvaara a wooden container with the remains of a cat inside was found in the ceiling construct of the church. This paper discusses these and other similar finds as evidence of folk religion. The interpretation of these puzzling finds is aided by folklore sources that have been collected during the late 19 th century. They illustrate how the sacredness of a church was embraced and utilized in magic practices related to everyday concerns of the common people in the past. Underground literature remains of books from Finnish churches Janne Harjula In Finland as elsewhere in Europe, an extensive number of book remains dating from the Middle Ages to the Modern Period have been found in archaeological contexts defined broadly as ecclesiastical i.e. churches, convents, monasteries, parsonages and their surroundings. In this paper, I will focus on the 17th and 18th century brass metal book clasps found in large numbers under the parish church floors. In research literature, three major explanations for their occurrence have been presented: 1) clasps as unintentionally lost or deliberately discarded objects, 2) clasps as grave goods, either as the only remains of otherwise decomposed books or deliberately detached from books as pars pro toto components, 3) clasps as individual deposits or offerings. In my paper I claim that the systematic analysis of these finds and their contexts taking account the religious and cultural conditions of the period could cast light on the poorly known section of literacy, related to the applying of books and their components as ritual objects in rural, post medieval Finland. Church Art in the Late Middle Ages and its influence on everyday items - illustrated with an example of clay figurines from Silesia (Poland). Ewelina Kowalczyk The aim of my paper is to show how life of ordinary people in the Late Middle Ages was influenced by the Catholic Church and its art. From this point of view Church should be perceived as a powerful institution, not only as an architectural structure. I intend to illustrate this phenomenon with an example of clay figurines which were found at numerous archaeological sites in Silesia. Many of them depict Saints, Jesus Christ and Mary with Child. They were possibly used as devotional objects, especially in home altars. Iconographically and stylistically these figurines were probably inspired by Gothic sculptures and paintings that comprised church furnishings, either as parts of altars or stand-alone works. The biggest similarities can be noticed between figurines and sculptures that represent so-called International Gothic Style which was spreading across Europe at the end of the 14 th and the beginning of the 15 th century. People saw those magnificent artworks in churches but they were not able to afford similar ones. This is the reason why production of clay figurines started. It is commonly known that religion played a very important role in the Middle Ages but my intention is to look at it from a different perspective. 13

14 Figurine of a Crowned Madonna and Child found in Turku Virva Lompolo The excavation by The Museum Centre of Turku on the eastern bank of the Aura River in summer 2012 has produced a unique find in Finland, a figurine of a crowned Madonna and Child. The miniature burned clay statuary was found in a medieval depositional layer that was formed by the riverbank. The Madonna is standing on an undecorated pedestal and holding the baby Jesus on her left arm. The figurine is unpainted and unglazed, and has been produced using moulds. It probably dates to the late 15 th to early 16 th centuries. The statuette of a crowned Madonna and Child found in the excavation has most likely once belonged to a private household and thus has had domestic devotional purpose. During the late medieval period small saint figurines were mass produced and it seems that also the figurine found in Turku is mass production. The aim of this paper is to present in Finnish scale an unique find, how it has produced, and what it represents in a wider context. Wednesday 28 th August Key note speaker: Church Archaeology in Finland. Trends through Decennia Markus Hiekkanen Church archaeology started in Finland in the late 1860s and early 1870s when parts of the Franciscan Convent in Kökar, Aland Islands, and the Bridgettine Convent in Naantali, Finland Proper, were excavated. From this a mostly continuous activity in excavations follows and to the day c. 270 of them are listed. In the paper this material is analyzed from various aspects. First some kind of preliminary definition is presented for discussion. Thus one can ask if church archaeology should happen only inside the church walls or can archaeological activity in the surroundings such as the churchyard also included. What is the relationship with building archaeology etc. From these problems the focus will be on what kind of activity took place from the 1860s onwards. Here an important question is the excavating techniques used during different periods. An interesting aspect is the professionalism of those carrying out the excavations. Were they professional archaeologists or for example art historians. What have been the results of different persons with different background to what has been found and documented? There is also the question of present and future. What are the present trends and what can we say about future. 14

15 Session: Art (Art) Replication in Middle Ages Natasha Bulatovic Trygg Medieval architecture represents the mastery of craft in artistic production. Art was for medieval man recognized as a system of rules that could be thought. It was believed that a man can only reshape the forms of matter which was already attained by God. In this paper I shall concentrate on the repetition in the construction of the wall art in medieval architecture followed by various types of artifacts which we refer to medieval art. Artistic production within churches and monasteries carried the word of Bible to the wider public where wall art was based on stemmata very similar to the ones governing the texts. This essay will pursue the realm of abundance from certain stemma since their convention suggests that they were not produced by the church per-se but the market and its primary economical stimulus: affiliation of supply and demand. The multiples of books, icons, sculptures and other relic items with all the variety of their utilization was not necessary ordered by the church but by the demands of the market since the collective power and sanctity of iconic archetypes are resided in every copy regardless of medium, style or expense. Furthermore I shall present selected methods and techniques in creating the medieval artistic manifolds. Rose window a dream or reality? Anneli Randla In the summer of 2012 a large painted rose window was discovered in the medieval church of St Mary, Pöide on the island of Saaremaa. Two other painted rose windows have been uncovered in the churches on the island of Saaremaa, but the motif is virtually unknown (or not yet discovered) on the mainland Estonia or in the territory of medieval Livonia. Painted rose windows are relatively rare in Scandinavia or Northern Germany, however real, tracery roses are more widespread in the greater churches of these areas. The paper will discuss the recent find in a wider geographical, historical and artistic context. It will deal with the questions how, why and for whom these paintings were made as well as looking at their later history and touching upon the issues of conservation. Bones versus paintings: comparing domestic animals in medieval wall-paintings in Finnish churches with zooarchaeological data Auli Bläuer This paper compares domestic animals in the medieval wall-paintings in Finnish churches with information available from the medieval archeological bone material and historical written sources. Domestic animals are occasionally represented in the wall-paintings. Some are clearly symbolic animals (e.g. winged ox of Apostle Luke), some are present in the scenes of biblical stories (e.g. ass or horse in the escape to Egypt) or in pictures of everyday tasks (e.g. milking the cow). Even if the paintings are often symbolic or even schematic, they still held some details about 15

16 the medieval animals, especially when compared with data from archeological bone material and written sources. These have revealed plenty of detailed information about the medieval domestic animals, their size, shape and even color. How do the wall-paintings compare to this information? Study of paintings from 17 medieval churches has shown that wall paintings only represent certain, selected aspects of the medieval animals, and cannot be seen as accurate description of all medieval domesticates. However, in some paintings actual details are represented and for example, the presence of Nordic type of short-tailed sheep is evident in the pictures. Plants of the Bible in Hattula church wall paintings. A comparison with medieval archaeobotanical material in Finland Mia Lempiäinen-Avci The Hattula church is known for its unique and well preserved wall paintings, which cover the whole church. Paintings depict mainly stories from the Bible from the Creation to the Last Judgment. Plants mentioned in the Bible are made visual in the paintings; this is evident also in Hattula church. Images do not always have a direct link to reality but they represent the effect of reality. Plants depicted in paintings must be estimated against contemporary cultural background; they are a result of different knowledge and experience, their language is symbolic and some local additions or changes can occur. So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desire to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate: and she also gave some to her husband, and he ate. Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves aprons (Genesis 3:6 7). In the story of Adam and Eve fig (Ficus carica L.) is the first fruit to be mentioned by name in the Bible. In Hattula however, the fig leaves are replaced with a bunch of green leaves, maybe it depicts a Finnish birch (Betula sp. L.) whisk used in sauna. My research points out following questions: Which plants are found in Hattula church paintings and are they same than mentioned in the Bible? I will answer to these questions by comparing plants from Hattula paintings to Biblical stories and to the flora of Old Testament world. Are there local additions or changes in plant images? Where local, contemporary people familiar with the plants depicted in paintings? To these questions I will try to answer by comparing plant material from medieval archaeological contexts from Finland. Plants depicted in paintings opened an exciting door for the local people: through the paintings people in medieval Finland got a sight of Old Testament world and its nature. Hammarlunda church in new light. Historic carpentry art in the diocese of Lund Petter Jansson A project called Historic carpentry art in the Diocese of Lund is planned to start The purpose of this project is to increase knowledge about extant carpenter constructions in churches going 16

17 back to the 1060s. These treasures have many times been overlooked and unique information is at risk of being destroyed during restorations. The purpose now is to document these constructions and damages from an antiquarian-, historically and craftsmanship view, and to develope documentation tools. The project results will primarily be used to update care plans and to enlighten the parishes about these forgotten historical treasures. As a first step a brief inventory of 40 rooftrusses and 15 medieval church doors is planned. The involvement of the parishes is a crucial part of the aim. This primary work focus Hammarlunda church and the documentation of the roof trusses commenced in connection with restoration work and will be presented in a report autumn The early medieval stone church in Hammarlunda is an object containing several historical points of interest, some of them shown in earlier investigations, now it s time to bring some new light to this historical treasure. Session: Early Masonry Structures The Oldest Church In Scandinavia? Stephan Borgehammar The church of Dalby in Scania (Skåne) is one of the few extant churches in Scandinavia built in the eleventh century. If the traditional date of 1060 is correct, it may even be the oldest building still standing in our part of the world. But how do we date it? And is its age the most important fact about it? This paper will (a) present the evidence for the date of Dalby, including recent ( ) attempts to date it by C14, and (b) discuss whether the witness of Dalby to the practice and understanding of baptism in early medieval Scandinavia is not perhaps more important than its mere age. At the Dawn of Masonry Architecture Structures at the Medieval Episcopal See of Koroinen, Finland Tanja Ratilainen Koroinen is an early medieval fortified site where bishops see and the cathedral was located from 1229 until the turn of the 14 th century when the town of Turku was founded 1,6 km down the river Aura. Besides ecclesiastical functions, Koroinen probably was a trading post and a center of protourban settlement. In the 14 th century the site continued to be used as the bishop s residence and the estate of Koroinen remained in the position of the parish until 20 th century. At the turn of the 20 th century the pioneers of Finnish archaeology excavated circa 3500 m² discovering 3000 finds. Fortunately they were advanced in their documentation methods since both vertical and horizontal positions of finds were fairly precisely documented as well as the structures relating to ecclesiastical and secular functions were mostly measured and drawn. However, the final results were never published as a whole. 17

18 The aim of the ongoing At the Dawn of the Middle Ages project is to analyze and publish the old archaeological material by applying modern digital techniques and natural scientific dating and analyzing methods. The aim of this paper is to present the preliminary results of re-analyzing the masonry structures of the site the focus being in the use of brick. Session: Village churches Written sources about medieval church buildings in villages and small towns in Prussia Christofer Herrmann Medieval written sources relevant to the aspects of financing and organisation of the construction of parish churches in small towns or villages are very rare. Therefore, historians and art historians can only speculate about who was responsible for the construction and maintenance of these churches: the bishop, the sovereign, the patron, the aristocracy, the burghers or the peasants? Of course it is not possible to give a general answer to this question, because there existed different legal, social and economic conditions in various regions of medieval Europe. Looking at the southern regions of the Baltic Sea we find a domination of settlements founded during the times of the so-called German eastward expansions ( Deutsche Ostsiedlung ). The legal basic conditions of this movement between Schleswig and Prussia were very similar. The last region of the Ostsiedlung was Prussia, were settlements were founded mainly in the late 13 th and during the 14 th century. At this time the agreements between the territorial lord, the lokator and the settlers were set in written contracts, where we can find also information about the responsibilities relating to the parish churches. The sources indicate that the responsibility for the construction and maintenance of parish churches was in the hands of burghers (in cities) and peasants (in villages). The paper will present some of the most interesting examples from the written sources in Prussia. From poor village church to prestige project Bertelsen, Thomas In 2008 rapid erosion of the steep cliff on which the small Romanesque Mårup Church in Vendsyssel in Jutland stands led to a decision to dismantle it. The National Museum assumed the responsibility for the documentation, and thus obtained unique insight into the architecture of the building and the working methods of the craftsmen. 18