The Vikings are a mythical people, whose existence, even 1000 years later, still fascinates the general public.
Three years ago, historians were already surprised to find the remains of a Viking ship in Norway, allowing to know a little more about this mythical people who inhabited Scandinavia and sowed terror throughout the Europe, at the heart of the Middle Ages. But this discovery of the remains of a longship, the Viking ships was not very exceptional.
The presence of this traveling and nomadic people on the shores of Norway had been known for years already, and their ships are already well known to the scientific world. This discovery was just confirming that there must have been life at one time in this area, which encouraged further research.
Buildings 60 meters long
And that’s exactly what historians do. They then decided to search the area in search of other things belonging to the Vikings. 36 months after the discovery of a drakkar, it is therefore a “longhouse” typical dwelling of the Viking era which was discovered by historians.
The largest building discovered measures a little over 60 meters long and 15 wide. It is made of oak wood and thatch. The latter was buried underground over time, and it was using a technology called ground penetrating radar that a team of Norwegian archaeologists succeeded in isolating the remains of five such buildings in the vicinity of Gjellestad. . At the southern end of Norway. This collection of houses is only 500 meters from the remains of the longship discovered three years ago.
1,500-year-old tumults
If no precise dating has yet been possible, researchers believe that these date from the end of the Iron Age between 750 and 850 AD. J.-C .. According to Lars Gustavsen, who is the head of the research team, the largest of the buildings was not a dwelling house, but certainly a ceremonial hall used for political or religious purposes. .
Another interesting discovery for researchers, the discovery of tumuls. These mounds of earth usually cover graves in the Viking tradition, and many such buildings have already been found in the area. “It is not surprising to find some here (tumuls) however, it is important to know them in order to get a more complete picture of Gjellestad and its surroundings”, says Lars Gustavsen.
