Torun Zachrisson

Nyckelord: HUMANIORA; HUMANITIES; settlements; grave fields; graves; social structure; landownership; odal-rights; hillforts; stone walls; spatial connections; arkeologi med inriktning mot allmän arkeologi; Archaeology with General Specialisation; Sammanfattning: The thesis investigates settlement on the Vikbolandet peninsula in north-eastern Östergötland in the period 200 to 1600. The key question is what happened between 500 and 600, the transition to the Late Iron Age.

Abstract Objectives The objective of this study has been to confirm the sex and the affinity of an individual buried in a well‐furnished warrior grave (Bj 581) in the Viking Age town of Birka, Sweden. Previously, based on the material and historical records, the male sex has been associated with the gender of the warrior and such was the case with Bj 581. An earlier osteological classification of the individual as female was considered controversial in a historical and archaeological context.

Abstract Objectives The objective of this study has been to confirm the sex and the affinity of an individual buried in a well‐furnished warrior grave (Bj 581) in the Viking Age town of Birka, Sweden. Previously, based on the material and historical records, the male sex has been associated with the gender of the warrior and such was the case with Bj 581. An earlier osteological classification of the individual as female was considered controversial in a historical and archaeological context.