Archaeologists are about to embark on a five-week excavation outside Stavanger Cathedral. They hope to find more skeletons from the Middle Ages.
- We have few finds from the Middle Ages, around the time the cathedral was built. That's why we hope to find graves from the medieval cemetery. They are an important part of the time when Stavanger was founded," says project manager Hege Hollund.
A gap in knowledge
There have not been many archaeological excavations outside Stavanger Cathedral in the past. The last major excavation in the medieval cemetery was in 1967. At that time, 30 skeletons were found inside the church in connection with the renovation of the crypt. These turned out to originate from a cemetery dating from around 1100, i.e. before the cathedral was built.
- This collection of skeletons is the only one we have from the Middle Ages in Stavanger, but unfortunately it has since been partially destroyed. That's why we're now conducting this research study to find similar old graves. This could give us new answers about a key and as yet little-known period of the city's history - when the diocese was established and Stavanger became a city," says Hollund.
How did medieval people live in Stavanger?
- We have few written sources from this period, but by examining the physical remains of the people themselves, we can find out where they came from, what they did for a living, whether they were very ill, what they ate and how old they lived. The skeletons and other traces we can find in the soil thus constitute a valuable historical archive, which is important for future research," says Hollund.
The archaeological excavations are taking place at the same time as the cathedral is being renovated ahead of the city's anniversary in 2025. During digging to lay a pipe in December last year, a skeleton was discovered that archaeologists believe dates back to the 12th century. This skeleton is now being analyzed.
Read more about the skeleton discovery outside the Cathedral in Stavanger Aftenblad (December 12, 2022).
