Nordic Bronze Age

The Nordic Bronze Age ( 1800 BC - 530 BC) is by Oscar Montelius ( 1843-1921 ), a period and a Bronze Age culture in the Southern Scandinavian history, rich places the references to Estonia.

Periodization

The Nordic Bronze Age is created after the Oscar Montelius (1843-1921) System Om tidsbestämning inom bronsåldern med på särskilt avseende Scandinavia ( 1885) divided into the periods I-VI. For northern Scandinavia, the term Bronze Age is not used, but the term metal time.

General characteristics

Although the Scandinavians through trade were relatively late contact with the European Bronze, southern Scandinavia, the Fund places rich and well-preserved objects made ​​of wood, wool, gold, and (imported ) bronze on. The organic substances are mainly preserved in bog finds, as well as in the barrows, the chambers of which offered some good preservation conditions. During this time, the first known advanced civilization rose in this region in southern Scandinavia, which followed the Nordic Stone Age. The Scandinavians adapted many central and southern European symbols at the time when they developed new styles and even objects. The Mycenaean Greece, the Villanovan culture, Phoenicia and Ancient Egypt have been identified as possible sources of influence for the Scandinavian art of this period. The cause of foreign influence the Amber trade is accepted. Bernstein, who was found in Mycenaean graves of this period comes from the Baltic Sea. Therefore, it seems logical in the culture, which appeared in the Nordic Bronze Age, to recognize the utility of the so-called Amber Road. Engraving in metal, petroglyphs and the ship known as the subsidence large stone settings show that seafaring in the Baltic played a role.

From this time, earth and stone mound, Röser stone cists and petroglyphs have been preserved, but the importance of the latter has been lost. There are also artifacts of bronze and gold. The rather crude appearance of the petroglyphs are compared to the bronze works rise to the theory that they are made from different cultures. During the Bronze Age there was no written language in the Nordic countries. The petroglyphs have been dated to the Nordic Bronze Age, by represented objects with archaeological finds were compared. So even bronze axes were mapped as petroglyphs. The first archaeologist who recognized this connection, Oscar Montelius was. In addition, there is a group of petroglyphs, which are allocated to the northern hunters living culture that mostly depict moose.

Climate

Claims that (not only) the Nordic Bronze Age should be characterized by a warm climate, have persisted, but so far could not be conclusively proven.

Arts and Culture

In Sweden about 10 000 sites with hundreds of thousands of Felsenritzungen are known from the Bronze Age. The images were scratched with a very hard stone in the rocks. Whether the carvings - as now - were painted, has not been established. The best known find spot in Scandinavia have a Felsenritzungen Tanum.

A conspicuous object of the Bronze Age are great instruments. This trumpet -like horns, also called Luri, were usually found in pairs in bogs. The cultural significance of Luri is particularly emphasized by the representation of Lurenbläsern in rock art.

Religion

Since written sources missing, is about the religions of the Nordic Bronze Age, not much is known. Nevertheless give many archaeological finds a vague picture of the faith of the general public or individual tribes.

Most scientists believe that the sun or a sun god in the middle of the Nordic Bronze Age religion were. The sun god / wagons was drawn mythical sources in a chariot across the sky. It is also assumed that a twin pair of gods were worshiped, which should be reflected in the duality of sacred objects: Where this came as a sacrifice to the earth, they are often found in pairs. Furthermore, it was probably worshiped a female goddess (or Mother Goddess ) (see also Nerthus ). Animals, weapons, jewelry and people were far as we know, often sacrificed in conjunction with water. Often, small marshes, lakes or ponds were used as places of sacrifice, which is why many artifacts are found in such places. Hierogamie rites are mapped to rock carvings, were so common.

It is believed that the contents of the Bronze Age religion and mythology in the Germanic and Norse mythology continue to exist, for example, Skinfaxi, Hrimfaxi Sleipnir and Njord.

Broadcast

The assumption that East Germanic tribes can claim a Scandinavian origin, was detected neither archaeological nor linguistically (eg, Lombards, Burgundians, Goths and Heruli ). This also applies to an influence on North Germany, Pomerania, and the north of present-day Poland from about 1250 BC ( Goths ).