- Address: Björkö, 178 92 Ekerö, Sweden
- Phone: +46 8 120 040 00
- Website: www.birkavikingastaden.se
- E-mail: bokning@stromma.se
- Foundation date: approximately 770.
The island of Bjerke (Björkö) on Lake Mälaren is the place where the very first Swedish city, Birka was founded. Its age is more than a thousand years - roughly it appeared here around 770, and maybe even earlier. It is known that in the period from 770 to 970 the city of Birka was one of the largest and most important shopping centers in Sweden : it was here that the trading route that connected the Viking state with the Arab Caliphate and the Khazar Khaganate ended. Today, Birka is included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.
Interesting facts about the creation of the city
Our contemporaries learned about the site thanks to excavations conducted in the 20th century:
- The first excavations on the island, as a result of which Birka was discovered, began in 1881. The well-known Swedish archaeologist Knut Jalmar Stolpe arrived in Björkö with the purpose of studying fossilized insects in the amber found on the island and came to the conclusion that there is too much amber here, which is unusual for the valley of Lake Mälaren. This led him to make the assumption that there was a fairly large (by that measure) trading city.
- In the main, the Pillar was focused on the study of burials. In total, he examined about 1200 burial places in the area of the burial ground of Hemladen and on the fortified hill of the Borg. Some of them were in wooden log houses, on top of which mounds were poured; this indicates that in these burial grounds the noble Vikings were buried.
- The historian first published his results in 1874 at the International Archaeological Congress, and since then, Birka and Bjorki Island have attracted the attention of researchers in general. Stolpe found here and the fortress, which was on the hill of the Borg. It was he who made the assumption that the settlement discovered here is Birka, the city of the Vikings, which was repeatedly mentioned in the ancient chronicles and writings of medieval chroniclers.
- However, not all historians and archaeologists support this hypothesis. Firstly, the North German chronicler Adam Bremen, during whose life Birka was still a prosperous city, wrote that it was in the country of Goethe (that is, in the area of the Veterne and Vänern Lakes); secondly, none of the medieval authors mentioned that this large city was on the island.
- Another detail that makes one doubt that Birka was right here is the fact that there were about 600-700 people in the fortress, which is much less than in similar fortifications in Denmark , in Russia and in the Southern Baltic. On the other hand, it is possible that the location of the city on the island did not require the permanent presence of a large garrison within the fortress walls.
- And in favor of the fact that there is "the same one" on Bjorki island, Birka says (in addition to the similarity of the name) the fact that in many burial places Arab coins were found. In addition, the island was discovered and a lot of Khazar products (clothes, dishes, jewelry coins).
- Whatever it was, the city after the 970s was abandoned by the population. What was the cause, today is unknown. Some researchers attribute this to the fall of the Khazar Khaganate and suggest that the city that existed on the island was its colony. The reason could also be the lifting of land, as a result of which it was cut off from the Baltic Sea, as well as a fire that destroyed the wooden buildings.
The tag today
Today on the island you can see the archaeological sites and burials of the Vikings, both simple and noble, the remains of the ancient fortress and the surrounding ramparts, as well as the remains of a fortified pier-the researchers believe that in the time of the Vikings, the land level was 5 meters below the current one, and sea ships could come here directly. Noteworthy are the chapel of Ansgar and the cross.
In addition, the island operates the Viking Museum, where you can see:
- detailed layout of the city;
- utensils and ornaments from burial grounds;
- fragments of ships and buildings;
- weapons;
- stones, runes on which tell about events of far years.
Next to the museum, a Viking village was reconstructed. Houses in it are made of vertical logs, carefully fitted to each other, or woven from vines and smeared with clay. Roofs are straw or peat. Inside each house you can see the hearth and couches. Near the village is a small cove, where the Viking ships are jamming.
How to get to the Tags?
From Stockholm to the island of Björkö there is a boat. He leaves in the morning from the Town Hall from May to September; a day there are several flights. Those who have already visited the island, recommend to inspect it on their own, and not with an excursion , since the excursion time is only an hour. The excursion is conducted by an English-speaking guide, dressed as a viking. The cost of the tour to the island is about 40 euros (about 44 US dollars).