Gravfältet vid Asker

In the middle of the Lennartsnäshalvön, located on a ridge of hills and moraines, lies the Asker burial field (Kungsängen 52:1). Here some of the largest Bronze Age burial mounds in the Mälardalen region can be found. The three mounds are aligned along the ridge and measure between 15–20 meters in diameter. During the Bronze Age (1800-500 BC), the mounds were situated on a smaller island strategically placed along the coast so that everyone arriving by boat could see them.

Thanks to the land uplift that has occurred since the end of the Ice Age, the it is now located a bit inland from the coast. The burial field measures approximately 85 x 65 meters and contains, in addition to the aforementioned mounds, 17 round stone settings with diameters ranging from 4 to 10 meters.

The archaeological remains were first mentioned in a heritage inventory from 1667, and investigations were conducted at the burial field in 1871 by the National Antiquarian Oscar Montelius. The finds included bones from cattle, burnt human bones, charcoal, pieces of clay vessels, fragments of a bone comb, and copper/bronze plates. Traces of these investigations are sometimes visible as pits on top of the graves.

Graves and mounds have always attracted treasure seekers dreaming of royal treasures, and we can still see traces of this today in the form of looting pits. However, sensational finds in graves are rare; more commonly, the discoveries resemble the typical finds presented above, consisting of ordinary items. Perhaps these were the most practical objects needed for the after life?