ABSTRACT
Bronze Age burial mounds are without question a key category of monument in the investigation of Scandinavian Bronze Age society. They are characterised by their carefully chosen locations, their large numbers and their substantial size. Particular importance is claimed to derive from the fact that they were frequently placed in prominent positions in the landscape, but this observation raises a number of questions. Was visibility the main reason why the mounds were so often placed high in the landscape? What role was played by topography, proximity to the sea and direction of view? Was high visibility the primary aim, or can other intentions be traced from the location of these mounds? Intentionality is, in itself, hard to assess. In particular, it may be difficult, if not impossible, to draw a distinction between sacred and profane in the actions of prehistoric societies. The building of burial mounds is no exception, and one could ask if a division between the two spheres is meaningful today, or was ever intended during prehistoric times (Barrett 1991, 5). The present study seeks nonetheless to explore landscape perceptions and cognitive issues through the viewshed analysis of these Bronze Age burial mounds.
