ABSTRACT
The Bornholm hoard adventure started in 1989 when the Bornholm Museum initiated a targeted campaign to locate deposition sites for hoards which were found before the introduction of metal detectors in archaeology. The aim was to rescue objects that were still in the field, and conduct examinations of the circumstances of deposition. The project established an excellent and ongoing collaboration between the Bornholm Museum and private metal detector archaeologists, and every year private metal detecting produces new finds. Thanks to these efforts, we know of more than 100 Viking-Age hoards deposited between c. 850–c. 1150 on the 588 km2 island. What makes the Bornholm hoards unique is not just their number, but more specifically the degree of documentation connected to the finds. Archaeological excavations of a minimum of 200 m2 have been conducted at no fewer than 34 hoard sites. The extensive documentation allows for the archaeological context to be included in the interpretation of Viking-Age hoards in an unprecedented way, enabling us to get extraordinarily close to the hoarding Vikings. The study investigates whether people’s choices and actions are traceable when analysing the structure and deposition contexts of the hoards. In other words, do the hoards reflect the people that accumulated, handled, and deposited them, and is it possible to identify the accumulation strategies behind the hoards? Can we detect the hoarding Vikings themselves in this material? It is theorised that different intentions motivated different hoard types, and that these motivations are indeed reflected in the deposition contexts. The survey aims to clarify how the function of each hoard is reflected in its archaeological context. In addition, the survey examines how hoards influenced Viking-Age people and society, and a fundamental objective is to illuminate the hoards as actors in Viking-Age society.
