Central Norway’s largest burial mound turns out to be a ship burial

Herlaugshaugen as it stands in 2023. Foto: Geir Grønnesby, NTNU University Museum.

One of Norway’s largest burial mounds is Herlaugshaugen (The mound of Herlaug), which is situated on the island of Leka in Trøndelag. The mound is referenced in the King Sagas, and is tells the story of the unusual demise of King Herlaug who would rather be buried alive than submitting to King Harald Fairhair. Recent archeological discoveries now suggest that the burial mound contains a ship burial.

Saga material

In the King Sagas of Snorre Sturlason you can read about King Herlaug who ruled North Namdalen together with his brother Rollaug. They had just finished preparing a great mound, when they heard word that King Harald Fairhair and his army was headed their way.

While Rollaug chose to meet with Harald, submitted his lands and declared his allegiance, Herlaug had other plans.

Herlaug had a large supply of food and drink brought to the mound. He himself went willingly into it and had it closed off, choosing death before submission.

1700s excavations

During the 1700s the mound was excavated three times. Accounts from the time mention finds of some sort of wall, iron nails, a bronze kettle, animal bones and a skeleton seated upright with a sword.

“Unfortunately, these finds disappeared in the early 1920s. The skeleton was displayed for a while at Trondheim Cathedral School as King Herlaug, but no one knows where it went,” Geir Grønnesby, project leader for the ecavation.

“All the other finds are also gone. It is said that the bronze kettle was melted down to make shoe buckles,” he stated.

2023 excavations

This year’s excavation purpose was to determine more precisely the age of the mound but also to find out wether or not the mound contained a ship burial. The excavation is initiated by Norwegian Directorate for Cultural Heritage in collaboration with NTNU University Trondheim and Trøndelag County Municipality.

Due to the finds from the 1700s it’s been speculated that the mound contains a ship burial, in particular based on the discovery of the wall and iron nails. The wall is believed to have been a support structure for keeping the ship upright and the rivets remains of a clinker-built Viking ship.

Hanne Bryn, archeologist and field leader is visibly excited about the find. Foto: Geir Grønnesby, NTNU University Museum.

A wooden ship would have rotted away many years ago, but several iron rivets were discovered during this year’s excavation. “It is not possible to determine the exact size, but the size of the nails tells us that there was a ship,” Grønnesby states.

Although there’s still not conclusive evidence, it is extremly likely that Herlaugshaugen does indeed contain a ship burial.

Further analysis

In addition to the iron nails, the excavation also uncovered remnants of preserved wood, a layer of charcoal, and a horse’s tooth, which will provide a good basis for dating the grave.

A Viking age iron nail up close and personal. Foto: Geir Grønnesby, NTNU University Museum.

“The mound has been referred to as a Viking Age grave, but it shares similarities with another burial mound—Storhaug—that is dated to the late Merovingian period, meaning the period before the Viking Age. The dating will hopefully provide us with answers regarding the age of the grave,” according to Grønnesby.

Hanna Geiran, Director of the Directorate for Cultural Heritage, assures that the finds will be analyzed over the summer and we’ll know more about secrets of one of Norway’s largest burial mounds.