Symposium: “Viking Archaeology in Iceland: The Mosfell
Archaeological Project”
Papers presented at the 69th Annual Meeting of the Society for
American Anthropology, Montreal, Canada, 2004.
Symposium abstract:
The Mosfell Archaeological Project is using data from saga studies, history,
archaeology, anthropology, genetics, and environmental sciences to construct a
comprehensive picture of human habitation and environmental change in
southwestern Iceland beginning in the Viking Age. The sites of Huldahóll and
Kirkjuhóll at Hrísbrú in the Mosfell Valley include a pagan burial mound with the
first cremation found in Iceland, a Christian church and cemetery, and domestic
structures, spanning the pagan and early conversion periods in the 10th and 11th
Centuries. Papers include analyses of architecture, landscape, burial practices,
and skeletal remains, within the larger context of Viking Age Europe.
Activity patterns of an early Icelandic population
Jacqueline Eng1, Per Holck2, Kaethin Prizer1, and Phillip L. Walker1
Skeletal remains of 12 people buried in the early conversion period graveyard at
Hrísbrú provide evidence for the activity patterns of Iceland’s early colonists. The
economic life of these people centered on sailing, fishing, and stock-raising in a
challenging marginal environment. Traumatic injuries appear to have been
common. One person buried in the cemetery is an apparent homicide victim with
massive head injuries. Another has a healed leg fracture. Several individuals,
including an adolescent, show evidence of strenuous physical activity involving
the hands and arms. Osteoarthritis is common. These data suggest that heavy
labor was common among early Icelanders.
Stature as an Indicator of Nutritional Status in Viking Age Iceland
Kaethin Prizer1, Jacqueline T. Eng1, Per Holck2, and Phillip L. Walker1
Because of the sensitivity of human growth to the environment, assessment of
stature has become central to the study of human adaptation in archaeological
populations. Measurements of subadult growth and adult stature provide
important indicators of nutritional status and environmental stress. A
comparison of the statures of the early conversion period burials at Hrísbrú and
contemporaneous skeletal remains from Norway, provides new evidence
concerning regional variation in quality of life and health status in the Viking
Age.
1Department
of Anthropology
University of California
Santa Barbara, CA 93106
2Department of Anatomy
Anthropological Laboratory
University of Oslo