The process of surveying a private land plot to dig ditches revealed huge ancient houses and many ancient tombs, containing many antiques inside, considered an extremely valuable archaeological treasure.
According to Acient Origins, the excavation site is in Gjellestad, Østfold, Southern Norway. Huge ancient houses used as religious or administrative centers along with many ship tombs and burial mounds belonging to Viking nobility, containing a treasure inside, have been identified through ground-penetrating radar surveys.
Long houses and ancient tombs appear through ground-penetrating radar images – Photo: Norwegian Institute of Cultural Heritage
Artifacts from the Iron Age in Northern Europe (550-1050 AD). Previously, another ship grave was discovered near the site, which is why the land was surveyed before the landowner dug the ditch, said the research team led by Dr. Lars Gustavsen from the Institute of Cultural Heritage. Norway.
The burial mounds were surrounded by ring-shaped trenches and were used for generations, as a form of family crypt. In a burial mound there is also a hidden burial ship, but archaeologists have not directly approached it so they cannot determine who is inside.
The ancient tomb is said to contain many precious artifacts, similar to the ship tomb with many gold jewelry found previously.
The location of this exclusive house and cemetery also suggests that it was the center of an ancient administrative or commercial district, meaning there may be many more archaeological treasures hidden around the area.
A total of five Viking longhouses were found in the area, with the most gigantic one being the last to be found, measuring up to 60 meters in length. Smaller longhouses are also about 30 meters long, so can also be used for other public purposes.
