University of Aarhus 2003
Medieval Europe seen in a new perspective
In Tromsø, Dublin, Seville and many other places, researchers are busy writing a story that began in Aarhus seven years ago, based on an idea created by Professor Else Roesdahl from the Department of Medieval Archaeology.
By Mikkel Hvid
Many Danish churches have baptismal fonts that date from the Middle Ages. The church at Nr. Snede has a beautiful font, typical of those found in Jutland: about a metre high, cut out of solid, grey granite and ornamented with four large male lions, each pair sharing a human face.
In most Danish churches, the baptismal font is placed in the chancel. That can hardly surprise anybody. That is just how it is. And if we read historical documents, we do not find anything that contradicts our perceptions about where in the church the baptismal font should be.
“That just shows how dangerous it is to use only written material when reconstructing one’s past,” says Professor Else Roesdahl from the Department of Medieval Archaeology. Written information is much less comprehensive, precise and detailed than one would think, and that is why we tend to take too much for granted and presume that the world always appeared the way we know it.
However, that is not always the case. Not even when it comes to baptismal fonts. Arch-aeological diggings have in fact revealed that the baptismal font was originally placed near the entrance at the rear of the nave. And that is not all – it was not placed on the floor. The font was placed on a podium with some steps, which meant that it was raised about half a metre above floor level.
“That also explains the ornamentation on the baptismal font,” continues the 62-year-old archaeologist. Today, not many people really see the ornamentation. We look at the baptismal font from above, and the amount of ornamentation we can see from that angle is very limited. Previously, when the font was placed on a podium, it was at eye level for the congregation, and from that angle, the work of the artist was presented at its best.
| The baptismal font in the church at Nr. Snede dates back to around 1150 and is one of Jutland's many granite fonts that feature lions. It is seen here at an angle from below. |
Physical vestiges provide a new perspective
“The baptismal font is just one of many examples,” says Professor Roesdahl. “It’s an example of how archaeologists’ studies of the physical vestiges that culture leaves in the landscape, in the earth, in buildings and tools provide completely new knowledge and allow us to see the past in a new light. If written material was the only testimony of the past, our knowledge would be very restricted,” she adds. “Many aspects have never been described in written material. Trelleborg, for example, is not mentioned in as much as one written source, but it is nevertheless an important part of our history. Many of the other royal centres are only known from diggings or from the physical traces remaining in the landscape. The material sources we work with in archaeology therefore expand and supplement our historical insight. At the same time, archaeological studies often contribute with historical knowledge about completely different aspects of life than those the historians deal with,” says Professor Roesdahl.
“Written sources often deal with politics, legal matters and famous individuals, but there is not much written material that describes how ordinary people actually spent their lives, what they ate, how they adapted, what technical methods they used, etc. Archaeology can supply that knowledge.”
Prime motivator of European work
At the moment, Professor Roesdahl is spending a large amount of her time and research on a two-volume work on medieval archaeology in Europe.
If everything goes according to plan, the book The Archaeology of Medieval Europe I–II will be published by University College London Press in 2006. In this case, it will be the first book ever to give a complete account of medieval archaeology in Europe.
The professor from Aarhus is not alone in writing the book. Archaeologists from universities in fifteen countries – from Tromsø to Seville and from Dublin to Prague – are collaborating on writing the two volumes of sixteen chapters each.
However, Professor Roesdahl was the one who came up with the original idea for the book, and she was the one who presented her colleagues with a project plan that would unite them.
“I presented the idea at an archaeological conference in Seville in 1999, and my ideas were so well received that my colleagues and I immediately appointed a work group and soon after an editing committee, which has since been in charge of the project.”
The project involves a lot of work, both professional and practical. It is a huge task. She knew that beforehand, but work on the book has also triggered a number of productive discussions she had not anticipated.
“For example, it was not that easy to define which areas could be considered part of Europe in this context. For many practical reasons, we ended up focusing on the Roman Catholic area. We have therefore included the Baltic States, but neither Greece nor the Ukraine, for instance. You have to be very careful about discussing this issue, because it easily becomes political,” says Professor Roesdahl.
The whole is greater than the sum of its parts
A number of books are available about medieval archaeology in the individual countries, but Professor Roesdahl had long missed a work covering a larger part of Europe – for educational purposes, for example.
“The national works are very good and necessary, but a complete work on medieval archaeology in Europe has a broader, more interesting scope. First of all, we currently need to know about the whole of Europe. By tracking a specific subject throughout Europe, we also gain an insight into the way in which different cultures have developed. How and why do the regions affect each other, and what were their characteristics? In addition to looking at contexts and developments in medieval Europe, a complete work also gives us the opportunity to study the differences and why they exist. Why did people have stoves in Western Europe, but ovens in Central and Eastern Europe? And why did sailing ships make their entry so late in Scandinavia when they were known in the Mediterranean many centuries before? Those are some of the subjects I am looking forward to reading more about once the book is finished,” says Professor Roesdahl, chairperson of the project’s steering committee.
Increased collaboration
“The book project has also had a positive impact on the Department of Medieval Archaeology,” says Professor Roesdahl.
“Through the work on the book, we have established contact with a large number of archaeologists in Europe, which is very beneficial. Some of them have come to visit and have given guest lectures, and more are still to come. It is an obvious advantage to the degree programme to get this type of inspiration from outside. The students are also very pleased with the broader international horizon,” says Professor Roesdahl.
“Most young people are very internationally oriented, so they are enthusiastic about the broadening of the archaeological perspectives that the project has brought about.”
Then wouldn’t it be a good idea to publish a book about the medieval archaeology of the whole world?
“Well yes, but I’ll have to leave that to someone else,” says Professor Roesdahl.
| A well-established road network, including bridges across rivers and streams, contributed to linking the different parts of medieval Europe. This beautiful fourteenth-century fortified bridge is in Cahors, southern France. |
| Outside the village of Gnojewo near Gdansk in Poland, passers-by still decorate the local roadside chapel with flowers - just as they did in the Middle Ages. The red-tiled chapel has niches for crucifixes and icons of saints. |
