The Birka and Hovgården area was once an important trading place and a centre of royal power. We don_t know who established the site at the end of the 8th century or why it was abandonned some 200 years later. Today there are close to 3,000 burial mounds and the remains of a great number of buildings, workshops, forges, piers, and a protective wall here. The area on Björkö island that was once inhabited by about a thousand people is now called the Black Earth and the large grave-fields are referred to as the Homelands.

Birka was established as a trading post around the year 790. This was about the same time that kingdoms were being established in several of the peripheries of Europe, and the new kings were forced to secure their power. One way to secure power was to establish trading posts. These were founded in many places in Northern Europe, for example in Hedeby and Ribe, but Birka houses some of the greatest surviving evidence found on the entire Scandinavian peninsula.

The island of Björkö was inhabited long before the town was built. There was a well-established waterway through the Baltic Sea, leading to relatively populous areas such as Vendel and Uppsala. Since Birka was in a sheltered bay it was also easy to find protection from attack.

Founded by a King

We do not know which king founded Birka. He shunned the noise and dirt of the town and established his royal estate, Hovgården, on the Island of Adelsö across the water.

The people of Birka built their houses and lived on a gradually growing pile of garbage. Yet the garbage they left behind bears witness of many things, especially what they ate. Five tons of bone remains have been found and some of them are included in the exhibition. The bone remains indicate the Birka residents enjoyed spare ribs and oxtail, but also fish: Pike, pike-perch and Baltic herring. They baked their bread with wheat and peas.

Most were heathens

A young monk named Ansgar arrived in Birka in the year 830 to spread the Christian gospels. Many of the inhabitants were baptised and there probably was a small church in the town. Nevertheless, most of the people in Birka were heathens; we know this from graves-excavations. According to pagan burial customs, the dead were buried with objects that could be useful in the afterlife. These objects reflected the person's position in the community and their status in the social hierchy.

A man buried with his two horses probably belonged to the King's guard. He was allowed to take food and beverages with him, as well as board games, should the afterlife be tedious. Other graves contained small balancing-scales, indicating that a trader was buried there. Children also brought things with them into the burial place: pearls, glass and toys.

The myths remained

People left Birka during the latter half of the 10th century. The full reason is unknown. Archaeological material indicates that Birka was abandoned and that people moved elsewhere, perhaps to Sigtuna, founded by Erik Segersäll in 970. One reason for the move can be that it became harder to reach Birka. Isostatic uplift led to shallowing of the Södertälje water route. Furthermore, larger boats came into use.

After 200 years' of urbanity, only 3,000 graves remained to tell the story, together with a number of myths and tales about life in the city, which were handed down from generation to generation. Scientists have studied the vestiges since the 17th century, but we still have much to learn about Sweden's first town-dwellers.

See also:
Birka och Hovgården  - One of Sweden's fourteen World Heritage sites.