First High‐resolution GPR and Magnetic Archaeological Prospection at the Viking Age Settlement of Birka in Sweden

Abstract

In May 2006 high-resolution measurements using ground-penetrating radar (GPR) and magnetic gradiometer systems conducted over selected areas at the site of the Viking Age settlement and trading place Birka in central Sweden demonstrated the suitability of these methods for archaeological prospection of Scandinavian proto-urban settlements.The non-invasive geophysical surveys revealed numerous structural details of the settlement: houses, property boundaries, track-ways, buried remains of the town ramparts dating from different building periods, including a gate, were mapped with a manually operated single-channel GPR system and a four-channel magnetometer array. The combination of these two prospection methods, state-of-the-art data processing and visualization and archaeological interpretation within a geographical information system resulted in valuable new information about the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site Birka-Hovgården. We present methodology and results of this first archaeological prospection case study conducted in 2006.

Geoarchaeological evaluation of ground penetrating radar and magnetometry surveys at the Iron Age burial mound Rom in Norway

“…The non‐invasive nature of this approach allows repeatable investigations of the subsurface without destroying primary data. The use of motorized systems in recent years permits the prospection of areas measuring square kilometres at a high spatial sampling resolution within a reasonable amount of time (Campana, ; Gabler et al ., ; Kvamme, ; Linford & Linford, ; Trinks, Neubauer, & Doneus, ; Trinks, Neubauer, & Hinterleitner, ). Due to these advancements, near surface geophysical prospection methods become exceedingly relevant as cost‐ and time‐efficient tools, not just in the case of archaeological research projects, but also for heritage management, monitoring, protection and rescue or exploration archaeology (Bunting, Branch, & Robinson, ; Chapman, Adcock, & Gater, ; Cowley, ; Nau, Trinks, & Schneidhofer, ; Neubauer et al ., ).…”

Using shallow geophysical methods to characterise the monumental building at the Segeda I site (Spain)

“…The most common application of geophysical methods in outdoor archaeological sites is to search for buried structures, i.e., a planimetric target (Novo et al, 2012;Leucci et al, 2013;Trinks et al, 2014). There are also many examples of geophysical techniques being used for studying the internal features of a structure (Pérez-Garcia et al, 2012;Nuzzo and Quarta, 2012;Moropoulou et al, 2013).…”

Large‐scale geophysical archaeological prospection pilot study at Viking Age and medieval sites in west Jutland, Denmark

“…Since its foundation in 2010, the LBI ArchPro has built up considerable experience concerning large‐scale high‐resolution archaeological prospection case studies in Scandinavia, involving the latest remote sensing methods and geophysical prospection technology. It has become one of the Institute's research foci to non‐invasively document and investigate entire Iron Age landscapes, such as the UNESCO World Heritage Site Birka‐Hovgården (Trinks, Neubauer, & Hinterleitner, ; Trinks et al, ; Trinks et al, ; Trinks et al, ) and the wider landscape around the prehistoric settlement of Uppåkra (Larsson et al, ) in Sweden, as well as the Norwegian sites of Borre (Draganits et al, ), Kaupang, Gokstad (Schneidhofer et al, ) and Oseberg. In order to apply the developed methodology to Danish Viking Age and medieval sites through the here presented pilot study, five areas of archaeological interest were selected in West Jutland, all located within a 50‐km radius around the town of Ringkøbing.…”