Social organization of land in South Scandinavia AD 400-1100. Methods, challenges and possibilities
Odense City Museums, May 24th 2018
With a generous donation from the VELUX FOUNDATION the project “From central space to urban place. From the central spaces of the Iron Age to the cities of the Middle Ages” is conducted over the years 2017-2020. The project analyzes the earliest urbanization process in South Scandinavia within the chronological frame c. AD 400-1100. The means is, with Odense and Aalborg as cases, to explore the development from the central spaces of the Late Iron Age, defined as concentrations of localities characterized by wealth and functions like trade, crafts, cult and defense to the urban places (cities) of the Middle Ages, where the structures of power are concentrated at one spot
The theoretical dialogue between space and place is a general perspective for the project, both in research and mediation. The same goes for the two international seminars, as part of the project. The first seminar deals with aspects of space, whereas the second seminar, in 2019, will focus on the aspects of place and the connection between space and place.
This first seminar is concerned with reconstruction and analyzes of the social organization of landscapes from the period Late Iron Age to Early Middle Age. Hence the first session deals with different methods and datasets to landscape reconstruction. The second session presents experiences from former or ongoing largescale landscape projects.
The seminar will be published online in the form of abstracts, the power point-presentations as well as summaries of the presentations and discussions, written by two archaeologists with this dedicated function of the day.