The misplaced tomb of the tenth century Viking King, Harald Bluetooth, has “most likely” been recognized “once more.”

When Previous King Gorm died round 935 AD, the brand new Viking ruler of Denmark and Norway grew to become Harald Gormsson Bluetooth. Whereas a lot is thought about Harald’s life, till this final decade his place of relaxation was unknown. However now researchers say satellites have revealed that the well-known king “may” lie buried, together with his one rotten tooth, in a mound exterior a small Polish village.

A workforce of distant sensing researchers declare to have solved “considered one of historical past’s most enduring mysteries.” They imagine they’ve recognized the long-lost burial mound of the legendary Viking king, whose title is used as we speak to explain ‘Bluetooth’ wi-fi know-how. The large mound was found close to the village of Wiejkowo within the administrative district of Gmina Wolin, inside Kamień County, West Pomeranian Voivodeship, in north-western Poland.

The church atop the mount suspected to be the Harald Bluetooth burial mound. (Radosław Drożdżewski /  CC BY 3.0 )

The Thriller Mound Of Wiejkowo

Marek Kryda is the creator of the best-selling guide Viking Poland and is serving because the Lead researcher on the satellite tv for pc scanning challenge in Poland. The researcher informed TFN that the “potential” burial web site of the Danish king was, till now, considered one of historical past’s most enduring mysteries. The workforce utilized a set of satellite tv for pc distant sensing instruments on the large mound in Wiejkowo and concluded that it was certainly constructed for the tenth century king of Denmark and Norway, Harald Gormsson Bluetooth.

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That is the satellite tv for pc picture of Wiejkowo, Poland, that the researchers imagine reveals the burial of Harald Gormsson Bluetooth. (Marek Kryda / The First News)

Solely in Could I wrote an Historical Origins article a few younger lady dwelling in Malmö, who in 2014 handed her trainer a small golden disc that was delivered to Sweden by her Polish grandmother. The so-called Curmsun Disc was found with different Viking artifacts beneath an outdated church on the outskirts of the village of Wiejkowo. A Latin inscription mentions the Viking king as being ‘ruler of Danes, Scania and the Viking fortress of Jomsborg’, which is as we speak the city of Wolin, solely 3.5 miles west of the Wiejkowo burial mound.

“Probably” A King’s Marriage ceremony Reward

The disc, together with remainder of the Viking hoard had been left in a crypt beneath the church till 1945 when Stefan Sielski, a Polish military main, seized it. The disc was subsequently stored in a field of buttons till 2014 when Sielski’s 11-year-old great-granddaughter dug it out, took it to highschool and confirmed it to her historical past trainer.

Karen Schousboe, Danish anthropologist and Editor-in-Chief at Medieval Histories, concluded that the Curmsun Disc was “probably” a marriage present throughout Harald Bluetooth’s second marriage.

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Screenshot exhibiting Maja Sielski with archaeologist Sven Rosborn. (Curmsun Disc  / YouTube)

These are the clues that the mound upon which the Wiejkowo church sits is the burial mound of Harald Bluetooth. However greater than that is wanted to achieve stable conclusions.

Marek Kryda informed The First News that “space-based reconnaissance” allowed the workforce to scan areas of land as small “as 30.5 centimeters (12 inches) lengthy.” However although Kydra is satisfied that is the Viking king’s grave, it’s nonetheless being known as the “potential burial mound” of Harald Bluetooth, who united the Scandinavian international locations by way of introducing Christianity to the pagan north.

Whereas the analysis workforce are satisfied that is the burial mound of King Bluetooth, and the scans add extra weight to the speculation, it’s debated as as to if the king was ever interred at this web site. And lots of archaeologists don’t suppose the location has something to do with him.

The Problematic “Possible”

Kryda says this new satellite tv for pc analysis “absolutely confirmed the existence of a giant Wiejkowo Mound.” This assertion is a reality. However he additionally mentioned, “on the identical time this confirmed that Wiejkowo is the burial web site of Bluetooth.” This assertion, nonetheless, is a complete assumption, and it completely has not been “confirmed” that that is the legendary Christian king’s burial web site. Confirming this, would take nothing lower than a skeleton, or on the very least a bone holding DNA.

Nevertheless, it must be mentioned, after this stiff dose of skepticism, the truth that a church was constructed on high of the Viking mound suggests it was certainly a really sacred pre-Christian web site, most “most likely” match for a king. However the one technique to settle this debate, as soon as and for all, can be after the appliance of Floor-Penetrating Radar, which is able to present excessive decision imagery from inside the mound. Or, in fact, at some point they could even dig it up.

High picture: Left, Picture of the church at Wiejkowo, the proposed web site of the Harold Bluetooth burial. Proper; Harald Bluetooth sketch illustration. Supply: Left; Marek Kryda, Proper; Public Area / The First News

By Ashley Cowie