Vendeltida redskapsdepåer i södra Jämtlands län

Sammanfattning: In the southern part of the county of Jämtland seven rich finds of iron artefacts from the Vendel Period have been found. These finds contain similar sets of hunting weapons and tools of iron and they are all found close to lakes or river banks in the hunting ground area. In most cases no human bones or grave structures have been found in connection with the finds. The combination of artefacts is similar to combinations found in hunting ground graves in Dalarna and Norway. Therefore, archaeologists have discussed whether the finds in Jämtland should be classified as graves or hoards. The purpose of this thesis is to widen the discussion. An important point of departure has been to refrain from classifying the archaeological material in advance as graves or hoards, as sacred or profane, or as anything else, since such assumptions risk leading to circular reasoning. The analysis and discussion in the thesis are inspired by practice theory and focus on how actions performed can reflect people's relationships. Symbolism and beliefs, or what people thought, are of secondary importance. The results suggest that the finds of iron artefacts discussed in this thesis can be considered remains of ritualised activities. These activities may have been performed for a variety of reasons. For the moment, it may be fruitful to shift the focus from the classification problem to a discussion where these rich finds of iron artefacts are considered in a broader context. The results also suggest that these iron artefacts were deposited in the ground during a time when there was an increase in the construction of trapping pit systems in Jämtland. The rich finds of iron artefacts may well reflect changes taking place in the organisation of the surrounding community as a result of the increasing importance of hunting.