Database
The Osiliana archaeological database brings together artefacts from Saaremaa and the surrounding small islands.
Most of Saaremaa’s archaeological finds are held in the collection of the Saaremaa Museum and in the Tallinn University Research Collection.
We are gradually adding more and more finds and hope that it will become a useful tool for all history and archaeology enthusiasts!
Spearhead, iron. Petersen’s K-type, but with a slightly unusually long socket (Petersen 1919, 31-33). Belongs to the 10th or early 11th century (Pedersen 2014, 92).
Literature:
Pedersen, A. 2014. Dead Warriors – a study of weapon and equestrian burials in viking-age Denmark, AD 800-1000. National Museum Studies in Archaeology. University Press of Southern Denmark: Odense.
Petersen, J. 1919. De norske vikingesverd. En typologisk-kronologisk studie over vikingetidens vaaben. (Videnskapsselskapets Skrifter II. Hist. – Filos. klasse 1.) Kristiania.
Upa
Cross-headed pin, bronze. The pin-head has rounded ends, connected by curved branches. Shaft broken. Such small pins are characteristic of 13th-century inhumations, they are rare in prehistoric stone graves.
Laheküla
Buckle, iron. With square frame. Probably 12th-14th century, but may be later.
Buckle, iron. With square frame. Probably 12th-14th century, but may be later.
Länga
Belt chain, bronze. It is composed of 68 larger rings connected by mainly cubic-shaped distributers. The rings are ±3 cm in diameter, some have spirals slided upon them. From the rings hang 12 small spherical and four-pronged beads and a cross-pin, attached with 7 cm long chains.
Belt chain, bronze. It is composed of 68 larger rings connected by mainly cubic-shaped distributers. The rings are ±3 cm in diameter, some have spirals slided upon them. From the rings hang 12 small spherical and four-pronged beads and a cross-pin, attached with 7 cm long chains. The cross-shaped pendant belongs to the same type as those found at Varbola hillfort, and from the inhumation cemetery at Kaberla (Kurisoo 2013, fig. 23:59), and most recently in Saaremaa at the Mullutu harbour site (Mägi 2021). It belongs to the 13th century. At one end of the belt was a flat buckle with a rounded front.
The total length of the belt chain is 2.41 m. Similar belt chains have been found in several 13th-century inhumations, in Saaremaa especially in the graves near the Valjala church (Mägi et al 2019).
Kirjandus:
Kurisoo, T. 2013. Hilisrauaaegsed ristripatsid ja ristimärgiga rinnalehed Eestis. Magistritöö. Tartu.
Mägi, M. 2021. Viking Age and Medieval harbour site at Mullutu in southern Saaremaa. – Archaeological Fieldwork in Estonia 2020. Tallinn: Muinsuskaitseamet, 107-120.
Mägi, M.; Malve, M. & Toome, T. 2019. Early Christian burials at Valjala churchyard, Saaremaa. – Archaeological Fieldwork in Estonia 2018, 93−118.
Länga
Spur, iron. The spur is broken and heavily rusted, but it is probably the type with the spiked disc.
Spur, iron. The spur is broken and heavily rusted, but it is probably the type with the spiked disc. The preserved shape of the spur suggests that it dates to 1300-1340 AD (Ellis 2004, 137-138).
Literature:
Ellis, M. A. 2004. Spurs and spur-fittings. – The Medieval Horse and its Equipment c. 1150-c. 1450). Ed. By J. Clark, J. Boydell Press.
Laheküla
Fragment of bracelet, bronze. Probably a hollow bracelet with narrowing ends, as found in 13th-century inhumations in Saaremaa. Fragment with typical ornamentation.
Fragment of a bracelet, bronze. Probably a hollow bracelet with narrowing ends, as found in 13th-century inhumations in Saaremaa (Mägi et al 2019, 97). Fragment with typical ornamentation.
Literature:
Mägi, M.; Malve, M. & Toome, T. 2019. Early Christian burials at Valjala churchyard, Saaremaa. – Archaeological Fieldwork in Estonia 2018, 93−118.
Upa
Sword, iron. The handle is decorated with a pattern of triangular motifs in silver engraving.
Sword, iron. Petersen’s T-type, dated to the second half of the 10th century in Scandinavia (Petersen 1919, 152, 183). The hilt is decorated with a pattern of triangular motifs in silver inlay. Swords of this type were common not only in Estonia but also in the areas of Latvia and Russia inhabited by the Baltic Finns, and in Finland, where they can be dated mainly to the 10th, but sometimes also to the 11th century (Moilanen 2015, 153-154; Tomsons 2018, 62-65).
Literature:
Moilanen, M. 2015. Marks of Fire, Value and Faith. Swords with Ferrous Inlays in Finland during the Late Iron Age (ca. 700–1200 AD). Suomen Keskiajan Arkeologian Seura: Turku.
Tomsons, A. 2018. Zobeni Latvijas teritorijā no 7. līdz 16. gadsimtam. – Latvijas nacionālā vēstures muzeja raksti nr. 27. Rīga.
Upa
Penannular brooch, bronze. With blossom-shaped terminals, a flat rhombic-shaped arched cross-section, with a broad needle. Arch with wolf-tooth ornamentation, with circles on the needle.
Penannular brooch, bronze. With blossom-shaped terminals, the cross-section of the arch is flat rhomb, with a broad needle. Arch with wolf-tooth ornamentation, the needle decorated with circles. Quite similar penannular brooches have been found in some Siksälä burials dated to the first half or the whole of the 14th century (Valk et al 2014, 151, 283). Some burials with penannular brooches with blossom-shaped terminals have also been dated to the period 1350-1475 in Siksälä (Valk et al 2014, 234, 248). The Upa brooch probably dates to the 14th century.
Literature:
Valk, H., Ratas, J., Laul, S. 2014. Siksälä kalme II. Matuste ja leidude kataloog. Tartu Ülikool: Tartu.
Kingli
Disc-shaped brooch, bronze. Finnish, but recently more and more of these have been found in Estonia.
Disc-shaped brooch, bronze. Finnish, but recently more and more of these have been found in Estonia. Probably type C, defined by Appelgreni and dated by Pirkko-Liisa Lehtosalo-Hilander to the period 925-975. (Moilanen 2020).
Literature:
Moilanen, M. 2015. Marks of Fire, Value and Faith. Swords with Ferrous Inlays in Finland during the Late Iron Age (ca. 700–1200 AD). Suomen Keskiajan Arkeologian Seura: Turku.
