During a walk in Norway, a local resident noticed an old tree that was once uprooted by a storm. Curiosity prompted the man to dig into the soil under the roots with a stick, and he saw the glimmer of gold. That's how the detail of the 1500-year-old sword sheath appeared from under the soil, Live Science wrote.
Archaeologists found out that the find refers to the 6th century AD, the era of the great migration of peoples. It is not just a decorative coating, but a luxurious golden element of a sword scabbard that belonged exclusively to a person of high status. The weight of the gold jewelry is about 33 grams, the length is about 6 centimeters.
The surface is covered with intricate animal-style ornamentation. the tangled images resemble snakes or fantastical creatures. Such objects were a symbol of power, status, and belonging to the military elite. Only about 17 such artifacts are known in all of Northern Europe.
It is especially interesting that the object was probably not lost by accident. Scholars believe that the sword or a part of it could have been deliberately "sacrificed" to the gods. The signs of heavy wear indicate that. the weapon was used for a long time and then deliberately buried.
At that time, Scandinavia was going through hard times: climatic disasters, cold weather after volcanic eruptions, and possibly epidemics. Archaeologists assume that the elite performed such rituals in an attempt to gain the support of higher powers.
The object was found not far from Hove, an ancient center of power in southwestern Norway, where rich objects and traces of elite settlements had already been found earlier. This strengthens the hypothesis that the region was an important political and ritual center between the 2nd and 6th centuries.
