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SUMMARY
During the period of May to November, 2002, a large
settlement area at Kyrsta, RAÄ 327, was investigated. In
October and November the same year, an additional investigation
was made of an impediment and a nearby arable
field, RAÄ 330, on the property of Valhammar. The settlement
remains, located on elevated areas between 27 and 32
meters above sea level have mainly been dated to the Early
Iron Age, but RAÄ 327 also contained remains dated to
earlier and later periods. The investigation areas are located
in Ärentuna parish, c. 15 km north of Uppsala in Ärentuna
parish, Uppsala.
The reason for the excavation was the construction of
the motorway (E4) between Uppsala and Mehedeby as well
as a traffic diversion of road 699, which will cross the new
E4 at Kyrsta. SAU was given the mission to investigate by
the County administration, and the venture was funded by
Vägverket, Region Mälardalen .
Kyrsta is mentioned in written sources as early as the
13 th century. The area around the present investigation
area contains a large number of previously registered ancient
remains. In 2002, two additional grave fields located
close by were investigated: RAÄ 328 from the pre-Roman
Iron Age and RAÄ 329 from the Roman Iron Age–Middle
Ages. In the same year, SAU also investigated two settlement
sites, RAÄ 325 and RAÄ 326 at Vaxmyra, south of
Kyrsta. The investigated settlement remains here have also
mainly been dated to the Early Iron Age. The current report
presents the results from the settlement RAÄ 327 and
RAÄ330.
RAÄ 327
The investigation area was located on arable fields that according
to older maps have been partly used as meadow.
The settlement area contained a number of structures that
have been interpreted as postholes, pinholes, hearths,
ovens, cooking pits, wells, pithouses and different layers.
Many constructions contained a large amount of finds,
consisting of pottery, burnt clay, clay daubing, oven fragments,
quern stones, hammerstones, firecracked stones,
slag as well as burnt and unburned bones mainly from
sheep, goat, cow, pig and horse. Different objects such as
combs and pins made from antlers and bone were found.
In addition, finds were made of glass beads and different
iron objects. Parts of the Early Iron Age settlement were located
around a culture layer containing pits and hearths.
Activities such as iron smelting had taken place in this area
during the pre-Roman and Early Roman Iron Age. Several
medieval objects were found, mainly near the village plot,
but also in an area to the west of the plot.
A total of 41 different types of posthole constructions
have been identified in the investigation area. The houses
have been dated to the Late Neolithic/Early Bronze Age to
the Viking Period/Early Middle Ages. 8 constructions interpreted
as pithouses have also been found in the investigation
area. They were situated in two groups on the area, one
on the central part and one on the eastern part. Both groups
were located close to the prehistoric house remains, except
one, which was located to the side in the north part. Several
prehistoric fencing constructions were identified near
houses and wells. 6 different farmsteads have been identified.
During the late Neolithic and the Bronze Age, the settlement
was located to the more elevated areas, i.e. around
the 30m line, at which point they were close to the beach.
In the northern part of the investigation area, a larger
pottery vessel with combware ornament was found in a pit.
Food crusts from the inside of the vessel have been dated
by 14 C-analysis to the Early Bronze Age. Analyses indicate
that the vessel has contained some type of milk product.
During the Early Iron Age, houses were raised on the entire
area, including the lower grounds to the west. The pre-
Roman and Roman Iron Age was a phase of intensive settlement
but after this, the settlement remains generally
cease. In connection to the easternmost part of the investigation
area, clearly delimited from the other settled areas,
2 house constructions were found dated to the Late Viking
Period or Early Middle Ages. Two smaller buildings as well
as a Vendel Period oven were found distributed among the
older remains.
It is difficult to estimate the exact number of farms that
have existed at Kyrsta in prehistoric times, but the investigation
area indicated that several contemporary farms
existed here as early as during the Early Iron Age, that cultivated
the lands of the present village. However, these
farms were not situated as closely together as the later
farms in the village plot.
RAÄ 330
Based on the presence of construction, the area could be
divided into two sections, A and B. The character of the
constructions differs in the sections. In section A, located
on the impediment and stretching some metres towards
the east on the arable lands, mainly postholes, hearts and
pits were found, together with a culture layer. The construction
density was high in this section.
SUMMARY 219