What was the role of central places in the creation, consolidation, and maintenance of collective identities, polities, and kingdoms in first-millennium Scandinavia? 

In this international conference we want to explore what kind of places are ‘central’ to political systems and constellations in the emerging Viking-Age. We also want to address how they were ‘central’ – and how they relate to each other and their landscapes? 

In so doing we particularly focus on the social, political, and religious aspects of different ‘centres’ of the first millennium (session 1), what constitutes the Viking Age (session 2), exploring centres from an archaeological landscape perspective (session 3), and the role and significance of ships, harbours, and exchange to the emerging sociopolitical systems of the Viking Age (session 4).

Through this we will connect the changing roles and the landscape placing of differing centres in first millennium Scandinavia. 

The background for the conference is the recent archaeological discoveries at Gjellelstad and the research council-funded project ‘Viking Nativity: Gjellestad Across Borders’. 

The conference is intended for researchers in archaeology and other scholars in related historical fields. A detailed program, registration information, and further details will be released in early winter 2024.