Ekornavallen is an ancient burial ground in the

Falköping Municipality Falköping Municipality (''Falköpings kommun'') is a municipalities of Sweden, municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the stad (Sweden), town of Falköping. The present municipality consists of more th ...

in Sweden. It contains a variety of ancient monuments dating from the Stone, Bronze and Iron Ages.

Overview

The Ekornavallen burial ground is located 15 km (9 miles) north of the city of

Falköping Falköping is a locality and the seat of Falköping Municipality in Västra Götaland County, Sweden. It had 16,350 inhabitants in 2010. History The town of Falköping was first spoken of in the Icelandic ''Rimbegla'' (around 1100 A.D.), an ...

. It contains four passage graves and a gallery grave from the Neolithic period, as well as cairns, stone circles, twelve standing stones, eight round stone settings and one triangular stone setting all dating from the Bronze and Iron Ages. It is estimated that the field was used over a six to seven thousand-year period.

Girommen passage grave

The largest, and best known, of the

Neolithic The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several part ...

passage graves at Ekornavallen is one called the "Girommen" which according to early writers means the giant oven. It consists of sandstone slabs, but the mound which once covered the grave is entirely gone. Between the lower passage and the chamber proper lies a very large and thick slab, the "Key stone", resting on the passage stones. The grave was restored in the 1940s when a fragment of a chisel, some amber slivers and some ornate potsherds were found.

Other structures

Among the other structures at Ekornavallen is a probable stone cist. During its restoration a flint knife was found in the surface layer. The cairns at Ekornavallen probably date to the

Bronze Age The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second pri ...

. The largest cairn has a diameter of more than 20 metres, is 2 metres high, and is surrounded by large kerb stones. The individual standing stones ("bautastones"), mark the

Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age (Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age (Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly appl ...

graves at Ekornavallen, and they are placed in an almost straight line from the north to south. The stone circles are of a type common in Sweden which were typically built in the five hundred years up to 500 AD. Their function is uncertain.

References

External links

{{Commons category inline, Ekornavallen Archaeological sites in Sweden Prehistory of Sweden Tourist attractions in Västra Götaland County Buildings and structures in Västra Götaland County Tumuli in Sweden