The Scar boat burial is a

Viking Vikings were seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway, and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded, and settled throughout parts of Europe.Roesdahl, pp. 9� ...

boat burial A ship burial or boat grave is a burial in which a ship or boat is used either as the tomb for the dead and the grave goods, or as a part of the grave goods itself. If the ship is very small, it is called a boat grave. This style of burial was pra ...

near the village of

Scar A scar (or scar tissue) is an area of fibrosis, fibrous tissue that replaces normal skin after an injury. Scars result from the biological process of wound repair in the skin, as well as in other Organ (anatomy), organs, and biological tissue, t ...

, on Sanday, in

Orkney Orkney (), also known as the Orkney Islands, is an archipelago off the north coast of mainland Scotland. The plural name the Orkneys is also sometimes used, but locals now consider it outdated. Part of the Northern Isles along with Shetland, ...

, Scotland. The burial, which dates to between 875 and 950 AD, contained the remains of a man, an elderly woman, and a child, along with numerous

grave goods Grave goods, in archaeology and anthropology, are items buried along with a body. They are usually personal possessions, supplies to smooth the deceased's journey into an afterlife, or offerings to gods. Grave goods may be classed by researche ...

. Although the site had to be excavated quickly because of the threat of

coastal erosion Coastal erosion is the loss or displacement of land, or the long-term removal of sediment and rocks along the coastline due to the action of Wind wave, waves, Ocean current, currents, tides, wind-driven water, waterborne ice, or other impacts ...

owing to bad weather conditions, it yielded many important finds.

Discovery and excavation

The site at The Crook Beach, 1 km northeast of

, was found in 1985 by John Dearness, a farmer on Sanday. He found bones sticking out of the ground and a small

lead Lead () is a chemical element; it has Chemical symbol, symbol Pb (from Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a Heavy metal (elements), heavy metal that is density, denser than most common materials. Lead is Mohs scale, soft and Ductility, malleabl ...

object, and thought that he might have discovered the resting place of a dead sailor. Dearness died before the significance of the site was realized. In 1991,

archaeologist Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...

Julie Gibson visited the island, having heard of the discovery of the bones six years earlier. She was shown the small lead object, and took it to

Kirkwall Kirkwall (, , or ; ) is the largest town in Orkney, an archipelago to the north of mainland Scotland. First mentioned in the ''Orkneyinga saga'', it is today the location of the headquarters of the Orkney Islands Council and a transport hub wi ...

for identification. As it turned out to be a lead weight for measuring

bullion Bullion is non-ferrous metal that has been refined to a high standard of elemental purity. The term is ordinarily applied to bulk metal used in the production of coins and especially to precious metals such as gold and silver. It comes from ...

, Gibson and Dr Raymond Lamb investigated the site further. Appreciating the significance of the site, the archaeologists realised they had to act swiftly, as it was exposed and rapidly eroding.

Historic Scotland Historic Scotland () was an executive agency of the Scottish Government, executive agency of the Scottish Office and later the Scottish Government from 1991 to 2015, responsible for safeguarding Scotland's built heritage and promoting its und ...

put together a team led by Magnar Dalland to excavate the site, which took place over November and December 1991.

Description of the site

The wood of the long and wide boat had rotted away, leaving more than 300 iron rivets. It was placed in a boat-shaped stone-lined enclosure which was packed with further stones. There were also stones forming a walled enclosure inside the boat itself, within which were found the remains of three bodies.

Sand Sand is a granular material composed of finely divided mineral particles. Sand has various compositions but is usually defined by its grain size. Sand grains are smaller than gravel and coarser than silt. Sand can also refer to a textural ...

within the boat lining was found not to match sand from Orkney,

Shetland Shetland (until 1975 spelled Zetland), also called the Shetland Islands, is an archipelago in Scotland lying between Orkney, the Faroe Islands, and Norway, marking the northernmost region of the United Kingdom. The islands lie about to the ...

, nor the Scottish mainland, indicating that the boat was not made in Scotland, and that both it and its occupants may have come from

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

or elsewhere. The walled enclosure contained the remains of a man, a woman, and a child, along with numerous

. The man was aged about 30 when he died, the woman about 70, and the child—of unknown sex—about 10 or 11. There is evidence that the man had rowed a boat when he was younger, and that the woman had habitually sat cross-legged, and had possibly spun

flax Flax, also known as common flax or linseed, is a flowering plant, ''Linum usitatissimum'', in the family Linaceae. It is cultivated as a food and fiber crop in regions of the world with temperate climates. In 2022, France produced 75% of t ...

. Grave goods found next to the man include a sword, a quiver with arrows, a bone comb, and gaming pieces. Found next to the woman was a whalebone plaque (pictured) that has become known as the Scar Dragon Plaque, and a gilded brooch. Goods found next to the woman included a comb, shears, a

sickle A sickle, bagging hook, reaping-hook or grasshook is a single-handed agricultural tool designed with variously curved blades and typically used for harvesting or reaping grain crops, or cutting Succulent plant, succulent forage chiefly for feedi ...

, and two

spindle Spindle may refer to: Textiles and manufacturing * Spindle (textiles), a straight spike to spin fibers into yarn * Spindle (tool), a rotating axis of a machine tool Biology * Common spindle and other species of shrubs and trees in genus ''Euonym ...

whorls. No evidence was found of how any of the three occupants died. In 2010 the Scar Dragon Plaque was briefly loaned to the

Jorvik Viking Centre Jorvik Viking Centre is a museum and visitor attraction in York, England, containing lifelike mannequins and life-size dioramas depicting Viking life in the city. Visitors are taken through the dioramas in 'time capsule' carriages equipped with ...

York York is a cathedral city in North Yorkshire, England, with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss. It has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a Yor ...

References

{{Scandinavian Scotland, state=autocollapse 1985 archaeological discoveries 1991 in Scotland Scandinavian Scotland Viking ship burials Viking Age sites in Scotland 9th century in Scotland 10th century in Scotland Archaeological sites in Orkney Sanday, Orkney

Discovery and excavation

Description of the site

See also

References