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Birka and Hovgården

Sweden
Date of Inscription: 1993
Criteria: (iii)(iv)
Stockholm County (Region of Uppland)
N59 20 06 E17 32 33
Ref: 555

Brief Description

The Birka archaeological site is located on Björkö Island in Lake Mälar and was occupied in the 9th and 10th centuries. Hovgården is situated on the neighbouring island of Adelsö. Together, they make up an archaeological complex which illustrates the elaborate trading networks of Viking-Age Europe and their influence on the subsequent history of Scandinavia. Birka was also important as the site of the first Christian congregation in Sweden, founded in 831 by St Ansgar.

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