Three preserved 17th-century wooden barrels and a large wooden reamer have been discovered in Norway’s medieval center of Scania. They were filled with moist soil and trash that preserved the wood in excellent condition for 400 years.
Skåne was one of eight towns that existed in Norway in the Middle Ages. It was founded, probably as a small trading post, in the 9th century and became a thriving market town. Situated at the lowest point of the Skene river system, it was conveniently located for trade and shipping, receiving goods such as grain, whetstone and timber from the northern parts of Telemark County and then exporting them to England and northern continental Europe.
Improvements to the water and sewage system in the city center have led to archaeological surveys. It is the largest excavation of the medieval city since the 1970s. The barrels were found in the excavations of Torgata, one of the main streets of the city whose current surface overlays the previous iteration. (Excavations revealed parts of an 18th-century timber street; it had a slightly different orientation, running almost exactly north-south.) They were on the west side of a 17th-century road in an area subject to extensive land reclamation.
The barrels were made of oak with bands of wood (hazel or beech) wrapped around the frame. Those thin bands are now as soft as cheese. Unlike wooden remains such as street planks, barrels and reamers were untouched by the many fires that ravaged the city (documented in 1671, 1732, 1766, 1777, 1779 and 1886).
Barrels and rams were excavated from the 17th century to what was then ground level. Around them was a layer of lime. Inside the barrel, a lime cake was found at the bottom and some demolition material at the top.
The fact that the barrels are buried may indicate that they were used for safe and frost-free storage of finished slaked lime, before it was mixed with sand and water to make lime mortar. Barrels and mortars may have long been used to store building lime.
Each time the barrel is emptied, a little lime is left at the bottom. Lime around the barrels tells archaeologists that they were completely buried.
The search provides an insight into the city’s construction activities and craft community, and is indicative of urban development, infrastructure and business. Lime mortar was an important building material during this period, both for masonry and plaster, and was probably used in the reconstruction of stone buildings in the city center after a fire in the city.
Barrels and reamers have been dismantled and removed before the site is altered by infrastructure work. Archaeologists hope they can be reassembled and put on public display in the future.
