GP 389 Stenkyrka Lillbjärs II

Context and Discovery
The cemetery of Lillbjärs (or Lilla Bjärs, sometimes just Bjärs, also as Bjers), in Stenkyrka parish is one of the largest and most important grave fields on Gotland (RAÄ Stenkyrka 26:1; Lindqvist 1941/42 II, p. 118; Thunmark-Nylén 1995–2006 III:2, p. 627). It includes more than 1000 visible stone settings (rösen and other circular or almost circular stone mounds), as well as a ship-shaped stone setting from the Bronze Age (5 x 2.25 m), and a monumental (17 m in diameter) grave mound called ʻÄuglehaugʼ (or ʻUgglehaugʼ), which probably dates to the Migration Period. An old path of about 550 m leads through the entire area in an east-west direction. Many of the graves were robbed; only a small number has been excavated, including about a dozen dating to the Viking Period. Remarkable features of the stone mounds are a surrounding dry-stone wall consisting of several layers of limestone slabs, as well as the frequent occurrence of grave orbs (large spherical stones) (gravklot), erected stone slabs, and picture stones in the immediate context of the (Vendel or Viking Period) graves (ibid. pp. 582–583). Lindqvist published nineteen picture stones from this grave field – GP 369–373, 377–381, 388–396, 429–431, 440 Stenkyrka Lillbjärs I–XIX.

“In November 1908, O. V. Wennersten reported in a letter to the National Antiquarian that a local, Emil Svensson in Tune, had discovered three picture stones on the ground belonging to Lillbjärs and taken custody of them. […] On this occasion, the antiquarian Emil Eckhoff visited the find place during the following summer and sent to SHM the stones [Stenkyrka Lillbjärs I–VI] as well as three fragments of another slab, which, however, did not clearly represent a picture stone. He also collected numerous grave orbs (gravklot) […]. In 1911, [Fredrik Nordin] visited the site and was given more information by Svensson about the find place and the circumstances of the discovery of the stones […]. When [Fredrik Nordin] returned in 1913 to conduct excavations, Svensson in the meantime had moved away, and unfortunately, it turned out to be impossible to locate all the find places described by him” (ibid.). Nordin excavated a number of stone settings in 1913 as well as in the following summer and discovered eight more picture stones in situ (Stenkyrka Lillbjärs VII–XIV). Between 1910 and 1912, three more picture stones were reported to Gotlands Museum by Svensson and moved to Visby where they are still kept today (Stenkyrka Lillbjärs XV–XVIII). Stenkyrka Lillbjärs XIX was found later, in 1927.

Most of the picture stones from Stenkyrka church presumably came from the Lillbjärs cemetery as well. Nevertheless, the stock of picture stones from this site can by no means have been recorded completely, and there is good reason to believe that this grave field in the future will provide even more discoveries (cf. Lindqvist 1941/42 II, p. 118).

The stones I–VI were discovered by the worker Emil Svensson in 1908. The picture stone Stenkyrka Lillbjärs II was found by Svensson in the centre of the grave field, on top of the northerly of the two stone mounds between which GP 388 Stenkyrka Lillbjärs I had come to light. It lay close to the north edge of the mound (Lindqvist 1941/42 II, pp. 118, 122). The picture stones I–VI (SHM 13742) were delivered to Statens Historiska Museum by antiquarian Emil Eckhoff in 1909 (Fornvännen 1909, pp. 253–354).
GP 369 Stenkyrka Lillbjärs IV
GP 370 Stenkyrka Lillbjärs VII
GP 371 Stenkyrka Lillbjärs IX
GP 372 Stenkyrka Lillbjärs XIII
GP 373 Stenkyrka Lillbjärs XIX
GP 377 Stenkyrka Lillbjärs VIa
GP 378 Stenkyrka Lillbjärs VIb
GP 379 Stenkyrka Lillbjärs VIc
GP 380 Stenkyrka Lillbjärs VId
GP 381 Stenkyrka Lillbjärs VIe
GP 388 Stenkyrka Lillbjärs I
GP 390 Stenkyrka Lillbjärs III
GP 391 Stenkyrka Lillbjärs V
GP 392 Stenkyrka Lillbjärs VIII
GP 393 Stenkyrka Lillbjärs XIV
GP 394 Stenkyrka Lillbjärs XV
GP 395 Stenkyrka Lillbjärs XVII
GP 396 Stenkyrka Lillbjärs XVIII
GP 429 Stenkyrka Lillbjärs XVI
GP 430 Stenkyrka Lillbjärs XI
GP 431 Stenkyrka Lillbjärs XII
GP 440 Stenkyrka Lillbjärs X

Measurements, Material and Condition
“Limestone slab, up to 8 cm thick. The obverse has small bumps and obviously is severely weathered, the narrow sides are rounded, particularly towards the back. The reverse is rough and unworked. The height is now 66 cm, of which 52 cm are accounted for by the part above the root, which is partly lost. The head is 32 cm wide, the neck 26 cm” (Lindqvist 1941/42 II, p. 122). The mushroom-shaped monument is completely preserved, except the missing part of the root.

Description of Ornament and Images
The stone is not painted, and Olof Sörling’s sketch-like drawing published in Lindqvist’s book (1941/42 II, fig. 511), which does not depict any carvings, is the only documentation available. Nevertheless, there are remains of the decoration discernable on the stone, which are described by Lindqvist as follows: “The poorly recognisable decoration seems to have been executed with wide and quite deep lines and chiseled background fields. An 8 cm-wide framing border, probably with a ribbon pattern, surrounds the field, which probably was divided into two halves by a horizontal border a short distance below the neck. The upper panel appears to have contained the image of an upright human figure (cf. [GP 370 Stenkyrka Lillbjärs] VII)” (ibid. p. 122).
GP 370 Stenkyrka Lillbjärs VII

Interpretation of the Imagery
No interpretation

Type and Dating
Mushroom-shaped late-type ʻdwarf stoneʼ, which means Lindqvist’s ʻAbschnittʼ C/D or E. Those stones, if only few remains of decoration are left, can only be roughly dated between the 8th century and about AD 1100. However, Stenkyrka Lillbjärs II more probably represents a Type C/D monument, dating between the 8th and the 10th century.

References
Fornvännen 1909, pp. 253–354; Lindqvist 1941/42 II, pp. 118, 122, fig. 511; Kitzler Åhfeldt 2013a, p. 64.

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