GP 78 Eskelhem Larsarve II

Context and Discovery
Both stones, GP 77 Eskelhem Larsarve I and Eskelhem Larsarve II, are mentioned by Per Arvid Säve in his Berättelser (1863, p. 192; 1864, p. 311). They […] “obviously were hewn at the same time and probably were intended to form a single monument” (Lindqvist 1941/42 II, p. 42). They were found “[…] about 1863 by Mr Joh. Carlsson, Ekeby, while cultivating land in ‘Sprängänget’ below Larsarve, at a distance of several ells from each other. No. II was lying just below the turf between ashes, burnt bones, and field stone roundels, at a small mound” (ibid.). Lindqvist considers those stones to have been placed pairwise on graves. About 100–200 m west-southwest of the farmstead, just south of the main road, three circular stone settings can still be observed (RAÄ Eskelhem 26:1 and 27:1–2), which are 8, 9, and 26 m in diameter. Next to the farm buildings, circa 15 m to the east, a (grave?) mound of approximately 1 m height is registered (RAÄ Eskelhem 69:1). Apparently, there was a small burial ground from which the two Larsave stones originate. Today, the two stones are on exhibition in Gotlands Fornsal, arranged as a facing pair, as if marking a grave.
GP 77 Eskelhem Larsarve I

Measurements, Material and Condition
Lindqvist describes both slabs as follows: “Similar limestone slabs with smooth structure over the root, which then is slightly rougher, 4.5 cm and 5 cm thick, respectively. On both stones, the broad sides have been dressed upwards of the root but not levelled; apparently, no chamfers were fashioned between them. Height 1 m and 82 cm, 72 and 52 cm of which above the root, respectively. Width at the corners 53 and 47 cm, at the bases about 34 and 31 cm, respectively”. Eskelhem Larsarve I was broken into four pieces when it was delivered to Gotlands Museum – two fragments of the slabʼs upper half, the lower part including the massive square root, and a small piece of the right-hand edge. Two small sections, one at the lower right-hand edge and one almost in the middle of the stone, were missing. The pieces have been put together and missing parts reconstructed. Eskelhem Larsarve II was discovered undamaged and completely preserved, including the rough and shapeless root part. The smooth surface of both stones and their fine carvings are well-preserved.
GP 77 Eskelhem Larsarve I

Description of Ornament and Images
The carvings have been traced with paint. However, photos of the yet unpainted stones (482:13b, 1648:55–56, B3:61) as well as drawings by Olof Sörling from 1910/11 are kept in ATAʼs “Run- och bildstenssamling” and have been published in Lindqvistʼs book (see X). The well-preserved depictions on both slabs are described by Lindqvist in the following way: “The decoration mainly was executed in very fine (chisel?) lines, but all around and within the figure-of-eight-shaped band figures in the borders of stone No. I, the background fields have been carved as if by chip carving – just as the field between the quadruped’s front legs of stone No. II. On each stone, one face features a border and a rectangular grid above the lowermost part of the field; above, there is on No. I a watercraft with rounded stems, the elevated ends of which terminate in animal heads, a small, tabular sail on a high mast that appears to be rigged with both forestay and backstay attached to the stem-heads, as well as the torsos of three crewmen jutting out over the railing; the steering oar is attached to the port side. Instead of this image of a ship, the corresponding face of No. II features two four-legged animals, heraldically juxtaposed and shown in profile. The other broad side of No. I was given the same border as the face described above, while the reverse of No. II was left entirely smooth” (Lindqvist 1941/42 II, p. 42). Due to their characteristic body shape and form of their heads, the two identical antithetic quadrupeds can be interpreted as horses, even though no tails are depicted (cf. ibid. I, p. 89; while Guber [2011, pp. 53–59] for some reason separates them from the horses and just calls them “Vierbeiner”).

Interpretation of the Imagery
The depiction of two facing horses on Eskelhem Larsarve II can be associated with similar images on several Type A picture stones, which on the basis of the Migration Period picture stone from Häggeby in Uppland and medieval literary sources are commonly interpreted as depictions of ritual horse fights – GP 198 Hellvi Ire 7, GP 99 Garda kyrka 3, GP 554 Väskinde kyrka 5, GP 132 Hablingbo Havor I, and probably also the Type B stone GP 578 Alva Änge. The topic of horse fights (called hestavíg in Old Norse literature) and horse sacrifice in the iconography of the (early) Gotland picture stones has often been discussed, see in particular GP 198 Hellvi Ire 7 and the following literature: Gjessing 1943, pp. 29–30; Lindqvst 1955, pp. 41–43; Ellmers 1970, pp. 243–245; Lamm/Nylén 2003, p. 26; Althaus 1993, pp. 87–89, 192–193; Lamm 1999; Beck 2003, pp. 96–97; Guber 2011, pp. 55–56; Pesch 2015a, p. 357; Oehrl 2019a, pp. 62–63.
GP 198 Hellvi Ire 7
GP 99 Garda kyrka 3
GP0554
GP 132 Hablingbo Havor I
GP 578 Alva änge

Type and Dating
Middle-type “dwarf stone”, i.e., Type B according to Lindqvist, dating between AD 500 and 700. The Larsarve stones belong to those few Type B stones which feature a semicircular head with pronounced corners slanting diagonally down towards the main body (Lindqvist 1941/42 I, pp. 38–40). The second main characteristic of the Larsarve stones is the shape of their body, narrowing towards the bottom. Lindqvist separates the two stones from the rest of Type B and treats them as a further sub-group, called Larsarvesteine (ibid. 38, tab. II). According to Lindqvist, the Larsarvesteine represent the result of a further development within the Stenstugruppe (ibid. 40), where similar head and body forms already occurred. Even the iconography and style (crew aboard the sailing ship, shape of the horses) may indicate a late date within “Abschnitt” B, at the transition to “Abschnitt” C/D (cf. ibid. 117). Varenius (1992, p. 63, appendix 2) assigns the ship depiction on GP 77 Eskelhem Larsarve I (Lindqvist 1941/42 I, pp. 64–66: Segelfahrzeuge vom Rikvidetypus) to his group 2 (enkel rigg), which he dates to the period between the 7th and the 9th centuries. Rundkvist (2012, p. 159), however, based on his typological analysis, dates the Larsarve monument to the Middle Vendel Period (Type dwarf3).
GP 77 Eskelhem Larsarve I

References
Lindqvist 1941, pp. 16, 19, fig. 1; 1941/42 I, pp. 40, 64-66, 89, 117, 120, figs. 71–76, 227; II, p. 40, fig. 342; Gjessing 1943, 69–70, 105, fig. 5.3b; Varenius 1992, p. 63, fig. 28; Lamm/Nylén 2003, 43; Guber 2011, pp. 59, 115–116, cat. nos. 12–13; Rundkvist 2012, pp. 157, 159; Oehrl 2019a, pp. 11, 63, 145, 149, pl. 2g, 28d.

mer grejer

Find Context

The Stone

Carvings

Detailed Information

Svensk sammanfattning

Identification

Links

Export

More media

Plane	Position	Flip