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Gotlandic Picture Stones - The Online Edition

GP 536 Vallstena kyrka









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mer grejer





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Parish Find Location ⓘ
Vallstena

Find Location ⓘ
Vallstena church

Find Context Classification ⓘ
Church

Coordinate Find Location (lat) ⓘ
6391100

Coordinate Find Location (long) ⓘ
717236

Parish Present Location ⓘ
Vallstena

Present Location ⓘ
In the church, three fragments re-used as step.

Present Location Classification ⓘ
Church
In-Loco

Coordinate Present Location (lat) ⓘ
6391100

Coordinate Present Location (long) ⓘ
717236

Material
Limestone

Height ⓘ
245

Width ⓘ
37

Thickness ⓘ
9,5

Lindqvist Type 

Lindqvist Shape 

Iconographic Keywords
 ⓘ      

Runic Inscription or not ⓘ
No

Context and Discovery ⓘ
The history of discovery is unclear. B. Böttger-Niedenzu reported on the three picture stone fragments to J. P. Lamm and E. Nylén by letter in April 1982, including a rough sketch and short description. Böttger-Niedenzu went through all Gotlandic rural churches during the years 1981 to 1985 and discovered no fewer than 38 previously unknown picture stones. However, the stones from Vallstena church are neither included in her catalogue published in 1988 nor in her photo documentation which is kept at ATA. She only mentions it in her introduction (1988, p. 1), noting that it turned out that the stone had already been reported shortly before she found it. In Lamm’s list (Lamm/Nylén 2003, p. 202 no. 394), the find is registered among the recent finds from between 1976 and 1979. An entry in ATA’s inventory book dates to the 23rd of June 1977 (however, only the middle stone [i.e., fragment B, see V and VI] is registered there). Nevertheless, in the photo collections of Riksantikvarieämbetet and ATA (Kyrkor, Gotland, Vallstena, fotografisamlingen A.270:67 + 68), pictures of the stone fragments taken by G. Svahnström in 1958 are preserved.

There are three rectangular slabs (A–C) that form the entire first step to the choir, which apparently originate from one and the same huge picture stone. They are placed with their narrow sides next to each other. The oldest parts of the current church are the Romanesque nave and lower part of the tower, dating to the beginning of the 13th century (Thure Nyman in Roosval 1935, p. 194). The foundations of a small choir with apse belonging to the Romanesque building were discovered under the church floor during a restoration in 1957. Between 1270 and 1300, the old apsidal choir was replaced by the current angular choir and a reconstruction of the nave was initiated. Apparently, the original plan was to replace the entire nave with a much larger building; however, this project has not been completed and the builders left it at an extension of the eastern part of the old Romanesque nave.

Measurements, Material and Condition ⓘ
The three picture stone fragments, which have been reworked to rectangular slabs, are (from left to right when facing the choir) 2.00 m (fragment A, north), 2.40 m (fragment B, middle) and 2.40 m (fragment C, south) in length. Their visible width is about 0.37 m and their thickness ca. 0.11 m. The limestone is grey in colour, slightly fading to reddish. The west-facing front edge of the slabs is cut straight, and their surface has been levelled, the decoration deliberately obliterated, to which plenty of regular tool marks bear witness. In addition, the remaining surface has been greatly worn and polished by footsteps. Nevertheless, in some areas, parts of the once relatively deeply carved bas-relief are preserved on all three stones.

As material and treatment correspond, all three fragments seem to originate from one and the same monument. There is one more rectangular slab built into the floor of the nave, just in front of the step, which consists of a very similar limestone and whose surface has been levelled the same way, showing regular tool marks allover. Even though no traces of a former bas-relief decoration are discernable, it seems conceivable that this larger slab belongs to the picture stone as well (fragment D?).

Description of Ornament and Images ⓘ
Fragment A: The stone probably preserves remains of a ship hull. At least the lower outline of a vessel is discernable, turning up at both ends, having a length of ca. 1.50 m in total. At the far left, right next to the northern edge, an upturning stern is discernable. Next to the stern, on board of the ship, a spear or a lance seems to be placed, almost vertically rising, pointing upwards. A single spear/lance or a whole bundle of those weapons at the stern of a ship is frequently depicted on picture stones of type C/D, as on GP 253 Lärbro St. Hammars I, GP 397 Stenkyrka Smiss I, GP 184 Hejnum Riddare, GP 21 Ardre kyrka VIII, and GP 5 Alskog Tjängvide I. An angled element to the right of the possible spear, touching its head, could represent the arm of a crew member, similar to the rearmost man on the Hejnum Riddare stone (according to Lindqvist’s painting, 1941/42 I, fig. 80). There are more traces of carvings on board and to the right of the ship, however, they are difficult to understand.

Fragment B: In the middle of the slab, some rhombi are discernable, constituting the remains of a huge checkered sail, as well as a group of vertical and branching longish elements, which certainly represent parts of the rigging.

Fragment C: Two or three circular elements in the left and some more rhombi belonging to the sail in the right half of the stone’s surface. There are certainly remains of figures in the middle of the slab; however, it is not possible to specify them.

The orientation of the ship hull depicted on stone A and the rigging on stone B leads to the conclusion that their width represents the width of the original monument’s base, and that the three fragments once were placed one above the other. As a result, this picture stone must have been at least 2.40 m wide at its base (i.e., just above the ground) and its root part must have been even broader. This fact indicates an extraordinarily tall and tremendous picture stone. For comparison: The tallest entirely preserved picture stone on Gotland, GP 61 Buttle Änge I, has a width at ground level of 1.85 m. From the ground to the top, this monument is 3.70 m tall and 4.80 m including its root. The stone from Vallstena kyrka seems to have been even larger, comparable to the fragmented giant stone from GP 549 Väskinde kyrka 6, whose original height must have been at least 5.50 m (Oehrl 2020b).
GP 253 Lärbro Stora Hammars I
GP0397
GP 184 Hejnum Riddare
GP0021
GP0005
GP0061
GP 549 Väskinde kyrka 6

Interpretation of the Imagery ⓘ
No interpretation

Type and Dating ⓘ
The discernable details of the huge ship, the sail with rigging, the stern with a lance or spear (see VI), and not least the tremendous dimensions of the monument (see V) clearly indicate a picture stone of Type C/D. Thus, the stone can be roughly dated between the 8th century and the 10th century.

References ⓘ
Oehrl 2007, p. 374; Oehrl 2019a, pp. 41, 144, pl. 21d.

 ⓘ
Fyndplats
Tre fragment av en stor bildsten (A–C) påträffades i Vallstena kyrka år 1958 eller tidigare. De utgör nedersta trappsteget framför koret.

Nuvarande förvaringsplats
De tre fragmenten är fortfarande inmurade i trappan till kyrkans kor.

Beskrivning
De tre fragmenten blev sekundärt omhuggna till rektangulära hällar under medeltiden. Fragment B och C är 2.40 m långa och fragmentet A är 2.00 m långt. Alla fragment är omkring 0.37 m breda. Monumentet måste ha varit ovanligt stort, jämförbart med GP 61 Buttle Änge I och GP 549 Väskinde kyrka 6.

Trots att den medeltida stenhuggaren utraderade den ursprungliga ytan nästan fullständigt med sin mejsel, är några rester av basreliefen bevarade. På det vänstra (norra) fragmentet (A) ser man konturen av ett stort skepp med ett spjut bakom akterstäven. På det mellersta fragmentet (B) är rutor till ett segel synliga samt några rep som tillhör riggen. På det högra (södra) fragmentet (C) finns ytterligare segelrutor, cirkulära element och svårbestämbara rester av figurer.

Datering
700-talet eller mellan omkring år 800 och 900-talet e.Kr. (vikingatid).

Tolkning
Ingen tolkning.

SO
GP0061
GP 549 Väskinde kyrka 6

Title
GP 536 Vallstena kyrka

Fornsök ID ⓘ
L1976:9599

RAÄ ID ⓘ
Vallstena 110:1

Jan Peder Lamm ID
394


Last modifed Sep 25, 2024

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Identifier: GP0536-3D
ID: 5067
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