Skrydstrup Woman

Skrydstrup Woman
The Skrydstrup Woman
Bornc. 14th–12th century BCE
Southern Jutland, Denmark
Diedc. 1382–1129 BCE
Skrydstrup, Denmark
OccupationUnknown (prehistoric individual)
Known forExceptionally preserved Early Nordic Bronze Age burial
Height171 cm (5 ft 7 in)

The Skrydstrup Woman was unearthed from a tumulus in southern Jutland in Denmark in 1935. As of 2017 carbon-14 dating showed that she had died between 1382 and 1129 BCE during the Nordic Bronze Age;[1] examination also revealed that she was around 18–19 years old at the time of death, and that she had been buried in the summertime.

Identity and dating

Osteologists identified the Skrydstrup Woman as a young woman who died in her late teens, around 18–19 years old. Her third molars had not yet erupted, and the proportions of her long bones match those of an adolescent who had reached her adult height.[2] In life she stood about 171 centimetres (5 ft 7 in), which is noticeably taller than most women of the Nordic Bronze Age.[2]

Radiocarbon dating places her death between 1382 and 1129 BCE, during the early part of the Nordic Bronze Age.[3][2]

Life and background

Archaeological work in the Skrydstrup area has helped place the Skrydstrup Woman within the local community of the early Nordic Bronze Age. A nearby farmstead, located about 700 metres (2,300 ft) northeast of the burial mound, dates to the same period as her interment and may have been her home.[5]

Her clothing and ornaments offer further clues about her social background. The finely woven wool blouse, embroidered details, large square wool garment and horn comb reflect a level of craftsmanship associated with higher-status households.[6] Her gold spiral earrings, made of high-purity metal, are rare finds in Nordic Bronze Age burials and indicate access to long-distance trade networks or elite craft specialists.[7]

Recent isotope studies show that she grew up in the Skrydstrup region, suggesting a stable childhood in the local landscape.[8] Her height and good dental health point to regular nutrition throughout her youth, which also supports the idea that she belonged to a prosperous household with reliable access to food and skilled textile production.[2]

Taken together, the archaeological, textile and scientific evidence suggest that the Skrydstrup Woman was raised in a well-established farming community and likely belonged to a family of considerable standing in Bronze Age southern Jutland.[9]

Excavation of burial mound

Museum Sønderjylland's manager Christian M. Lund was responsible for the excavation of the burial mound. It was found 1 kilometre (0.62 mi) southwest of Vojens. The mound was on a bed of stone and covered with turf. It measured 13 meters (43 ft) in diameter and 1.75 meters (5.7 ft) high. Two men had been later placed in similar coffins at the edge of the burial mound. The mound was covered by a larger turf mound 24 meters (79 ft) in diameter and 4 meters (13 ft) high. The carbon 14 dating to around 1300 BCE is contemporaneous with a house plot on the Bronze Age farm in Skrydstrup 700 meters (2,300 ft) northeast of the mound, which may have been her residence.[5]

Appearance

She was buried in a short-sleeved wool and linen blouse with embroidery on the sleeves and neckline. A large square cloth of wool, gathered at the top with a belt, covered her from the waist to the feet. Attached to the belt was an ornate horn comb. The clothes were made of wool from a dark, reddish-brown sheep. The only jewelry was her large circular spiral-wrapped earrings of 24-carat gold, which along with the blouse indicated she was of higher class.[6] Her ash-blonde hair was about 60 centimetres (24 in) long and held in a complex hairstyle. Covering the hair was a fine hair net of unbraided horse hair made with the sprang technique, which was attached to an almost 5 meters (16 ft) long woolen cord at the front and back. The string was wrapped several times around the head so that it sat like a headband and held the hairstyle and hairnet securely in place.

Professor Karin Frei from the National Museum of Denmark described her as an elegant, queen-like figure.[7]

Condition and preservation

The remains of the Skrydstrup Woman were unusually well preserved for an Early Nordic Bronze Age inhumation. She had been placed in an oak log coffin, a type of burial in which a trunk is split and the lower half is hollowed to form a chamber for the body. The oak created a low oxygen environment with natural tannins that slowed the decay of soft tissues and hair.[10]

When the coffin later collapsed under the weight of the burial mound, parts of the skeleton were crushed. This damage affected the skull, ribs, hand bones and several other elements, which deteriorated more rapidly than the better protected bones.[2] Despite this collapse damage, many bones survived well enough for osteological study.[11]

Fragments of soft tissue were preserved, including parts of the cheeks, eyebrows, eyelids and eyelashes.[10] Her hair, which was about 60 centimetres long, survived intact. Its original pigment had faded due to long exposure to moisture, acidity and an anoxic burial environment, leaving mostly yellow to red tones which are the most stable under these burial conditions.[2]

The preservation of her teeth was exceptional. None of the teeth showed signs of caries, which suggests that her diet was low in refined carbohydrates and sugars.[12] The survival of intact hair and teeth made it possible to carry out detailed isotope and trace element analyses that contributed to reconstructions of her health, diet and residential history.[2]

Organic materials associated with the burial also survived. The wool textiles used in her clothing were preserved well enough for identification, and the horsehair hairnet retained much of its structure. These finds provide evidence for Bronze Age textile production and social status.[13]

See also

References

  1. ^ Frei 2017.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Frei, Karin Margarita; Villa, Chiara; Jørkov, Marie Louise; Allentoft, Morten E.; Kaul, Flemming; Ethelberg, Per; Reiter, Samantha S.; Wilson, Andrew S.; Taube, Michelle; Olsen, Jesper; Lynnerup, Niels; Willerslev, Eske; Kristiansen, Kristian; Frei, Robert (5 June 2017). "A matter of months: High precision migration chronology of a Bronze Age female". PLOS ONE. 12 (6) e0178834. Bibcode:2017PLoSO..1278834F. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0178834. ISSN 1932-6203. PMC 5459461. PMID 28582402.
  3. ^ "The woman from Skrydstrup". National Museum of Denmark. Retrieved 25 February 2026.
  4. ^ "The woman from Skrydstrup". Archived from the original on 2 May 2022. Retrieved 2 May 2022.
  5. ^ a b "Skrydstrup-pigen". Graenseforeningen.
  6. ^ a b Kaul, Flemming. "Skrydstrup, We know where she lived – 1001 Stories of Denmark". Kulturarv.dk. Retrieved 11 November 2013.
  7. ^ a b Charlotte Price Persson (10 April 2017). "Another female Bronze Age icon is now known to have travelled across Europe". Science Nordic.
  8. ^ Thomsen, Erik; Andreasen, Rasmus (2019). "Agricultural lime disturbs natural strontium isotope variations: Implications for provenance and migration studies". Science Advances. 5 (3) eaav8083. doi:10.1126/sciadv.aav8083. PMC 6415960. PMID 30891501.
  9. ^ "Historisk Atlas". historiskatlas.dk (in Danish). Retrieved 28 February 2026.
  10. ^ a b "Skrydstruppigen" (in Danish). Tanskan kansallismuseo. Retrieved 5 April 2018.
  11. ^ Frei, K. M.; Villa, C.; Jørkov, M. L.; Allentoft, M. E.; Kaul, F.; Ethelberg, P.; Reiter, S. S.; Wilson, A. S.; Taube, M.; Olsen, J.; Lynnerup, N.; Willerslev, E.; Kristiansen, K.; Frei, R. (2017). "Supplementary material to PLoS One publication". PLOS ONE. 12 (6) e0178834. Frei, Karin Margarita and others. Bibcode:2017PLoSO..1278834F. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0178834. PMC 5459461. PMID 28582402.
  12. ^ Frei, K. M.; Villa, C.; Jørkov, M. L.; Allentoft, M. E.; Kaul, F.; Ethelberg, P.; Reiter, S. S.; Wilson, A. S.; Taube, M.; Olsen, J.; Lynnerup, N.; Willerslev, E.; Kristiansen, K.; Frei, R. (2017). "Supplementary material to PLoS One publication". PLOS ONE. 12 (6) e0178834. Frei, Karin Margarita and others. Bibcode:2017PLoSO..1278834F. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0178834. PMC 5459461. PMID 28582402.
  13. ^ "Nationalmuseet". Nationalmuseet.

Bibliography

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