Pre-Christian Religions, Rituals, and Beliefs in Central and Northern Europe: Interdisciplinary Investigations (The Archaeology of Northern Europe, 5)

Before Christianity came to the societies and communities of Central and Northern Europe between the sixth and thirteenth centuries, there were numerous different 'pagan' religions and beliefs. Little is known about some of these, particularly with regard to details such as ritual practices, human-animal relations, conversion, ideas of the afterlife, or the place of religion in the landscape, largely due to a lack of archaeological and historical evidence. To gain new information, it is essential to draw on sources and methodologies from different disciplines.

This volume brings together a collection of case-studies that apply interdisciplinary approaches to various aspects of traditional religion. Together, they shine a new light on the multi-faceted variety of expressions of belief in Central and Northern Europe, from sacrifice and burial customs to sacred objects and iconography, and to the changes and continuations in the face of coming Christianity. Arranged in four categories -- space and landscape, death and burial, objects and images, and people and violence -- these twelve chapters by international researchers combine archaeological studies with the input of history and literature, cultural anthropology, history of religion, and archaeozoology, to offer a valuable resource to all those interested in pre-Christian religion, and in prehistoric and early medieval spiritual culture in Europe.