Archaeologia Islandica - 01.01.2005, Page 93

Excavations at Hólskjrkja, Bolungarvík.
Test Pit 11
TPll held 4 variously preserved coffins
as well as part of a wooden box vault
(Fig. 8). All the burials were excavated
save the vault.
Burial 11.1
This was a small coffin, lifted whole and
in very good condition except for the
base, which had largely rotted away (Fig.
9). It was in two parts, a lid and a base,
hexagonal in cross-section. In total it was
72 cm long, 34 cm wide at the head and
29 cm wide at the foot. The lid was made
from three planks, the top with a beaded
keel; originally it would have had four
copper alloy crosses, two on each side,
but only one survived in situ. There were
also two leather stars affixed to one side.
The base was made from two side planks
with beading on their upper edge and a
leather wreath on the side, while the bot-
tom itself had not survived. Inside was a
near complete infant skeleton. The cra-
nium was very well preserved, but the
rest of the bones were quite poor. Ageing
of the skeleton, based on dental develop-
ment and the state of union of various
bony elements, indicate that the age at
death was 6 months - 1 year. This grave
probably corresponds with the burial
marked on a 1967 plan as No. 24.
Burial 11.2
The coffin was too poorly preserved to
Figure 8. Burials in test pits 10-13.
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