Riksantikvarieämbetet

The Middle Neolithic graves on Gotland are characterized by a large amount of highly variable grave goods. Good conditions for preservation of bone have enabled the identification of sex and age. Men have commonly been described as hunters, primarily of seal and wild boar, and they have been associated with power, with battle axes and with imported goods.Women have been connected to beads, to the domestic sphere and to young children. However, a detailed scrutiny of the osteological identifications raises questions regarding this traditional view. Taking the relation to death and the handling of the dead into account, I have made a study of a small, well-chosen, selection of graves from the Ajvide site. The study shows that women can be associated with hunting, fishing and activities far away from home. Through stone crafts men have a strong connection to the domestic sphere and they too have a close connection to children. Beads are more common in male graves, while axes, mostly working axes, are more common in female graves. The women on the island have also been buried with both imported flint axes and battle axes. In the Middle Neolithic battle axeswere not only associated with male status, but also with female power and female leadership.