Viking burial mound

Viking sword hilt Viking burial mound teachers notes (202 KB)
Viking burial mound resources (2.6 MB)
Viking burial mound Ibn Fadlan account (39 KB)
Viking burial mound powerpoint (94 KB)

In this simulation of an excavation, the children investigate a past event and imaginatively reconstruct what happened, on the basis of the evidence uncovered.

The lesson is based on a real archaeological dig by Gerhard Bersu in 1946.

Two items in the resources are supplied as separate downloads. One is a powerpoint presentation. The other is an account of Viking funeral customs by Ibn Fadlan, an Arab Muslim trader who witnessed a Viking burial in Russia in 922 AD. Read this through before sharing it with children - you may want to cut out some of the sex and violence. It is supplied as a Word document for easy editing.

Here are some of the objects found, now in the Manx Museum http://www.gov.im/mnh/collections/archaeology/vikings/ballatearesword.xml
http://www.gov.im/mnh/heritage/museums/Image.gov?id=4181

by Jacqui Dean

We are grateful to David M. Wilson for his kind permission to reproduce the material you can download from this page.