Birka Vikingastaden

Birka is an archaeological site located on the island Björkö, in Lake Mälaren. It was occupied from the 8th to 10th centuries. Hovgården is situated on the neighbouring island of Adelsö. Together, they make up an archaeological complex which illustrates the elaborate trading networks of Viking-Age Europe and their influence on the subsequent history of Scandinavia.

Merchants and craftsmen with goods from all over Europe and other parts of the world came to Birka during the Viking Age. This is known because archaeological excavations have found Arabian silver, Eastern European beads, beautiful glass beakers, ceramics and exclusive fabrics. These imported items were exchanged for goods that were available here, such as iron, hides, horns and furs.

Birka was founded around 750 AD as a trading port and is one of the earliest urban settlements in Scandinavia, and are located about 30 km west of Stockholm on the small islands of Björkö (Birch Island) in Lake Mälaren. Birkas activities were organized and governed from the royal residence at Hovgården, situated across the strait on the neighbouring island of Adelsö. Birka was the Baltic link in the Dnieper Trade Route through Ladoga (Aldeigja) and Novgorod (Holmsgard) to the Byzantine Empire and the Abbasid Caliphate. Birka is the site of the first known Christian congregation in Sweden, founded in 829 by Saint Ansgar.

Birka represent a complete and exceptionally well-preserved archaeological site from the Viking Age. In this serial property, the surviving visible evidence of the prehistoric society includes structures in the mercantile town, the royal domain and the harbour, defence systems, and prehistoric cemeteries.

As a trading centre, Birka most likely offered furs, iron goods, and craft products, in exchange for various materials from much of Europe and Western Asia. Furs as wolf, fox, marten, otter, beaver, and other spices were mostly obtained from the Sami people. Reindeer antlers and objects carved from antlers like combs were also an important item of trade. The trade of walrus teeth, amber, and honey is also documented.

Foreign goods found from the graves of Birka include glass and metalware, pottery from the Rhineland, clothing and textiles including Chinese silk, Byzantine embroidery with extremely fine gold thread, brocades with gold passementerie, and plaited cords of high quality. From the ninth century coins minted at Haithabu in Northern Germany and elsewhere in Scandinavia start to appear. However, most of the coins found at Birka are silver dirhams from the Middle East.

The residents of Birka started to abandon the city to move elsewhere after more than two hundred years. Some may have moved to Sigtuna, Sweden’s next thriving city after Birka. No one knows exactly why Birka was abandoned, but accepted theories is based on political and economic reasons.

Birka together with Hovgården were inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1993.

World Heritage Committee's motivation:

“The Birka-Hovgården area is a well-preserved example of the Vikings' trade network during the two hundred years when they expanded economically and politically in Europe. Birka is one of the most complete and untouched Viking trading places from the years 700-900.”