Sosdala Horsemen and the Equestrian Elite in Fifth Century Europe

Sösdala is a famous name in European archaeology of the Migration Period. But the fame of the name has thrown the find itself in deep shade. This is surprising since it contains mounts from an exquisitely decorated parade bridle, the closest parallels to which are found in Austria, Poland, Romania and Ukraine. The craftsmanship equals the best Late Roman metalwork. The content of the Sösdala finds reveal that Scandinavians were involved in the turmoil when the Late Roman Empire disintegrated. The context, depositions of dismantled horse tack in gravel ridges, is explainable with reference to Nomadic funerary rituals. Based on new scholarly studies and scientific analyses a European team of scholars places Sösdala in its European setting. The book is concluded by full catalogues of three finds of horse tack from Sösdala and Fulltofta. The papers in English have résumés and captions in Russian.