Journeys into the Past
Viking Adventures and Ancient Ruins
In the area around Trelleborg, people have lived, fought, loved, died, and cultivated the land for thousands of years. This has left a clear mark on the beautiful landscape, with burial mounds, runestones, traces of settlements, burial grounds, and numerous churches. Vikings—legendary, world-famous figures with roots in the Nordic countries. What made the area around the Baltic Sea such an important place for trade, seafaring, faith, and community life?
Skegriedösen
Skegriedösen is a stone chamber tomb dating from approximately 5,000 years ago to the Late Stone Age. The tomb consists of 17 stones and is classified as a long barrow. In 2007, an archaeological excavation was conducted in the area, during which the remains of a processional path were discovered, surrounded by about ten lost barrows.
Franciscan Monastery Ruins
In downtown Trelleborg, you can visit the monastery ruins and the monastery garden. The Franciscan monastery in Trelleborg was founded in 1267, ten years after the town of Trelleborg was first mentioned by name in writing. Today, only a portion of the monastery’s walls remain, located in the heart of downtown Trelleborg, next to the medieval Old Market Square.
The Skateholm Settlement
A settlement with a burial ground dating from the Early Stone Age, ca. 5,250–4,900 BCE. Many of the graves are so well-preserved that the position of the body could be determined, and several graves were strewn with red ochre. The first dog graves from the Hunter-Gatherer Stone Age were also discovered here. The finds are on display in the exhibition “Eye to Eye” at the Trelleborg Museum.
The Tullstorp Rune Stone
Near Tullstorp Church, there is a beautiful runestone and picture stone from the 11th century, linked to the kingdom of Harald Bluetooth. The runes state that “Klibir and Åsa erected this memorial for Ulf.”
The Vannhög Viking
Come face to face with the Viking from Vannhög, a man who baffles archaeologists with the filed notches on his upper teeth. Perhaps he was a well-traveled merchant who used his teeth as a calling card, or perhaps he belonged to a particular clan?
More tips for day trips in southern Skåne
Dalby Church
Dalby Church is the oldest stone church in the Nordic region; it was built in connection with the establishment of the Danish dioceses in 159/1060.
The Double Dose in Snarringe
Snarringe is a small village located in Hammarlöv Parish in the municipality of Trelleborg. Here there is a double-passage grave built during the Middle Neolithic period, that is, between 3400 and 3000 B.C.
Gillhög in Kvävlinge
Gillhög is a passage grave that forms part of a burial mound from the Late Stone Age in Kvävlinge Municipality. The burial mound measures approximately 25 meters in diameter and is 2.5 meters high. The passage grave’s chamber has a rounded rectangular shape and measures 5.7 by 2.3 meters. It belongs to the later phase of the Funnel Beaker Culture and was constructed around 3300 B.C., likely remaining in use for several centuries thereafter. During an excavation in 1932, skeletal remains, amber beads, pottery shards, flint tools, and two secondary stone cists were discovered just outside the chamber. This suggests that a significant portion of the surrounding mound is the result of later additions. Adjacent to Gillhög, to the north, are the remains of a Stone Age settlement.
The Royal Mounds in Oxie
The Kungshögarna in Oxie are two Bronze Age burial mounds. The mounds are part of a chain of Bronze Age burial mounds that stretches from Lund, through Fosie and Oxie, and down toward Trelleborg.
The Ship Setting in Södra Ugglarp
The stone circle at Södra Ugglarpis , after Ale’s Stones, the largest preserved example of its kindin Skåne from the Late Iron Age. The stone circle is 39 meters long, 10 meters wide, and consists of 39 standing stones.
The Burial Ground at Albäcksån
Near the Albäcksån River in Trellebogor lies a rare burial ground consisting of approximately 45 burial mounds and an equal number of stone settings. One of the mounds is particularly distinctive, featuring a central stone, and several of them are surrounded by drainage ditches. This burial ground was in continuous use during the Iron Age, from 100 B.C. to 1000 A.D.
The Fugli Stone
The Fugliestenen runestone is made of granite and stands in its original location atop a burial mound near Fuglie Church.The stone was depicted and included in Ole Worm’s *Monumenta Danica* in 1627. The stone bears a Christian inscription and was erected by Önd in memory of his brother Öde, who died on Gotland.
Harald Bluetooth
Harald Bluetooth, King of Denmark, 958–986 CE. A runestone in Jelling tells us that Harald unified and Christianized Denmark and used the Baltic Sea as his center of power. Harald Bluetooth established a tax system and built eight Trelleborgs, including Trelleborgen.