Previously, on the basis of studies of artefacts and finds of pottery from these structures, the principal period of use of the courtyard sites in Rogaland has been dated to the early and late Roman Iron Age (AD 1–400) and the Migration Period (AD 400–550) through c. The Norwegian ‘courtyard sites’ have variously been interpreted as special cultic, juridical, or military assembly sites, which served at more than the purely local level. This is in the attempt to extract more knowledge about the grave, but also about the area and the period in general during the Late Roman Iron Age. In addition to treating the grave in its entirety on a more thorough manner than has been done previously, I will also try to put it into a larger context and ask questions that have not been properly asked before. However, the grave has never been properly published or treated especially thoroughly. The Avaldsnes find has been much discussed in the literature on the Late Roman Iron Age in Norway but also in a European level. The barrow contained three, perhaps four burials, with the burial, Flagghaug 2, as the most important out of the four. The basis for this thesis is the Avaldsnes find from the wealthiest grave discovered in the barrow Flagghaugen, Avaldsnes, Karmøy, a Late Roman Iron Age chamber grave dating to period C1b/C2 (AD 210/220-245/255 - 245/255-310/320), with roman imports, weapons and massive gold objects that was found on Avaldsnes on Karmøy, Rogaland, in 1834. The motives behind these changes are examined and this thesis suggests that the graves should be interpreted in the light of an elite power discourse, in which claiming Norse identity was crucial. Using a theoretical framework based on practice theory and theories of cultural memory it is argued that the transformations in mortuary practices between the two areas of study indicate that embodied and understood ritualised actions were carried out differently, and that these alterations should be interpreted as meaningful responses. By comparing pagan Norse funerary practices in northern Scotland with supposed homeland practices in Møre og Romsdal, this thesis is examining the Norse settlers’ response to these new circumstances. It is argued that funerary rites are an important field for creating and negotiating identities in a migration context, as they are simultaneously based on homeland traditions and responses to the new circumstances. This thesis is concerned with how circumstances of migration and settlement in Viking Age northern Scotland affect the display of identity.

Tor eckhoff grave