Monday, September 16, 2013

Historical Footnotes ~ Elusive Uppsala

Adam of Breman, a Christian monk and missionary, described the great temple of Uppsala in his Deeds of the Church of Hamburg. This treatise covers some 300 years of history and records the activities of the church and her missionaries.

Uppsala was described as a massive complex, covered in gold, with a large gold chain surrounding it. A large evergreen tree grew near and marked a holy grove. Here the norse sacrificed humans and other animals to the gods Thor, Odin and Freya. Every far 9 of each species was given to the gods, their blood being the arbiter of the god's will and good fortune.

Many attempts to find the temple have been made and some claims made at Gamla Uppsala, but all of these disputed.

Adam of Breman's account itself is disputed, having too many references to other temples, such as the Temple of Soloman.

Our information is, as of late, poor at best about Viking rituals and practices.

Burial Mounds thought to belong to the temple complex . . . .


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