Parish Find Location 
Hangvar

Find Context Classification 
Grave

Present Location Classification 
Gotlands Museum Fornsalen

Coordinate Present Location (lat) 
6393355

Coordinate Present Location (long) 
696536

Year of Discovery 
1872

Material 
Limestone

Limestone Type 
crinoid limestone

Geological Group 
Hangvar Formation (70%)

Height 
117

Width 
89

Thickness 
12

Lindqvist Type 
A (ca. 400-600)

Lindqvist Shape 
Dwarf stone

Runic Inscription or not 
No

Context and Discovery 
Found in 1872 during construction work on the property of Austers in Hangvar. The stele was covering an inhumation grave, in which the deceased had been buried together with a horse, weapons, and armour. Finds are indicating that there was a sword among the weapons but the sword itself was not preserved. HS

Measurements, Material and Condition 
This relatively small limestone slab consists of several fragments. The damage must have happened during the unexpected discovery in the 19th century or while it was in use as part of a stove. In Lindqvist (1941, fig. 404), the stele’s original condition after the discovery is shown as a drawing, showing that a large part of the left side was damaged. The top, the right side and the root were preserved and, thus, allowed a reconstruction of the whole monument as it can be seen today in Gotlands Fornsal. Despite severe damage, the typical axe-shaped form was still visible. A rare find on this stone is the fact that not only the sides but, likewise, the top has a chamfered edge. The surface is, where preserved, smoothly worked and two round fossils serve as eyes of a mythical creature at the top. With dimensions of 0.93 m x 0.82 m x 0.12 m, the stele is almost square. Lindqvist measured the size of the stele including the root as 1.20 m. HS

References 
Lindqvist 1941, pl. 13 fig. 27; 1942, 69 fig. 403; 404; Nylén/Lamm 2003, 30 f.; Oehrl 2019a, pl. 1d

Title
GP 173 Hangvar Austers I

Gotlands Museum ID 
C1033

Jan Peder Lamm ID 
126

Lindqvist Title 
Hangvar, Austers I