Bronze Age Burial Site of Sammallahdenmäki


World Heritage Identification Number: 579

World Heritage since: 1999

Category: Cultural Heritage

Transboundary Heritage: No

Endangered Heritage: No

Country: 🇫🇮 Finland

Continent: Europe

UNESCO World Region: Europe and North America

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Exploring the Bronze Age Burial Site of Sammallahdenmäki: A Unique Insight into Northern European Funerary Practices

The Bronze Age Burial Site of Sammallahdenmäki, located in the western coastal region of Finland near Rauma, offers a captivating glimpse into the funerary practices, social structures, and religious beliefs of northern Europe during the Bronze Age (approximately 2500 BCE - 500 BCE). Designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1999, this remarkable archaeological site features over 30 granite burial cairns that have stood the test of time for more than 3,000 years.

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UNESCO Description of the World Heritage Site

This Bronze Age burial site features more than 30 granite burial cairns, providing a unique insight into the funerary practices and social and religious structures of northern Europe more than three millennia ago.

UNESCO Justification of the World Heritage Site

Criterion (iii): The Sammallahdenmäki cairn cemetery bears exceptional witness to the society of the Bronze Age of Scandinavia.

Criterion (iv): The Sammallahdenmäki cemetery is an outstanding example of Bronze Age funerary practices in Scandinavia.

Encyclopedia Record: Sammallahdenmäki

Sammallahdenmäki is a Bronze Age burial site in Finland near Rauma, in the region of Satakunta. The site includes 33 granite burial cairns dating back more than 3,000 years, to 1500 to 500 BC. Sammallahdenmäki is one of the largest, most complete, and most important Bronze Age sites in Fennoscandia, and was designated by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site in 1999.

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Additional Site Details

Area: Not available

UNESCO Criteria: (iii) — Unique or exceptional testimony to a cultural tradition
(iv) — Outstanding example of a type of building or landscape

Coordinates: 61.12056 , 21.7775

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Image of Bronze Age Burial Site of Sammallahdenmäki

© kallerna, CC BY-SA 3.0 Resized from original. (This derivative is under the same CC BY-SA license.)

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Nearby World Heritage Sites

Old Rauma
14 km — Finland
Fortress of Suomenlinna
206 km — Finland
Petäjävesi Old Church
219 km — Finland
High Coast / Kvarken Archipelago
244 km — Finland, Sweden
Historic Centre (Old Town) of Tallinn
248 km — Estonia

Country Information: Finland

Flag of Finland

Official Name: Republic of Finland

Capital: Helsinki

Continent: Europe

Population (2024): 5,637,214

Population (2023): 5,583,911

Population (2022): 5,556,106

Land Area: 303,950 sq km

Currency: Euro (EUR)

Country Data Sources

Last updated: January 18, 2026

Portions of the page Bronze Age Burial Site of Sammallahdenmäki are based on data from UNESCO — World Heritage List Dataset and on text from the Wikipedia article Sammallahdenmäki, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes made. Additional original content by World Heritage Explorer (WHE), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. WHE is not affiliated with UNESCO or the World Heritage Committee. Legal Notice. Privacy Policy.

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