World Heritage Identification Number: 1660
World Heritage since: 2023
Category: Cultural Heritage
Transboundary Heritage: No
Endangered Heritage: No
Country: 🇩🇰 Denmark
Continent: Europe
UNESCO World Region: Europe and North America
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Viking-Age Ring Fortresses: Architectural Marvels and Testimonies to Power
The Viking-Age Ring Fortresses, inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2023, represent a remarkable architectural achievement from the Viking Age. These five archaeological sites, situated in Denmark, showcase a uniform geometric design that was strategically placed along significant land and sea routes. The fortresses at Aggersborg, Fyrkat, Nonnebakken, Trelleborg, and Borgring offer a glimpse into the military prowess and centralized power of the Jelling Dynasty, while also providing insights into the socio-political transformations experienced by the Danish realm in the late 10th century.
More to come…UNESCO Description of the World Heritage Site
These five archaeological sites comprise a system of monumental ring-shaped Viking-Age fortresses sharing a uniform geometric design. Constructed between about 970 and 980 CE, the fortresses at Aggersborg, Fyrkat, Nonnebakken, Trelleborg and Borgring were positioned strategically near important land and sea routes, and each made use of the natural topography of their surrounding landscape for defensive purposes. They are an emblematic demonstration of the centralized power of the Jelling Dynasty, and a testimony to the socio-political transformations that the Danish realm underwent in the late 10th century.Encyclopedia Record: Viking ring fortress
A Viking ring fortress, Trelleborg-type fortress, or trelleborg, is a type of circular fort of a special design, built in Scandinavia during the Viking Age. These fortresses have a strictly circular shape, with roads and gates pointing in the four cardinal directions. Inside the fort, each quadrant has one, in a single case four, square blocks of longhouses, completing the geometric symmetry. There are a total of five confirmed Viking ring fortresses at present, located in Denmark. They have been dated to the reign of Harold Bluetooth of Denmark, with an estimated near contemporary time of construction c. 980. Their exact historical context is subject to debate. In 2023, the five Danish forts were inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List because of their unique architecture and testimony to the military power of the Jelling Dynasty.Additional Site Details
Area: 51 hectares
(iv) — Outstanding example of a type of building or landscape
Coordinates: 56.9952777778 , 9.2547222222
Image
© Trelleborg, National Museum of Denmark. Used with permission.
