Dear Reader Fiona asked me to write more about archaeology, which reminded me that I haven't said much about what I've been doing in my study these past months. I find that the last time was actually in late August when I dug in the cave with Margareta and Magdalena.
So, what have I been up to during these months when no Swedish archaeologist wants to do fieldwork? I have:
- Written the archive reports on my 2011 fieldwork.
- Checked for fits between some copper alloy fragments we picked up at an Uppland hoard site and the hoard itself in the Historical Museum. We found no fits but two likely candidates for belonging to highly incomplete objects.
- Distributed my Mead-halls book to colleagues and libraries across northern Europe.
- Test-lectured for a teaching job that I almost got except they realised at the last moment that they didn't actually have the money to employ anyone.
- Written a popular account of the cave dig for the Swedish Caving Society's journal.
- Written two papers on the picture stones of Gotland: one about their re-use in the last phase of Pagan graves before the islanders started to build stone churches in the mid-12th century, and one on how to classify and date a picture stone that has lost its pictures, leaving only its dimensions and outline shape. Then I translated them into Swedish. Unusually, the same symposium report will be published in separate Swedish and English editions at the same time.
- Edited two issues of Fornvännen.
- Copy-edited a symposium report on the Swedish/Norwegian province of Jämtland before 1645. This wasn't my own work but it was interesting and paid well.
- Not done anything about the Bronze Age project lately except some reading.