Assessment of the reason for the vitrification of a wall at a hillfort. The example of Broborg in Sweden

It was discovered around 250 years ago that some of the rock material in the walls of some hillforts had been subjected to such high temperature that it had vitrified. This prompted a debate as to the reason for it that is still going on today: did the vitrification come about as a result of hostile action, by accident, or for the purpose of constructing the fort? The present paper is based on the recognition that hillforts are different, and therefore should be evaluated individually. All identifiable factors of interest should be included, and especially those that might disprove any alternative. Thus, incentives, competence and petrographic aspects were evaluated for the hillfort named Broborg (dated to the Migration Period, in Sweden A.D. 400-550), and it is concluded that the vitrification here came about for the purpose of constructing the fort.

Automated summary

The paper discusses the reasons for the vitrification phenomenon in hillforts and emphasizes the importance of evaluating different hillforts individually. By evaluating the Broborg hillfort, it is concluded that the vitrification occurred for the purpose of constructing the fort.