The cemetery at Veien is among the largest in the east part of Norway
and is given priority on the list of cultural resources of the Norwegian
Council of Culture.
The first map of the grave-field was drawn in 1847. 150 burial mounds
were registered. There were probably more at one time. Today we know of
about 107 mounds, most of them dating back to the first 600 years AD.
There is also an unknown number of flat graves. Probably this was a
grave-field for several farms.
In all graves opened, expect “The King´s Mound”, the corpse had been
burnt. People believed in life after death and therefore they were given
some kind of grave furniture such as utility articles, weapons and
trinkets. As well women as men are buried in the field.
The first mound to be excavated was “The King´s Mound” in 1824, from AD
300 – 400. Real treasures were found. The most magnificent objects were
a drinking horn and a scabbard fitting. These objects are displayed at
the Historical Museum in Oslo, and at Ringerikes Museum ( Norderhov
south of Hønefoss) you can see an exhibition about the find.
Most of the mounds in the field were studied at the end of the 19th
century, and several objects were found, but not so treasures as in “The
King’s Mound”.
