During the earliest period of farming, 3000-4000 years ago, crops were grown on small patches of land without the soil being worked systematically.
The ard
In the course of the Bronze Age, farming was developed further through the use of the ard to work the soil.
The ard was a simple type of plough, in the form of a stick that was stuck into the ground. By dragging the ard across the field, the soil was well worked.
Natural drainage
The fields from the Bronze Age to the Middle Ages were small in comparison with today. A field measuring 30 x 50 m was not unusual.
The fields were dependent on natural drainage and therefore tended to lie in slightly sloping terrain. The upper limit can often be seen in the form of notch or ditch in the field. In the lower part, deposits are accumulated, making a raised edge that is called a lynchet.
Farmed area
Note how there are no clearance cairns here. This most likely means that this area has been farmed and the area cleared of stones in the 1700-1800s when there was a croft at Børstadlunden.
You can read more about this on some of the other heritage signs.
Pollen and macrofossil analysis
It is possible to find out more about the field we see in front of us.
By taking a core sample, we can extract soil in order to analyse the pollen from corn and other crops that were grown here, and during archaeological excavations we can take samples of seeds and nuts from the archaeological layers for macrofossil analysis.
Such samples will, for example, be able to tell us about what was grown in these fields, as well as when it was grown.
Automatically protected
Traces of agriculture from before 1537 are automatically protected by law.
All interventions in or near archaeological sites are prohibited as per the Cultural Heritage Act §§ 3, 4 and 6.