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Founded: 700 ADCategory: Cemeteries, mausoleums and burial places in Sweden
Historical period: Vendel Period (Sweden)
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To the west the Skalunda church there is Skalundahögen, the Barrow of Skalunda which is the largest one in Västergötland and one of the larger barrows in Scandinavia. It measures 65 metres across and it is 7 metres high. Next to the barrow there is a stone circle. This suggests that Skalunda was an important village in the Iron Ages.
Skalunda was one of the eight royal estates of early medieval Västergötland. Moreoever, the names of two homesteads, Lagmansgården and Lagmanstorp, in the neighbourhood show that the Geatish lawspeakers used to reside at Skalunda.
Birger Nerman, a Swedish archaeology professor and director of the Swedish Museum of National Antiquities, considered the Barrow of Skalunda to be the most likely burial site of the hero Beowulf, a legendary Geatish king. Skalunda is not far from a place called Årnäs, which is the same name as Earnaness where the hero died in the epic Beowulf, and it is located on a major promontory and near a minor one. The barrow has not yet been excavated.
References:Trenčín Castle is relatively large renovated castle, towering on a steep limestone cliff directly above the city of Trenčín. It is a dominant feature not only of Trenčín, but also of the entire Považie region. The castle is a national monument.
History of the castle cliff dates back to the Roman Empire, what is proved by the inscription on the castle cliff proclaiming the victory of Roman legion against Germans in the year 179.
Today’s castle was probably built on the hill-fort. The first proven building on the hill was the Great Moravian rotunda from the 9th century and later there was a stone residential tower, which served to protect the Kingdom of Hungary and the western border. In the late 13th century the castle became a property of Palatine Matúš Csák, who became Mr. of Váh and Tatras.
Matúš Csák of Trenčín built a tower, still known as Matthew’s, which is a dominant determinant of the whole building.