A ship-formed burial is a formation of upright stones set into a pointed oval or oblong shape which, when viewed from above, forms a ship.
There are about 2,000 known Scandinavian ship-formed burials, the majority of which are found in Sweden. Only a few have been studied and of those that have been dated, the majority date from year 500-1000.
Small stones, big mysteries
The ship setting in Konabbe Forest has not been excavated, but based on its type it dates to the Viking Age. It is unusual compared to the other known ship-formed burial sites as it is constructed from relatively small stones. The significance of the ship settings is not exactly known, but they are often associated with burials and cultic rituals.
One of the southern stones has a semi-circle carved into it, probably from the Bronze Age. The ship setting may be from that time, or perhaps the Vikings reused Bronze Age stones?
Hiking in Konabbe skov
The burial is located 400 metres from the car park at Kågårdsvej.
In the area - which is part of Nature Destination Skovsgaard - there are many different hiking routes.
In the forest 400 metres south-west of the ship settlement you can find a stone with cup-shaped rock carvings from the Bronze Age.
More Hidden Stories
Discover more hidden stories from Langeland at www.govisitlangeland.com/past
The project Langelands Hidden Stories is supported by the Danish Outdoor Council and developed by VisitLangeland and Langelands Museum.
