In 2014, two metal detectorists found the first indications that the fields of Sem in Eiker outside Drammen contained a first class archeological site. Among other things, they found fragments of an Irish reliquary, a Frankish belt fitting, coins from the Viking Age and the Middle Ages and a fragment of a distinctive pin from the Bronze Age, around 600 BC. The finds bear witness to an environment of wealth, contact with the world, and a history that stretches far back in time.
In a Scandinavian context, it is rare to find rich archaeological areas with such a long history, and there is a lot of anticipation about what objects and answers the excavation, which startet 3rd om May 2023, will reveal. The finds indicate that the site had a central role in Norway's prehistory, and contains traces and objects that span a period of more than 1,000 years.
Search party with metal detectors
Archaeologists from the Museum of Cultural History will now carry out a three-month long excavation in collaboration with the Norwegian Directorate for Cultural Heritage (Riksantikvaren) and Viken County Municipality. Volunteer metal detectorists are also important partners in the project. On the last weekend of April, a dozen metal detectorists got to work at Sem, before the archaeological excavation started in full in May.
The excavation has a budget of NOK 7.9 million, and is financed with state funds from Norwegian Directorate for Cultural Heritage.
Hanna Geiran, Director of the Norwegian Directorate for Cultural Heritage is in eager anticipation about the results of the excavation at Sem.
– The discovery potential is very large, and the finds represent traces of people who have lived here for several thousand years. It is also fantastic that we get help from voluntary metal detectors here at Sem. We benefit greatly from working together on such projects, says Geiran.
At the same time as the excavation, Øvre Eiker municipality, with support from, among others, Viken county municipality, has prepared an exhibition about Sem at the Art Laboratory in Vestfossen. Visitors can learn about the story of Sem and both examples of metal detector finds and reconstructions of these are exhibited.
The world's largest Viking gold treasure
– This place had an optimal geographical location for trade routes with ships and boats, and the finds bear witness to a long-standing and widespread trade and contact with large parts of Europe. This is a rare and exciting area, comparable to Kaupang and other centers of power from Norway's prehistory, says excavation manager and archeology professor Jes Martens at the Museum of Cultural History.
Simultaneously, the discoveries in Sem answer several archaeological puzzles from the surrounding area. Almost 200 years ago, the largest treasure from the Norwegian Viking Age, the Hoen hoard, was found just 2.5 km away from Sem. Archaeologists have for many years wondered why it was buried exactly there, but can now place the find in connection with the center of power at Sem. The same applies to the Solberg Vase, a unique Roman vase from the third Century AD discovered in a nearby bog in 1854.
Facts about the power center at Sem
- According to historical sources, Sem has housed a thing assembly, a church, a manor house, became a part of Norway's largest estate, and finally a King’s farm (Lensherresete). The place name Sem itself comes from "Sjøheim" – home of the sea.
- The oldest finds in the area date from the Late Bronze Age (1100-500 BC).
- The place has been a center of power throughout the Iron Age, the Viking Age, the Middle Ages and the Renaissance.
- In the Viking Age, large ships could sail all the way to Sem. Changes in the landscape and water levels in the fjord meant that the place gradually lost its position.
- The King's House at Sem was built as the seat of the sheriff for Kongsberg and Drammen, and the manor house itself stood between 1628 and 1690. During the 18th century, the place gradually lost its importance and was eventually forgotten.
- The excavations at Sem are carried out because the field must be drained. The Norwegian Directorate for Cultural Heritage covers the expenses for the excavation.
- Vestfossen Art Laboratory (Vestfossen Kunstlaboratorium) exhibits reconstructions and objects found at Sem in Archeology and anarchy – An exhibition about Eiker's center of power in the Iron Age. The original exhibits are on loan from Museum of Cultural History.
Important cooperation with metal detectorists
The director of the Norwegian Directorate for Cultural Heritage are happy to see that more and more people are taking an interest in our early history, and she finds great potential in collaborations between cultural heritage management organizations and metal detectorists when it comes to archaeological finds in cultivated land.
– A good collaboration between archaeologists and metal detectorists can save cultural heritage objects like this, which otherwise could be destroyed by agricultural activity. At the same time, it is important that people follow the rules. We have guidelines and good advice on our website. If you discover historical objects, you must contact the archaeologists in your county, says Hanna Geiran.
Viken county archaeologists carried out the first registrations at Sem in the autumn of 2019, after metal detectorists had previously found a lot of interesting things there. County councilor for culture and diversity in Viken county municipality, Tonje Kristensen, thinks it is great that knowledgeable metal detectors can assist and supplement professional archaeologists.
– Viken county council is responsible in large for the organized metal detector search this weekend, and I am happy that we are helping to facilitate the continued contribution by volunteers. I am very much looking forward to finding out more about the history we are exposing here, says Kristensen.
Key persons at the Museum of Cultural History:
Jes Martens, professor of archaeology
Mobile: 0047 909 19 141
E-mail: jes.martens@khm.uio.no
Christian Løchsen Rødsrud, excavation manager
Mobile: 976 41 562
E-mail: c.l.rodsrud@khm.uio.no