Six million extra for excavation in Trondheim

St Olav Olaf ExcavationThe death of st. Olaf. Altar image from the Nidaros church

Six million extra for excavation in Trondheim

After a series of new discoveries, the Directorate for Cultural Heritage (Riksantikvaren) allocates an additional NOK 6 million towards the excavation of the Clemens Church in Trondheim.

 

Adresseavisen writes that the Leader of the Directorate for Cultural Heritage, Jørn Holme, presented the news when he visited excavations on Friday.

– This is the fourth time I am here and is informed of new interesting findings. A new Trondheim story is revealed every time, says Holme.

Four churches

It was in the autumn of 2016 that archaeologists discovered what is likely the remains of the Clemens church belonging to Saint Olav in Trondheim. The archaeological excavation was resumed earlier this year and is ongoing throughout the summer.

The archaeologists have so far uncovered four churches on top of each other in the excavation area in Søndre gate, where the youngest church is called church 1 and the oldest church 4. In church 4, the archaeologists have found a very well-preserved corner post dated to 1009. Church 4 is situated on top of a pretty thin layer of soil, and below, archaeologists now begin to find remains of yet another wooden building. At the moment, it is not clear whether this is also a church building.

Prolongs the season

– For me, history has changed every time I’ve been here. I have previously said that the excavations would be completed this summer. But the latest findings mean that we extend the excavation season to the beginning of October, and to this end, another NOK 6 million is granted, says the Conservator General to Adresseavisen.

The excavations are funded by the Directorate for Cultural Heritage and are carried out by archaeologists from the Norwegian Institute for Cultural Heritage Research (NIKU). Findings from the archaeological excavation will be presented in a visiting center on the ground floor of the commercial building that will be built on the plot.

 

© NTB Scanpix / Norway Today