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This compilation thesis is situated at the intersection of the scholarly fields of medieval masculinities and the bioarchaeology of identities. The aim is to explore bodily aspects of medieval masculinities through the analysis of human skeletal remains from two medieval monastic sites, the Augustinian monastery Skriðuklaustur in Iceland (1493-1554), and the Dominican priory in Västerås, Sweden (1244-1528). A total of 461 individuals were analysed, using standard osteological methods (Buikstra and Ubelaker, 1994). Theories of masculinities have been developed with reference to modern gender relations, but scholars have found them relevant to medieval contexts (e.g. Beattie and Fenton, 2011; Hadley, 1999; Hodgson et al., 2019; Karras, 2003; Kiefer, 2009; Lees et al., 1994; Murray, 1999; Thibodeaux, 2010). They have to be applied with caution, however, as medieval society and gender relations differ in many ways from their contemporary equivalents (Fletcher, 2011; Karras, 2003:9-10). Connell’s (2005) definition of masculinity as a configuration of gender practices has been used in the thesis. Defining masculinity as a form of practice enables a bioarchaeological approach. The skeleton is plastic, and so enactments of masculinity can leave identifiable marks (Sofaer, 2006), such as specific patterns of entheseal changes, joint disease or trauma. The four case studies in the thesis address the topics of diet, physical violence, performance in battle, and ability and appearance. The results indicate similarities and mutual influence between different masculinities, but also differences that could be detected through osteological analysis. The carbon and nitrogen stable isotope analysis of a sample of sixteen males and six females buried in Västerås revealed no significant differences in diet between the sexes, between adults and children (represented by dentin samples from the second molar), or between males of higher and lower status. The results suggest that fresh water fish were an important part of the diet, and that both clerics and laity took part in religious fasting (Paper I). There was a significant difference in patterns of weapon-related trauma, however. Lay males were more exposed to trauma than clergy and females. This particularly applied to males of high social standing, and those with battle experience (Paper II). There were also individual differences in gender performance, and some individuals may have transgressed the norms of ideal behaviour, such as ignoring rules of fasting or attacking defenceless victims. At the same time as the body is shaped by enactments of gender, the way gender can be enacted is conditioned by the skills and abilities of the body. Changes in the body can result in changed gender practices, and a loss of ability could lead to a crisis of masculinity (Shilling, 2004). This is exemplified in Paper III, on warrior masculinity, by weapon-related trauma and the risk of losing the ability to perform in battle, and in Paper IV, on clerical masculinity, through antemortem tooth loss and the risk of becoming irregular due to altered appearance and speech impairments., 2013 University of Iceland Research Fund (research grant) 2013 Berit Wallenberg Foundation (grant for scientific analysis) 2013 Västerås stad (grant for scientific analysis) 2014 University of Iceland, Travel Grants of the Research Fund (travel grant) 2015 Berit Wallenberg Foundation (grant for scientific analysis) 2016 Västerås stad (grant for scientific analysis) 2018 Berit Wallenberg Foundation (grant for scientific analysis) 2018 Västerås stad (grant for scientific analysis) 2019 Helge Ax:son Johnson foundation (research grant) 2019 Letterstedtska (travel grant) 2019 Icelandic Research Fund, through the Disability before Disability project (travel grant) 2021 University of Iceland School of Humanities Education Fund (research grant)

Publisher's version (útgefin grein), With the advent of ancient DNA, as well as other methods such as isotope analysis, destructive sampling of archaeofaunal remains has increased much faster than the effort to collect and curate them. While there has been considerable discussion regarding the ethics of destructive sampling and analysis of human remains, this dialogue has not extended to archaeofaunal material. Here we address this gap and discuss the ethical challenges surrounding destructive sampling of materials from archaeofaunal collections. We suggest ways of mitigating the negative aspects of destructive sampling and present step-by-step guidelines aimed at relevant stakeholders, including scientists, holding institutions and scientific journals. Our suggestions are in most cases easily implemented without significant increases in project costs, but with clear long-term benefits inthe preservation and use of zooarchaeologicalmaterial., his work was supported by the Icelandic Research Fund grant no. 162783-051, Finnish Academy grant no. SA286499, the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie SkłodowskaCurie grant agreement no. 749226 and Estonian Research Council grant nos. PRG29 and IUT 20-7.

Publisher's version (útgefin grein), Horses are the most common grave goods found in Icelandic Viking Age graves. Horse skeletons have previously been sexed based on pelvis shape and the presence of canine teeth in male horses over 4–5 years of age. Morphological data has shown that all horses from Icelandic burials that were amenable to sexing were male. Yet the use of morphological methods to determine sex is problematic since they rely on finding a well-preserved pelvis and/or robust canine teeth. Furthermore, quantitative data underlying the features of the horse pelvis used for sexing is lacking and canine teeth have been reported to occur in mares. In this study we build upon and extend recently developed methodologies to make use of shotgun sequencing of ancient DNA (aDNA) for molecular sexing of Viking Age horse remains. With minimal sequencing effort we identified the sex of the largest collection (n = 22) of Viking Age Icelandic horses studied to date, sourced from both burial (n = 19) and non-burial (n = 3) sites. Our results revealed a male to female sex bias ratio of 18:1 in burial sites, versus 0:3 in non-burial sites. These findings support the significant over-representation of male horses in Viking Age graves in Iceland, yet show that –albeit rare– mares could also be selected for ritual burial in Viking Age Iceland. This cost-effective method provides statistical confidence to allow for sexing of highly fragmented archaeological specimens with low endogenous DNA content., This work was funded by the Research Council of Norway project 230821/F20 and the Icelandic Research Fund project 162783051. LO received funding from the European Research Council under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (grant agreement No 681605).

In this thesis the ritual killing and burial of animals on grave-fields in Viking Age Iceland is critically re-evaluated, on a site-by-site basis, in order to characterize these customs and place them in a social and historical context. The foundation for this work is the zooarchaeological analysis of all available animal bone from burials excavated before 2012 in Iceland. Horses were very commonly buried on grave-fields in Viking Age Iceland, both with men and women. Dogs, more variable than the modern Icelandic breed, were sometimes interred with humans as well, but apart from single pig bones recorded in a handful of burials, no other animal species have been confirmed in a secure burial context. A comparative study of the ratio of horses in burials in Viking Age Norway, based on prevalence of harnesses, bridles and saddles in late Iron Age burials, revealed that horse burial was at its height of popularity in Norway during the short period of time the custom was practiced in Iceland and equally common. The zooarchaeological analysis of the Icelandic animal remains contextualised with other archaeological data illustrates many aspects of the rituals. They were part of a structured burial tradition reserved for certain groups of people, including both men and women, and as such must have carried a message of identity and status. The killing methods and the arrangement of the carcasses followed set protocols. Most horses were in their prime when killed, but curiously a third of them was young at the time of death and not fully grown. It was customary to bury horses harnessed and bridled, even those too young to have been ridden, and there was a preference for killing males. This indicates that the horses were essentially symbolic representatives of their species and not necessarily killed because of their individuality or because they were favourite animals. Horses were always buried whole, sometimes more than one in a grave and occasionally without human remains. The killing and deposition of dogs was less common and less structured. Dogs always shared burial with a human but sometimes only parts of them were interred. Osteological signs that the dogs were cared for in life suggest that some of them may have been the respective human’s companion. Horse graves, as a prominent component of the kuml burial tradition, represent a specific rite that was not practiced in equal measure around Iceland. It is proposed that a portion of the second and third generations of settlers along with new immigrants of higher social status appropriated and re-interpreted ancient burial traditions, which were at the time popular in Norway, to claim status and structure identity based on traditional values. Horse burials were popular from the mid- to late 10th century, in a time when Icelandic society was taking shape following the end of the settlement phase. This was a period of shifting power relations and the burial rituals were promoted by specific groups, revealing socio-political fault lines and competing identities. The ritual killing‘s theatrical elements, bloody and dramatic, likely helped to increase the popularity of the tradition and may have had cathartic connotations. The custom nonetheless only held out for a few decades until it was replaced by the more unifying Christian burial rite., Þessi doktorsritgerð fjallar um dráp og greftrun dýra á kumlateigum víkingaaldar á Íslandi. Gögn frá hverjum einasta kumlateig eru endurskoðuð á gagnrýnin hátt með það fyrir augum að draga fram einkenni þessara siða og setja þá í félagslegt og sögulegt samhengi. Verkið grundvallast á greiningu allra tiltækra dýrabeina úr íslenskum víkingaaldarkumlum sem fundist hafa allt til ársins 2012. Mjög algengt var að grafa hross á kumlateigum á Íslandi, bæði með körlum og konum. Hundar þessa tíma voru ólíkari innbyrðis en íslenska kynið í dag og voru stundum einnig grafnir með fólki. Fyrir utan stök svínabein sem fundist hafa í örfáum kumlum hafa leifar annarra dýra ekki fundist í gröfum svo vissa sé fyrir. Samanburðarrannsókn á hlutfalli hrossa í víkingaaldargröfum í Noregi, byggð á algengi reiðtygja, leiðir í ljós að hrossgreftranir voru í hámarki vinsælda í Noregi á sama tíma og á Íslandi og jafnalgengur þar sem hér. Með því að setja dýrabeinafræðilegar greiningar á leifum kumldýranna í samhengi við önnur fornleifafræðileg gögn er dregin upp mynd af ýmsum hliðum drápssiðanna. Þeir voru hluti vel mótaðs grafrsiðar sem var einkenni ákveðins þjóðfélagshóps, skipuðum bæði körlum og konum, og hefur sem slíkur verið táknrænn fyrir ímynd og þjóðfélagsstöðu. Drápsaðferðir fylgdu vissum reglum sem og hvernig skrokkum var komið fyrir í gröfunum. Flest hrossin voru á besta aldri þegqar þau voru felld, en forvitnilegt er að þriðjungur þeirra var ungur og ekki fullvaxin. Það var venja að grafa hrossin með hnakki og beisli, jafnvel þau sem voru of ung til reiðar, og oftar voru kumlhestarnir karlkyns. Þetta bendir til að hrossin hafi verið álitin táknrænir fulltrúar sinnar tegundar og ekki endilega verið valin til dráps vegna eigin verðleika eða vegna þess að þau hafi verið uppáhald hins látna. Hross voru ávallt grafin í heilu lagi, stundum fleiri en eitt í gröf og einstaka sinnum án sýnilegra tengsla við mannsgröf. Sjaldgæfara var að drepa og grafa hunda og var sá siður ekki jafn fastmótaður og hrossdrápin. Hundarnir deildu alltaf gröf með manneskju en stundum var einungis hluti skrokks þeirra grafinn. Ummerki á beinum sumra hundanna benda til að þeir hafi notið atlætis í lifanda lífi sem styrkir þá túlkun að þeir hafi verið grafnir með eiganda sínum. Hrossgrafir eru áberandi hluti íslenskra kumla en dreifast ójafnt um landið. Lagt er til að hluti annarrar og þriðju kynslóðar landnámsfólks ásamt nýjum innflytjendum í efra lagi samfélagsins hafi tekið upp og endurtúlkað forna grafsiði, sem jafnframt nutu vinsælda í Noregi á sama tíma, til að styrkja ímynd sína og félagslega stöðu með tilvísun í hefðbundin gildi. Hrossgrafir nutu mestra vinsælda hérlendis um og eftir miðja 10. öld þegar íslenskt samfélag var að setjast í fastar skorður eftir umbrot landnámsaldar. Á þessu tímabili sköpuðust valdatengsl og –hlutföll og það að þessir grafsiðir öðluðust vinsældir hjá tilteknum hópi leiðir í ljós félagspólitískar og ímyndarlegar andstæður. Leikrænar hliðar dýradrápsins, með blóðugum sviðsetningum, hafa líklega aukið vinsældir grafsiðarins og jafnvel haft kaþarsískar tengingar. Siðurinn var þó einungis við lýði í nokkra áratugi eða þar til fólk sameinaðist um kristna helgisiði um land allt.

Osteoarthritis has been intensively studied within the field of palaeopathology. For decades there was assumed to be a direct link between activity and the development of osteoarthritis, and this was reflected in the work which was carried out, with often very specific interpretations of occupation and activity on the basis of the diagnosis of osteoarthritis. By the 1990s it began to be more accepted within the field that the aetiology of osteoarthritis is far too multifactorial to allow for such simplistic conclusions to be drawn. This has resulted in a great reduction in the interest in the study of osteoarthritis within palaeopathology in the past few decades, as the condition appears to have somewhat lost its place within the archaeological discussion. Within the medical community, the focus has shifted in the past three decades to the genetic aetiopathogenesis of osteoarthritis. There has been a great deal of work in this field in Iceland, where the genetic link to hip, hand, and to a lesser extent knee osteoarthritis has been demonstrated, with the identification of several osteoarthritis families within the population. The main aim of this thesis is to reclaim the study of osteoarthritis within palaeopathology using the analysis of the condition within five Icelandic skeletal populations, kuml, Skeljastaðir, Hofstaðir, Haffjarðarey and Reykjavík, which span the occupation of Iceland, from the earliest settlement in the late 9th century to the 19th century. The approach to this is twofold. First of all, to avoid focusing on just one aetiological aspect of osteoarthritis, but rather to embrace its multifactorial nature, and consider multiple aetiological agents of the condition. These are in particular genetics, activity, anatomy, age and sex. The aim is then to place the results of the analysis within the social and physical environments of the populations under study, and so attempt to find osteoarthritis a place within the osteoarchaeological discussion again. Secondly, the aim is to consider a more theoretical approach to the study of palaeopathology in general, and osteoarthritis in particular. To this end the question is raised whether it is possible to consider disease in archaeology from factors external to the aetiology of the disease, but rather from the lived experience of those who suffer from it. Considering the degenerative effects of osteoarthritis, the focus is placed on how it is possible to discuss issues such as disability, ageing and quality of life within palaeopathological research. The conclusions drawn from this thesis demonstrates that by avoiding focusing on one feature of osteoarthritis but rather take into account its complex nature, it is possible to offer a varied discussion on osteoarthritis in archaeological material. The identification of a genetic osteoarthritis opens up a discussion on the family in archaeology and the use of the medieval cemetery in Iceland; the variation between sites in terms of activity related osteoarthritis demonstrates changes both geographically and through time in the intensity of the activities being carried out, while thinking about age in terms of osteoarthritis opens up new avenues for exploring age and ageing within archaeological populations., Háskólasjóður Eimskipafélags Íslands