Døeshøje

Facts

Burials along an ancient highway

By Svend Illum Hansen , Bachelor i forhistorisk arkæologi Konservator Tagdækker Sømand (13 stories)

Just a few kilometres northwest of Holstebro, a series of Stone and Bronze Age burial mounds mark an ancient highway across the Ellebæk stream between Mårbjerg and Navr. On the Mårbjerg side, 18 early Bronze Age burial mounds remain intact. On the east side of the Ellebæk lies Bredhøj, the largest of the mounds, with a diameter of 49 metres and a height of three metres. Excavations in 1884 revealed an oak coffin containing a bronze sword and woollen garments from the deceased. The burial mound also contained a second coffin holding the remains of woollen garments, a bronze axe, a sheathed dagger and a horn comb.

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Burial mounds saved from destruction

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Story written by Svend Illum Hansen

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" "I withdraw the assertions in this matter that were submitted by my person to the esteemed Directorate and offer my apologies for any inconvenience I might have caused. 28 Feb. 1887". The courteous preamble concludes a dispute that had nearly cost the ancient grave mounds their existence just two years after the 13 mounds had become scheduled monuments. The owner of the mounds had contacted the Directorate for Preservation of Antiquities asserting that he was under no obligation to preserve the mounds or to leave their surrounding stones in place; he intended to remove and sell the stones. The Directorate notified the owner that the mounds were under no circumstances to be damaged, and cited the preservation order. The owner gave up and made a cordial reply so that the mounds are intact to this day. "