Medieval Finnish Warrior Was Non-Gender Specific, Study Finds

A new study claims to have solved the mystery of non-binary gender evidence at a medieval warrior grave.

In 1968, in the village of Suontaka Vesitorninmäki in southern Finland, a warrior’s grave dated to the 11th century was discovered. The grave contained a woman in a dress and three brooches, along with a massive sword. 

53 years later, it has been subjected to a modern re-analysis which “challenges the traditional beliefs about gender roles in the Iron Age and Early Medieval communities and reveals information about the gender expressions of the period”, reports Phys.org. This grave is now the subject of a radical revisionist study published online by the Cambridge University Press in the reputed European Journal of Archaeology.

The Grave and the Warrior

The region of Häme, where the village is located, is renowned for its numerous archaeological sites and the many swords found there. For many years this particular grave has been seen as clinching evidence of early medieval Finland being a time of powerful women leaders, who appeared to be warriors.