[gothic-l] Goths and ships

[Tore Gannholm]

I will answer by giving a conversation from an other e-group:

"Bertil,
I don't know if the archaeological investigations show these migrations as
you mention.


I fully agree with you that a first Gothic migration
took place from Gotland around 300 BC. The reason might have been to
establish forward trading posts to control the amber trade.

There are no visible signs in the archaeological material that a second
migration took place from Östergötland. I was recently on a seminar at
Medelhavsmuseet in Stockholm where the speaker tried to show your point of
view and  spoke about contacts between the Goths and Östergötland. The only
thing he could show was a female grave that contained Gothic artefacts. The
most obvious solution is that there was a Gothic woman that had married
somebody in Östergötland.

On the other hand it is most possible that individuals from the
Scandinavian peninsula have during the centuries that the Goths lived in
the Vistula area settled there. The Goths incorporated many tribes. However
the ruling class seems to have been the original Goths.
>>From the archaeological findings in Gotland we can establish that the
traffic between Gotland and the Goths has been lively all time from the
first migration until the disapearance of the Goths.
Tore

>Tore,
>
>Yes, there is in my personal opinion well founded
>reasons to believe that a first Gothic migration
>took place from Gotland around 300 BC. The
>reason might have been to establish forward trading
>posts to control the amber trade.
>
>A second migration then took place from the
>whole Goetaland area mainly Oestergoetland
>and Vaestergoetland.
>
>The third wave included the Gepids and by now
>a Gothicization started to take place of part
>of the original population in the area.
>
>Thus Jordanes might refer to the second wave
>of migration.under King Berig.
>
>It would be interesting to know your opinion of
>such a chronology?
>
>Gothically
>
>Bertil
>
>> The Swedish professor Oscar Almgren found an emigration from Gotland
>> 200-300 BC. However he could not find where they went. Not until _Schaetze
>> der Ostgoten_ appered could I prove the Gotlandic emigration mentioned by
>> Oscar Almgren be linked with the graves in zone A of the Wielbark culture.
>> When I discuss this standpoint in Sweden it is noticed with favour by
>> academics."


Regards Tore Gannholm




>If the Goths started in Vastergotland and Ostergotland and the island
>of Gotland, how did they get across the Baltic Sea? How certain is it
>that they needed ships? How many winters a century (before the recent
>global warming started) does that part of the Baltic Sea freeze
>across sound enough for the people to walk across?


The Bronze Age is supposed to have had a warmer climate.
The Iron Age was somewhat colder with more rain.
No doubt it would have been possible to walk across,
but is it likely? If it wasn't a habit they had, how could
they for instance have known it was safe, or in what
direction to go? And how many miles is it across?

More likely is that they had ships, especially since
archaeology has discovered advanced ships from the Iron Age
in that region. Also Bronze Age petrographs attest a widespread
cult of ships and shipping in all of Scandinavia.

Keth




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