The castle is one of the largest structures of its kind in Scandinavia and the third most important monument of this category in Denmark. The coins were covered in the oldest part of the building, the so-called Tinghuset - house of the judge.
"The finds are consistent with well-known history of the castle and confirm it. Swedish coins clearly testify to the supremacy of the Swedish bishop of Lund, who ordered the construction of the castle in order to facilitate the collection of taxes from the subordinate Bornholm" - told PAP the project leader Janusz Janowski from the 3D Scanners Laboratory of the Institute of Archaeology, University of Warsaw.
However, in the last days of the study, archaeologists found the coin of the King of Denmark - Frederick I from 1524. This corresponds to the period when Hammershus belonged to the Danish crown.
Among more than 200 discovered objects was also a medieval padlock, which according to archaeologists confirmed that treasures had been kept in the castle. In addition, archaeologists also found a medieval dice, ornamented bone plate and a tile fragment with the presentation of a face, imported from the territory of present-day Germany. "All the objects clearly show the wealth and refined taste of the castle residents" - said Janowski.
The archaeologist explained that the object appealing the most to imagination was Swedish cannonball found in the corner of the explored house. "It could have its part in the destruction of the castle. The image of destruction is completed by a large number of crossbow arrowheads" - added Janowski.
At the request of Danish conservators from Copenhagen, Polish archaeologists also documented an inaccessible part of the castle walls using a 3D scanner.
Excavations carried out by the Polish team of researchers have just ended. They started in the beginning of July and will be continued next year.
The construction of the castle began in 1250. Since ancient times, the island and the castle passed from the Swedish to Danish hands and vice versa several times. In 1743 the castle was demolished and part of the building material used to build the fortress on Christianso. During the Thirty Years\' War, Corfitz Ulfeldt and his wife Leonora Christina, half-sister of King Frederick III, were imprisoned in Hammershus. His betrayal and the service to King Charles X of Sweden contributed to Denmark losing the Danish-Swedish war (1643-1645) and signing an unfavourable peace accord in Bromsebro. Stronger Sweden had an open path to the Deluge in 1655.
PAP - Science and Scholarship in Poland
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