Migration Period
between Odra and Vistula

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64. Internationales Sachsensymposion – 7-11 September 2013, Paderborn

2013.09.15 -

64. Internationales Sachsensymposion – 7-11 September 2013, Paderborn (Westphalia)

"Dying Gods – Traditional beliefs in northern and eastern Europe in the time of Christianisation"

This major European conference was attended by four members of MPOV Project Team: A. Bursche, B. Kontny, M. Mączyńska and J. Schuster, the first researchers from Poland to participate as official members of Internationales Sachsensymposion following the appointment in May 2012 of the Polish Section and election to the Sachsensymposion board of three of its representatives: Aleksander Bursche, Adam Cieśliński and Marzena Przybyła. This year’s conference was held in Paderborn in Westphalia (photos 1-4), now a small town, formerly a major centre of Christianity of the Carolingian Age (http://www.paderborn.de/microsite/welcome/index.php). The symposium was accompanied by a memorable exhibition Credo – Christianisierung Europas im Mittlealter (http://www.credo-ausstellung.de/), with a dedicated catalogue of two volumes weighing over 7 kg! (http://www.credo-ausstellung.de/ausstellungskatalog). Among objects on display there were some artifacts from the collections of a number of institutions in Poland.

The conference was attended by close to 100 researchers (photo. 5) from western Europe and Scandinavia, especially from Germany, Great Brittan Denmark and Benelux who presented over 30 papers. The conference was preceded by a workshop dedicated to the role of DNA studies in archaeology. MPOV Project Team members M. Mączyńska and B. Kontny presented a paper on a 5th century nomad (?) inhumation grave discovered at Juszkowo in northern Poland, and A. Bursche reported on “Maestro project: Migration Period between Odra and Vistula”.

During the symposium a trip was organized to the church and castle Krukenburg (photos 6 and 7), to Helmarshausen Abbey, Kassel (photo. 8), the Imperial Abbey at Corvey (photos 9 and 10) and Externsteine rock pillars in Teutoburg Forest, Lippe (photos 11-16).

The theme of the upcoming 65. Symposium to be held in Warsaw 13-16 September 2014 are interregional issues and international research: long distance contacts and migrations, Roman Period through to the Middle Ages, in the North Sea and Baltic Sea region; the future venues of the Symposium include Leipzig, Antwerp and Canterbury.