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Vestvågøy - 40
Bøstad - Courtyard

Site/Artefact Bøstad farm number 92 Type Courtyard Site Number Nr. 15 NGO Grid Reference 23275,8 1142464,0 List of Sites and Artefacts Click Here Interactive Map Click Here

Description
Plan drawing illustrating the Bøstad Ring-formed Courtyard.

The Courtyard was identified by Johansen in 1974, but it was known earlier locally. Today the site remains are visible as 4 kinds of house foundations, situated next to each other in a half oval formation. The surrounding area indicates remains of several house foundations, destroyed by modern activity.

Localisation: The site is situated close inner Borg fjord in outlaying fields, about 75 m away from the sea. Borge Church lies 800 m towards SW. The Iron Age farm at Bøstad lies just beneath the mountain area about 1 km to the W. Two huge boathouse sites (over 15m long, see also boathouse sites nr. 15) are situated between 150-300 m NE of the Courtyard. According to Johansen, the size of the Courtyard has parallels with the Courtyard localised at the nearby Island, Gimsøy.

National Registrations of the Courtyard in 1978 gave following measures:

• In Eastern area:
  • House site, 8-9 x 6-7m (outer measures)
• In the wall area of site nr. 1, to the east:
  • House site, 9-9 x 7-8m (outer measures)
• In the wall area of site nr. 2, to the east:
  • House site, 7-8 x 3m (inner measures)
• In the wall area of site nr. 3, to the east:
  • House site, 7 x 3m (inner measures)

It is hard to localise more foundations at the surface, but the Courtyard was probably covering a larger area. Situated further north, 4 smaller pits have been localised: 0, 5- 1,75 m in diam, 0,3-0,4 m deep. Such pits could represent cooking pits.

Dating: Neither the site at Bøstad nor Gimsøy has been excavated, but investigations from parallel sites in Northern Norway, their shape and size (like the sites at Leknes, Bø and Åse) indicate Early Iron Age dating (Johansen 1978).

Excavation Details
Not Available

Access/Ownership
Private property

References

• Olav Sverre Johansen 1978: De nordnorske tunanleggene fra jernalderen, i Viking, National (Economic) registrations, Topographical Archive, Museum of Tromsø

Check out the following sections of the website for related information:

• Court sites

Vestvågøy Sites and Artefacts

1. Borg 2. Buksnesfjorden 3. Bøstad 4. Eggum 5. Einangen 6. Eltoft 7. Holsneset 8. Holsøya 9. Kvalnes 10. Moland 11. Nykmark 12. Skjerpen 13. Trollsteinen 14. Uttakleiv 15. Vendalsjord 16. The Stone Crosses 17. Malnes 18. Borg Burial Mounds 19. Borg Burial Mounds 20. Borg Roman House Site 21. Borg House Remains I:Ia 23. Borg I:Ib 24. Borg House Remains 25. Borg - Midden

26. Borg House Site 27. Borg House Sites 28. Borg Farm Ruins 29. Borg Medieval Sites 30. Borg Burial Mounds 31. Borg Possible Settlement 32. Borg Medieval House Site 33. Borg Boat Houses 34. Burial Mound 35. Burial Mound 36. Borg Burial Mound 37. Borg Modern Church 38. Bøstad Burial Cairn 39. Bøstad Removed Burials 40. Bøstad - Courtyard 41. Boat House and Burial 42. Bøstad House Sites 43. Bøstad Farm Mound 44. Rystad Boat Houses 45. Rystad Burial Mound 46. Burial and Farm Mound 47. Rystad Burial Mound 48. Rystad - Burials 49. Rystad Burial Cairn 50. Handberg Charcoal-Pits

51. Handberg Farm Mound 52. Handberg Charcoal Pit - 1 53. Handberg Charcoal Pit -2 54. Handberg Charcoal Pit - 3 55. Handberg Charcoal Pit - 4 56. Handberg Charcoal Pits 57. Handberg Charcoal Pit 58. Vendalsjord 59. Lie Burial Mound 60. Lie Boat House 61. Lie 62. Løvdal 63. Borgfjord Indre 64. Sletteng 65. Borgfjord Ytre 66. Ytre Borgfjord - Burial 67. Borgfjord Ytre 68. Ytre Borgfjord 69. Borgfjord Ytre 70. Hagvåg Boat House 71. Hagvåg Burial Mound 72. Hagvåg Bridge Construction 73. Evjen Farm Mound

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