Norse Church Remains Unearthed Near Erik the Red's Greenland Estate
In southern Greenland, the discovery of a human skeleton at a stone-walled site has enabled archaeologists to identify a Norse church, marking the first such finding in over sixty years. Excavated in August, the burial's orientation indicates a Christian arrangement from the early Middle Ages. Co-leader of the dig, Christian Edelfelt Koch Madsen, referred to the skeleton as "the smoking gun" that confirms the building's purpose. Researchers had previously noted a rectangular stone wall in the early 2000s and returned in 2025, uncovering charcoal and a decomposed bone. The site, located near Narsarsuaq and Brattahlíð, Erik the Red's estate, dates between 1100 and 1300 C.E. Madsen remarked that these churches reflect competition for religious authority. Norse settlers arrived around 985 C.E. and disappeared by the early 15th century.
Key facts
- A human skeleton indicating a Norse Christian burial was excavated in August at a stone-walled site in southern Greenland
- The burial's east-facing head and arms-at-sides position suggests interment during the early Middle Ages
- Researchers suspect the church was built between 1100 and 1300 C.E. based on hewn-stone construction and size
- It is the first Norse church found in Greenland in more than 60 years
- The site lies about three miles from Brattahlíð, Erik the Red's estate, near the town of Narsarsuaq
- Six churches have been identified around Brattahlíð, likely built by competing wealthy farmers or landlords
- The site may correspond to the 'Church Under the Sunny Mountains' named in the Icelandic Flateyjarbók
- Norse settlers arrived in Greenland around 985 C.E. and disappeared in the early 15th century
Entities
Artists
- Erik the Red
- Christian Edelfelt Koch Madsen
- Konrad Smiarowski
- Jonathan Bennett
- Trine Jonassen
- Tim Folger
- Sarah Kuta
Institutions
- National Museum of Denmark
- University Museum of Bergen
- Greenland National Museum and Archives
- Smithsonian magazine
- Viking Herald
- High North News
Locations
- Greenland
- Narsarsuaq
- Brattahlíð
- Iceland
- Norway
- Denmark
- Bergen
- Longmont
- Colorado
- United States
- North Pole