The Bones of Birka: Unraveling the Mystery of a Female Viking Warrior [Paperback]

How many female Viking warriors does it take to make a fact?

When archaeologist Dr. Charlotte Hedenstierna-Jonson discovers that the bones contained in the most significant Viking warrior grave ever opened are, in fact, female, she and her team upend centuries of historically accepted conclusions and ignite a furious debate around the reality of female Viking warriors and the role of gender in both ancient and modern times.

InThe Bones of Birka, author C. M. Surrisi introduces young readers to the events that led up to this discovery and the impact it has had on scientists’ and historians’ views of gender roles in ancient societies and today. This is the inside account of the Birka warrior grave Bj 581 archaeological endeavor, including all of the dreams, setbacks, frustrations, excitement, politics, and personalities that went into this history-changing discovery.

The finding has raised crucial questions about research bias, academic dialogue, and gender identity.

“This engaging nonfiction book for young adults offers an impartial discussion of the controversial DNA findings for the person in Viking grave Bj 581, and all of the archaeological, historical, and literary fallout that followed it, includinglong-overdue discussions of Viking women, gender, and our biases about people of the past.” —Sebastian Peiter, executive producer and writer ofViking Warrior Women

“The Bones of Birkaby C. M. Surrisiopens up a thousand-year-old Viking grave site and allows us to peer into a mystery. Who was in grave site Bj 581 and why does it matter?Surrisi starts us off with traditional assumptions of the male Viking warrior and his wide-ranging exploits and travels. Given that, the Viking skeleton in Bj 581 surrounded by ancient weapons must be male. More than a hundred years later, a female team of archeologists, anthropologists, osteologisl“%