Stone penis found in 2,000-year-old grave, photos show. It had an important purpose
Amid a tree-lined field in Sweden, an unusually shaped stone sat partially buried for millennia. The stone had an unmistakable shape — and an important purpose.
Archaeologists were excavating an Iron Age site in Tystberga ahead of railway construction, Mission Archaeology said in a May 22 Facebook post. The site had about 60 graves and several residential structures, a mixture of a cemetery and possibly a settlement.
Sweden’s Iron Age lasted from about 400 B.C. to 1 A.D., according to Britannica.
While examining one of the 2,000-year-old graves, archaeologists found a carved stone penis, Mission Archaeology said in a June 1 Facebook post.
The roughly 18-inch-tall marble stone had several lines etched along the top in a triangle and a ring, archaeologists said. The base of the stone was also carved so that it sat at an angle.
Video footage from SVT, a Swedish outlet, shows the stone penis sitting at an angle.
Archaeologists identified the stone as a tombstone meant to look like an erect penis, the Facebook post said. The tombstone likely marked a man’s grave.
The penis-shaped stone was partially buried in the center of the grave, archaeologists said. A few feet away, the grave contained an egg-shaped stone — likely indicating a woman’s burial.
Tombstones were commonly used in Iron Age burials in Sweden, archaeologists said. Both taller, standing stones and rounded, orb-shaped stones indicated fertility.
The stone penis found in Tystberga surprised archaeologists because of its unusually realistic shape, lead archaeologist Rebecka Jonsson told TV4, a Swedish outlet.
Excavations at the Iron Age site are still ongoing, Mission Archaeology said. Tystberga is in southeastern Sweden and about 55 miles southwest of Stockholm.
Google Translate was used to translate the Facebook posts from Mission Archaeology and articles from SVT and TV4.
This story was originally published June 13, 2023 at 1:24 PM with the headline "Stone penis found in 2,000-year-old grave, photos show. It had an important purpose."
