Dropwort

Burnt tubers of the pink flower dropwort and half a (split) sloe berry stone. Dropwort appears during the Iron Age and Viking Age but it is unsure how it was used. During the Middle Ages and onwards dropwort tubers were ground and mixed into bread, giving it an aromatic flavour. It has also been suggested that they may have been used as a flavouring in beer and mead. The dropwort is a close relative of, and very similar to, the mead wort, which can also be used for this purpose. But in this case it was not the tubers but the flowers that were used. Dropwort is found from time to time in settlements or households even though it is more common and is frequently found in graves. It is found in such concentrations and amounts that it has been interpreted as one of the plants which, together with other raw materials and objects, the deceased would have in the grave with them. The split sloe berry stone bears witness to the consumption of fruit and berries. Settlement find, Arninge, Täby Parish, Uppland..

Image rights: Myrin, Ola/SHM (Creative Commons Erkännande 4.0 Internationell Publik Licens)
Object number: 1189072_HST


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