Vikingeborgen Trelleborg
The construction and measurements
The Construction
The design of Trelleborg is based on geometry and symmetry. The
layout shows that the builder had the ‘four corners of the world’
marked out in the circular fortress great accuracy. The inner street
system meets in a right-angled cross and connects the four gates.
Within the circle, four identical blocks consisting of four houses
forming a square are situated in each quadrant. In the second phase
of the building, the bridge and 15 houses on the bailey are added
from outside of the rampart. The whole installation covers an area
of six hectares which is equivalent to 12 football pitches.
Measurements
The degree of precision in the structure is so great that there can
be no doubt that a fixed unit of measurement was used. The so-called
‘Trelleborg ell’, which is 49.3 cm, has been uncovered on the basis
of an analysis and computerprocessing of the excavation drawings
from Trelleborg. Before this, the excavators presumed that a
shortened version of the ‘Roman ell’ was used. The relationship
between the two units of measurement is 12 to 10, so that the 12
‘Trelleborg ells’ equals 10 ‘Roman ells’.
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| Siden opdateret: 6. oktober 2010