Where land meets the sea/Seal, kus merest saab maa.

Magi, Marika

Where land meets the sea, we see a coast, and this special issue is dedicated to that area. Where such an area, bordering both the salty sea and the dry land, was used by man sometimes during thousands of years, it is possible to find traces of their activities, of their buildings and graves once erected in this borderland, and with tracks leading from land to building constructions in one-time harbours. Summing up, together they form a system that we understand as a cultural landscape. Behind coastal regions may lay connected and far-stretching hinterlands, also embracing agrarian landscapes possibly kilometres away from the waterline. The extent of a maritime cultural landscape is however conditioned by topographic, cultural and political conditions of the specific area in question. A special role in this is definitely played by the existence or lack of navigable waters, starting from the basically local ones until internationally relevant trade routes.

The current special issue has its source in the research project Where Land Meets the Sea. Maritime Cultural Landscapes in Prehistoric and Medieval Estonia (grant No 6998 of Estonian Science Foundation). Three of the four articles are based on papers presented at the international seminar on the same subject in Tallinn and on Saaremaa Island in October 2006. Thus a comparatively broad geographical range of subjects was discussed. Along with articles shedding light on maritime landscapes on respectively the neighbouring Danish, Swedish and Estonian coasts, also the eastern part of England is represented.

The first article is written by David Petts. He is discussing maritime cultural landscapes on the coast of Northumbria, with a special stress on the role of buildings of religious worship as well as profane buildings played in the formation of them. The period he treats, the 8th and 9th century, antedates the Conversion in the northern lands around the Baltic Sea by some centuries; however, similar criteria in the choice of locating Christian places of worship in coastal areas seems to be relevant also here. The closest example in Estonia is probably St Birgitta monastery in today's Pirita, erected on a site, already important as a harbour or as an approach to a riverside harbour, further upstream from the estuary since the Bronze Age; the existence of the former was intertwined with medieval Tallinn only few kilometres away along the coast.

The article of Soren Sindbaek takes into consideration three important ancient coastal sites in southern Scandinavia, whose principles of location enable him to differentiate three settlement types on maritime cultural landscapes. Sindbaek's research constitutes broader generalizations: he suggests criteria for making a distinction between coastal settlements with open access, nodal points on changing points of topographical conditions, and central places that relay predominantly on their hinterlands.

A harbour site of much more local character has been treated in the article of Marika Magi. Big-scale trade harbours, emporia, were not spread in the Viking Age or Late Iron Age Estonia; the coast here was however scattered with smaller harbour sites of district or regional importance. One of these--Viltina on the southern coast of the Island of Saaremaa--may be interpreted as a site of assembly, such as a moot or karaja and at least partly of ritual character.

The article of Peter Norman concentrates on the formation of maritime cultural landscape in the archipelago of Sodermanland, with a special interest on how the social system influenced these processes. The coastal settlements treated in the article were almost entirely small-scale seasonally occupied fishing camps on small islands of the outer archipelago. These islands and islets were never inhabited. Even the islands nearest to the mainland did not see any permanent settlement before the Middle Ages, although they were taken into use long before this.

Articles in our special issue discuss places and landscapes of a long range of usages and significance to society. Perhaps it is unwise to draw any direct comparisons between big-scale central coastal settlements in southern Scandinavia with small-scale seasonal fishing camps some hundred kilometres further north. Regardless of their obvious differences, both kinds of communities rendered their specific imprints on the physical formation pattern of the maritime cultural landscape. It is our hope that the present special issue may point out some of the regularities behind the formation of the maritime cultural landscape surrounding us today.

Kus merest saab maa, on rannik, ja just rannaaladele ongi kaesolev erinumber puhendatud. Kohtades, kus mere ja maa piiriala on olnud inimese poolt intensiivses kasutuses--vahel juba tuhandeid aastaid -, on aeg jatnud maapoue kunagisest tegevusest rohkesti jalgi neile aladele pustitatud ehitistest ning kalmetest, teedest ja sadamarajatistest, mis kokku moodustavad susteemi, mida voib nimetada kultuurmaastikuks. Kuigi rannaalad voivad vahel vagagi kaugele ulatuva tagamaaga seotud olla, holmates kindlasti ka veepiirist isegi kilomeetreid eemale jaavat agraarmaastikku, soltub merendusliku kultuurmaastiku ulatus konkreetsetest looduslikest, kultuurilistest ja poliitilistest teguritest. Oma roll on siin kahtlemata veeteedel: alates kohaliku tahtsusega teedest kuni suurte rahvusvaheliste kaubateedeni valja.

Tegemist on projekti "Maa mere aares. Merenduslik kultuurmaastik Eestis muinas- ja keskajal" (Eesti Teadusfondi grant nr 6998) raames kokku pandud artiklikogumikuga. Erinumbri neljast artiklist kolm on kirjutatud 2006. aasta oktoobris Tallinnas ja Saaremaal toimunud samateemalise rahvusvahelise seminari ettekannete pohjal. Sellest tingitult on ka kogumiku geograafiline haare vordlemisi lai. Lisaks artiklitele Eesti, Rootsi ja Taani merenduslikust kultuurmaastikust on esindatud ka Inglismaa.

Kogumiku esimene artikkel parinebki inglise arheoloogi David Pettsi sulest. Artiklis on kasitletud merenduslikku kultuurmaastikku Northumbria rannikul ja sakraal- ning profaanehitiste rolli selle kujundamisel. Holmatav periood, 8.-9. sajand, jaab kull monisada aastat varasemaks kui kristianiseerimine pohjapoolsetes Laanemere maades, kuid rannaaarsete sakraalehitiste asukohavalikus voib siingi taheldada keskaja osas tendentse, mis sarnanevad Pettsi poolt kirjeldatutega. Eestimaalt voib siinkohal naiteks tuua Pirita kloostri pustitamise kohta, millel oli ilmselt kas sadamana voi sissepaasuna sadamasse tahendus juba alates pronksiajast ja mille eksistents oli tihedalt labi poimunud vaid mone kilomeetri kaugusel asuva keskaegse Tallinnaga.

Praegu Yorki ulikoolis tootav taani arheoloog Soren Sindbaek on vaatluse alla votnud kolm kunagi olulise tahendusega sadamakohta Louna-Skandinaavias, eristades nende pohjal merenduslikul kultuurmaastikul kolm erifunktsioonilist asulakohatuupi. Sindbaeki uurimus pretendeerib laiemale uldistusele, pakkudes valja kriteeriumid, eristamaks sadamakohti, mille suurimaks vaartuseks voib pidada avatud ligipaasu, nendest, mida voiks nimetada solmpunktideks looduslike olude muutumiskohal. Samuti tahab Sindbaek eristada sadamakohti kesksetest sadamatest, mille funktsioon tugineb eeskatt tagamaale.

Hoopis kohalikuma funktsiooniga sadamakohast on juttu Marika Magi artiklis. Suured kaubasadamad emporia'd polnud viikingiaja lopu voi 12. sajandi Eestile ilmselt veel iseloomulikud, kill aga leidus siinsel rannikul hulgaliselt vaiksemaid, piirkondliku voi regionaalse tahendusega sadamakohti. Uht sellist--Viltinat Saaremaa lounarannikul--voib mitmete naitajate pohjal tolgendada kui vahemalt osalise rituaalse tahendusega kogunemis- voi karajakohta.

Rootsi arheoloogi Peter Normani artiklis on keskendutud merendusliku kultuurmaastiku kujunemisele Sodermanlandi saarestikus ja selle seosele uhiskondliku korraldusega. Artiklis kasitletud mereaarsed asulakohad vaikestel valissaarestiku saarekestel olid eelkoige kalastuslaagrid, mida kasutati vaid hooajaliselt. Seal ei tekkinud kunagi pusivat asustust ja ka mandrile lahedasemad saared asustati alles keskajal, kuigi neid kasutati kahtlemata ka varem.

Kogumiku artiklites on kasitletud kohti ja maastikke, mis omal ajal olid ilmselt vaga erineva tahtsusega. Louna-Skandinaavia kaubasadamaid--keskusi--oleks otseselt raske vorrelda vaikeste hooajaliseks kalastamiseks moeldud laagrikohtadega monisada kilomeetrit pohja pool. Suski on nii uhed kui ka teised vordvaarsed komponendid mustris, mis moodustab merendusliku kultuurmaastiku. Monedest selle mustri seadusparasustest annab loodetavasti aimu ka kaesolev erinumber.