Reconstructions are research

When 1,800 dead soldiers were interred in the mass graves outside Visby, a large number of objects were buried along with them. Most of these were attached to the dead bodies. This means that we know exactly when the objects were last used and, in many cases, which individual used them and for what purpose.

A large proportion of these objects have not been touched since they were examined in the 1930s. However, thanks to new technology and research we can now learn more about what happened. Reconstructions also teach us how the objects worked and how they were used.

The traces of textiles on some of the artefacts the mass graves are one aspects that has not been investigated previously. So far, only a small proportion of this material has been examined.