Urvaste Ala-Kõrtsi cemetery – a burial site from the 13th century

Abstract

In 2024, trial excavations were carried out at the Urvaste Ala-Kõrtsi cemetery, where a heavily looted burial site was investigated in 2017 and a large number of random finds were collected. This time, four trenches were dug to search for new burial features, and additional detector surveys were carried out. Eight burials were identified in the trenches. The new finds confirm the earlier impression that the burial site originated in the 13th century after the Christianization of Ugandi and that its use generally ended in the second half of the 13th century, although the existence of some 14th-century burials cannot be excluded. The cause of the ceasing of burials is probably connected with the establishment of the parish church and the surrounding cemetery.