Reflections on Jørgen Jensen: The Prehistory of Denmark

In the Danish version, Jørgen Jensen’s Prehistory of Denmark is presented as the continuation of an archaeological tradition going back to 1843. Jensen’s work is the fourth, and what is common to these archaeological descriptions of our past is that they discuss our Danish origin and identity, rela...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Ole Høiris
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Editorial Board of DJA 2015-11-01
Series:Danish Journal of Archaeology
Subjects:
Online Access:https://tidsskrift.dk/dja/article/view/124894
Description
Summary:In the Danish version, Jørgen Jensen’s Prehistory of Denmark is presented as the continuation of an archaeological tradition going back to 1843. Jensen’s work is the fourth, and what is common to these archaeological descriptions of our past is that they discuss our Danish origin and identity, related to the worldview of Romanticism, and reflect the most important issues at the time of their publication. The background is that Denmark was reduced to a very small state during this period, that Danes migrated to the area after the Ice Age, and that we have lived on the periphery of cultural evolution and civilisation. By presenting his predecessors’ reflections on such issues, I analyse aspects of Jensen’s work from this perspective.
ISSN:2166-2290