Birka and Hovgården

This site from Sweden reminds me that I still have to watch the tv series Vikings, recommended by several friends of mine 

Keys from the Viking Age at Birka

This postcard was sent by Doris

During the Viking Age, on the island of Björkö in present-day Sweden, was an important trading center which handled goods from Scandinavia as well as Central and Eastern Europe and the Orient. Björkö is located in Lake Mälaren, 30 kilometers west of contemporary Stockholm, in the municipality of Ekerö. The archaeological sites of Birka and Hovgården, on the neighbouring island of Adelsö, make up an archaeological complex which illustrates the elaborate trading networks of Viking Scandinavia and their influence on the subsequent history of Europe. Generally regarded as Sweden's oldest town, Birka (along with Hovgården) has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1993. A silver ring from a Viking-era grave in Birka is the first ring with Arabic inscription from that era found in Scandinavia. - in: wikipedia