In 1941, Brøndsted invited Dyggve to take part in archaeological excavations near Jelling, a place that had for centuries been a centre of archaeological research in Denmark. Each new excavation had added new insights to the story about Viking Age kings, and Brøndsted wished to bring new disciplinary perspectives into play, not least Dyggve’s analytical eye for the connection between buildings, landscape and rituals.

The southern Jelling mound had previously been excavated by the archaeologist Jens Jacob Asmussen Worsaae (1821–1885), but the burial place of King Gorm the Old remained unknown. When Brøndsted reached out to Dyggve, there was a real fear that the German occupiers might undertake their own excavations. Thus, Brøndsted felt that it was time for a Danish-led study of the southern royal mound and the church.

Dyggve came to Jelling with an international career behind him. Trained at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts, he was known for his studies of late antiquity and early Christian architecture.

Excavations in Salona (now Solin), near Split in present-day Croatia, with Brøndsted and Frederik Weilbach (1863–1937) during the 1920s had bolstered his reputation as a skilled analyst of temple complexes and urban structures, and his publications from the project demonstrated his ability to make accurate drawings, registrations and interpretations of architectural structures in archaeological finds.

In Jelling, these abilities proved crucial. The excavations showed that there was no grave in or under the southern mound. However, Dyggve was able to describe the structure of the mound in unprecedented detail. The discovery of extensive wooden structures and traces of the tools used in their construction revealed that the mound was an advanced feat of engineering by ancient craftsmen and builders.

Dyggve’s theoretical work had a lasting influence on the understanding of the Jelling site. His analyses of the construction of the mound showed that this was a technically advanced and carefully planned structure, not just a simple sepulchral monument.

Furthermore, his analyses of cultic layers and landscaped structures suggested that Jelling should be viewed as a single royal site, where mounds, church and stones erected by King Gorm and his son Harald were all part of a deliberate effort to convey dynastic continuity.

As Johannes Brøndsted later pointed out, Dyggve was one of the first to view Jelling as more than individual archaeological finds buried in the ground. The monuments should not just be described but also read – as visible markers of power, ritual and royal prestige.

With his thorough documentation and holistic grasp, Dyggve introduced a new way of approaching Jelling that has shaped our understanding ever since: as a coherent complex, where architecture and landscape were used to tell the story of monarchy, religion and the continued supremacy of a royal dynasty in Denmark’s transition from paganism to Christianity.

Overall, Dyggve’s work in Jelling became a turning point in the understanding of the site’s historical significance. Later generations of researchers have built on his documentation and analyses, and the excavations from the 1940s form a mainstay of the knowledge that led to the inclusion of the Jelling monuments on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1994.

The chapter is written by Sarah Von Essen.