Votive offerings in buildings from rural settlements: Folk beliefs with deeper roots

The deposition of votive objects in buildings as an expression of folk belief is a well-known phenomenon in Danish ethnological research. A growing body of archaeological data has provided the opportunity to research these practices. This article presents the different types of votive offerings that have been identified in the archaeological record from Jutland and compares them with those documented by ethnographers in the 19th and early 20th century. It is argued that most ethnographically documented practices have their roots in the past, with some originating in the Iron Age or earlier, while others emerged during the Christian period.