science

Stones of Mora

Stones of Mora is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Stones of Mora rather than just read about it. In short: The Stones of Mora (Swedish: Mora stenar) is a historic location in Knivsta, Sweden. Several Medieval kings of Sweden were proclaimed at the assembly of Mora near modern Uppsala.

Key takeaways

Stones of Mora belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Stones of Mora to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Stones of Mora from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The Stones of Mora (Swedish: Mora stenar) is a historic location in Knivsta, Sweden. Several Medieval kings of Sweden were proclaimed at the assembly of Mora near modern Uppsala. It was moved in the 15th century and was considered to have been lost. However, there are a number of stones of record in a small building in the vicinity of the former assembly site.

Origin of name The Stones of Mora were originally named in singular as Mora sten referring to a stone on which the newly elected king stood after his election. With later monuments in stone commemorating different elections, the name changed to the plural form.

Location Mora Meadow (Mora äng) is located in Lagga parish in Knivsta Municipality about 10 km south-east of Uppsala. The location, which is not associated with Mora town, is at equal distance from the Things of the old folklands Attundaland and Tiundaland. This was the location of Mora Thing, where the Swedish kings were elected.

History

The law of Uppland and Södermanland states: The three folklands, that is Tiundaland, Attundaland and Fjärdhundraland, shall first elect king. Then the election will be sanctioned by the lawspeaker of Uppland and then by all his subordinate lawspeakers in the rest of the kingdom, one by one. The Westrogothic law reminded the Geats that they had to accept this election: Sveær egho konung at taka ok sva vrækæ meaning Swedes have the right of choosing and deposing the king. The detail that the Swedes were not only entitled to elect their king, but that they also had the right to depose him was institutionalized a long time before, as attested by Snorri Sturlason's (died 1241) accounts of Swedish history (the speech of Torgny the Lawspeaker, and the deaths of Domalde, Egil, Aun, and Jorund in the Heimskringla). The location was on the border of a wetland and according to Snorri, five kings had been drowned in this wetland, when the people had been displeased. The newly elected king also had to go on a traditional journey around Sweden (Eriksgata), including the Geatish provinces. It was thus a sort of federation where the king started with his election at Mora Thing and then travelled throughout the kingdom to have the election confirmed by the local assemblies. Beginning in 1362 also representatives from Finland took part in the election. The Stone of Mora and many stones which flanked it with inscriptions commemorating the elections of earlier kings, were probably destroyed in 1515 during a civil war. Kings Gustav Vasa and John III are said to have tried to reconstruct the Stones of Mora without success. The building where the fragments are now contained was constructed by local military officer Carl Wijnbladh (1705- 1768).

Documented elections Magnus III of Sweden was elected at the Stones of Mora in 1275. Magnus IV of Sweden was elected at the stones on July 8, 1319 Albert was crowned here on February 18, 1364 Christian I of Denmark, Norway and Sweden was the last to be elected at Mora in 1457

Knivsta coat of arms

In 2002, in anticipation of Knivsta Municipality (previously part of Uppsala Municipality since 1971) regaining its status of a municipality of its own in 2003, the Swedish state herald designed and registered a coat of arms for Knivsta based on the stone of Mora motif: an open crown over a heraldic trimount.

See also Coronation Stone Germanic king Lia Fáil List of individual rocks Prince's Stone Stone of Scone

References

Other sources Larsson, Mats G. (2013) Mora sten och Mora ting (Fornvännen. Stockholm) Mora sten och Mora stenar: en vägledning till ett märkligt nationalmonument(Stockholm: Riksantikvarieämbetet. 1993) ISBN 91-7192-882-0

Related reading Stefan Brink The creation of a Scandinavian provincial law: how was it done (Historical Research, Volume 86, Issue 233, August 2013, Pages 432–442)

Illustrations

Stones of Mora: Finnish commemorative stamp from 1962 featuring Stones of Mora — Finnish commemorative stamp from 1962 featuring Stones of Mora

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Stones of Mora

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Stones of Mora claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Stones of Mora before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Stones of Mora ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Stones of Mora

In research: Stones of Mora appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Stones of Mora in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Stones of Mora is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 13th century in Sweden, Coronation stones, Germanic paganism, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Stones of Mora outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Stones of Mora in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Stones of Mora means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Stones of Mora out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Stones of Mora in simple terms?

The Stones of Mora (Swedish: Mora stenar) is a historic location in Knivsta, Sweden. Several Medieval kings of Sweden were proclaimed at the assembly of Mora near modern Uppsala.

Why does Stones of Mora matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Stones of Mora?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Stones of Mora.