National Museum of Denmark

The final disappearance of the aurochs ( Bos primigenius ) from Poland in the 17th century marked the culmination of a decline that had begun as early as the Atlantic period. Although human activities primarily drove its extinction, the reasons for its earlier disappearance in Scandinavia remain uncertain. This study investigates the immigration and extinction dynamics of the Scandinavian aurochs during the Holocene. Utilising phylogenetic and palaeogenetic data, we trace its postglacial colonisation from a Western European refugium, delimiting the period of connectivity with the main European population before the land bridge was severed by rising sea levels. Genetic analyses further point to inbreeding and genetic drift, exacerbated by population bottlenecks and geographical isolation, diminishing resilience over time. Population modelling indicates a classic boom-bust pattern correlated with intensified human settlement and hunting. Despite environmental conditions initially permitting persistence amidst increasing forest cover, subsequent habitat loss and human pressures accelerated demographic decline. Our integrated approach indicates that the extinction resulted from a synergistic effect of habitat fragmentation and degradation, genetic depletion, and prolonged anthropogenic pressures. These findings highlight the complex, multifactorial processes underlying species extinction and emphasise the importance of cross-disciplinary methods in palaeoecological research.

This article presents an overview of typical play activities in museums as described in studies on museum play. The studies were encountered through a scoping review methodology, and descriptions of play activities in these studies were analyzed through qualitative and quantitative techniques. Based upon the analysis, four types of museum play activities are presented, namely Puzzles and Games, Pretend and Role Play, Creative and Constructive Play, and Physical and Sensory Play. Furthermore, two spectra on play structure, Social Play and Guided Play, are presented as additional perspectives on the museum play activities. The article aims to enhance our understanding of the conceptualization, development, and evaluation of play in a museum context. Additionally, it seeks to inspire researchers and practitioners to engage in more studies and evaluations concerning audience play in museums.

This study addresses the intrusion of water from hydrogels and cellulose poultices into Danish medieval wall-painting structures, aiming to improve the prediction of gel and poultice treatments in conservation practice. Absorption from poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA)- and agar-based gels, as well as from cellulose poultices, was examined both in situ on medieval wall paintings and in laboratory replicas. Water-absorption dynamics were assessed gravimetrically and monitored using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). The results show that water uptake is markedly reduced when using gels compared with unretained water. Nevertheless, despite substantial reductions, the agar gel and cellulose poultice allowed wetting of almost the entire plaster (7 mm) within 30 min, whereas the PVA gel kept water largely confined to the limewash and the upper plaster layer at that time. With the combined methods, it was demonstrated that the absorption constitutes a dynamic equilibrium between water uptake and further downward transport.

Abstract Sheep husbandry played an important role in the agrarian and textile economies of Late Iron Age Denmark, yet the genetic structure of sheep populations from this period remains poorly understood. In this study, we analyse complete mitochondrial genomes from five Late Iron Age sheep recovered from four Danish archaeological sites dating to the fifth to tenth centuries AD. All sequenced sheep belong to mitochondrial haplogroup B and fall within the B1a lineage, the predominant maternal lineage in European sheep. Each individual represents a distinct haplotype, resulting in high haplotype diversity despite the limited sample size. Population differentiation between Danish ancient sheep and modern reference populations from Fennoscandia and northwest Europe is very low, indicating limited maternal genetic differentiation at the regional scale. Median-joining network analysis further shows that Danish haplotypes are distributed across the broader northern European haplogroup B lineage rather than forming a geographically distinct cluster. These results suggest that Danish sheep populations during the Late Iron Age maintained multiple maternal lineages and were embedded within wider northern European genetic networks. The observed mitochondrial diversity is consistent with sheep husbandry systems that were not restricted to narrow maternal breeding stocks during a period associated with expanding textile production. Highlights Complete mitogenomes from Danish Late Iron Age sheep High maternal diversity within haplogroup B Genetic links between Late Iron Age and modern sheep

The Nordic Bronze Age of South Scandinavia (1700-500 BC) is distinguished by a remarkable abundance of pictorial renderings, as rock art-petroglyphs - and as miniature images on bronzes, both yielding splendid insights into the spiritual and ritual life of that period of Europe's past. Whereas some of the complex motifs of Nordic Bronze Age rock art are considered as renderings of Bronze Age rituals, often held on board ships, the miniature art of the bronze objects forms narratives related to the transempirical facies of religion. The iconographic material yields possibilities of tracing a central mythological complex of Bronze Age religion, the eternal cyclical voyage of the Sun - through all spheres round-and-round, upand-down. During its daily and nightly voyage, the sun is assisted by mythological animals such as the fish, the horse and the snake. Sun-ships, manned with the souls of the dead, the ancestors, connect the animal helpers, securing the movement of the sun. Through illustrative examples of Nordic Bronze Age religious art, from Swedish rock carvings like Sotetorp, and Danish bronze figurines, via the famous "Chariot of the Sun", to images on Danish bronze razors, a strong picture emerges of Bronze Age beliefs and rituals.