Our multidiciplinary project will approach the research material using different methods. Artefacts will be studied with up-to-date methods like XRF, ICP-MS and SEM. Soil samples are sieved for osteological and archaeobotanical analyses. Radiocarbon (AMS) dates will be applied to put the strongholds into a chronological order. Systematic comparison of finds will be done at international level and according to artefact typologies. In addition to the archaeological record, written sources will be reanalyzed. At sites where ruins are preserved to our days, it is possible to survey and map the remains both above and beneath of the surface. Geophysics, laser scanning and aerial photography are cost-effective and non-destructive methods when finding new information. Even if our focus is on the castles, the surrounding settlements and landscapes will not be neglected, either.
The outcome of the project will be a better understanding of the medieval politics in the area. This allows further discussion about the diversification and consolidation of values in northern Europe during the time when the Swedish Crown and the Grand Duchy of Moscow contributed to the worldview. Today’s political and cultural entity called Finland is the result of these complicate historical processes. On the other hand, a cultural division between Eastern and Western Finland exists until today.