 In this paper I will discuss rituals related to settlement expansion and the transformation of the landscape during the late Bronze Age and pre-Roman Iron Age in southwest Norway. The focus would be on a recently excavated stone cairn located at Sømme near Stavanger. There are no indications of the cairn being a grave, but it was still a complex construction and contained a variety of objects. The composition of the cairn and the different objects can both be associated with transformations. During the late Bronze Age and the pre-Roman Iron Age, the coastal region of southwest Norway was an extensive agricultural landscape with numerous farms, fields and grazing areas. Scattered around in the landscape were also several monumental rain mounds and rock carvings with typical Bronze Age motifs, particularly ships. This landscape was the result of a wide range of activities and a distinct increase in settlement. Where established farms expanded and new land was cleared to facilitate farming, grazing and the construction of settlement. This transformation process started in the late Neolithic but accelerated throughout the Bronze Age and in the beginning of the pre-Roman Iron Age Heathland dominated the landscape along the coast. The stone cairn at Sømme had a central location within this cultural landscape, situated between Havarsfjord in the northeast and the North Sea in the west. Polyneanalysis showed that the immediate surroundings were used for pasture in the late Neolithic and throughout most of the Bronze Age. For short period at the beginning of the pre-Roman Iron Age, parts of the area were also cultivated. The nearest contemporary farms were situated on high ground, only 500 meters from the cairn. Prior to the excavation the cairn was sealed by massive layers of turf and Aeolian sand, creating very good preservation conditions. The cairn had an oval shape and was almost 11 meters long and 4 meters wide. After the removal of the top layer of stones, two adjacent stone settings were uncovered. One of the stone settings took its shape from a small mound made out of clay and silt. This was covered with stones and some of these can be characterized as stone slabs. In the eastern part of the mound a large rounded stone was placed in an upright position. Between the stones in the center of the mound was a piece of a red-deer mandible and at the edge we found a collection of seashells, mainly oysters, cockles and clams. In different parts of the stone layer were also two grinding stones and a delicately crafted 20 centimeter long wooden object of unknown function. The other stone setting had a more flat and circular shape and was bounded by two large boulders to the north. At the bottom there was a stone slab platform and between the stones in the platform we found a red-deer antler. None of the objects found in the cairn can be dated typologically. Radiocarbon dating reveals however that the cairn was created over a period of at least 200 years. The stone slab platform seems to have been made in the late Bronze Age while the small mound was added to the construction in the pre-Roman Iron Age. The stones which covered the two stone settings were probably put there at the same time as or shortly after the creation of the mound. The cairn at some has several similarities with graves from other parts of Scandinavia dated to the late Bronze Age and pre-Roman Iron Age regarding both the complex construction and several of the objects found in the cairn. However the lack of human remains make the interpretation of the cairn as a grey difficult. The preservation conditions were so good that human bones should have survived regardless whether or not the disease was cremated. Most likely the cairn functioned as a sacred place perhaps an altar which was constructed over time through repeated rituals. Throughout the settlement expansion especially during the late Bronze Age and the pre-Roman Iron Age former forests and outfield areas were rapidly transformed into farms fields and grazing areas. The landscape during this period is often referred to as floating or fluctuating since households had to re-establish the farm and rebuild the house every generation. This system can be seen within many settlement areas in southwest Norway where generations of late Bronze Age and pre-Roman Iron Age houses have been recorded. Several of the objects found in the cairn at Sønna can also be related to different transformations. For instance through grinding seeds and grains are transformed from their natural state to a cultural product. Grinding stones are frequently found in ritual contexts in houses and at settlement sites and they are usually associated with fertility and reproduction. Grinding stones also occur in graves where they are related to the transformation of the dead and the decomposition of the body. Seashells can have a similar meaning when found in graves since they may represent the sea and the disease transformation and regeneration through water. The red there can also be a symbol of transformation. This animal has its natural habitat in the forest but it also thrives in an open landscape and to a certain point both agriculture and grazing may improve feeding opportunities for red there. Since the red there can appear in different landscapes the animal could have operated as a mediator who transcendent the boundaries between the domestic landscape and the wild. During this it's 200 years of use the current summer went through several changes and transformations and this might reflect some sort of a narrative. It is difficult to read this narrative but it seems that the red there was significant since the animal is present in both the oldest and the youngest face of the current. In both faces the head which is the most characteristic and vital feature of the animal has been the focus of the rituals. Stone slabs are also common feature within the current. In Bronze Age grays such stones were used to create rooms and boundaries which again were important elements in the transformation of the dead. Similar ideas could also apply to the current at summer and both the chronological and compositional differences within the current may reflect the beginning and an end in a narrative. The youngest element of the current the stones that cover the two stone settings seems to be the final stage in a course of events and most likely the covering marks an end to the rituals. Many of the objects found in the current at summer have an intrinsic duality. The red there crosses barriers between different landscapes. The seashells have their habitat in the intertidal zone and the grinding stones transform grains and seeds into food. A similar duality can be found in the Bronze Age and pre-Roman urban age landscape. The current was created in a culture in the cultural landscape where people lived and performed their daily work. However this was not a unified landscape and it was in constant transformation through clearance and settlement expansion. A consequence of these actions could be that the balance between gods and humans was put in danger and to prevent chaos the people performed rituals and offerings in the transformed landscape. By using objects with an innate duality as we can see at summer it became easier to restore the imbalance and since the transformation of the landscape was a continuous process the rituals had to be repeated several times. In the middle of the pre-Roman Iron Age the rituals at summer ended. We don't know why but the rituals could have become redundant, changed form or been moved to another place. However it is also possible that the people were forced to give up due to nature transforming the landscape. Shortly after the stone layer was placed on top of the two stone settings a thick layer of Erolian sand covered the area. The sand lift was quite substantial and as a consequence the nearest farm was abandoned. This part of part of southwest Norway is very exposed to Erolian activity because of the topography and the presence of several nearby beaches. However the main reason for the sand lift in the pre-Roman Iron Age was human impact on the landscape and the vegetation. The combination of settlement expansion, significant deforestation and increased grazing throughout the Bronze Age destroyed natural vegetation barriers and caused heavily erosion of the soil which in turn facilitated the sand lift. Today it's a bit ironic to see that despite the repeated offerings to keep a balance in the transformed landscape chaos and destruction have become predominant because of human influence on the landscape. Thank you.