Old Uppsala (Gamla Uppsala) was the political and religious heart of pre-Christian Sweden. Three enormous royal burial mounds, dating to the 5th and 6th centuries, rise from the flat farmland a few kilometres north of the modern city centre. This was where the Svear kings held court and where the Norse gods were worshipped at great gatherings.
A small Romanesque church, built in the 12th century -- probably on the site of the old pagan temple -- still stands beside the mounds. It served as the seat of Sweden's first archbishop from 1164 until the see moved south to present-day Uppsala in 1273. The on-site Gamla Uppsala Museum covers the history and archaeology of the site.
Old Uppsala is easily reached by local bus (route 2) from Uppsala city centre, a ride of about 10 minutes. The mounds are open year-round; the museum is open daily in summer and on weekends in winter.