Norwegian archaeology find of the year: "So well preserved that they appear to have been made yesterday"
The remarkable find was voted 'find of the year' by Norwegian archaeologists.
Antlers bearing cut marks were the archaeologists' most important clues to what the facility was used for.(Photo: Leif Inge Åstveit / University Museum of Bergen / University of Bergen)
Throughout the autumn, archaeologists from the University Museum of Bergen have been excavating a 1,500-year-old mass trapping facility for reindeer on the Aurland Mountain.
On November 15, the remarkable find was voted as find of the year at the Norwegian Archaeology Meeting in Tromsø.
Archaeologist Leif Inge Åstveit is the project leader for the excavation of the mass trapping facility.(Photo: Thomas Bruen Olsen / University Museum of Bergen / University of Bergen)
"Incredibly hectic"
"It feels great that our excavation was chosen as the find of the year," project leader Leif Inge Åstveit tells Science Norway.
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He notes that there have been many fantastic discoveries in Norway this year, so the victory was far from certain.
"This find is extremely sensational. Its level of preservation is unlike anything we usually see, so it’s truly remarkable," says Åstveit.
He describes the massive attention the discovery has generated.
"It's been incredibly hectic. We receive several enquiries from both within Norway and abroad every day. It's been a very unusual experience," says Åstveit.
Archaeologists also found a wooden oar decorated with carved ornamentation.(Photo: Thomas Bruen Olsen / University Museum of Bergen / University of Bergen)
A one-of-a-kind discovery
Archaeologist Erik Kjellmann led this year's Norwegian Archaeology Meeting (NAM).
He believes the find was voted the winner because of its unique nature.
"Never before in Norway have such well-preserved remains of what is likely a wooden trapping facility been uncovered," he says.
Erik Kjellman is an archaeologist at UiT The Arctic University of Norway.(Photo: Jørn Berger Nyvoll / UiT)
Kjellmann says the material already uncovered holds enormous potential for new insight, and that the remaining ice probably conceals even more.
"Such discoveries engage and excite archaeologists, and this probably contributed to the victory," he says.
Kjellman highlights the exceptionally good state of preservation.
"The objects presented at NAM appeared as if they had been made yesterday, that's how well preserved they were. Wood does not survive well in soil, but ice provides near-perfect conditions for preservation over thousands of years," he says.
The road ahead
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Project leader Leif Inge Åstveit says they plan to continue with a dating programme that examines tree rings in the wood to determine the exact age and time of year the trees were felled.
"Other trapping facilities have previously been found in the mountains, but all of them were built of stone. In those cases, there is little for us to work with. But as soon as you find something organic, like wood, completely different analytical possibilities open up," he says. "It will be very exciting going forward."
