Archaeologists working high in Norway’s Jotunheimen mountains have uncovered 48 ancient arrows, including a remarkably preserved Stone Age arrowhead complete with fragments of its wooden shaft and traces of prehistoric bindings.
The discoveries have made this year’s field season particularly significant for glacial archaeology in Innlandet, which is marking its 20th anniversary.
During three intensive weeks in the mountains, archaeologists recovered an exceptional collection of artefacts from retreating ice. Many are more than 2,000 years old, while the earliest finds date back more than 6,000 years, spanning both the Stone Age and Bronze Age.
Among the standout discoveries is an approximately 5,000-year-old slate arrowhead found at Langfonne in Jotunheimen.
The finely worked arrowhead was spotted among gravel and pebbles, resting on a large boulder in the scree. What initially appeared to be an impressive isolated find became even more significant when archaeologists discovered that two fragments of the original arrow shaft had also survived.
Thousands of years in the ice have preserved remarkably delicate details. Traces of the bindings and birch bark tar used to secure the stone arrowhead to its shaft remain intact, providing archaeologists with a rare insight into prehistoric hunting technology.
The discovery also unfolded against an appropriate backdrop. As the archaeologists examined the find, a herd of domesticated reindeer gathered on the ice nearby and watched the work.
The unusually early dates of this season’s discoveries are particularly important. As some of the oldest ice in the mountains retreats, artefacts from increasingly distant periods of human prehistory are being exposed.
The relationship is becoming increasingly visible in the field: the oldest ice can preserve the oldest material, meaning its disappearance is revealing traces of human activity that have remained frozen for millennia.
This year’s discoveries therefore tell two intertwined stories. They offer new evidence of people hunting and travelling through Norway’s high mountains thousands of years ago, while also demonstrating how the retreat of mountain ice is changing the archaeological record.
For the researchers in Jotunheimen, the phenomenon is becoming strikingly tangible: the Stone Age is quite literally melting out of the ice.
Sources : Secrets of the Ice
