Living places at the Varangerfjord
The old residential areas on the Varangerfjord, in the far north-east of Norway above the Arctic Circle near the border with Russia , have been the subject of archaeological research since the 1960s. The Varangerfjord is Norway's easternmost fjord and forms the southern border of the Varanger Peninsula. The entire area in northeastern Norway is called Varanger . It consists of the peninsula, the fjord and its southern shore area ( Sør-Varanger ) and belongs to the province of Troms og Finnmark . Varanger was completely covered by glacial ice during the last ice age. At the end of the Younger Dryas (about 12,500 to 11,500 BC) it became ice-free.
During the Neolithic Gressbakken phase (around 2400–1800 BC) the area was home to hunters and gatherers who lived in semi-subterranean structures in the arctic climate. Archaeological finds suggest that from around 2000 BC There was a high degree of sedentariness and the population density was relatively high.
So far 39 residential places (such as Advik, Bergeby, Gressbakken, Hoybukt, Karleborn and Kalkillebukta) with evidence of up to 30 houses from the Gressbakken phase have been identified on the Varangerfjord and in 1978 a house in Nyelv Nedre Vest was excavated. The Gressbakkenhaus (Eng. "Grashügelhaus"; norweg. Gressbakken hus ) is a residential structure sunk into the ground with fire places inside.
The Gressbakkenwohnplätze form two distinct groups: places on the inner firth and places on the Bodden . The houses along the inner fjord appear to be dug deeper into the ground and more regularly surrounded by extensive køkkenmøddinger ("kitchen rubbish heaps") and numerous artifacts . Most were inhabited year-round, with the highest density in winter and spring when people ate cod, harp seals and migratory birds in the inner fjord. These places were also occupied during the summer, but only a core population seems to have remained on the inner fjord, mainly living on saithe and undomesticated reindeer .
The places on the lagoon were dug shallower into the ground and were primarily inhabited in spring and summer. Pollack and young ringed seals were eaten here. Most of these places were abandoned during the winter months.
The artefacts at Varangerfjord consist of reindeer bones and antlers , from which all equipment directly related to fishing and hunting, such as fish hooks , harpoons and arrowheads , but also awls , daggers , chisels and scrapers were made. Decorative objects such as figurines, combs or pearls were made from seal bones.
literature
- Samuli Helama, Bryan C. Hood: Stone Age midden deposition assessed by bivalve sclerochronology and radiocarbon wiggle-matching of Arctica islandica shell increments. In: Journal of Archaeological Science. Vol. 38, No. 2, 2011, ISSN 0305-4403 , pp. 452-460, doi : 10.1016 / j.jas.2010.09.029 .
- Lisa Hodgetts: Subsistence diversity in the Younger Stone Age landscape of Varangerfjord, northern Norway. In: Antiquity. Vol. 84, No. 323, 2010, ISSN 0003-598X , pp. 41-54, doi : 10.1017 / S0003598X00099750 .
- Eulàlia Sanjaume, Jon Tolgensbakk: Raised beach forms and evidence of submarine permafrost on the Varanger Peninsula, North Norway. In: Journal of Coastal Research. Special Issue 49, 2005, ISSN 0749-0208 , pp. 3–8, ( digital version (PDF; 1.59 MB) ).
Web links
Coordinates: 70 ° 2 ′ 38.5 ″ N , 29 ° 30 ′ 23.5 ″ E