By Ilayda Cakirtekin
ISTANBUL (AA) - Archaeologists from the University Museum of Bergen have discovered a 1,500-year-old mass-hunting facility for reindeer on the Aurlandsfjellet plateau in Norway, NRK reported Monday.
Hundreds of hewn wooden logs, believed to be the remains of a large hunting site, were found in and around an ice patch 1,400 meters above sea level.
The most intact part of the site consists of two fences made of wooden posts, which might have guided reindeer into an enclosure built from massive logs, where they were killed.
The discovery could provide new knowledge about how people lived and hunted back in the 6th century.
“It has no parallels. It’s something we haven’t found before. Its state of preservation is unlike anything we’re used to,” researcher and archaeologist Leif Inge Astveit said.
Around the site, a number of other well-preserved objects, such as crafted wooden items and antlers from wild reindeer, have also been found, which may provide more answers about how the hunting took place.
It is still uncertain what function these wooden objects had, but researchers believe they are tools used in connection with the hunt.
"The find opens up entirely new interpretations and understandings of how these facilities functioned in practice. It also offers insight into the broader social significance that reindeer hunting may have had during the Early Iron Age," said Astveit.
The site’s preservation is attributed to a cold period that encased it in ice for more than 1,500 years. As the climate warms, melting ice is now revealing the site.
With glaciers expected to continue disappearing this century, scientists believe more prehistoric finds may emerge in upcoming years.
“It’s exciting to follow the discoveries that are emerging — for example, those related to travel and hunting. But it’s also a sign that the climate is changing, and that we are losing many of our ice patches and glaciers," glacier researcher Liss Marie Andreassen told NRK.