Uventede funn med konsekvenser - småskalajordbruk i yngre steinalder på Vestlandet

Noen ganger dukker det opp uventede arkeologiske funn og naturobjekter. Det kan være gjenstander som er altfor gamle, ting fra et sted urimelig langt borte, eller pollen fra planter som ikke skal ha vokst der. Når dette skjer, blinker varsellampene hos fagfolkene og kildekritikken slår inn. Vi leter etter måter å forklare det på, og å finne feilen

Fra enkeltgjenstander til stordata - løsfunn fra steinalder i Hordaland

Etter at Bergens Museum ble etablert i 1825, begynte det å komme inn arkeologiske gjenstander fra distriktene. De var som regel funnet av bønder og jordarbeidere, og var videreformidlet av museets støttespillere, som ofte var forretningsmenn eller prester. Gjenstandene fra steinalder (9500–1800 f.Kr.) var steinøkser, flintdolker eller skiferspyd, og de kom med svært få opplysninger om kontekst eller funnsammenheng. Slike løsfunn var i mange årtier museets eneste materiale

Demographic developments in Stone Age coastal western Norway by proxy of radiocarbon dates, stray finds and palynological data

This paper presents a multi-proxy approach to coastal Stone Age demography. It uses the district Hordaland, western Norway as a case and applies the proxies SPD (summed probability distributions) of radiocarbon dates and stray find distributions. These are compared to pollen-based landscape reconstructions. Large numbers of Stone Age sites have been surveyed and excavated in western Norway during the last few decades, mainly because of modern development and cultural heritage management. This work has produced significant amounts of radiocarbon dates. The data has, until now, not been sufficiently organized and systematized for the purpose of doing research on long-term changes. The same is true for the many stray finds, which are stored at University Museum of Bergen. During the last decades, methodological development in palynology has made compilation of data and new vegetation reconstructions possible. For the first time, these dispersed datasets from the district Hordaland are brought together for comparative purposes, with a specific goal to study relative demographic changes. The hypothesis is that during the Stone Age, demographic change accompanied big cultural transformations in the transition from LM (late Mesolithic) to EN (early Neolithic) c. 5950 cal BP and between MN (middle Neolithic) and LN (late Neolithic) c. 4300 cal BP. This study partly supports the hypothesis, as the changes in the SPD and the stray finds during the transition to the late Neolithic clearly reflect marked population growth, related to the introduction of agriculture, at the same time as the pollen data reveal forest clearance. The LM-EN transition is less clearly connected to demographic change. Generally, up until the transition to the LN, the data indicate that there was gradual demographic growth with marked fluctuations within a forested landscape. Although the proxies sometimes co-vary for the different periods, they may also display conflicting patterns, and this strengthens the argument that a multi-proxy approach to demographic studies is to be recommended.publishedVersio

A multiproxy approach to understanding the impact of the Storegga tsunami upon Mesolithic hunter-fisher-gatherers across different regions of western Norway

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Båtene ved Mostraumen: Bergkunst i grenseland

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Kulturdualisme i vestnorsk jernalder

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Mesolithic Soapstone Line-sinkers in Western Norway: Chronology, Acquisition, Distribution, Function and Decoration

Soapstone sinkers are commonly found at coastal Mesolithic sites in western Norway.The large majority of these sinkers weigh less than 10 g (small sinkers), and a few weigh between 150 and 200 g (large sinkers). They were used between c. 5900–4000 cal BC and have been found at residential sites along the entire coast of western Norway, from Romsdal in the north to Lista in the south. The main area of distribution is between the districts Nordfjord and Nordhordland. Large soapstone sinkers have only been found in Nordfjord. The sinkers were probably quarried by the users themselves in bedrock outcrops of soapstone, which are common in the main area of distribution. They are only found at sites situated in marine environments. The close match between the sizes of the small sinkers, the sizes of fishhooks and the main sizes of the fish caught strongly indicate that they were used as line sinkers for fishing with a rod or for trolling. A few of the sinkers are ornamented with notches or incised lines. These motifs are common among Palaeolithic and Mesolithic populations in a global perspective

Medieval Rockshelters in Western Norway - Activities, Functions and Social Identities

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Fra enkeltgjenstander til stordata - løsfunn fra steinalder i Hordaland

Etter at Bergens Museum ble etablert i 1825, begynte det å komme inn arkeologiske gjenstander fra distriktene. De var som regel funnet av bønder og jordarbeidere, og var videreformidlet av museets støttespillere, som ofte var forretningsmenn eller prester. Gjenstandene fra steinalder (9500–1800 f.Kr.) var steinøkser, flintdolker eller skiferspyd, og de kom med svært få opplysninger om kontekst eller funnsammenheng. Slike løsfunn var i mange årtier museets eneste materiale

Crafting Bone Tools in Mesolithic Norway: A Regional Eastern-Related Know-How

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