A Boat Journey in Rock Art ‘from the Bronze Age to the Stone Age – from the Stone Age to the Bronze Age’ in Northernmost Europe

Elk Heads at Sea: Maritime Hunters and Long‐Distance Boat Journeys in Late Stone Age Fennoscandia

“…After comparing these element details to the corpus of Fennoscandian rock art and specifically to depictions of boats from the Stone Age, we are interpreting these as representations of elk heads on the upper end of the frontal stem. Carved or painted rock art depicting boats with an elk‐head stem have been recorded in northern Fennoscandia, with a clear eastern emphasis (Gjerde , 399, fig. 283).…”

“…Map of the distribution of elk‐head boats in the rock art of Fennoscandia (red paintings, white engravings) (after Gjerde ). [Colour figure can be viewed at wileyonlinelibrary.com]…”

“…Shoreline radiocarbon data at Vyg by the White Sea and Alta on the Norwegian coast provide the best comparative evidence for dating the Tumlehead boats (cf. Gjerde , figs. 153, 283).…”

“…that some boats either had sculptured wooden elk heads or that they were produced out of dried elk skin with the head mounted on the top of the frontal stem. These boats, especially the larger ones, are interpreted as hide boats similar to the umiaks of Arctic maritime foragers (Gjerde ; Kolpakov and Shumkin ), made by sewing hides onto a light wooden or bone framework. Umiaks are sea‐going vessels with tall frontal stems that make it possible to cut across waves and with light frames that enable longer journeys.…”

“…33; Bakka , fig. ; Gjerde ). On the Hammar IV panel, at least seven porpoises can be identified in association with small boats.…”