Interpreting archaeological site-formation processes at a mountain ice patch: A case study from Langfonne, Norway

Abstract

In the context of global warming, ice patches are increasingly important foci of high-elevation archaeology. Langfonne in Jotunheimen, central southern Norway, is uniquely suited to provide a window onto site formation processes and taphonomy in this novel archaeological setting. Here the site record from systematic survey includes the largest number of arrows, bones and antlers from a single ice patch worldwide. Combining data from these finds with the results of glaciological investigations provides an opportunity to interpret the influence of archaeological site formation processes and taphonomy on chronological and spatial patterning. It is inferred that the spatial patterning of artefacts at Langfonne is partly a result of displacement by ice movement, meltwater and other natural processes. Nevertheless, the finds yield information regarding past hunting practices and the extent of ice at different times. An early cluster of finds from c.6000 cal yr BP may result from ice deformation which has brought early objects to the surface. The number of arrows increases from c. 1700 cal yr BP onwards, peaking around c.1200 cal yr BP. Artefacts from this period show a wide spatial distribution indicating both the preferential survival of more recent finds and that they were lost when the ice patch was large. Based on comparison with the chronology of natural bone and antler samples from the site, the greater number of finds of this date may also reflect a period of increased hunting.

Matrilineal diversity and population history of Norwegians

“…The importance of marine vessels is reflected in their appearance in early rock art found all over Norway (Ballard et al, 2004; Bjerck, 2012; Ljunge, 2015). While recent archaeological evidence indicates that, by 6180–6680 cal yr BP, people sometimes traveled through the Jotunheimen Mountains that separate the West from the Southeast (Pilø et al, 2020), this travel was likely restricted to the winter months when bogs and streams were frozen over. Ships were also clearly crucial for the Norse expansion during the Viking Age (Østmo, 2003).…”

An inventory of Norway's glaciers and ice-marginal lakes from 2018–19 Sentinel-2 data

“…due to archeological finds that have been numerous on many small bodies since 2006 (e.g. Nesje and others, 2012; Pilø and others, 2021), we decided not to have a higher threshold. A test of ten archeological sites of interest showed that small ice bodies can be mapped with reasonable accuracy using Sentinel-2 images (Andreassen and others, 2020a).…”

High altitude hunting, climate change, and pastoral resilience in eastern Eurasia

“…S3). While downslope specimens exhibit a greater degree of weathering, wide variability in this overall pattern may suggest that localized topographical variations in the scree slope (such the micro-environments described by Pilø et al 4 ) exert a significant influence on taphonomic preservation -with some older objects preserved in low-lying, snow-covered microregions exhibiting better preservation than younger objects. Because of their location downslope, many artifacts may have also been exposed in prehistory, and secondarily transported downslope from an initial location higher on the glacier.…”