This summer, archaeologists from Norwegian Institute for Cultural Heritage (NIKU) have carried out several surveys using ground penetrating radar in Iceland. Preliminary results show that the investigations have already been very successful.
Archaeology
Rare rune finds in Oslo
In the last week before Christmas two runic inscriptions were unearthed during excavations in Oslo’s old town. One inscription is carved on bone and this is the first bone with runes found in Oslo in more than forty years. The second is carved on wood and contains a religious text in both Norse and Latin.
A 13th century figure with falcon found in Oslo – but is it a king or a queen?
A small carved figure was recently unearthed during excavation the medieval town of Oslo. The figure depicts a person in robes and crown with a falcon perched on his arm. But is it a king or a queen?
Cultural monuments in Iceland are threatened by volcanoes – NIKU helps secure knowledge
Volcanic activity on the Reykjanes peninsula in Iceland threatens several protected archaeological sites. In recent weeks, NIKU has been working hard together with the Icelandic National Heritage Board (Minjastofnun Íslands) to ensure solid digital documentation of three sites in danger of being covered by lava.
Past, Present, Future: Archaeological Climate Summit in Kiel
The global state of research on social archaeology and climate change it the topic for this years Summit on Social Archaeology of Climate Change (SACC) in Kiel.
Mass grave mystery in Oslo
NIKU's archaeologists have made an exciting find in Oslo - a grave containing three individuals displaying weapon cuts to the head and neck. The individuals may have been combatants in Norway’s civil war (1130-1240).
Scientists stumble upon an unknown grave in Svalbard
But the grave and the story behind it is already disappearing in the fjord.
How Cultural Heritage is threatened by nature and tourists in the Arctic
A group of scientists recently returned from Svalbard after investigating how to monitor, manage and preserve Cultural Heritage in the Arctic.
Are the remains of the Viking king Harald Hardrade under the pavement in Trondheim?
Archeologists have located what appears to be a burial chamber underneath the pavement in a residential area of Trondheim, Norway. They will now examine if this could be the last resting place of the Viking king Harald Hardrade.
Archaeologists Race Against Time to Save Arctic Sites from Climate Change
New journal paper offers first synthesis of climate change effects on Arctic sites.
Call for Papers: Nature and Culture in Medieval Towns
NIKU is pleased to announce the conference ‘Nature and Culture in Medieval Towns’, to be held at Gamle Festsal, University of Oslo in Oslo on 6th-7th of March 2019.
The Secrets of St. Clement’s Church in Trondheim, Norway
A fascinating and complex history of the church has been uncovered, beginning with the original wooden church and leading to a sequence of three major rebuildings, corresponding in time with the transformation from Viking king Olaf to the royal saint St. Olaf of Norway.