TRADITIONAL FOREST ACTIVITIES IN NORWAY,31.3.2008

Cultural monuments in forests and outfields; many signs of human activity:

Questions:

Are any objects moreimportant than others?(and for whom?)

Which of them are mostinteresting for ”commonpeople”?

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”Older”stoneage

”Younger”stoneage

Paleolithic(2 mill –8000 B. C.)

Mesolithic

Neolithic

Bronzeage

Ironage

Middle ages Cool andhumidclimate

Warm anddry climate

Warm andhumidclimate

Warm anddry climate

Cool anddry climate

Spruce

Oak(Scots pine

in mountains)

Oak (Oslo).Alder, elm,ash, linden.Scots pine +birch in north

Scots pine.Hazel, grey

alder

Birch.Sallow,aspen

600 BD 800 AD 1537 1985

IMMIGRATION OF SPRUCE IN NORWAY

Pollen grains from different layers and from different species can be used toanalyze what time periods ”objects” stem from. In addition:C14, form, size etc.

Stone Age

Iron Age

Bronze Age

Middle Ages

CULTURAL MONUMENTS - TIME PERSPECTIVE

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Paleolithic(2 mill –8000 B. C.)

Mesolithic

Neolithic

Stoneage

Most human tools preserved from that era made ofstone (+ wood and animal parts). Almost completeunavailability of metal (except gold).

STONE AGE

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Bronzeage

BRONZE AGE

Time period Northern Europe: 1800 – 550 BD.

Started when humans made tools from bronzeinstead of stone.

Included techniques for smelting copper and tinores to bronze.

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Ironage

IRON AGE

Norway: 500 BD – 1050 AD. Divided into:Old iron age:

- Pre-Roman iron age 500 BD – 0- Roman iron age 0 – 400 AD- Migration period 400 – 550 AD

Young iron age:- 550 – 1050 AD(- Viking time period 800 – 1050 AD)

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Norway: 1050 - 1537- Early Middle Ages 1050 (1066?) - 1184 - High Middle Ages 1184 - 1319- Late Middle Ages 1319 – 1537 (Reformation)

Europe in 1328

”MODERN TIMES” (1537 -)

Ironworks

Paper production

Act of 9. June 1978 No 50 Concerning the Cultural Heritage

§ 3: No person shall, (…) initiate any measure which is liable to damage,destroy, dig up, move, change, cover, conceal or in any other way undulydisfigure any monument or site that is automatically protected by law …

§ 4: The following monuments and sites earlier than AD 1537 are automaticallyprotected: settlement sites, traces of industry, traces of land cultivation, roadsand tracks, defences, cult sites, inscriptions on stones, standing stones andmonuments, stone settings, burials of any kind etc.§ 6: Security zone (5 meters from visible parameter …)

FOREST AVTIVITIES – EXAMPLES

1. Cultural monuments older than from 1537 AD protected by law in Norway.2. How old are they? (or: is after/before the year 1537 very important?)3. How about the younger monuments?4. How do ”common people” experience automatically protected or not?

Forests and outfields in Northern Europe have a lot of cultural monumentsfrom different time periods. How many are registrated, and by who?

Stone age site Burial

THE NEED FOR REGISTRATION – OFFICIAL DATABASE

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PaleolithicPaleolithic(2 mill –(2 mill –8000 B. C.)8000 B. C.)

MesolithicMesolithic

Neolithic

Bronzeage

Ironage

Middle ages Pitfalls: In Norway from BD 3700.Pitfalls

1. Reindeer2. Moose3. ”Other” animals

Different systems andcombinations

Hunting today:Recreation (++)

Earlier:A necessity to get food

Pitfalls: illegal by lawfrom 1863

MOOSE:

WILD REINDEER:

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PaleolithicPaleolithic(2 mill –(2 mill –8000 B. C.)8000 B. C.)

MesolithicMesolithic

NeolithicNeolithic

BronzeBronzeageage

Ironage

Middle ages Iron production:In Norway from BD 500.Natural resources needed: timber and bog

Iron

Production of iron has changed in character overtime, as production methods developed:Differences in shaft furnaces in A) Old iron age,B) Young iron age and C) Viking/medieval times.

A B C

Air

Slag

IRON PRODUCTION – DIFFERENT PERIODS

- Big blocs of slag- Air bubbles in slag- Close to river/water

- Smaller blocs of slag- ”Floating” slag

- Furnace made of stone- Still smaller blocs of slag

A B C

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PaleolithicPaleolithic(2 mill –(2 mill –8000 B. C.)8000 B. C.)

MesolithicMesolithic

NeolithicNeolithic

BronzeBronzeageage

Ironage

Middle ages

Coal production:In Norway from AD 500.

Coal

- Connected to iron production- Often flat bottom (1 meter in depth or less)- Most numerous of cultural monuments in forests- Not systematically located in terrain, in opposite to pitfalls

Charcoal pit

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PaleolithicPaleolithic(2 mill –(2 mill –8000 B. C.)8000 B. C.)

MesolithicMesolithic

NeolithicNeolithic

BronzeBronzeageage

IronIronageage

Middle ages Tar production:In Norway from AD 1100 (maybe earlier)

Tar

Forest machine or cultural monument?

Tar kiln in marsh

STUDENTS: WHAT IS THIS?

REGISTRATION COURSE – GROUPS OF STUDENTS

RESULTS FROM GROUP WORK

Pitfalls

Charcoal pit

Not sureTar kiln

FINDINGS AT HEDMARK UNIVERSITY COLLEGE, EVENSTAD

Charcoal pits

”Culture road” in Tylldalen, Norway – an example on today’s use of cultural monuments

Summer farm

Pitfall system (moose) Pilgrim road

Iron production siteOld timber cabin

Map; where are we?

Post 6

Post 5Post 4

Post 9

MAPUNGUBWE NATIONAL PARK, SOUTH AFRICA –GUIDING COURSE 2006 (NATURE – CULTURAL MONUMENTS)

ROCK ART

CONCLUSION

Knowledge;from what time?Archaeologists,biologists, anthro-pologists …..Make use of theirfindings andanswers locally!

… and their technolgy.