I know what you’re thinking. You’re thinking this blog hasn’t been providing enough Viking News lately. Why would anyone come to a book blog, except to read about Viking News? Sure, I’ve given you a few saga reviews in recent weeks, but what you want (I have no doubt) is the kind of breaking, “you read it here first” information for which my name is, perhaps not renowned, but definitely -nowned.
Well, I’ve got one today. Not only is it a major archaeological story, but there’s a personal connection to me – which makes all the difference, I know.
The story was announced yesterday, but I waited till an English version appeared today to share it. Because I hate translating for free.
This from Sciencenorway.no: New Discovery of a Viking Ship in Norway
Just over a hundred years ago, the archaeologist Haakon Shetelig was incredibly disappointed when he did not find a Viking ship during an excavation of the Salhushaugen gravemound in Karmøy in Western Norway.
Shetelig had previously excavated a rich Viking ship grave just nearby, where Grønhaugskipet was found, as well as excavated the famous Oseberg ship – the world’s largest and most well-preserved surviving Viking ship – in 1904. At Salshaugen he only found 15 wooden spades and some arrowheads.
“He was incredibly disappointed, and nothing more was done with this mound,” says Håkon Reiersen, an archaeologist at the Museum of Archaeology at the University of Stavanger.
It turns out, however, that Shetelig simply did not dig deep enough.
About a year ago, in June 2022, archaeologists decided to search the area using ground-penetrating radar or georadar – a device that uses radio waves to map out what lies below the surface of the ground.
Now if you’ve been following this blog, you know that I have a personal connection to Karmøy island. My great-grandfather Walker was born there (under another last name, naturally), and baptized at Avaldsnes Church (pictured above). The three mounds described in this article are a short distance north of the church, and I don’t believe I’ve actually ever seen them.
Still, I was at Avaldsnes last June, precisely when they were doing the georadar surveys. That pleases me immensely. I was On the Scene – if clueless as usual.
Thank you for this! Fascinating in so many ways – in itself, in its discovery, in its eluding Shetelig, in being in your paternal family’s neighborhood unknown. (And with all the other recent ship burial news.)
My archaeology professor was always stressing the importance of fieldwalking and aerial photography and not having to leap to excavation (but I do not remember anything about georadar!). He told us about some dowsers who were certain they had found a ship burial, but when they went to demonstrate their ‘find’ they ‘traced’ something more like the dimensions of a battleship…
Georadar seems to be changing everything. They have several recent ship graves discoveries in Norway that they’re basically sitting on for the time being. Being very canny about further disturbance.