On a Mountain High

Finding and Documenting Glacial Archaeological Sites During the Anthropocene

Bibliographic Data

ID11072992
AuthorsLars Pilø (0000-0001-6317-9552, Department of Cultural Heritage, Innlandet County Council, Norway, corresponding author), Espen Finstad (0000-0002-5694-7047, Department of Cultural Heritage, Innlandet County Council, Norway), Elling Utvik Wammer (0000-0003-0440-2560, Department of Cultural Heritage, Innlandet County Council, Norway), Julian R Post-Melbye (0000-0002-0037-2010, Museum of Cultural History, University of Oslo, Norway), Axel Hee Rømer (0000-0001-9208-6945, Department of Cultural Heritage, Innlandet County Council, Norway), Øystein Rønning Andersen (0000-0002-1947-5044, Department of Cultural Heritage, Innlandet County Council, Norway), James H Barrett (0000-0002-6683-9891, University of Cambridge)
Year2022
Volume47
Issue3
Pages149-163
Publication date2022-04-03
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal of Field Archaeology (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0093-4690 • E-ISSN: 2042-4582
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/00934690.2021.2012330
OpenAlexW4200170210
LanguageEN
Citations received4
References cited26

Glacial archaeology is a developing field, brought on by climate change. High mountain ice is melting, which has led to the exposure of artifacts in North America, Mongolia, the Alps, and Scandinavia. The highest number of finds and sites in the world are reported from Innlandet County, Norway. We present our methods of finding and documenting glacial archaeological sites in Innlandet based on 15 years of experience. Sites are found using a combination of local information on the ground and remote sensing. Fieldwork takes place in three steps: an exploratory survey for assessment, systematic surveys for documentation, and monitoring in case of further ice retreat. The harsh environment makes the logistics very different from regular archaeology at lower elevations. Fieldwork methods are described in detail. The continuing retreat of mountain ice worldwide makes the Innlandet experience increasingly pertinent to the practice of field archaeology

Anthropocene · Archaeology · Climate change · Documentation · Geography · Geomorphology · Glacial period · Physical geography · Climate change and permafrost · Cryospheric studies and observations · Geology · Geology and Paleoclimatology Research · Oceanography · Paleontology

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Open DOIOpen Access