Abstract
We report on the earliest archaeological evidence from the Faroe Islands, placing human colonization in the 4th-6th centuries AD, at least 300-500 years earlier than previously demonstrated archaeologically. The evidence consists of an extensive wind-blown sand deposit containing patches of burnt peat ash of anthropogenic origin. Samples of carbonised barley grains from two of these ash patches produced 14C dates of two pre-Viking phases within the 4th-6th and late 6th-8th centuries AD. A re-evaluation is required of the nature, scale and timing of the human colonization of the Faroes and the wider North Atlantic region.
Original language | English |
---|---|
Pages (from-to) | 228-232 |
Number of pages | 5 |
Journal | Quaternary Science Reviews |
Volume | 77 |
Early online date | 17 Jul 2013 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 1 Oct 2013 |
Keywords
- Faroe Islands
- earliest settlement
- Vikings
- 14C dating