Archaeology

Archaeological research at Tromsø Museum spans all time periods, from the Early Stone Age, c. 9500 BC, to the early modern period.

When the pieces of the puzzle fall into place, impressions of the past are revealed. Polished slate knife from Melkøya, Hammerfest Municipality, Finnmark. Photo: Adnan Icagic © Tromsø Museum – The University Museum.

The research is grounded in northern Norway both thematically and empirically, with active use of museum collections, archaeological sites and the results of cultural heritage management excavations. Sámi perspectives are integrated in the research.

Interdisciplinary collaboration is essential for archaeological research and reflects the nature of archaeology as a discipline in which cultural and natural sciences are integrated.

Central research themes

Rock art (Marianne Skandfer, Ingrid Sommerseth )
Animal and human relations in hunter-gatherer society based on reindeer hunting and rock art (Marianne Skandfer, Roger Jørgensen, Stephen Wickler, Ingrid Sommerseth)
Stone technology and ceramics in the Stone Age (Marianne Skandfer)
Demography and settlement during the Stone Age (Marianne Skandfer)
Networks and iron technology in the Iron Age and Middle Ages (Roger Jørgensen)
Contact networks and power structures in the Iron Age and medieval period (Roger Jørgensen, Inger Storli)
Early whaling history in Northern Norway and Svalbard (Roger Jørgensen)
Iron Age human settlement, environmental change and early agriculture in Lofoten (Stephen Wickler)
Maritime archaeology and waterscapes (Stephen Wickler)
Development of boat technology in the north during the Iron Age and medieval period (Stephen Wickler)
Fishing settlements and maritime settlement mounds (Stephen Wickler)
Resource exploitation along waterways in the north from a long-term perspective (Marianne Skandfer, Roger Jørgensen, Stephen Wickler, Ingrid Sommerseth, Inger Storli)
Archaeology along the planned road corridor for the Hålogalandsveien (Marianne Skandfer, Roger Jørgensen, Stephen Wickler, Ingrid Sommerseth, Inger Storli)

Relevant research groups and projects

ArcArc (Tromsø University Museum`s Research Group in Arctic Archaeology).
SARG (Stone Age Research Group).
Research group Stone Age Demographics: Multi-scale exploration of population variations and dynamics: https://en.uit.no/forskning/forskningsgrupper/sub?p_document_id=419451&sub_id=445739
Research group CNN (Creating the New North)
Research group Joint Proxies.
National Science Foundation (NSF) PLR-Arctic Social Sciences research project (2017-2019) "Paleoenvironmental perspectives on prehistoric human settlement of Arctic Norway: Implications for climate, sea-level, and land-use changes during the Iron Age": https://app.cristin.no/projects/show.jsf?id=543050.