Archaeology at Syltholm
The excavation at Syltholm
The archaeological excavations ahead of the establishment of the
Fehmarn Belt Link have now taken off in earnest, and behind the
Baltic Sea dike, a small group of archaeologists are making their
way down into the old seabed, which was part of a protected lagoon
during the Stone Age.
Due to the topographic conditions, the area would have been very
attractive to the Stone Age population, as fishing in the shallow
lagoon would have been a safe way to procure food for the local
people. The settlement that utilised the lagoon has also been
found, but excavations here have only just begun. The
archaeologists have been working a little longer in the area
located just outside the Stone Age settlement, and here, objects
from various forms of fishing have been found. The finds include
numerous stakes from fish fences, which correspond to modern stake
nets, but also wooden fishing spears and bone points from fishing
spears. Everything is very well preserved because it has been under
water or in water-saturated soil layers since the Stone Age.
The excavation will continue for another couple of months, and
each day presents new and well-preserved finds from the distant
past where the fjord fishermen lived by the coast and exploited the
wealth of fish found in the lagoon.