Tjeldsundet

A Channel through the Ages

FOT E FAR
MOT NORD
Only on rare occasions does nature determine the
course of human history, and Tjeldsund's history is no
exception. However, our surroundings are
fundamentally important to our choices of settlement
location, livelihood and leadership, choices which
ultimately affect the course of our history. The
channel of Tjeldsund is just such a common
denominator, and has been since the Stone Age.

The channel of Tjeldsund is a

conveyance belt through history
providing opportunities and limitations simultaneously.

In the Stone Age the channel
of Tjeldsund was wider and
deeper than it is today. The
three channels met in a protec-
ted bay. The living conditions
for hunters and lishermen were
optimal here. The sheltered
waters made it possible to hunt
and fish year around. This alone
is enough to explain why
Tjeldsund was an important
location for settlements
throughout the entire Stone Age.
The first farms in Tjeldsund
were established already in the
older Iron Age. Rich
agricultural lands provided a
secure economic basis. Control
over trallic through the channel
was a source of power and
wealth, and the basis fbr a long
succession of powerful Iron Age
chieftains in the inner channel
of Tjeldsund. Culturel deposits
which provide a multitude of
poignant insights into life in the
Middle Ages and the more
recent past are found at several
of the farms.
Today power and wealth
accumulate along other routes of
communication - along the
invisible rivers of monetary
numbers between financial
institutions - and only are
visible in the stone facades and
lurniture of precious woods far
fiom the old centers of power.
Tjeldsund does not have the
same role today, neither as a
source of food or a route of
transport. Tjeldsund has,
however, secured itself a central
role fbr the future, and lives on
as a meeting place between the
past and the future in the coat-of-
arms of the municipality of
ljeldsund.

Cover page: The old grc:es at Ripelen lie solid as bedrock, even though the
ves,sel.s which pass through the channel chunge. Photo: H.Bjerck
 The road t'Hovsveien" Hovsveien is an excellent
point from which to view the
history ofTjeldsund. The road is
on Tjeldya is today an overgrown road stub. If the probably more than one
channel "Tjeldsundet" was the backbone in this thousand years old, in itself a
cultural landscape, so the road ,,Hovsveien, was the cultural monument. The road
juglar vein. connects the church at Hol with
the channel "Ballstadstraumen",
which was an important place
for ferrying across Tjeldsundet.
It is precisely at Ballstad-
straumen that we flnd the most
important archaeological
monuments and artifacts from
the old lron Age chiefrains in
1-eldsundet. The road passes
also through areas with the
remains of Stone Age
settlements, and provides an
excellent view of the channel.
The road gradually lost
importance after the modern
automobile road was built in the
twenties and thirties. In the
reapportionment of farmlands in
the 1960's the road was blurred
and partially closed. Since then
it has only been used by those
that are very familiar with the
' area.
,ul'
However, now Hovsveien is
open once again for the
enjoyment ol new generations
"Hkon Jarl's ship anchoredfor the night" of walkers. It is a wandering
When the Vikings stopped tct rest for the night, and taid the saiL like a tent through a beautiful landscape, a
ove_r the skip, it vrttts called "ci tjekle". The name "Tjeldsundet,' there-jbre place fbr us and people from the
itldicates that the channel was an important sttp in'the sailing rotttei along past to meet, a wandering
tlrc nonve,gian coast. The natne also emphasizei the importan'ce d traffic "
throLtgh the channel cLnd the chie.ftains' control over this traffic. iirusiiation
through history.
from Snorre, Erik Werenskiokl Have a good tripl
 " . . . Ye s, you dectr old road,
you had mlny sights before
ylLtr ej-es. You hove seen
husband und wife g0 to
church and other meeting,s -
not side by side and ctrm in
arm like ]-oung lovers, but
one crfter the other, and so
Jnr apart that the wfe haclto
yell at the husbcuttl, that he
should not yvalk so far in
Jront of her. After the old
couple could come a
tlunger pair, ctlways clo.se
enottgh tltctt they could ot
least taLk t0 one another.
After that could czme some
teenagers, and if there were
ctgirl or two in the group, so
you could be sure that no
one yvalked cfter the ctther,
but that the boys pruttected
t heir Ji' ntu I e t'o r npo n i ot r s u.t
.fairhfully and well as the)-
possibly could..."
From "Baunen". January 2. 1916.

Hovsveien, roati to ch.urch.

Holsveien., la,er's lute arrcl
n i g h tc I c o ultl
ub... irttcr gin e if tve
know ull the nrunes the road has
had in it.s over thoLtsarul t'ears of
lile . Photo. S. Steinsvik
Stone Age Country
The channel "Tjeld-
sundet" gave Stone Age
people many legs to
stand on. Providing
short, safe distances to
rich and stable resour-
ces, the channel was an
advant-ageous edge
between security and
wealth, and was a major
settlement area for many
thousands of years.
The oldest artifacts from
Tjeldsund, two elegant flint fl
{.
,---"
knifeblades found at Ramstad.
are probably between 8000 and
9000 years old. However, most
of the artif'acts are from the
younger Stone Age: knives,
projectile points, spearpoints of
ground slate, stone axes, net
weights and many point- and
edge-tools ol qulrrt/. qurrllzile
and flint. Large amor-rnts of
srnall stone flakes from the
preparation of tools, soil
blackened by the charcoal and
ashes of many campfires and
even an occasional bons
fragment can be fbund at the
settlement sites.

Most of these artifacts have

been lbuntl b1 llrmers during
the clearing iind plowing of
l'ields. Systenrutic investigrtiorrs A spearpoint, knive,s and ares in mony variants. The tool.; corne Jrom the
would orovide a much more 1-5000 yecu' old site .routlt of the oldest.farn at Hol. P lutto : Tromssl niuseunt
 complete picture, especially of
the oldest artifacts. Even so, the
artifacts olltline a picture of the
inner channel as an important
settlement area during most of
the Stone Age. Why was
iljeldsundet so important?
In the Stone Age sea level
was as much as 60 to 70 meters
higher than today, an<i the
channel was both deeper an<l
wider. This had important
consequences lbr the faunir _
which was more numerous and
diverse than today. The channel
was an extremely favorable
place for hunting and tishing.

The protected conditions in

the channel were another
important advantage. Here
Stone Age peoples could fish
and hunt without the dangers of
rough seas and difficult landing
conditions. Saf'e places of work
were lmpofiant in the Stone Age
too. However, Stone Age
peoples could not improve
saf'ety through rescue operation
headquarters and distress signal
equipment. They had to choose
the hunting areas that were
naturally saf'e, such as ljeld-
sundet.

A third factor is the rich lan<l

areas surrounding the channel.
The distances were short to
tbrests and valleys with
abundant game and plants and
trees for equiprnent, tools and Dagger of ground slate, 1-5000 years okl. The 17 cnt
firewood. long dagger was.fbund
t,n o .\it( al Rattt.rttrd. Pht)to; Tntn.te ntrt.\.cutn
 Btre Ste insvik w ith.five
stt:tne ores the poloto
front
field at Steinsvik. The ores
are Jrom tlrc I'otu'tger
Stone Age, 2-3000 year.s
BC. Inye.stigntion.r
indk:ote that the locatior.t
lucks llte churcocLl,
.l'i re cra cketl rocks n d
u

stone fLakes that h)e

nct nnul ly as sor:iote w ith
Stone Age settlement sites.
Perhops tlte axe s ure.fnnn
Stone Age gruves, or
mtrybe a bLu'ied Stone Age
trensure I Photo: H.Bjerck

slcne Age LtrtifaLts from. Tieldsuntl. Most oJ the arlifacts probab\. tome.from senLement
site.\, indicotitrg that the channel u:o:; a c:entral settlement arect.for thou,sund:; of yettrs.
 L Grorns
The road
ttHovsveientt
1: Tjeldsund Church
The church is locefied at e
site that wcLs also used as a
cemeter,\ in heathen times, a
sitc wirh u ltng rrutlition as u
religious center.
2: Stone Age Country
Hovsveien passes throwg,h
an cLreawith several Stone Age
settlement sites. Here is a view
of the central parts of the
channel "Tielclsundet", and a
signwith information about the
Stone Age.
.'J"'t
-\,ir j-.
.:ira
r_
3: Holshgda
The .fcLrm "Hol" has roots
backinto the lronAge. At Hols-
hagtltt the prominatrl
.farmers are buriecl, with Here is informcrtion about the
importonce of trcqffic through
extensive views of their lanel
ancl the channel, along Hovs- the channel and the
veien. The graves were once establishment of powerJul Iron
important lcmdmerks. Age chieftains.
1: Hov 5: Graves
From the old.farm Hov there Hovsveien passes through
i s a v as t v iew ov er Ti elds undet. an lron Age centeter.r; here.
 The gate at
"...Yes, the gate at Hol, yes
- it is a memorable gate.
Throu g h that g at e they
w Atke d
to c hurc h with the ir sw e e the art
andwith their bride. Through
that gate they watked whbn
Hol is long gone, but the contours of the gate are stillvisible. photo; p.H.Jensen
they wishedto have moonlight
conversations with their
sweethearts or when the boys
wanted the girls to join the
party and learn to understand
the fateful w o rds " I am s o v e t))
much in love with you,,.
Throwgh the gate at Hol
fathers have driven in
poverestricken sorrow to buy
food at the local store. And
through the gate at Hol
taxpayers have wandered in
angry painto lay their share in
the hands of Tj e lcls wncl' s
cashier.
Not to mention the many
beings that have gone through
the gate at Hol and not knoin
where they were going...',
From "Baunen", fall 19i4
Detail from the skaft of the Steinsvik swrtrd
It depicts imaginary animal.s Jiercely
clasping each others amts and legs. Mcuty of
the artifacts from the fttmous Oseberg
colLectktn are decorated in the same sh,Ie.
Photo ; Univ. Oldsaksamling
 fron Age Chieftains in Tjeldsundet
A stable agricultural economy, good opportunities to
obtain wild garne, control over traffic. In the middle
of this triangle lies the fundament for the center of
power in the channel of Tjeldsundet.

In the saga of Olav Trygg- texts. Even so, it is probably the

vason, Ogmund Sande from
Hlogaland stands in the
second line on the ship Ormen
Lange in the battle at Svolder.
Only men of consequence stood
shoulder to shoulder with the
king in such times of crisis. This
tells us that Ogmund Sande was
one of the most powerful
chieftains in the region about
1000 AD.
From the 1100's there is the
story ofEinar, the son to a later
Ogmund from Sand, that sent
food to Sigurd Slembe when he
and his men overwintered in
"Glufrafjord".
Tjeldsund is one of the few
chiefdoms in Northern Norway
that is referred to in the saga
archaeological sources that tell
us most about Ogmund Sande
and the orher chieftains in
Tjeldsundet.
* The cemetery at Ripelen
is a group of 11 large and small
grave cairns marking the
entrance to the inner part of
Tjeldsundet. The cemetery is
distinctive in its distance from
agricultural land and farm siles,
today and in the Iron Age. A
cross-formed bronze fibula
found in one ofthe cairns rs
dared to 400 AD. The cemetery
at Ripelen is one of the oldest in
the region, and indicates a well-
established farming community
Bronze brooch dated to 400 AD,
in Tjeldsundet already in the found in one ofthe grave cairns at
older Iron Age. Ripelen. Drawing: Troms museum
tl
 * The Steinsvik sword was
found in a grave from the early
800's AD. The deceased was
buried with a weaponry we
associate with Iron Age
chieftains: sword, war ax and
spear. In addition, there were
many working tools: an
agricultural ax. sickle. scissors.
hammer, knife and grindstone.
These tools are hardly the
equipment this man used daily
j:!'i.1
I2
The grave find from Steinsvik, dated to 800-850 AD. Photo: Univ. OLd,taksamlittg
when he was not at war. They
are instead the symbols of his
economic basis, tools indicating
the production ofgrain, bread,
poridge and beer, wool, yarn,
cloth and clothes, meat, antlers
and skin, lumber, logs and
roughcasts. The Steinsvik
sword is one of lhe most
beautiful swords that has been
found in Norway. Today the
sword is part of special
exhibitions, adorning books and
posters both in Norway and
abroad. The sword is presently
an important part of the new
Viking exhibition in the
Archaeological Museum rn
Oslo. The sword's status today
tells us a great deal about how
people probably regarded this
weapon almost 1200 years ago.
 Marie Steen was present when the Steinsvik grave was dis_
covered in 1902. She gives us the following description ofher
experlence:

"...5o it was here where he was going

to have a potato field that spring that he
found something in the earth. Uncle An-
dreas had a little speech impediment.
When he got excited, he stammered a
little. He came into the kitchen, excited
and brief. My father had to come, and of
course one of my brothers went with him.
He had found an enormous grave in the
growndwhen he was turning the soil, and
they had to help him so that nothing
would be ruined. They were gone a long
time, so I put my clogs on and stomped
after them. The first that I saw was them
standing andtalking aboutwhat they had
found. I can not recall that anyoni saitl
that I had to go. Probably because I was
8 or 9 years old. All the bone fragments
were there and I remember that they took
the large, good-looking teeth airt put
them in a bowl-shaped bone. There was
an especictlly fine sword in the grave, but
it was one of the first things flncle.found,
and itwas already hanging on the wall in
the living room when I went into his
house. There was a large whetstone that
yany in the countrTside got a piece of,
because it was so fine that they coujcl
sharpen razorblades on it. So there was a
spearpoint, so it was surely a real vi-
king..."

The Steinsvik sword. Photo Marie Steen: Vikingegravfunnet i Steinsvika. rbok for
Univ. Oldsaksamling Lpdingen 1984.
IJ
 * The Gold Treasure from
Kongsvik was discovered in
1144. Two children found the
treasure. Later more was found
at the same place, and the 13th
ofJune. 1149 a court was held at
Kongsvik where many had to
explain the treasure, the manner
it was found. and its where-
abouts. Some of the treasure had
already disappeared, the rest was
collected by the court. Thanks to
Pontoppidan's description (see
below) and the records of the
court, it is possible to describe
the treasure as follows:
Stone menir til Ballstad from the lron Age. It marks the narrowest part of the
Several gold pearls, large as
channel, together with many other graves - on both sides ofthe channel.
swallow eggs. Two spirals of a Photo: H.Bierck
payment ring. A cross-formed
plate, probably part of jewelry.
At least 1l small gold pictures.
Several small boat figures made
of leaf-thin gold.
Parts of the gold treasure and were nlt natural
from Kongsvik were des- products, but were the
The weight of the gold is cribed by Bishop Erik makings of people and left
estimated to 300 - 370 grams,
Pontoppidan in 17522 there many hundreds o.f
making the treasure one of the
largest in Northern Norway. The "...However two years years ago. They were small
artifacts are probably from 700 ago, in the rural district of gold pictures the result of
AD. The treasure must have had
considerable value even then.
Nordland at the Farm art, although a very simple
Kongsviig, where evidently art (...) Three pieces are in
and there can be little doubt that
the treasure was associated with a small king has lived, in the my possession. The gold is
the chieftains in Tjeldsund. middle of a rock-strew slope not of the best quality, the
No one knows what happened or a stone cairn, was Jbund figures resemble humans. in
to the treasure after it was a great deal of small gold thin plates of gold. The size
collected by the court. Parls of pieces, rumors of these of one is the joint of afinger,
the treasure can be preserved in spreadfar and wide and they another is slightly larger,
the National museum in Cooen- received considerable and the third somewhat
hagen. The story of the treasure smaller..."
is still alive here at Tjeldsundet,
notice, so that by the power
and the find location is still of the court they were Erik Pontoppidan 1752:"The fir't rttempr
at a natural history of Norway".
called "Gold Hill" or "Gull- inv e sti gated. The s aid pie c e s
sen". were not native to the areu.
I4
 ':' The boathouse foundation
at Sand is one of the largest
known in Northern Norway. lt is
approximately 40 meters long,
and has probably housed a long
ship larger than the well-known
ships of Gokstad and Oseberg.
Boathouse foundations of such
size are always associated with
irnportant chieftain centers.
They indicate that the northern
chieftains had large ships and
Ihat trcvel and communieat ion
were lmportant.
The viking ships were the
chieftains' most importrnt
goods, people, annies, news,
messages and impulses. They
established connections to other
chieftains, political alliances
necessary fbr survival in the
land of small kings. The
chieftain that had ships, also
controlled alliances, and could
rise ever higher in the spiral of
power.
The boathou se .fowtdatiort,; crt Sand.
The largest bouthouse was probably
40 meters kng. It was later divitled
into tytr.t. FoLmdotiort 2 is probabll'
.from the MitldLe Ages. Mappetl by, Tuft 1

"tool". The ships transported O.S. Johttnsen.

Iron Age graves akng the uuter oJ the grnves. Just as intportdnt was g ene rcLt ictn tlire c ti onol sp e e d into
channeI ol Tje|tl.surttlet. View over 011po naut unce slors were the.future...
truffir' tItn'rrqlt tItt, ltonttr'I nut s\t1ot1\'n7ol{ s vt i th stab il i ty, trotli t i on
o h v i ous ly imp o rtnnt .for th e l ct crfi i o rt and sta.ttts - which gove the neil
i-5
 * Many artifacts from
graves nlong the channel of
ljeldsund are silent evidence of
contact with the rest of the
world.
Precious jewelry provides
glirnpses ol travel sou\ enirs:
glass pearls, amber pearls,
pearls ofbronze and gold.
Fashionable bronze jewelry that
must have been among the most
valuable in the Iron Age
markets of Europe.
A woman's grave from Tofte
provides direct evidence of an
extensive contact network. The Ashadott rl u sltip that sailetlTjeltl.runtlet more thon 1300 I'ears ogo. The bottt
is port of a grave ot Sand. In adtlition to the 5 meter kng btttLt, tlrc m.an rrus
woman was buried in the eighth buried with. u dagger, hro smalLer knives, projectile pointt, a smttll. piece oJ
centlrry AD. She had knrves, paynTerLt siLver, tt weight o;f Iettd utd bronT.e,.fireligh.ter antl ct httmmerstone'
scissors, a key, a needle and a Plu.tto : Tromsa nlLtseunt
bone comb. To her dress was
fastened a rare bronze figure of
an animal, around her neck was
a chain of 55 glass, amber and
bronze pearls, and 16 small
shells.
The small shells are probably
the most sensational artifacts in
the burial. They are the
northernmost collection of kauri
shells in the world. The nearest
place of origin is the
Mediterranean. Such shells are
used us mediums ol paynient in
both West Afiica and India. The
shells have probably been
exchanged and transported
many times befbre they came
into the possession of the
woman from Tjeldsund. Many
aspects of world history could
be illuminated by knowledge of
the travel route of these shells. The bronz.e brooch.front Hnik, datetl to 700 years AD. It was found ossocict-
ted with a sinilttr piece o.f jewelry tvith birdslad,s, and n chain of 92 glass
pe nrl s. Dratr ing : H is torisk mLt s e LUn
t6
 Long traditions Kcutri shelL,s -
archa.eological
The artif'acts from the graves <migr0t0ry-
at Tofte, and several other rich birtls". Front
graves fiom the years 600 - 700 their origitts
AD, show that the Viking in the
chieftains based rheir positions Mediterranean
the shells have
of power on a long tradition. The
chnnged
grave finds frorn Ripelen tell us Ow*nerS nTan|
that there were large farmr in times before
ljeldsund already 400 years AD. they- v:ere laid
Even in the centuries prior to the to rest troLtnd
Viking Period people in Tjeld- the neck of a
v,oman.front
sund were part of the european
ToJie sone-
network ofgoods exchange. This time arottncl
encouraged economical 700 t,ears AD.
eentralizution in Nolwal . in Photo: S.
addition to power and the ability Steinsvik
to obtajn ships, crews and
equipment for long voyages.

Why Tjeldsundet?
Just like other chieftarn
centers ljeldsLrnd lies in the
crossroads between rich
agrie ultural land and an impor-
tant traffic route. Crops and
livestock provided a solid
economical basis, which created
opportunities for fieedom of
action in relation to the use of
labor and men: boatbuilding, and the farmers had an excellent not a boundary of "starvation".
hunting, manpower for trade means of exchange f-or obtaining It was instead a boundary
and pirating voyages, military furs and other hunting products. between people with very
preparedness, etc. These products were in turn dif fbrent economic foundations,
exclusive in the european a boundary that off'ered the
However, another aspect of market. The chieftains opportunity of large profit
the ugricultrrral economy is just organized the trafflc between exchanges. The chieftains that
as important. The farms at the home markets and E,urope, controlled the traffic in and
Tjeldsund were on the edges of and harvested double profits. through the regions steered not
the Viking world, an island of
In other words there are only the exchange of goods and
farmers in a sea of hunters. travellers, but also impulses,
several lines of evidence
The agricultural products indicating that the northern limit news, lies and truth.
must have been very exclusive, of the norwegian settlement was
11

An old road....
15 aConnectlon rn many ways.
On the one hand the road is a
conneclion between places in a
landscape. But that is only on
the surface. A road has a soul, a
deeper ground, a nerve connec-
ting space and time.
A road ties places that were
important together - not the
places, but the people that were
here. A road is notjust a line to
move along, but also a place to
meet. To meet someone is often
the sole purpose of travelling a
road: arrangements to meet,
chance meetings, "chance
meetings", i I legal meetings.
A road is not a random line,
however it is seldom the
shortest. It is carefully planned.
According to the landscape,
other tralfic routes, according to
the modes of travel.
But nothing lasts forever, not
even a road. People do not
travel in the manner they once
did. New places appear, the old
road is cut off and loses its
totality. It becomes meaningless
fragments.
When we travel old roads
today the road becomes a
meeting place between us and
people fiom the past, a
connection through time. It is a
cultural resource we can use,
which profits from being used.
It is history that we can enter
and become a part of. It leads us
18
to places that tell us of other
times, and provides us with a
vast view and a deeper
understanding at the \cme time.
Hovsveien...
is all this and much more. It
connects places in this land-
scape that were important more
than 1300 years ago, liom the
old regional center at the
channel of Ballstad, past
heathen cemeteries, and the
central farms of Hov and Hol,
and ends at the church at Hol,
where there are rlso found pre-
Christian graves indicating that
Hol has a long tradition as a
ritual location. The road must be
at least one thousand years old.
That which was once a solid
line is today a stipled line. The
road Hovsveien is overgrown,
f-enced in, and cut off fiom our
modern automobile road, the
endpoints are swaliowed by
gardens and fields. lt is visible
today as a shadow on the map,
between properties and
boundaries. The road is most
distinct in the memories of
people, as a meeting place
between people and the land-
scape, a lover's lane and a
nightclub.
E
w
Literature
Binns, K.S. 1979: Flatmarksgraver fia
merovingertiden. Ottar 1 15. Troms.
Holmang, B. 1987: Gullsen i Kongsvik.
rbok for Lclingen 1987.
Munch, G.S. 1976: En 1300 r'garnmel
kvinnegrav pii Tjeldpya i Nordland. Ottar
139. Troms.
Nielssen, A.R. 1990: Fra steinalderen til
1700-tallet. Lgdingen, Tjeldsund og
Tysfjords historie. IV.
Nilsen, A.R. og O.S.Johansen 1989:
Ogmund Sande og hvdirgsetet ved.Ileld-
sunclet. rbok for Tjeldsund 1989.
Simonsen. P. og G.Stamsg Munch 1970:
Guldfundet fra Kongsvik i Nord-Norge.
rbpgel lbr Nordisk Oldkyndighed og
Historie 1969. Kbenhavn.
Steen, M. 1984: Vikingegravfunnet i
Steinsvika. rbok For LEtdingen 1984.
Steinsvik, S. 1990: Tjeldsuncl i jernalde-
ren. Kompendium.
Vinsrygg, S. 1976: Kauriskjell i Troms
museum - minne om gamal kulturkontakt
rnecl fjerne kyststrok. Oftar 89. Trons.
Thc Tjcld'untl Hi.lorieal Assot iutiun i:
very active. Since 1989 it has published
the "Yearbook lbr'I jeldsund". Here it is
possible to find a wealth of information
abor-rt T.jeldsund's history, written by
people who have Tjeldsund under their
skin. Can be warmly recommended!
t "qt-:

"...He told me a very

heartwarming story about
fvvo lovers that that avetring
.fbr the seventh time kneeled
on each side of ct lctrge stone
on the upper side ofthe road
and asked each other fnr
.forgiveness lbr infidelity du-
ring the Chrisnnas holidays.
He had walked .four tirne.s
with another girl, and she
had dared, though strongly
doubting, to walk three ti-
mes with another boy..."
From "Baunen".2 January I916.

Foto: P. H. Jensen
Most people associate the
past with artifacts on purple
velvet, safe showcases in
dimlyJit museums. Even
fewer realize that our daily
landscape also has a history,
that our surroundings throb
with traces of people before
us.
Hovsveien
Hovsveien E
is more than 1000 years old, a main route
through a rich cultural landscape. A walk
along Hovsveien and Tjeldsund provides a
glimpse of a world we normally pass
through so quickly that we fail to
notice it.

$i uo
i n-_ i

Fotefar mot nord

A guide to the history of
North-Norway and
Namdalen. A cultural
monLlment fiom each
district creates an
extensive picture of the
region's people. nature and
activity dudng the past ten
thousand years.

Prof'ess ionally responsible.

idea ancl text: Arcbaeologist
H. B.Bjerck, Nordland
f _vlkeskornnrr,rne. Pnnted
by: Sentraltrykkerict as.
Bocl. Site preparation: E.
Bertheussen. Tieldsund
kommune. Maps: Statens
kartvelk. permission ncr
LM-.+-7753.
At the start of Hol and Steinsvik is a parking lot. Signs along the road tell Logo/graphic clesign: U.
Holbye and L. Kanck.
about the historical sites and the landscape. At the viewing points there Engl ish translation: L.
are benches which provide an opportunity to let the impressions sink in G.Bostr.vick Bjcrck.
at the rate your pulse slows.
Financial support tiom

The road is approximately 2 kilometers long' dry and easy to walk. It

Larrdsdelsutvalget tbr Nord
Norge og Namdalen,
passesthrough an active agricultural landscape. Show your consideration! Riksantikvaren, Nordland
tylkeskornmune and
TjeJdsund kommune.