Europe

[Visited: April 2002]

It is less than 40 minutes by boat from Stavanger to arrive at Tau from where a bus awaits you for a ride along the coast to Solbakk. It is here that you can take a path leading you to the grey rock formations that are so typical of Scandinavia. Here, there are endless vistas across the sea, with small islands floating in the quiet sea.
Soon, you come across one more rock, but this one is special. This rock has been used by people in the Bronze Age to leave their traces, their message about their daily lives. This is the most extensive site of Helleristninger, the petroglyphs of ancient Scandinavians. They consist mainly of two different motives: boats in various shapes, and concentric circles.
Obviously, in the Norwegian landscape which is not easily accessible, boats were of utmost importance for transportation, as well as for hunting and fishing. And in this part of the world, with scarce light for almost half the year, the sun is a very important element. The sky was seen as the ocean of the sun god, hence when the sun god travelled, he used a boat. Perhaps these carvings are remnants of old spring ceremonies, to celebrate the return of the sun after long, dark winters.

Around the World in 80 Clicks

Personal travel impressions both in words and images from Solbakk Helleristninger (Norway). Clicking on the pictures enlarges them and enables you to send the picture as a free e-card or download it for personal use, for instance, on your weblog. Or click on the map above to visit more places close to Solbakk Helleristninger.
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