The oldest ice disappears and the Stone Age emerges from it
Archaeologists in Norway are discovering ancient artifacts, including Stone Age arrowheads, as glacial ice melts due to climate change. These finds provide new insights into prehistoric hunting practices.
Why it matters
It illustrates the tangible impact of climate change on the preservation of archaeological history and the urgency of recovery efforts.
'We have been at the edge of the ice. We have seen it happening. And we are witnesses to a rapidly changing archaeological landscape,' write the glacial archaeologists. Finds from the Viking Age are becoming scarce, while 6,000-year-old arrowheads are now emerging from the melting ice.
A 5,000-year-old arrowhead made of slate, found together with parts of its shaft right at the edge of the ice. Domesticated reindeer can be seen on the ice patch in the background. (Photo: Åsa Rommetveit Celius / Innlandet County Municipality / Secrets of the Ice) Ida Irene Bergstrøm Ida Irene Bergstrøm Journalist Published 26 September 2026 - 00:01 For exactly 20 years, archaeologists working with Secrets of the Ice have been recovering and preserving artefacts emerging from the ice in the mountains of Innlandet, eastern Norway.
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