The first Iron Age ski with bindings was discovered in ice seven years ago, and the second this year.

Norwegian archaeologists have found a 1300-year-old ski on the ice section of Mount Digervarden.

The new ski is identical to the first one discovered here. It is broad, has a high footing, and with the bindings, precisely like the one discovered in 2014. The new ski is 187 cm in length and 17 cm in width.

This ski is 17 centimetres longer and 2 centimetres wider than the previous one discovered here. The new ski has far superior preservation, most likely because it was buried 4-5 metres deeper in the ice. This could explain some of the dimensional disparities between the two skis.

Three twisted birch bindings, a leather strap, and a wooden plug are inserted into the hole in the new ski’s footing. In 2014, a ski was discovered with only one twisted birch binding and a leather strap in the hole.

Both skis feature a hole in the tip. The engravings on the front of the skis vary somewhat. The new ski’s back end is pointed, whereas the 2014 ski’s back end is straight.

Due to the snowfall, it was a challenging three-hour climb up to the locate area. At the best of times, hiking on snow-covered scree is difficult.

When the team arrived, they discovered 30 cm of new snow on the ice patch. Fortunately, the exact place could still be found using the GPS position and photographs from the last visit.

The team used a snow shovel to clear the snow. Soon, the front end of the ski appeared but so did the ice. The ice still held an iron grip on the back of the ski.

“The skis are handmade, not mass-produced. They have a long and individual history of wear and repair before an Iron Age skier used them together and they ended up in the ice 1300 years ago,” said the team.

Image Credit:Andreas Christoffer Nilsson, secretsoftheice.com

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