Teen metal detectorist scouring field with mom finds Viking-era artifact, photos show
Armed with metal detectors, a mother and teenage daughter set out across a field in northern Norway. They weren’t searching for anything in particular but still stumbled on a Viking-era artifact.
The junior high student, Eline Hauge, and her mother, Hanna, were exploring an area of Bolsøya alongside professional archaeologists, the Møre og Romsdal County Municipality said in a May 24 news release.
Eline’s metal detector began to beep, alerting her to something buried below. Digging into the soil, she unearthed a tarnished iron fragment, the release said. Photos show the brown rectangular artifact.
Archaeologists identified the item as part of a Viking-era hollow ax. The fragment’s age is unknown, and it may have been made more recently, the release said.
Eline described it as a dream day to officials, according to the release. She also told officials that she was pleased to be part of the excavation.
Archaeologists are excavating the site to dig a trench and lay a power cable, the release said. So far, rusty nails, rivets, an almost 150-year-old Swedish coin and an 18th or 19th century musket ball have been found.
Bolsøya is a small island in the Møre og Romsdal region and about 290 miles northeast of Oslo.
Google Translate was used to translate the Møre og Romsdal County Municipality’s news release.
This story was originally published May 26, 2023 at 3:22 PM with the headline "Teen metal detectorist scouring field with mom finds Viking-era artifact, photos show."
