Rock carvings at Vingen
Encyclopedia
The Vingen rock carvings (Vingenfeltet) are located near Frøysjøen in the municipality of Bremanger
in Sogn og Fjordane
county, Norway
.
. The site contains at least 2,000 different carvings and prints dating back to 4000-2000 years BC. The figures are mostly of deer
. There are also some other animal carvings, many other abstract geometric patterns and human figures.
The site was discovered in 1910 by Kristian Bing, a lawyer from Bergen
. Kristian Magdalon Bing (1862-1935) was also a noted pioneer in the sport of mountain climbing. He was looking for a farm he could buy to commercialise the hydropower from the waterfalls in the area. In 1913 Kristian Bing bought the property. He retained rights to several large waterfalls but subsequently sold the site where most rock carvings are located to the Bergen Museum
in 1923.
. Entering the site without granted permission is forbidden. Bergen Museum
still owns and manages the site.
Bremanger
Bremanger is a municipality in the county of Sogn og Fjordane, Norway. Bremanger is the only municipality in Sogn og Fjordane, which is located in two districts. The north-eastern parts comprising Oldeide, Berle, Rugsund, Davik, Isane and Ålfoten is located in Nordfjord, while Bremanger, Kalvåg,...
in Sogn og Fjordane
Sogn og Fjordane
is a county in Norway, bordering Møre og Romsdal, Oppland, Buskerud, and Hordaland. The county administration is in the town of Hermansverk in Leikanger municipality while the largest town is Førde....
county, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
.
History
Vingen is one of the largest rock carving sites in Northern EuropeNorthern Europe
Northern Europe is the northern part or region of Europe. Northern Europe typically refers to the seven countries in the northern part of the European subcontinent which includes Denmark, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Finland and Sweden...
. The site contains at least 2,000 different carvings and prints dating back to 4000-2000 years BC. The figures are mostly of deer
Deer
Deer are the ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. Species in the Cervidae family include white-tailed deer, elk, moose, red deer, reindeer, fallow deer, roe deer and chital. Male deer of all species and female reindeer grow and shed new antlers each year...
. There are also some other animal carvings, many other abstract geometric patterns and human figures.
The site was discovered in 1910 by Kristian Bing, a lawyer from Bergen
Bergen
Bergen is the second largest city in Norway with a population of as of , . Bergen is the administrative centre of Hordaland county. Greater Bergen or Bergen Metropolitan Area as defined by Statistics Norway, has a population of as of , ....
. Kristian Magdalon Bing (1862-1935) was also a noted pioneer in the sport of mountain climbing. He was looking for a farm he could buy to commercialise the hydropower from the waterfalls in the area. In 1913 Kristian Bing bought the property. He retained rights to several large waterfalls but subsequently sold the site where most rock carvings are located to the Bergen Museum
Bergen Museum
The Bergen Museum is a university museum in Bergen, Norway. Founded in 1825 with the intent of building large collections in the fields of culture and natural history, it became the grounds for most of the academic activity in the city, a tradition which has prevailed since the museum became part...
in 1923.
Current usage
Around 1,500 rock carvings have been found in Vingen, while around 500 others are scattered around at nearby Hennøy, Vingelven and Fura. Various security measures have been set in place to protect the carvings from natural and anthropogenic influence. In 2002 the rock carvings at Vingen and the area around the site were closed in the public by the Norwegian Directorate for Cultural HeritageNorwegian Directorate for Cultural Heritage
The Norwegian Directorate for Cultural Heritage is a government agency responsible for the management of cultural heritage in Norway. Subordinate the Norwegian Ministry of the Environment, it manages the Cultural Heritage Act of June 9, 1978....
. Entering the site without granted permission is forbidden. Bergen Museum
Bergen Museum
The Bergen Museum is a university museum in Bergen, Norway. Founded in 1825 with the intent of building large collections in the fields of culture and natural history, it became the grounds for most of the academic activity in the city, a tradition which has prevailed since the museum became part...
still owns and manages the site.
Other sources
- Hagen, AndersAnders HagenAnders Hagen was a Norwegian archaeologist. Anders Hagen was most associated with the study of Norwegian archeology and cultural heritage.-Biography:...
(1976) Bergkunst. Jegerfolkets helleristninger og malninger i norsk steinalder (Oslo: Cappelen) ISBN 978-82-02-03490-0 - Mandt, Gro (1978) Mal og midler for arkeologistudiet i Norge: Tilbakeblikk og kommentar (Arkeologisk museum i Stavanger) ISBN 978-82-90215-08-3
- Chippindale, Christopher; Taçon, Paul S. C. (1999) The Archaeology of Rock-Art (Cambridge University Press) ISBN 978-0-521-57619-2
External links
- NRK Fylkesleksikonet (in Norwegian)
- Nordfjordhistorie.no (in Norwegian)