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On a steep rock face in western Sweden , researchers uncover a fascinating find : around 40 petroglyphs — depicting ships , people and animate being figures — dating back around 2,700 years .
The petroglyphs were carved on a granite rock face that was once part of an island , meaning people would have had to make the carving while standing on a gravy holder , or from a platform constructed on water ice , said Martin Östholm , a projection managing director with the Foundation for Documentation of Bohuslän ’s Rock Carvings who is one of the archaeologists who discovered the petroglyphs , tell Live Science .
The newly found petroglyphs from Sweden include depictions of humans.
Bohuslän is already known for its rock ‘n’ roll carving , includingBronze eld art made at Tanum , a United Nations Educational , Scientific and Cultural Organization ( UNESCO ) site . The squad was look for fresh petroglyphs in the country when they come across the moss - covered rock face . They notice some lines on it that appeared to be human made , so they removed the moss , revealing the petroglyphs underneath . The rock-and-roll face is too steep to place upright on , Östholm said , so the team had to stand on a platform to do their archaeological work .
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The petroglyph let in depictions of ships , people and animal figure , let in four - legged creatures that may be horses . The big one shows a ship that is 13 feet ( 4 meters ) long , Östholm said , noting that many of the petroglyph are between about 12 and 16 inches ( 30 to 40 centimeters ) in length .
The petroglyphs are high up on a granite rock face that cannot be climbed, so researchers built a platform to study them.
People would have smack hard stones against the granite rock boldness to create the petroglyphs , Östholm said . This legal action exposed a white bed underneath , make the petroglyph highly visible , even from the mainland or passing ship . It ’s not certain why multitude created the carvings , he enunciate , but they may have wait on to mark ownership .
The import of the carvings are also unclear , but an expert who was not regard in the discovery shared a few ideas .
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Some of the newly found petroglyphs that were carved around 2,700 years ago.
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If the petroglyphs were made within a relatively short period of time , they may severalize a story , saidJames Dodd , a research worker at Aarhus University in Denmark and the Tanums Hällristningsmuseum’sRock Art Research Centre Underslösin Sweden . Some of the theme — include chariots , handcart and beast figures — were depicted multiple times , he noted .
Animal figures are depicted in petroglyphs from Sweden.(Image credit: Foundation for Documentation of Bohuslän’s Rock Carvings)
" On the footing of the repeating of the motif , it is possible that this aggregation of figures make a narrative , " Dodd narrate Live Science in an email . Studies of other petroglyphs in the region have evoke that , in some cases , they may have been used in this way , but the accurate meaning in this case is uncertain , he added .
The petroglyph were discovered in other May , and research is ongoing , Östholm say .
The grassland area where the cows now graze is an ancient seabed that was underwater at the time the petroglyphs were carved.(Image credit: Foundation for Documentation of Bohuslän’s Rock Carvings)
