Carbonised cereal from three late neolithic and two early bronze age sites in western Norway

Abstract

Carbonised cereals were found in three Late Neolithic and two Early Bronze Age sites in western Norway. One site, Hjelle is located in northwestern Norway with no close connection to the sea. The Skrivarhelleren site is located in the mountains of the inner Sognefjord. The Voll, S0rb0 and Ystab0 sites are located on two islands in the middle of a fjord area north of Stavanger, SW Norway. Primarily Hordeum vulgare var. nudum (naked barley) were found. A few grains of Hordeum vulgare (hulled barley) were present in samples from two of the sites. Triticum dicoccum (emmer), Triticum sp. (wheat) and remains of collected plants were also found. The data produced for this article showed that by the end of the Neolithic/beginning of the Bronze Age there must have been an established agricultural economy in parts of western Norway.