The stane carvings at Grøtte

The stane carvings at Grøtte on Selbustrand in Selbu municipality in Trøndelag are stane carvings o the fairm carvings type fae the Bronze Age, carved on loose granite blocks alang the shoreline on the north side o Selbusjøen. The motifs are boats an ootsoal ootlines, but there's also hauns, cups, an some simple animal figures. The maist interestin thing aboot this site is its unique poseetion in the landscape, says the airchaeology professor Kalle Sognnes. The motifs uised here are maistly kent fae ither rock airt sites.

The Steid an the Find

In the fermtoun Selbustrand on the north side o Selbusjøen, stane carvings war discovered in 1947 an 1948 on several stane boulders sittin at the shoreline. Afore this, a boat figure haed been fund in 1930 at the ferm at Engan, an a stane wi twa animal figures at Balstad in 1937.

The find in 1947/1948 wis likely connectit tae the unco laich watter staund in the regulated Selbusjøen during thae twa simmers. The normal regulation hicht is 161 metres abuin sea level. The normal watter staund afore regulation wis 159 metres abuin sea level, but airchaeology professor Sverre Marstrander considers the watter level micht hae been a metre laicher when the carvings war chiselled in the Bronze Age, sae the carvings wad hae been mair explicitly at the watter's edge. Nou maist o the stanes hae been muived further up the strand, tae get clear o the shoreline.

The stane carvings are done on reidish granite blocks o varyin size, frae 100 kg tae several tons. The bedrock in Selbu disnae contain granite, an it is thocht that these blocks hae been brocht by the ice frae the Sylan muntains in the east, whaur granite is common. The fermtoun lies sooth-facin, wi sel-drainin an easily wrocht braes that slope doun tae the loch. This is a landscape type that is considered tae hae haed unco early settlement, an whaur the present topography is practically identical tae the landscape as it appeared in the Bronze Age.

Stane carvings are kent on aboot twenty stanes ower a stretch o 10 kilometre alang the shoreline at Selbustrand. Mair nor hauf o them war fund at the ferm o Solem faur wast in the fermtoun, wi the neebourin ferm Grøtte/Grøttem bein the ither main cluster.

The reid hue on the granite blocks exists on the surface as a kin o patination, writes Kalle Sognnes. Inside this reid "shell" on the stanes, the rock is nearer a licht gowd. Sognnes writes that "the carvin furrows brak throu the reid surface, sae there's a marked colour differ atween the figures an the surroondin stane".

Maist o the twenty stanes are smaw, wi carvin surfaces o ½ tae 1 square metre. Sixty figures hae been identifee'd ower 6 different motifs: 31 fitmerks, 9 boats, 3 haunds, 2 beasts an 4 rings. Forby, on fower o the stanes, anerlie cup marks hae been fund.

There's twa different types o boat figures amang the stane carvings in the aurie. Ane is "the classic Bronze Age type wi twa heich-raisit prows at the front" an an equally distinct stern. The ither boat type is "bean-shaped". The bean-shaped anes are the maist recent, fae the Airn Age. Marstrander considers the depictit boats tae be skin-boats, that is, a widden frame covered wi hide.

On ae stane, "Grøtte IV", twa ring figures appear thegither wi boats. The rings are interpreeted as sun seembols.

The fitmerks maistly appear alane, but also in pairs, an in some cases several fitmerks thegither. The feet aft hae a cross-line markin the skail atween the heel an the sole, whilk is thocht tae reflect a shuin uiss whaur laces were wappit roond the fit an ankle tae secure the leather shuin. Maist notable is a stane fae Solem whaur ae fitmerk is depictit alang wi three haunds wi spreed oot fingers. Sic haund-motifs are gey rair in Trøndelag rock airt. This stane, "Solem IV", is nou at the Vitenskapsmuseet in Trondheim.

The twa beasts on the stane at Balstad are interpreeted by Kristen R. Møllenhus fae Vitenskapsmuseet as horses an as an expression o agrarian culture. Sognnes considers the figures untypical compared tae horse figures on stane carvings fae Stjørdal, an quaists gin they micht be modren imitations o stane carvings.

Leeteratur

• Sverre Marstrander (1949). «Nye helleristninger i Selbu» (New Stane Carvings in Selbu). In: Trondhjems Turistforenings Arbok 1949. (pdf)
• Sverre Marstrander og Kalle Sognnes (1999). Trøndelags jordbruksristninger (Trøndelag Agrarian Carvings). Vitenskapsmuseet. (Vitark-serien; nr 1). ISBN 82-519-1516-3
• Kalle Sognnes (1994). «Helleristninger på Selbustrand» (Rock Carvings at Selbustrand). In: Jul i Neadalen 1994; pp 1-3, 33
• Kalle Sognnes (2004). «Hender, føtter og båter på stein» (Haunds, Feet an Boats on Stane). In: Spor : nytt fra fortiden; nr 1, 2004. (pdf)
• Kalle Sognnes (2005). «Vandring langs en strand - helleristninger i Selbu, Sør-Trøndelag» (Wanderin Alang a Shore - Rock Carvings in Selbu, Sooth Trøndelag). In: Mellan sten och järn : rapport från det 9:e nordiska bronsåldersymposiet, Göteborg 2003 : Del 2 (Atween Stane an Airn: Report fae the 9t Nordic Bronze Age Symposium). Göteborgs universitet, 2005. ISBN 91-85245-10-0