Ancient Artifacts Hidden Beneath The Ice In Danger As Glaciers Are Melting

Left: A Celtic artifact from the Iron Age representing a human-shaped statuette discovered in the Arolla glacier. Credit: AFP – Right: A laced shoe found with the remains of a prehistoric man dating back to around 2,800 BC. Credit: AFP

Glacier archaeology has become a sparking a brand-new field of research, and with good reason.

Over the years, archaeologists have unearthed exceptional artifacts hidden beneath the thick ice in the Alps.  These ancient troves have changed our understanding of hunters and gatherers in the Mesolithic era, some 9,500 years ago.

The melting of the ice has offered an opportunity” to dramatically expand understanding of mountain life millennia ago, but to archaeologists, climate change is also a threat.

Unless the artifacts can be found quickly, they will be destroyed. Currently, these ancient objects are protected by thick layers of ice, but organic materials freed from the ice rapidly disintegrate and disappear.

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Source: https://www.ancientpages.com/2020/10/19/ancient-artifacts-hidden-beneath-the-ice-in-danger-as-glaciers-are-melting/