Seemingly insignificant and small, the amber dog found in
Østendal only around 100 years ago means a lot to the local people on the island.
The little dog was found close to
Stenfjord, a small town close to the mountains range,
Frostryg. A forgotten village was discovered near the edge of the mountains that the natives weren't aware of. The village itself is around 1000-1200 years old and is believed to have been covered by a massive landslide some 800 years ago.
A lot has been uncovered from the sight, which has been named Stenly, houses and common houses, shops, artefacts for everyday life, and so on - this was a literal goldmine for archaeologists.
The small dog
People from
Stenfjord often go on hikes to the mountains, and especially in the summer to get some of the tasty mountain berries that grow at the steep rocky sides - this is also how the settlement of Stenly was discovered accidentally.
A family was on their weekly hunt for berries as one of their children found a small lump of red-brownish colour on the ground and picked it up. At first, it didn't seem like anything special, and probably just a small rock in a nice colour, but the child pocketed it and took it with him home.
Here he washed it up a little and noticed small markings in the rock. He excitedly showed his parents his find, and they immediately noticed the potential importance of this find. Even though the small child didn't like the idea of giving away his "cool rock" they went to some local archaeologists and historians and told them about this small lump.
And it's safe to say they were immediately taken aback by the beautiful find, and asked the family for the location of where they found it. The boy, who was the one to find the artefact led them back to the berry bushes and excavations were started.
Unfortunately, the boy wasn't allowed to keep this artefact as it belongs to the history of the people and needed to be researched and put in the museums. But a local artist heard of the news and asked for a closer look at the artefact to make a replica of it in stone - he was allowed access.
Nowadays, the small carved dog from around 800 years ago can be bought in local shops at
Stenfjord, and kids, as well as adults, love them.
