Mølen
Mølen is a coastal
The wind and sea have lashed the landscape of Mølen for thousands of years, and the place takes its name from the Old Norse word "mol", meaning a stone mound or bank of stones.
Mølen first received protected status in 1939 due to its ancient burial mounds.[5] Mølen is home to over 230 cairns, some exceeding 35 metres (115 ft) in diameter. Excavations have dated the cairns to the Bronze Age 900-600 BCE.[6] The cairns have been purchased and acquired by the University Museum of National Antiquities.[7]
Mølen received a new protection status in 1970 due its rich and unusual
It became the first
Cultural history
The cultural landscape of Mølen, with its total of 230 cairns, is one of the most notable in Norway. The area has 16 large cairns, many up to 35 metres (115 ft) in diameter, with almost 200 small cairns in rows parallel to the shoreline. In one of the cairns, burnt stones were found; this could be the result of a cremation dating back to the 5th century A.D. The small cairns may symbolize warriors who fell in battle or were shipwrecked together with their captain.
The first archeological records of Mølen date to 1838 when twelve cairns were mentioned.
The cairns, which were clearly visible to shipping, not only signaled prosperity but probably also served as "sea markers" along the shipping lanes between different trading centres. Mølen and its bay could have been one of several transit sites in Eastern Norway, with goods from here being exchanged and conveyed to the surrounding settlements.
It is not clear why some graves are mounded, while others are of simpler form. It is unknown what ceremonies were linked to the burials, but it is likely that the most powerful members of society were given the most impressive grave sites, while ordinary people received simpler types of graves or were buried without any mound, cairn or
Plundering
The
Geology
There are traces of
Volcanic activity
The long headland of Saltstein comprises alternating layers of
Later in the carbon time series, there was basaltic volcanic activity near
Glaciation
The smooth, sloping rock of Saltstein was ground by the glacier during the last ice age. Abraded strips show that the glacier moved from north to south. The North Sea Trail from Nevlunghavn or Helgeroa passes through the area. It is part of a 5,000-kilometre (3,100 mi) coastal walk in Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, Netherlands, England and Scotland.[16]
Flora and fauna
310 bird species were observed at Mølen from 1976-1990.[6]: 14 As of 1995, 320 bird species have been observed at Mølen.[14] 1.5 million birds pass through Mølen every year on their way south for the winter.[6] Some of the rare species that have been observed here are the Magnificent frigatebird, Booted eagle, Olive-backed pipit, Scaly thrush, Black-winged pratincole, Pine bunting, Western black-eared wheatear, Red-tailed shrike, Marsh sandpiper, Pallas's gull, Franklin's gull, and Ring-billed gull.[17] The Mølen Bird Sanctuary (Norwegian: Mølen fuglefredningsområde) was established in 1981 and stretches from Oddane towards Store Arøya, and further to Lamøya and to Rogn outside Omlidstranda.[6]: 53
A number of rare plant species have been recorded at Mølen. Some common species here are the
Environmental disasters
In the summer of 2009, Mølen was covered in oil by the Full City oil spill. A subsequent study found that the marine and fish life suffered no significant changes.
Gallery
References
- ISBN 9781787018877.
- ^ "Mølen – Larvik, Norway". Atlas Obscura.
- ^ "Mølen | Norway Attractions". Lonely Planet.
- ^ "Mølen". VisitVestfold.com.
- ^ a b c "Mølen". VestfoldGuide.no.
- ^ a b c d e Guren, Lars (1991). Kyststien i Larvik (in Norwegian). Larvik: Kulturetaten. p. 55. Retrieved 2021-08-12.
- ISBN 9788200184751.
- ^ "Mølen – Larvik". Great Norwegian Encyclopedia.
- ISBN 9788293057222.
- ^ "Vestfoldguide — Mølen rullesteinstrand". Archived from the original on 2018-06-12. Retrieved 2018-06-11.
- ISBN 8299524903.
- ^ "Åpnet Geopark på Mølen og i Lardal". 16 June 2008.
- ISBN 9788271810627.
- ^ ISBN 8241201788.
- ^ Lazareth, Claire (1998). "Pierres de lest du littoral Poitou-Charentes, granites et larvikites : pétrologie, géochimie, typologie et provenance géographique, contraintes sur les voies de commerce maritime anciennes". Univ. La Rochelle.
- ^ "Welcome - North Sea Trail". Archived from the original on 2016-01-01. Retrieved 2022-08-13.
- ISBN 8250817621.