Life before Barents: Russian scientists reiterate Spitsbergen discovery discussion

ARCTIC TODAYLife before Barents: Russian scientists reiterate Spitsbergen discovery discussion Scandinavian scientists insist the Vikings discovered the islands back in the 12th century, but any evidence is hidden in the depths of centuries and watersMOSCOW, October 21. /TASS Correspondents Maria Kartuz, Konstantin Malykh/. TASS correspondents visited the archipelago and gathered opinions about its discoverers. Why the discussion about the Pomors' early sites on Spitsbergen has faded away and how it may return to the scientific sphere - read about it in this material by TASS. The archipelago discovery's stories vary. One of them, the most well-known and document-proven, is that the first discoverer was Dutch navigator Willem Barents in 1596. It is believed that he gave the name to the archipelago - Spitsbergen (Sharp mountains). Another story is related to Soviet archaeologist Vadim Starkov, who claimed that Russian hunters and fishers had known the land under the name of Grumant at least half a century before Barents. He proved the claim by results of own dendro-chronology analysis of wooden buildings' remains. Scandinavian scientists insist the Vikings discovered the islands back in the 12th century, but any evidence is hidden in the depths of centuries and waters. Their claim is based on a single source - the Icelandic Chronicles of 1194, where the archipelago (Svalbard, or Cold Shores) was mentioned for the first time. This is exactly the name Norway uses for the archipelago nowadays. However, no traces of the Vikings have been found there, thus this story may be put aside for now. As for the first two versions, historians are sure it is quite unreasonable that from the discussion stage they have moved into the stage of categorical claims. While Western critics used to study Starkov's conclusions, argued, offered reasons, nowadays the discussion has been artificially stopped, and the Norwegian museum ultimately presents the period of Grumant's Pomors as the term between 1700 and 1850. "Nor should we take a hard line claiming the Pomors definitely were there in the middle of the 16th century. On the other hand, it is impossible to turn one version into an ultimate claim. There exist Starkov's conclusions, as well as a number of indirect arguments in favor of the Pomors' early presence on Spitsbergen, and there is also criticism of these data. We need to remain at the level of scientific discussion: double-checking arguments, searching for documents, and discussing methods," leader of the Russian Geographical Society's expedition to Spitsbergen Pavel Filin said. The last great discovery The discovery of Severnaya Zemlya in 1913 is commonly considered to be the last great geographical discovery on the planet. But the North's historical map still remains being incomplete. It contains territories of well-known routes, settlements, and even names of participants in events, but their sequence is not clear, and Spitsbergen is not an exception. We talked with Pavel Filin at the Barentsburg Museum. The scientists have arrived in the archipelago on an expedition of the Russian Geographical Society to map the Russian cultural heritage on Spitsbergen. Collected artifacts are very numerous here. For example, a fragment of the Pomors vessel's hull - thick planks are connected by flexible bundles of steamed roots. The planks keep holes through which the "thread" passed, as well as the darkened surface, and traces of repair. Other museum showcases present fishing devices, household items, fragments of crosses. A map on the wall shows old settlements' locations. Vadim Starkov's Spitsbergen expedition worked on the archipelago since the 1970s. The researchers managed to identify many monuments associated with Russian fishers and hunters, and the archeologist dated some of them to the middle of the 16th century. As for technical reasons of those who criticize Starkov - they may be shared or waived, but as for the logics - the story seems quite clear. The Pomors' culture on the White Sea formed in the 15th-16th centuries, or even earlier. It was based on fishing, hunting sea animals, shipping, and seasonal sea navigation. The fishermen and hunters, guided by the approach "the sea is our field", traveled following the resources and developed fresh marine areas similar to the ways agricultural communities do. The Pomors were sailing further on towards Spitsbergen to hunt walruses, arctic foxes, and to fish. People traveled and worked in teams, and brought supplies with them - they transported dismantled houses, bricks, and sometimes firewood. They used fins as fuel, but it was impossible to rely on them alone in the treeless archipelago. "Wintering is a specific technology," the scientist said. "They were to know how not to die there. Of course, many did die. But the Pomors had the experience of survival gained in the White Sea, on the Kola Peninsula, and Novaya Zemlya." In the 17th century, Spitsbergen was a place of intensive European whaling. British, Dutch, French and German vessels entered the archipelago's waters in the summer, hunted whales, butchered the carcasses on the shore and left before the ice settled. Competition for fishing and hunting areas sometimes led to armed clashes. Noteworthy, European whalers did not practice wintering - only a few such cases are known, and those cases used to end tragically. The Pomors' presence was different. For Russian hunters and fishermen, Spitsbergen was part of the northern economic area that required a long year-round stay. They were preparing for winter, hunted arctic foxes, repaired rigging and ships, and organizing life on the shore. The camps and settlements became a material trace of this approach. There are many traces of the Pomors in the archipelago - settlements and camps, remains of crosses, burials, fragments of ships. Archaeologists have discovered about 70 camps, which is a significant number for the high-latitude territory. At the same time, the early period's documentary history remains fragmentary. According to the scientist, the earliest Russian document directly related to Spitsbergen, that he knows, dates back to 1710. "This does not mean that Russians had not been there earlier. Documents from the early 18th century describe sailing to Grumant like a fully formed practice. Perhaps Russian documents from an earlier period are still to be found in archives. Besides, the Pomors' navigation is a traditional culture that has long existed in the oral form. People could understand from experience the winds, currents, prominent capes and landmarks. They could have not recorded such voyages in written sources," he explained. The political formula The dispute about who was the first acquired special importance back in the early 20th century. Norway gained independence in 1905, and in 1920 was signed the Treaty of Spitsbergen, which stipulated Norway's sovereignty over the archipelago with a special international regime of economic activity. In such a situation, the dispute about the discoverers reached an ideological level. Historical arguments have become part of discussions about cultural memory and national presence in the Arctic. The expert believes that the history of Spitsbergen demonstrates most clearly how a research discussion may acquire a political sounding. "The historical science turns very easily into politics," he said. "The researchers, who argued with Starkov, presented counterarguments, and questioned the methods - this is a regular scientific process. But further on, the complex and interesting dispute has turned into a short museum formula." What is permitted when nothing is permitted Work with Spitsbergen's archaeological heritage continues under a strict regime of monument protection. Excavations, sampling, and removal of objects are significantly limited by the Norwegian legislation. Therefore, to re-test earlier stories, specialists need archives, museum collections, field reports, non-invasive examination methods and detailed fixation of objects on the ground. This is exactly the kind of data map that the Russian Geographical Society's expedition has been developing. In the expedition, cartographer Alevtina Paramonova is responsible for the creation of the map's thematic basis. At first, she said, it is necessary to collect and compare various sources - archival plans, old maps, photographs, publications, field survey materials, and stories by local residents. "We have been working on maps of cultural and natural heritage. It's a special genre. We need to build a foundation, show periods, types of objects, and connections between them. The map must accumulate knowledge about the territory." The map will present the archipelago's heritage as a linked system, said Egor Shevyakov of the Russian Academy of Sciences' Institute of Archaeology. "The map is needed to systematize knowledge: when Russia appeared on the archipelago, what types of activities it conducted there, and what objects have been preserved. This is the basis for conservation projects, educational programs, tourist routes, and for further research," he added. The Pomors' wintering grounds on Spitsbergen will become the earliest and, perhaps, the most disputable layer of the future map. Anyway, the truth often lies somewhere inside layers of the kind. The Russian Geographical Society has organized a comprehensive expedition to Spitsbergen to create a map of the archipelago's Russian historical and cultural heritage. The expedition participants are recording objects related to the Pomors ' culture, scientific expeditions, coal mining, and the history of Russian villages. They are working with archives and talk to local residents. The Russian Geographical Society has organized a press tour for Russian reporters to cover the expedition's work. 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