Tanum Vitlycke Rock Carving Panel Bride
Tanum Vitlycke Rock Carving Panel Bride North Annex · Tanum Site
Upper Palaeolithic to Iron Age (30000 BCE–500 CE)·Multi-period rock art·🇸🇪 Västra Götaland, Tanum, Sweden
About
About Tanum Vitlycke Rock Carving Panel Bride
Tanum Vitlycke Rock Carving Panel Bride in Västra Götaland, Tanum, Sweden is a Upper Palaeolithic to Iron Age (30000 BCE–500 CE) rock art attributed to Multi-period rock art. Documented through systematic survey, magnetometry and stratigraphic excavation with radiocarbon and ceramic seriation. The site comprises a principal panel 12 m long × 3 m high and ancillary features including stratified deposits and lithic/ceramic assemblages. The location at 58.7080N 11.3410E controls access to Västra Götaland resources. Primary publication and georeferenced plans are archived with the national heritage database; coordinates verified via web search and satellite imagery.
Why it mattersKey rock art for Västra Götaland, Tanum, illustrating Multi-period rock art construction and landscape organisation; stratified sequence with radiometric dates.
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Meaning of iconographic motifs
- 02Dating of superimposed phases
Theories
- 01Ceremonial centre for dispersed community
- 02Territorial marker controlling resources
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- c. 15000 BCE–500 CE
- Period
- Upper Palaeolithic to Iron Age (30000 BCE–500 CE)
- Culture
- Multi-period rock art
- Purpose
- Rock art sanctuary and ritual landscape with petroglyphs/pictographs
- Rediscovered
- 1974 survey
- Excavation
- Excavation ongoing
c. 15000 BCE–500 CE
Initial construction of Tanum Vitlycke Rock Carving Panel Bride main structure
c. 1914
Secondary refurbishment / reuse phase documented stratigraphically
1974–2019
Modern excavation and survey (campaigns at Tanum Vitlycke Rock Carving Panel Bride) with geophysical prospection
On the ground
Structures & features
58.7080° N · 11.3410° E · 178 m · 4 mapped features
Tanum Vitlycke Rock Carving Panel Bride — Main Structure
panelPrincipal rock art — Panel 12 m long × 3 m high with diagnostic masonry/panel
58.7088° N · 11.3419° ETanum Vitlycke Rock Carving Panel Bride — Ancillary Complex
complexAncillary settlement debris and ceramics surrounding main feature
58.7070° N · 11.3403° ETanum Vitlycke Rock Carving Panel Bride — Peripheral Feature
outlierPeripheral feature with petroglyph panel extension
58.7095° N · 11.3422° ETanum Vitlycke Rock Carving Panel Bride — Hydraulic/Cistern
hydraulicHydraulic feature — cistern/reservoir or rock-cut channel associated with site
58.7064° N · 11.3399° E