We’re incredibly proud to share that Secrets of the Ice has been awarded the 2025 Europa Nostra Heritage Award in the Research category – one of Europe’s most prestigious prizes for cultural heritage.
This recognition means a great deal to us. For nearly two decades, we have worked in the high mountains of Innlandet, Norway to document and protect fragile traces of the past as they melt out of the ice. What began with a single object found by a mountain hiker has grown into a long-term collaboration between researchers, museums, and local communities — driven by urgency, curiosity, and care.
The award jury described Secrets of the Ice as “a pioneering example of how heritage research can respond to the effects of global warming, with a methodology that has international relevance for high-altitude and Nordic regions.” They also praised our “strong scientific output and multidisciplinary approach.”
We share this honour with everyone who has helped along the way — the local volunteers who join us in the field, the mountain hikers who report new finds, and the thousands of followers on social media who offer insights, encouragement, and enthusiasm. This award is for you too❤
EUROPA stamps featuring our glacial discoveries! ❄️📬
Every year, European countries release special EUROPA stamps based on a shared theme. For 2025, the theme is "Archaeological Discoveries", and we’re incredibly proud that Posten Norge has chosen two of our finds from the ice for their contribution to the series! The stamps are officially issued today!
The first stamp shows the remains of a 500-year-old dog with a collar and leash, discovered in a forgotten mountain pass at Lendbreen.
The second stamp features the world’s best-preserved prehistoric ski pair, dating back to the 8th century, found at Digervarden.
These stamps don’t just celebrate Norwegian archaeology—they shine a spotlight on the important work being done in glacial archaeology, as climate change melts away ancient ice and reveals these long-hidden treasures.
The warm autumn of 2006 brought not only new discoveries from four known ice sites (Lendbreen, Åndfonne, Storfonne, and Søre Dalfonn) but also finds from seven new ice patches, some near known sites and others in completely new areas. One of the most exciting finds was this arrow from AD 300-600, discovered in the southern Jotunheimen Mountains, an area that had never seen ice finds before.
It was becoming clear that the melt wasn’t just a freak event—it was linked to climate change, and we were at the starting line of a race to rescue invaluable artefacts. But we were also faced with huge challenges. We had to figure out where the sites were, how many there were, and how to recover the finds. With no funding and no understanding of the scale of the problem, the road ahead seemed tough and unpredictable. 🏔️(Post 9/9)
Another new site that revealed itself during the 2006 melt was the ice patch at Mount Lauvhøe, which produced this stunner of a crossbow bolt. It dates to the Late Medieval or the Early Post Medieval Period. This was just the beginning at Lauvhøe — there would be many more finds from this ice patch in the years to come. 🏔️ (Post 8/9)