Archaeologists have discovered a sunken village from millennia ago

The first Stone Age settlement identified in Polish waters has been discovered in the lake Gil Wielki, Iława Lake District (Warmia and Mazury) by underwater archaeologists led by Dr. Andrzej Pydyn from the Department of Underwater Archaeology, Institute of Archaeology, Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń.

The discovery was made in the project carried out in cooperation with the Warsaw branch of the Scientific Association of Polish Archaeologists.

"In shallow water in the reservoir we found a large amount of animal bones, remains of tools made of antler and numerous fragments of pottery, used at various times by ancient communities. Among them, the fragments that caught our attention relate to the tradition of late Neolithic, probably associated with the so-called Corded Ware culture" - told PAP Dr. Andrzej Pydyn.

Researchers are now waiting for the results of physical and chemical analyzes, which should ultimately confirm the suggested, the early timeline of the flooded village. According to Dr. Pydyn, examples of other countries show that the sites of this type have very high research potential that allows you to recreate not only the material culture, but also the environment of prehistoric communities. The researcher noted that science does not know many Corded Ware culture settlements, which further increases the importance of the discovery.

It is not only this year find of archaeologists from Toruń in Iława Lake District. The result of this work include finding several new potential archaeological sites in lakes Iławskie, Drwęckie and Grażymowskie.

During the study, archaeologists used modern non-invasive methods. The most important of them include sonar scan and side scan. This allowed scientists to create detailed bathymetric maps (maps showing depth) and locate anomalies in the bottom of the examined water bodies, indicating places of potential interest to archaeologists. To check what was beneath the bottom, they used penetrating radar that shows the anomalies in bottom sediments.

These studies are the result of the cooperation between the Warsaw branch of the Scientific Association of Polish Archaeologists and the Department of Underwater Archaeology of the Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń. The project entitled "Identification of archaeological resources of lakes and coastal areas of Iława Lake District" is a continuation of the work carried out in 2013, is funded by the National Heritage Institute in the framework of the programme "Cultural Heritage" and priority "Protection of Archaeological Sites".

PAP - Science and Scholarship in Poland

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