Bølareinen rock carvings of Steinkjer

Bølareinen (English: the Bøla reindeer) is the name of the primary motif in a large petroglyph site near Stod in Steinkjer Municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. It is sometimes referred to as Bølafeltet (English: the Bøla site). The Bølarein has been mentioned as "probably the most well known of all the Norwegian petroglyphs", and as "the finest rock carving we have in our country." The Bølarein was discovered in 1842. Since 1969, several other petroglyphs have been found on the same rock face. It is now considered to consist of around 30 figures which can be divided into four groups. The largest and most visible figures depict a reindeer, a bear, an elk, a seabird and a skier. In the Nordic context, distinctions are drawn between carvings depicting hunting (“veideristninger”) and carvings depicting agriculture (“jordbruksristninger”), and the Bøla field shows hunting carvings. These may have been used as part of hunting magic, or to mark hunting territory. The south Sámi museum Saemien Sijte took over the operation of the Bøla cafe in 2017, and the petroglyphs are now interpreted in light of Sami history in the area.

Archaeological site data from Wikidata (CC0). Summary from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA).