Archeologists have discovered the oldest known Mesolithic pendant. It has a triangular form and is about 3 millimeters thick. The length of its side is around 30 millimeters.
The pendant is engraved with lines and archeologists believe that they could be symbolizing a tree, a leaf or they could have been used for calculations of some sort. The research on the ancient artifact has been published in Internet Archeology.
Archeologists have determined the age of the amazing artifact to be 11 000 years. It was discovered in 2015 during excavations of a Mesolithic site in Star Carr, England. The pendant was located in deep lake sediment and its scientific value became apparent only after it was analyzed microscopically.
It is unknown who possessed this pendant during ancient times. The most plausible hypothesis is that it was worn by an ancient shaman. This hypothesis came about when a helmet with red deer horns was uncovered earlier in the excavation site. Archeologists believe that the helmet belonged to a shaman as well.
Identical artifacts have been discovered earlier on the Scandinavian Peninsula. And amber pendants with similar engravings have been uncovered in Denmark.
The artifact will be on display in an exhibition of the Yorkshire University which will commence on February 27th and will last until the May 5th, 2016.
The pendant serves as evidence of the broad cultural ties among civilizations of Northern Europe. After the end of the last Ice Age, the water level was lower than it is today and that allowed ancient people to establish contact.
