Neolithic stone complex found in Finland

[Nuummite]

Because there is no list of archaeology articles posted today, I decided to post this:

A Neolithic stone complex has been found on an island of Lake Pielinen in Northern Karelia. The site measures 25 x 18 metres. In Finnish such structure is called "jätinkirkko" (giant's church). This is the first giant's church in Finland that was found inland.

Picture and more information at YLE News.

Giant's churches are connected to Pöljä culture, who were hunter-gatherers. The structures may have something to do with seal hunting, because they all were built by the sea or large lakes (Pielinen), which had seals. Seal was important prey for Pöljä culture.

Source: A more serious article only in Finnish

[RandallS]

Picture and more information at YLE News.

From the picture, I would not have thought it anything but a bunch of rocks. I wish Google Translate did a better job of translating Finnish to English, as the second article looks much more informative.

[Ghostlight]

Because there is no list of archaeology articles posted today, I decided to post this:

A Neolithic stone complex has been found on an island of Lake Pielinen in Northern Karelia. The site measures 25 x 18 metres. In Finnish such structure is called "jätinkirkko" (giant's church). This is the first giant's church in Finland that was found inland.

Picture and more information at YLE News.

Giant's churches are connected to Pöljä culture, who were hunter-gatherers. The structures may have something to do with seal hunting, because they all were built by the sea or large lakes (Pielinen), which had seals. Seal was important prey for Pöljä culture.

Source: A more serious article only in Finnish

 
Unfortunately, my Finnish isn't good enough to really read the Finnish version, but do I understand it correctly that this structure is called "jötunn church" (jätinkirkko)? If so, that's pretty cool. :

[Nuummite]

Unfortunately, my Finnish isn't good enough to really read the Finnish version, but do I understand it correctly that this structure is called "jötunn church" (jätinkirkko)? If so, that's pretty cool. :

Jötunns are not a part of Finnish mythology. They belong to Norse mythology, and Finnish mythology isn't a part of it. A giant is jättiläinen, jätti, jatuli, jotuni etc. in Finnish. I explained the name in the original post.

[RandallS]

Jötunns are not a part of Finnish mythology. They belong to Norse mythology, and Finnish mythology isn't a part of it. A giant is jättiläinen, jätti, jatuli, jotuni etc. in Finnish. I explained the name in the original post.

Side Note: For those who aren't aware of this, Finnish mythology does not have a lot in common with the "Norse" mythology common to much of Northern Europe. The Finns come from a separate culture and language group (Finnish is not an Indo-European language).