Fosna–Hensbacka culture

The Fosna/Hensbacka (c. 8300 BCE – 7300 BCE, or 12000 cal BP – 10500 cal BP), were two very similar Late Palaeolithic/early Mesolithic cultures in Scandinavia, and are often subsumed under the name Fosna–Hensbacka culture. This complex includes the Komsa culture that, notwithstanding different types of tools, is also considered to be a part of the Fosna culture group. The main difference is that the Fosna/Komsa culture was distributed along the coast of Northern Norway, whereas the Hensbacka culture had a more eastern distribution along the coast of western Sweden; primarily in central Bohuslän to the north of Gothenburg.

The Hensbacka culture evolved into the later Sandarna culture which is found along the coast of western Sweden. Recent investigations indicate that this particular area, i.e. central Bohuslän, may well have had the largest seasonal population in northern Europe during the Late Palaeolithic/early Mesolithic transition. This was due to environmental circumstances brought about by the relationship between the Vänern basin in the east, and topographical features in the North Sea basin to the west.

Fosna–Hensbacka culture group

The name Fosna comes from Fosna or Lille-Fosen, an old name for Kristiansund. It is used to describe the oldest settlements along the Norwegian coast, from Hordaland to Nordland. The oldest settlements in Bohuslän on the Swedish west coast, called Hensbacka, came from the Ahrensburgian culture in Northern Germany. The oldest Fosna settlements in Eastern Norway are at Høgnipen in Østfold. Newer discoveries from 2008 at Pauler in Larvik appear to be even older.

These settlements were near the coast at the time but are now far above sea level because the land rose after the ice age ended. In western Norway, they are 60–70 meters above the present sea, while Høgnipen is as high as 150 meters. This difference happened because the land rose more on the Baltic side of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The people here were hunters and gatherers, and fishing and hunting seals were important. They likely used wooden boats with hides for covering. Most Hensbacka sites are on islands far from the mainland. Archaeologists have found stone tools at these sites, including special axes, long stone blades, and arrowheads with points.