Martnadsundet, Nærøy

Maritime archaeological investigations of Martnadsundet, the old Market Strait, was initiated in 1984 when NTNU in cooperation with Nord-Trøndelag diving district and Woxeng`s Collections surveyed the area. This investigation was continued eight years later with the same partners.

THE MARKET STRAIT - A MARITIME CENTRE

Nærøy island is situated in a central position near the shipping fairway, midway between Kråkvåg (old harbour by the entrance to the Trondheim Fjord) and Vågan (the medieval administration and trade centre of northern Norway). A Market Fair was situated on Nærøy from the beginning of the medieval period. Here, commodities from the countryside were traded with commodities from the coast. In addition, Nærøy was a religious centre. According to some sources, a pagan temple worshipping Njord, the seafarers` god, was situated on the island. With the introduction of Christianity, the county church was also placed on Nærøy, and Nærøy became a vicarage in the 12th century. This contributed to the fact that Nærøy was a cultural centre for several hundred years.

According to tradition, old maps and names, the market was held on the northern parts of the island, on land and in the strait between Nærøy and Svinøy, thus the name the Market Strait. The market place could accomodate many market booths, and the harbour was also good. Large quantities of archaeological material has, intentionally and unintentionally ended up on the bottom of the strait. Garbage from the market booths and from passing and moored ships and objects dropped into the water constitute valuable material for archaeologists today.

Objects on the seabed in Martnadsundet

MARINE ARCHAEOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS IN 1984

Several objects were collected from the sea bottom. The objects found were bottles, ceramics, stoneware, glass, clay pipes etc. Most of the material can be dated to the 19th century. The oldest object found was a small pitcher from the medieval period, probably from the 14th century. The youngest object dated from 1870, when the market ceased to exist. Most artefacts came from the south side of the strait. This confirmed the location of the marketplace, and also showed that much of the activity had taken place in the strait itself on board vessels moored in the strait during the market.

THE INVESTIGATIONS IN 1992

The field work in 1992 had two goals:

1. Continue the registration under water to define the area containing cultural remains.

2. Examine the stratigraphy of the bottom sediments in the strait.

Excavations with ejector in Martnadsundet

The investigations in 1992 resulted in some important observations. The investigation showed that there are objects on the sea bottom all over the strait. Several anchors, ceramics, glass, roof tiles and clay pipes were observed near the entrance. Also, on shore near the water line on both sides of the strait are several cultural remains such as mooring stones, mooring bolts and landing places. It was also discovered that the area investigated in 1984, was again covered with objects. This probably means that underwater currents move objects continuously. It was therefore important to penetrate the sediments to examine the deposited material.

A trial trench (4x1 meters) on the bottom of the strait was excavated. Objects from the 19th century were recovered from the surface. Further down in the sediments it was possible to distinguish between two layers. These were clearly different both with respect to structure and to objects content. The first layer revealed, among other objects, a Danish coin from the 18th century. The other layer contained clay pipes of older chronology and older tail pottery, small cooking pans with three feet and a handle or ears. Typically, the older objects were deposited in the lower layer, something which is obvious on land, but not so common in underwater archaeology where the sea bottom is much more subjected to pressures from the forces of nature.

Tail pottery found during the excavations in the Market Strait

Underwater excavations with an ejector is very time consuming. During the investigation in 1992 the divers managed to excavate about 40 cm in the trial trench . This work was documented with drawings, underwater photography and video.

Excavations with ejector in the Market Strait

INVESTIGATIONS IN 1993 AND 1994

New investigations were carried out in 1993 and 1994. A new trial trench was established, it reached 120 cm, and 5 cultural layers were uncovered. The oldest objects were dated back to the 14th century.

The most important result of these investigations has been the confirmation of the research potential of the Market Strait area, both for the cultural history in general but also for the development of marine archaeological excavation methodology. We intend to continue the work in the future.