Archaeologists in Iceland have actually found what might be an unusual Viking Age toy took of stone, however it’s anybody’s guess regarding which animal it illustrates.

The figurinewhich professionals dated to in between A.D. 940 and 1000, was discovered at the Fjörður excavation website in Seyðisfjörður, Iceland. It’s a little, four-legged animal with a broken ear sculpted from regional stone.

The majority of the group believed the animal was a pig, Ragnheiður Traustadóttirdirector of the Antikva historical group that uncovered the toy, informed Live Science. This isn’t improbable, because Vikings utilized domesticated pigs for meat. 2 staff member, nevertheless, translated it as a bear, and while bears are foreign to Iceland, a minimum of 600 polar bears (Ursus maritimushave actually been reported on the island because human settlement started to today. When images of the figurine were published on Facebook on Aug. 13, numerous Facebook users ended up being persuaded that it represented an Icelandic pet dog.

“Children are not so noticeable in the Viking Age, so this is a fantastic discover,” Traustadóttir stated. The director sees a pig and is doubtful about the Icelandic pet analysis, as she states the face does not match the animal. “I owned an Icelandic canine for 14 years,” Traustadóttir stated. “I’m not exactly sure.”

The Fjörður excavationcalled after the historic Fjörður farm, started in 2020 ahead of the scheduled building of avalanche security walls in Seyðisfjörður and was expected to last just 2 years. The excavation exposed so much that Traustadóttir is now in her 5th summer season there.

Related: 1,200-year-old ‘Viking graffiti’ is the earliest illustration ever found in Iceland

In 2021, archaeologists discovered a farm mound, mill and sheep shed dating to at some point in between the 18th and 20th centuries, per Seydisfjord Archaeological Researcha site run by Antikva that releases findings from the Fjörður excavation. Below that, they discovered middle ages remains, and underneath those, they found 4 Viking Age (A.D. 793 to 1066) graves buried below an 11th-century landslide.

To put it simply, a single excavation had actually exposed 1,000 years of Icelandic history. In 2022, south of the previous website, the archaeologists found a Viking longhouse with a weaving space, animal enclosures and a farm midden, or garbage stack, dating to in between the 11th and 13th centuries. They put their findings on this historic timeline by dating the layers of ash from the numerous volcanic eruptions that have actually affected the area given that the arrival of human inhabitants.

“There’s no other website in Iceland that has a lot of finds,” Traustadóttir stated. In 5 years of historical work, they’ve cataloged approximately 4,000 artifacts, consisting of almost 100 Viking video game pieces from a parlor game called “hnefatafl” that were crafted from the very same kind of stone as the toy.

While it’s difficult to understand precisely who sculpted these things and why, Traustadóttir used one possibility.

“Someone beinged in the winter season night, in the dark, sculpting chess pieces,” Traustadóttir mused, “and after that this animal for a kid.”

The excavation is because of conclude quickly, after which the archaeologists will start studying the countless artifacts they have actually recuperated.

Margherita is a trilingual freelance author focusing on science and history writing with a specific interest in archaeology, palaeontology, astronomy and human habits. She made her bachelor’s degree from Boston College in English literature, ancient history and French, and her journalism MA from L’École Du Journalisme de Nice in International New Media Journalism. In addition to Live Science, her bylines consist of Smithsonian Magazine, Discovery Magazine, BBC Travel, Atlas Obscura and more.