The ski/snowshoe (C57874/22) is made of pine. One long side and one end have not been found yet. These parts may be lost or they may still be inside the ice. Since the center and other long side are preserved, it is possible to estimate the original width based on symmetry. The length is more difficult to estimate; even more so since it is not clear if the preserved end is the front or the back of the ski/snowshoe. After being fitted together, the preserved fragments measure 68 cm in length and 13 cm in width. Based on symmetry the original width of the ski was approximately 18 cm at the binding and 20 cm at the preserved end. The thickness is greatest in the center—1.5 cm, while the thickness at the edges is only 0.5 cm. It should, however, be noted that the wood probably has thinned somewhat due to surface erosion and shrinkage.
The binding area of the ski/snowshoe is preserved, but is broken into four parts of which one part is missing. The binding area contains two rectangular depressions which are 5.3 x 3.2 cm (1 cm deep), separated by 3.4 cm of wood. Through the wood between the two rectangular depressions there is a narrow passage measuring 3.4 cm in width and 0.6 cm in height. The binding must have passed through here, and since the passage is very narrow, the material for the binding was most likely leather or rawhide, not withe. The holes for the binding are placed 4.5 cm from the outer edge of the ski (based on the preserved side). The shape of the binding area is without parallels in the published Nordic ski material.
The length from the end of the ski/snowshoe to the center of the binding is 42 cm. If the binding was placed symmetrically in the center this would result in a length of 84 cm. However, it is possible that the back part was longer than the front part. Otherwise, too much pressure on the back part would make it dig into the snow, making the ski/snowshoe less functional. Since we do not know if it is the front or the back of the ski/snowshoe that is preserved, the exact length of the original is difficult to determine. It appears likely that the preserved end is the front. If the preserved end was the back, this would result in a very short ski/snowshoe, which broadens at the end, which appears less likely.
There are small holes with a distance of 4 cm along the edges of the ski/snowshoe. The holes derive from the fastening of fur-lining with sinew. There are no wear traces on the underside of the ski, just as would be the case if the underside had been protected by fur. This is the earliest known certain use of fur-lining in the published ski material from the Nordic countries, more than a thousand years older than the Mänttä ski (Vilkuna 1998).
More complicated is the absence of a clear tip at the preserved end of the ski, especially since this is likely the front. Two of the preserved pieces have no clear indication of a tip. The third piece has a slight curve at both ends of the fragment, so this is likely caused by post-depositional deformation. Without a tip the find from Lendbreen could not have been used as a normal ski for gliding on the snow. If it is some kind of snowshoe, it is without parallels. Either way, the ski/snowshoe from Lendbreen is unique in the published prehistoric and medieval material. However, it has some parallels in eighteenth through nineteenth century short and broad skis with a Manker type A binding from Eastern Siberia, as can be seen in the exhibitions at the Russian Ethnographic Museum in St. Petersburg and at the Ski Museum in Oslo.
© Equinox Publishing Ltd. 2018
