Newsletter July 2007

Archeologists doing conservation work at the ruins of the old St. Nicolas church at Borgarsyssel in Sarpsborg, Norway, 45 miles southeast of Oslo, found the skeletal remains of two men and one small child by accident while removing some rose bushes. To their amazement one of the skulls of the men had a unique characteristic indicating he was quite possibly an Inca. “A particular bone at the back of the head was not fused. This is an inherited trait found almost exclusively among the Incas of Peru,” said Mona Beate Buckholm, archeologist at the Borgarsyssel Museum. “While it is tempting to speculate, seeing as St. Nicolas is the patron saint of sailors, it’s hard to imagine a Peruvian making his way here at the time. This is quite puzzling.”

Old St. Nicolas church.


Skull fragments from the find.

It is known that Viking sailors, looking for opportunities to trade, settle, or plunder, made their way across the North Atlantic, to the North Sea Islands (England, Scotland, Ireland), then to Iceland and Greenland, and even to the Newfoundland area of North America. Recorded history portrays the Vikings’ forays into the American continent and contacts with the natives as brief and hostile. It’s hard to imagine how they could have come across an Inca from South America.

There have been several finds in the past of people from far off lands ending up in the areas of ancient Scandinavia due to the maritime cultures of its inhabitants. One of the most famous examples is that of a woman buried in the royal tomb at Oseberg who turned out to be of Black Sea origin. However, if further tests and excavations confirm the skeleton is of Inca origin, this find would be of much greater proportions, redefining our views on pre-Columbian contacts between Europeans and Americans.

Source: Bitsofnews.com, Aftenposten.no

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• Newsletter December 2007
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