An ancient amber bear figurine, unearthed by miners in northern Poland, is the subject of renewed attention following a study suggesting it dates back to the Upper Paleolithic period, according to Live Science. Researchers concluded that the object, known as Słupcio, is likely from this era, .
Discovered in 1887 by workers digging peat, the amber bear measures 10.2 centimeters in length and 4.2 centimeters in height. The figurine is a sculpted artifact that may represent additional evidence of a tradition in the Upper Paleolithic of depicting animals in cave paintings and portable objects.
Currently, the amber bear Słupcio is exhibited at the Polish National Museum in Szczecin, approximately 220 kilometers southwest of the discovery site. The figurine has become a local symbol in Szczecin, with copies of it sold widely as souvenirs.
In the middle of the body of the amber bear statue, there is a hole that goes all the way through the amber, likely used by ancient hunters to thread a strap for hanging or carrying it. The legs of the Słupcio figurine are practically just bumps and do not allow it to stand alone. The head of the bear is sculpted to highlight the ears, mouth, nostrils, and eyes.
An ancient hunter probably wore the amber bear figurine as a talisman of protection, as bears were the most powerful and dangerous animals in the area during the Stone Age.
At the end of World War II, Słupcio was taken from Poland by German forces, along with other ancient artifacts, and ended up at the Stralsund Museum until it was returned to Szczecin in 2009. While in Germany, Słupcio was studied by experts who cataloged it as Bernsteinbär (amber bear) and determined that all of the carving on Słupcio was ancient.
Since Słupcio was a stray find from more than a century ago, experts remain divided about the exact time it was made. The amber bear may date to Europe's Mesolithic period, which lasted from 12,000 to 5,000 years ago. During the Mesolithic period, people were mostly hunter-gatherers, and archaeological evidence of their settlements is rare.
In the Pomerania region on the southern coast of the Baltic Sea, archaeologists found Stone Age sites with artifacts such as pottery, tools, and weapons, along with objects made from amber washed ashore. The type of amber found in the area comes from marine sediments.
Carving bears from amber, a natural material that looks like stone, floats in seawater, becomes translucent when polished, and emits a pleasant fragrance when burned, may have been perceived as imbuing the material with magic, transforming Słupcio into a powerful Stone Age amulet.
In 2013, the name "Słupcio" was given to the amber bear figurine when a Polish kindergarten child won a contest to name it.
The article was written with the assistance of a news analysis system.
