Prehistoric Denmark

The oldest projectile point discovered in Denmark originates from Bjerlev Hede in central Jutland and has been dated to 12,500 BC.

The Scandinavian region possesses a rich prehistory, having been inhabited by various prehistoric cultures and populations for approximately 12,000 years, since the end of the last Ice Age. During the glacial period, nearly all of Scandinavia was covered by ice sheets for most of the time, with the exception of the southwestern areas of present-day Denmark. As the ice retreated, barren tundra landscapes were rapidly colonized by reindeer and elk, followed by Ahrensburg and Swiderian hunter groups migrating from the south, who exploited these resources seasonally.

The geography of the region at that time differed markedly from present conditions. Sea levels were significantly lower; the island of Great Britain was connected to continental Europe via a land bridge, and the extensive area between Great Britain and the Jutland Peninsula—now submerged beneath the North Sea and referred to as Doggerland—was inhabited by hunter-gatherer populations. With climatic warming, substantial meltwater rivers reshaped the landscape, while increasingly stable ecosystems of flora and fauna gradually developed across Scandinavia, particularly in Denmark.

The first permanent human settlers in Denmark and Scandinavia are associated with the Maglemosian culture, whose populations occupied seasonal camps and exploited terrestrial and aquatic resources, including forests, coastlines, rivers, and lakes. It was not until approximately 6000 BC that the general outline of Denmark’s modern geography became established.

Denmark offers exceptionally favorable natural conditions for the preservation of archaeological materials, resulting in a rich and diverse archaeological record that provides key insights into the region’s prehistoric cultures.

The prehistory of Scandinavia begins at the close of the Pleistocene epoch, following the retreat of the Fennoscandian ice sheet during the last glaciation. Parts of Denmark, Scania, and the Norwegian coastline were ice-free by approximately 13,000 BC. By around 10,000 BC, the ice margin had retreated to regions corresponding to present-day Dalsland, Västergötland, and Östergötland. It was not until circa 7000 BC that Svealand and the modern northeastern Swedish coastline were entirely deglaciated. However, the immense weight of the ice sheet had caused isostatic depression of the Fennoscandian landmass, submerging large portions of eastern Sweden and western Finland.

In Scandinavia, the period following the last Ice Age begins around 9500 BC and is subdivided into:

1. The Yoldia Stage, named after the Yoldia Sea;

2. The Ancylus Stage, named after the Ancylus Lake, itself derived from Ancylus fluviatilis, a freshwater gastropod species characteristic of that period. During this stage, Denmark and Sweden were connected, and the Baltic basin formed a freshwater body known as the Ancylus Lake;

3. The Littorina Stage, following the formation of the Littorina Sea around 6200 BC, named after the mollusk Littorina littorea.

The initial human colonization of these newly exposed lands during the Ancylus and Littorina stages marks the beginning of the Nordic Stone Age. Recent archaeological discoveries in cave contexts suggest the possibility of human presence in Scandinavia prior to the Weichselian glaciation, at least 50,000 years ago, likely attributable to Neanderthal populations.

As the ice sheets retreated, reindeer herds occupied the plains of Denmark and southernmost Sweden. These environments were exploited by the Ahrensburg culture, whose members ranged across territories of up to 100,000 km² and lived in mobile tent-like structures on tundra landscapes. Vegetation was initially sparse, dominated by arctic white birch and rowan, though boreal taiga forests gradually developed.

Europe during the Last Glacial Maximum c. 20,000 years ago

The Scandinavian Peninsula represents the last region of Europe to have been colonized following the Last Glacial Maximum. The precise migration routes, cultural interactions, and genetic composition of the earliest Scandinavian populations remain subjects of ongoing research, with multiple hypotheses informed by archaeology, paleoclimatology, and genomics. Genomic analyses of early Scandinavian hunter-gatherers (SHGs), including individuals from sites such as Stora Förvar (Stora Karlsö), Stora Bjers (Gotland), and Hummervikholmen (Norway), indicate dual migration pathways: one from the south and another from the northeast along the ice-free Norwegian Atlantic coast. These populations eventually met and admixed, producing a genetically diverse population relative to contemporary hunter-gatherers in Central and Western Europe.

By the 7th millennium BC, as reindeer populations and their associated hunters migrated further north, dense forests became established across Scandinavia. The Maglemosian culture persisted in Denmark and southern Sweden, while the Fosna-Hensbacka cultural complex occupied regions of Norway and southern Sweden, primarily along forested coastal zones. These populations relied on fire, watercraft, and lithic technologies to adapt to northern environments. Seasonal mobility patterns were maintained, with movements tracking animal migrations and salmon runs.

The Maglemosian culture was adapted to forest and wetland environments, utilizing fishing and hunting implements crafted from wood, bone, and flint microliths. A defining technological feature of this culture is the production of finely retouched flint microliths used as components of composite tools such as spears and arrows. By around 6000 BC, microlith production declines, marking a transitional phase toward the Kongemose culture (c. 6000–5200 BC). Assemblages from this period are characterized by elongated flint blades used to manufacture distinctive rhombic arrowheads, as well as scrapers, drills, awls, and denticulated blades.

During the 6th millennium BC, southern Scandinavia was covered by dense temperate broadleaf and mixed forests. These ecosystems supported a diverse fauna, including aurochs, European bison (wisent), moose, and red deer. The Kongemose culture subsisted on these resources, continuing practices of terrestrial hunting, seal hunting, and fishing in nutrient-rich aquatic environments.

To the north, contemporaneous hunter-gatherer groups in southern Norway and Sweden, associated with the Nøstvet and Lihult cultures—descendants of the Fosna and Hensbacka traditions—maintained similar subsistence strategies. These cultures persisted into the late 6th millennium BC, when the Kongemose culture in southern Scandinavia was succeeded by the Ertebølle culture.

References:

1. J.-P. Findeisen, Dänemark, 2008, 14–19.

2. P. Lauring, A History of Denmark, 2017, 11–18.

3. H. J. Schröter, Geschichte Skandinaviens, 2021, 8–11.

4. T. Günther et al., Population genomics of Mesolithic Scandinavia: Investigating early postglacial migration routes and high-latitude adaptation, PLOS Biology, 2018, Vol. 16, No. 1, 3ff.

5. H. Klüche, Dänemark, 2025, 25-36.