An old leather shoe discovered in the Jotunheimen Mountains (Nrway), and first estimated to be around 1000 years old, turns out to be more than 3,000 years old. The shoe was found in an old snowdrift in August last year. "We first believed that the shoe was only 1000 years old, but to our great surprise the analysis of the leather showed it to be 3,400 years old", says Oppland County Archaeologist Espen Finstad. This means that not only is it Norway's oldest shoe, but also the oldest piece of Norwegian 'clothing' discovered so far. The shoe therefore dates back to the Bronze Age, roughly from 1800 to 1100 BCE. In the same area were also found several complete arrows and a spade made from wood. "This tells us that this area was an important hunting ground over a longer period", says Finstad.

Source: The Norway Post (20 May 2007)