Baltic Sea Megastructure Was Not Formed By Nature, Scientists Say

Many mysterious discoveries made in nature are just that: mysteries. It’s hard to say why some things were built and others weren’t, and why some things have lasted until modern day while others haven’t. Further investigation by scientists are the only way that many of these things can be determined, and a recent discovery may have changed the way that scientists view the ancient world.

A Structure at the Bottom of the Ocean

A megastructure in the Baltic Sea, first discovered back in 2021 during a geophysical survey along the seafloor, has baffled scientists ever since its discovery. The row of stones is located approximately 69 feet underwater, about six miles off the coast of Rerik, Germany.

The discovery revealed a wall made of 1670 stones, which stretched for more than half a mile. The stones connected several large boulders, and were nearly perfectly aligned. The composition of the wall made it unlikely that it was a natural work, but scientists were baffled as to what the purpose of it could have been.

An Investigation Authorized

An investigation was quickly authorized to determine exactly what the structure might have been. Additionally, its location at the bottom of the Baltic Sea was puzzling, and another question that needed to be answered by scientists heading the investigation.

Diving teams and an autonomous underwater vehicle were authorized to study the site, and the investigation took off. It was headed by a team from the Mecklenburg-Vorpommern State office for Culture and Monument Preservation, and some interesting things immediately became clear.

Built Thousands of Years Ago

The study revealed that the wall was likely built more than 10,000 years ago, along the shoreline of a lake or ancient bog. At the time, rocks were plentiful in the area, having been left behind by glaciers that had moved across the landscape.

This was thrilling information to have all on its own, though gathering the data was a challenge all on its own. Studying and dating submerged structures such as the Baltic wall is incredibly difficult, so scientists had to rely on past information on the region’s evolution to determine an approximate age.

A Relic From Before the Last Ice Age

The team gathered sediment samples, and then created a 3D model of the wall on computers in order to reconstruct the landscape where the wall may have been originally built. They used research data on sea level changes as well as our knowledge about the last ice age to create the simulation.

Scientists determined that the wall was likely submerged in what is now known as the Baltic sea shortly after the last ice age, which occurred approximately 8500 years ago. This ice age resulted in both the wall, and large parts of the landscape being flooded.

A Guide for Reindeer

At the time the wall was built, scientists believe that the entire population of Europe was likely below 5,000 people. The societies were largely hunter-gatherer types, and one of the main food sources of these peoples were the herds of reindeer that would travel across the continent.

The deer migrated seasonally, and scientists believe that the wall was initially built as a way of guiding the deer into a bottleneck between a lakeshore and the wall. This would have made them significantly easier prey for the hunters who relied on them for food.

A Hunter-Gatherer Technique

This intended purpose means that there could be other similar structures that have yet to be discovered by scientists, all used for the same purpose. The bottleneck would have served to allow the hunters to more easily kill the deer with their weapons, which were spears, and bows and arrows.

It’s also likely that the hunters used the wall in order to guide the deer into the lake, which would have served the same purpose of making them easier prey. The animals were slow swimmers, which would have given the hunters more time to kill them effectively.

Reconsidering Ancient Societies

The idea was rather ingenious, if that is truly the intended purpose of the wall. The structure seems to suggest that the primitive people understood that their prey would follow along the path created by the wall, making them significantly easier targets.

The discovery also changes the way that researchers think about highly mobile primitive groups like these hunter gatherers. Building a massive and permanent structure such as the newly discovered wall suggests that these regional groups may have been more location focused than previously thought, and significantly more territorial.

The First Stone Age Baltic Discovery

This wall marks the first Stone Age hunting structure discovery made in the Baltic region, though it is far from the first of its kind to be found. Similar structures have been found across the world, including in the United States and Greenland.

Another type of stonewall built for hunting caribou was also previously discovered at the bottom of Lake Huron in Michigan. The construction and location, which includes a lakeshore on the other side, is the most similar structure to the Baltic sea wall that has been found yet. This proves similar hunting modalities in ancient civilizations, no matter where they were in the world.

Ongoing Research

Research into the Baltic sea wall is ongoing, using modern techniques such as sonar and sounding devices. Future dives have been planned to search for further archaeological finds, and the combined efforts of geologists, physicists, and archaeologists make the investigation possible.

In a world that is seeing increasing demand for offshore areas due to tourism and fishing, determining what ancient history lies in undiscovered areas is crucial. The ancient communities that built these large structures might be long gone, but that doesn’t mean that they don’t still have enormous knowledge to share.