In the untouched forests that remain in northern Sweden, it is possible to find centuries-old pines with unknown patterns carved or carved into the trunk. Lars Östlund encountered them from time to time during his fieldwork and became curious about what they symbolized. There was then no knowledge in the area, except that the carvings were made by Sami people. Together with the Silver Museum in Arjeplog, SLU started a study where they were able to find about a hundred trees with carvings. The carvings were then compared with well-known Sami symbols.
– Drawing or cutting crosses had a ritual meaning in the Sami faith. The trees could certainly be considered sacred in themselves and sometimes they marked places that were sacred and were not to be entered, says Lars Östlund.
Many have been cut down
But the symbols on the trees also had a more everyday function. The researchers believe that they were also used to navigate the forest or to mark important boundaries in the forest landscape. They estimate that at the beginning of the 20th century there were thousands of trees like this in Scandinavia, but that most were cut down. Today, the trees with carvings remain almost exclusively in protected forest in nature reserves and national parks.
Lars Östlund says that interest in the finds is great in the Sami villages he contacted.
– There are still those who know where this type of tree is. For them, this is a puzzle piece to Sami culture and religion.