Archaeologists found the oldest stilt village in Europe

(ORDO NEWS) — Scientists have found a village on stilts on the shore of the lake, which is considered the oldest ever found in Europe. This is reported by Arkeo News.

According to scientists, a settlement with houses on stilts on the shore of the lake existed in the territory of modern Albania in the period between 6000 and 5800 BC, approximately 8 thousand years ago. 

In this case, the discovered place can be called the oldest village in Europe among those known today.

This ancient village, which had between 200 and 500 inhabitants, was located on the Albanian side of Lake Ohrid. Due to periodic rises in the water level in these areas, the village was located on stilts.

“It is several hundred years older than previously known lake settlements in the Mediterranean and the Alps. As far as we know, it is the oldest in Europe,” said Albert Hafner, professor of archeology at the Swiss University of Bern.

During the last four years, Swiss and Albanian archaeologists have been actively excavating in Lina, on the Albanian side of Lake Ohrid. Research has revealed evidence of the ancient villagers using thousands of spiked boards as protective barricades. 

Albert Hafner, an expert on European Neolithic lake settlements, explains that the villagers cut down the forest to create these barriers. In total, about 100,000 such boards were fixed at the bottom of the lake, which makes this place a real treasure for research.

Scientists note that the inhabitants of this village paid the main attention to agriculture and livestock for food. During the excavations, seeds, plants and bones of both wild and domestic animals were found.

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