Rock carvings at Hell

Most of the rock art sites in the Trøndelag area, dating to the stone age (year 11.000-1.800 B.C.) are found in similar locations in the landscape, at the foot of steep rocks, which in the stone age formed small islands or peninsulas stretching out into the fjord. The carvings would have been clearly visible to people who were travelling along the shore in small boats of canoes.

Many of the rock art sites are found in rocks which was once situated under the sea level. Due to the uplift of the Scandinavian landscape after the last ice age, these panels have over time reached a higher altitude in the landscape. Today the Hell carvings are situated 45 meters (147,6 feet) above the present sea level, which means that these figures cannot be older than 6.500 years. At that time Steinmohaugen (the location of the carvings) formed a small island with steep sides, separated from the mainland by a 200 meters (656 feet) wide straight.