Animal head dagger from Pyhäjoki

Bear-head objects are connected to beliefs about the supernatural powers of bears. Since the Stone Age, the bear has been a powerful spirit animal alongside the elk. Objects depicting bears were valuables related to rituals and were not used in daily work.

This skilfully crafted dagger with a bear’s head handle was found in Pyhäjoki when extracting gravel right next to a Stone Age settlement. The object is made of light-striped Scandinavian (Köli) red slate. The end of the knife handle depicts a bear’s head seen from above, and the entire object has been carefully finished by grinding. There are no signs of use on the knife. This suggests that it was not an article of daily use.

KM13438:1