The Viking Colony That Wasn’t
L'Anse aux Meadows is (rightly) famous as the archaeological evidence of a Viking settlement in North America. Located on the northern tip of Newfoundland, the site has the remains of eight buildings and could house up to 100 people, and seems to have been occupied around the year 1000.
The interesting thing? The site does not quite fit with the descriptions of “Vinland” in the Norse Sagas. L'Anse aux Meadows has no graves and no cows, but the sagas describe an attempt to found a permanent settlement (suggesting a graveyard was needed) and showing cows to confused locals.
L'Anse aux Meadows also has butternuts and butternut wood, which grows at the northernmost much further south around New Brunswick. Even the name - Vineland - and the description of wild grapes does not match L'Anse aux Meadows. Wild grapes grow much further south, also by New Brunswick.
Hopes were briefly raised that another Viking settlement might have been found at Point Rosee on the southern end of Newfoundland. A satellite-based survey seemed to find ‘cultural remains.’ But the follow-up in-person survey found the remains were entirely natural in origin.
So the search continues. Or perhaps…the Sagas were slight exaggerations, and add descriptions from places scouted but not settled further into North America. Only time (and archaeology) will tell.
