The small, gilded statue of Jesus likely dates back to the late 1100s or early 1200s, and it may point to the location of a lost medieval church in the area.
Arkeologi i Møre og Romsdal/FacebookThe figure is estimated to be around 800 years old.
While scouring an area near Åndalsnes, Norway, two metal detectorists were about to pack up for the night when their device suddenly gave a beep. The two men started digging and came across a small, gilded statue of Jesus Christ just an inch or so beneath the soil.
The find was not only lucky for the metal detectorists: Had they not found the statue, it’s very likely it would have been destroyed by farm equipment.
The Gilded Jesus Statue Found By Metal Detectorists In Norway
According to reporting by Norwegian media, metal detectorists Kim Erik Fylling Dybvik and Warren Schmidt had almost given up for the day when they found the gilded Jesus statue. The two men were walking back toward their car when Dybvik’s metal detector suddenly began to beep. As the Sun set, they dug into the earth and found the small, gilded bronze Jesus statue.
Arkeologi i Møre og Romsdal/FacebookMetal detectorist Kim Erik Fylling Dybvik with the small Jesus statue that he found near Åndalsnes, Norway.
“I immediately understood what it was. It was almost like a revelation,” Dybvik stated. He added: “It was All Saints’ Day, the Sun was setting — and then I find a Jesus figure. It’s almost poetic.”
Dybvik immediately notified the county municipality’s field archaeologist, Aaron Johnston. Though Johnston was in the middle of dinner, he sped to the scene and arrived about 15 minutes later, “faster than an ambulance would have been if I had called 911,” Dybvik joked.
Indeed, Johnston quickly determined that Dybvik had stumbled across an incredible find. The statue is small but incredibly detailed, showing the “suffering” Christ on the cross wearing only a loincloth.
“Kim has made many good discoveries,” Johnston remarked, “but this was truly unique.”
The Provenance Of The Jesus Statue Found In Åndalsnes
The gilded Jesus statue has been sent to the Norwegian University of Science and Technology in Trondheim for further study. Experts believe that the statue is roughly 800 years old, from the High Middle Ages. It’s made of bronze but covered with a thin layer of gold.
According to Johnston, it possibly belonged to a “stave” church — a type of wooden church popular in medieval Norway — that once stood near the site.
Kim Erik Fylling Dybvik/NTNU TrondheimThe Jesus statue is small enough to fit in the palm of a hand.
Though it was seemingly preserved in the soil for 800 years, the small Jesus statue could have been destroyed by a plow at any time. Instead, archaeologists are hoping to conduct a further survey with ground-penetrating radar. They suspect that they could determine the outlines of any buildings that once existed in the area and perhaps even come across additional artifacts that are buried nearby.
Excitingly, Dybvik’s Jesus statue is just the latest artifact to be uncovered by Norwegian metal detectorists. In recent years, treasure hunters in Norway have also found Viking relics and incredible hoards of gold.
Finds like these are often eligible for financial rewards — metal detectorists who come across artifacts from before 1537 and coins from before 1650 are given a payout — but Dybvik’s interest in finding objects with his metal detector has never been driven by possible financial gain.
Long fascinated by archaeology, Dybvik told Norwegian media that metal detecting is more than a hobby — it’s a “lifestyle.” He spends most of his free time searching for objects, driven largely by his desire to preserve Norway’s history.
“It’s about preserving cultural heritage. We find things that tell us who we are and where we come from,” he stated. For him, the satisfaction of finding an object with his metal detector comes from the chance “to contribute to cultural heritage — in an honest and fair way” rather than getting a payment.
And the tiny gilded Jesus statue that he found while metal detecting at sundown on All Saints’ Day stands as an especially significant discovery.
“It is one of my best finds in all my years of exploration,” Dybvik said, “maybe the very best.”
After reading about the gilded Jesus statue found in Norway, go inside the fascinating question of what Jesus looked like. Or, discover the reason behind Jesus’ crucifixion.
