Lonely Boat - Greenland

by Juergen Weiss

Title

Lonely Boat - Greenland

Artist

Juergen Weiss

Medium

Photograph

Description

FEATURED IMAGE
Group " Sunsets Sunrises " 11/17
Group " Top Travel Pics " 12/17

Lonely Fisherboat drives through the Disco Bay, beside Ilulissat in West-Greenland.

Disco Bay has been an important location for centuries. Its coastline was first encountered by Europeans when Erik the Red started a settlement in 985 AD on the more habitable western coast of Greenland. The two settlements, called the Eastern and Western settlements, were sustenance economies that survived on animal husbandry. Soon after the Western settlement was established, the Norsemen traveled up the coast during the summer thaw and discovered Disco Bay.

Their interest in this bay was due to its rich resources: walruses for ivory, seals for their pelts, and whales for a variety of materials. These products became the main source of income for the Greenlandic settlers who traded with Iceland, the British Isles, and mainland Europe. Without these resources the settlements would probably not have lasted as long as they did.

It is uncertain when the Inuit first started venturing into Disco Bay, and Norse accounts describe the area as uninhabited when they first explored it. Norse accounts document an eventual trade arrangement with the Inuit who came from the north and west. For a time, both parties made peaceful use of the bay. Later accounts report fighting and massacres on both sides. However, the primary reason for the abandonment of the Greenlandic settlements was the advent of the Little Ice Age that started in the 15th century. There was such an extreme shift in temperature that Disco Bay became inaccessible even in the warmer summer months, thereby destroying the livelihood of the Greenlandic Norse. Even the Eastern settlement, which was below the Arctic Circle, became too cold for habitation. From that time until Danish colonization in the 18th century, the Inuit controlled the Disco Bay area although English and Dutch whalers sometimes visited the area after it was charted during John Davis's third Greenland expedition in 1587. (Resource Wikipedia).

Uploaded

November 12th, 2009

Statistics

Viewed 5,161 Times  -  Last Visitor from Fairfield, CT on 04/18/2024 at 5:45 PM

Colors

Embed

Share

Sales Sheet

Tags