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Image Credit: Loktu & Brødholt, PLOS ONE (2026)
Arctic Warming Threatens Historic Whaling Burials in Svalbard
A new study warns that rapid Arctic warming is accelerating the loss of permafrost-preserved archaeological heritage at Likneset, an early modern whaling burial site in Svalbard. The research examines 20 individuals excavated across three phases between 1985 and 2019, combining burial preservation analysis with osteological study.
The site, located in northwestern Svalbard, contains graves linked to seventeenth- and eighteenth-century Arctic whaling. Researchers found that burials in erosion-exposed areas have suffered major disturbance, including damage to coffins, burial structures, textiles, and skeletal remains. Graves in more stable central areas were better preserved.
The study shows that textiles are especially vulnerable. Burials excavated from the same erosion-prone area decades apart revealed a clear decline in textile preservation, even where skeletal remains survived more effectively. This highlights how permafrost thaw, moisture, oxygen exposure, and coastal erosion are changing once-stable Arctic burial environments.
The skeletal evidence also reveals the harsh working conditions faced by early modern whalers. The burial population was composed of young and middle-aged adult men, many showing signs of nutritional stress, scurvy, childhood hardship, joint degeneration, and activity-related skeletal strain. Most injuries were healed, suggesting that death was more closely linked to long-term physical and nutritional stress than sudden trauma.
The findings underline the urgent need for systematic monitoring and documentation of Arctic archaeological sites. As warming continues, researchers warn that preservation in place may no longer be enough to protect fragile heritage archives before they disappear.
Published on: 20-05-2026
Edited by: Abdulmnam Samakie
Source: PLOS One
