Archaeological investigations at the Kõpu Kõneste settlement site on Hiiumaa Island

Abstract

The Kõpu Kõneste settlement site, situated on the Kõpu Peninsula on Hiiumaa, was discovered in 1997 near a disturbed stone-cist grave. A radiocarbon date of an unburnt animal bone to approximately 1400 cal BC prompted further investigations in 2023 and 2025. Five test pits, (11 m² in total) revealed that cultivation, including horse- and tractor-drawn ploughing, has extensively disturbed the cultural layer. Only a few undisturbed patches and several pits survived. Charcoal from one pit was dated to 1030–1150 cal AD.
Altogether, 405 artefacts, 297 bone and 27 tooth fragments were recovered. Artefacts include pottery, burnt clay, lithics, metal, glass, slag, and tar or resin. Most pottery derives from hand-made vessels tempered with crushed crystalline rock. Although typological classification is difficult, parallels can be drawn with Bronze Age and Iron Age pottery. Burnt daub indicates former buildings or other structures. Lithic finds comprise mainly locally available quartz, alongside imported Cretaceous flint, and also include grinding stones, a polished stone tool fragment, and a Baltic red quartz porphyry core. Production debris demonstrates on-site knapping.
The radiocarbon dates indicate settlement phases around 1400 cal BC and 1100 cal AD. Despite severe disturbance, the material suggests that the Early Bronze Age occupation resembled later Bronze Age traditions. The later phase confirms permanent settlement on Hiiumaa during the 11th and 12th centuries.