Petroglyphs, cave paintings, and various rock carvings are some of the earliest forms of expression of early humans. In the Baltic, Pomeranian and Scandinavian regions of Europe, petroglyphs have been used for a variety of purposes for thousands of years in the lives of their inhabitants. Popular during the Paleolithic, Neolithic and also the Bronze and even Iron Ages, petroglyphs have become a unique European heritage. Today we will look at one of the most complex and fascinating examples of petroglyphs in the Baltic region, known as the Virtaka Cliffs in Latvia.
But what are petroglyphs? Petroglyphs are intricate cuts in prominent rocks, boulders and cliffs that served religious or similar purposes for various cultures and tribes living a hunter-gatherer lifestyle. gather. They often depict mythical creatures or hunting games. All the different symbols are still the subject of a lot of research to decode and understand their purpose and meaning.
The Virtaka Cliff Petroglyphs are located on sandstone cliffs along the Gauja River basin in Latvia. (BirdsEyeLV / CC BY-SA 3.0 )
Late discovery of Virtaka cliffs
The parish and municipality of Krimulda is located near the coast of the Baltic Sea in Latvia. It is home to the Virtaka Cliffs, a secluded sandstone cliff that boasts a dense group of petroglyphs, one of the richest collections of impressions in the entire Baltic region. Latvia is the second largest of the three Baltic states and boasts a long and rich history, steeped in Baltic tradition and heritage, and the Virtaka Cliffs are an important insight into its oldest historical periods.
Since it is located in the region known as the Eastern European Plain, prominent rock outcrops and rock faces are quite rare throughout the country. However, certain regions of Latvia still have appropriate rock paintings that ancient peoples discovered and used to express their mysterious manifestations. The Gauja river basin is a good example of this. The only truly Latvian river – rising and ending entirely in Latvia – it creates a deep river valley, with steep red cliffs along its banks – a perfect canvas for some petroglyphs !
Natural caves also abound in the area, many of which show signs of ancient habitation. Many caves have been extensively studied and are classified as sacred caves. Today there are about fifty such organizations in Latvia. These are all important aspects of ancient Northeast European culture. But what’s interesting is their geological background. These caves were formed through the same geological process as many of the cliffs in Latvia. Formed from sandstone and relatively easy to work, they often feature ancient carvings and symbols.
Sadly, travelers, travelers, wanderers and tourists often exploit the softness of the sandstone by carving names or silly messages on the walls they come across. As a result, many ancient cliff faces and sacred caves have been desecrated by “modern” works. The rock faces of Gutman Ala or the famous Gutman cave have been widely studied but are also filled with tourist attractions. The earliest of these is dated to 1521!
The first discovery made by famous speleologist Guntis Eniņš were mysterious carvings on the walls of Lībiešu Upurala cave in 1971. (J. Sedols / CC BY 3.0 )
Provides insight into the history of the distant Baltic region?
The first ancient stone carvings in Latvia were discovered surprisingly recently. With centuries of external intervention and occupation from major regional powers, Latvia achieved real and formal independence around 1991. These occupations and internal struggles were probably also influenced the country’s academic world, limiting the scope of archaeological research until the later decades of the 20th century.
In 1971, Latvian petroglyphs and rock carvings were seriously discovered by the famous speleologist Guntis Eniņš. His first discoveries were made at the Lībiešu Upurala cave. He discovered ritual relics in the cave, which also corresponded to mysterious carvings on its walls. His next important discovery was made in 1986, on the surface of the so-called Virtaka Rock. This striking sandstone cliff face is located on the banks of the Brasla River.
Virtaka Rock is one of the Baltic region’s most stunning, pristine rivers, with wild nature within its rugged valleys and a truly wild atmosphere. Virtaka Cliff is located on the right bank and has a height of 10 to 15 meters (32-50 feet) and a length of about 100 meters (~329 feet). At the base of the cave, out of sight, is a small cave, with a ceiling 2.5 meters (8.2 feet) high.
Upon closer observation, Guntis Eniņš was amazed at the great discovery he had made. The face of the sandstone cliff is covered with a complex and dense group of ancient petroglyphs, covering a surface measuring 2 by 3.5 meters (6.5 by 11 feet). It was immediately certain that this group of carvings was by far the largest and most important discovery in Latvia up to that time, and it caused a great stir in archaeological and historical scientific circles. history.
Discovered in 1986, the petroglyphs on the Virtaka cliffs in Latvia. (Guntis Eniņš/ Folklore )
The carvings on Virtaka Cliff are dense and numerous, perhaps indicating that the ancient inhabitants of the area “worshiped” or used it for a long time. Although the meaning, role and symbolism behind the carvings remains largely a subject of debate, we can nevertheless recognize some symbols that were widely used in ancient times.
Some of them are various basic symbols used throughout Europe during the Neolithic and later eras, such as the swastika, the solar cross, the circle, the zig-zag , animal shapes and human motifs. It is important to note the use of the swastika – which is an ancient symbol of the sun in ancient European cultures and civilizations. Some of them are arranged in groups of four, while others live alone. The solar cross and similar shapes are also very old and very popular in ancient Europe
The petroglyphs on the Virtaka Cliffs are dense and numerous and were discovered by Guntis Eniņš in 1986. ( Poweroaklatvia )
Collective heritage of the Balto-Slav people
But what is more important to note are some very recognizable symbols in later Balto-Slavic culture. Many of them are best described as angular geometric symbols, and as such they were commonly observed in the later Baltic and Slavic regions (Balto-Slav split into these two distinct cultural groups) during embroidery, carvings and religious symbols. The Hand of God (Slavic: Ręce Boga) is one such symbol on the Virtaka Cliffs, as are many linear triangles identified as Slavic symbols of fertility, the tree of life, or the Sun .
As such, the Virtaka Escarpment may be an important marker of the earliest Balto-Slavic cultural groups in the region, a remnant of an important merger between Protos and Indians. Alas, archaeological excavations at the base of the cliff have yielded no significant finds that could help determine its date or the extent of its historical use. Uncertainty about the age of the carvings has led to much scholarly debate and concentrated efforts to determine their age with certainty.
Eniņš, with the help of the famous Latvian geologist Vilma Venska, deduced that the carvings were at most 500 to 1000 years old. This would place them in a “late” period of the Early Middle Ages, when some of the last pagans in Europe kept their fate in the Baltic and Pomeranian regions. Thus, Eniņš’s dating is really meaningful. However, it may be even older than this.
Several important Latvian scholars have offered their interpretations of these carvings, most agreeing on their origin. However, age is still a controversial issue. Influential linguist Konstantīns Karulis put forward his proposal in 1988, stating that the petroglyphs on the Virtaka cliffs were motifs left by the early Balts, corresponding to mythology and the world. their ancient worldview. Some of the world tree symbols are clear hints at this.
The date the Virtaka cliff petroglyphs were created is a subject of debate. (traveler)
But surprisingly, Karulis put forward a somewhat shocking hypothesis that the age of the carvings is no more than 200-300 years, which seems to be an almost impossible suggestion. Most other scholars across Latvia and Europe agree that the carvings are quite ancient, most likely thousands of years old. They also agree that these carvings can be easily connected to proto-Indo-European symbolism and worldview as it was often depicted through similar motifs thousands of years ago.
Guntis Eniņš endeavored to further research and continue to explore several similar sites in Latvia, especially in the Gauja River basin and Gauja National Park. In 1987, just 50 meters (~165 feet) from Virtaka Cliffs, Eniņš discovered another group of smaller rock carvings. They are much simpler, mainly consisting of groups of vertical lines arranged in groups of nine. Eniņš deduced that it was a form of an ancient lunar calendar, and thus named the new site Kalendāra klints (Calendar Stone).
After this flurry of activity, interest in Virtaka Cliffs quickly declined thereafter – mainly because scholars could not agree on its age. Meanwhile, enthusiasts continue their dedicated discoveries. Eniņš headed a group of amateur explorers and they made a number of important discoveries. Several other local historians also made discoveries in this region such as Ansis Opmanis, Imants Jurģītis and Sarmīte Ansberga.
Gauja National Park inspectors also discovered petroglyphs during their rounds. Guntis Eniņš carried out thorough cleaning and excavation at these sites, especially at Krusti Rock and Režģi Rock, copying petroglyphs for preservation. Interestingly, however, Eniņš has refrained from making public the exact location of these new petroglyphs, in order to protect them from tourists and desecration.
Following the discovery of the petroglyphs on the Virtaka cliffs, Guntis Eniņš has restricted public disclosure of the exact location of these new petroglyphs, in order to protect them from tourists and desecration, like you can be seen below in the engraving from 2004. ( traveleranita )
The Last Pagas of Europa
Most – if not all – of the rock carvings and petroglyphs discovered in Latvia are located in the Gauja River area, into which the Brasla and Amata rivers flow. Some of these sites have up to 300 engraved symbols. However, dating these carvings proved to be a very difficult task. One of Latvia’s leading archaeologists, Juris Urtāns, helped determine their age following his important 2001 academic study.
This work focuses on recently discovered petroglyphs on the so-called Raksti Cliffs on the banks of the Rakstupīte River. Most of the carvings were depictions of ships, and so their discovery caused a stir. Urtāns’s scholarly publication was thus the first work related to the discussion of Latvian stone carvings as a cultural and historical source. By careful and complex analysis of the ship carvings, Urtāns compared them with some church graffiti and later medieval icons, dating the carvings. Raksti Cliffs date to the 12th, 13th and 14th centuries AD.
This indicates that at least part of the petroglyphs discovered in the area date firmly to the medieval period, suggesting that the custom of stone carving was preserved much longer in the Latvian region than elsewhere. other. But then again, the Baltic states were the last in Europe to be Christianized, and so their pagan customs endured much longer than elsewhere. Lithuania was Christianized around 1387 through severe violent measures.
One of the proposed theories about the meaning of the carvings has placed them in relation to the so-called “cross tree” tradition. This old custom has its origins in funerals. Latvians will carve crosses on trees, usually pine trees, chosen for that purpose. When the deceased is laid to rest, a cross is engraved on the cross so that the soul of the deceased does not pass through the spot marked by the cross.
It has been proposed that many of the signs on Virtaka Cliff had the same purpose and were left there by mourners over the ages. The custom of cross-planting trees disappeared at the beginning of the 20th century when Russia began to rule Latvia. Virtaka Cliffs may therefore be an important insight into regional funerary traditions that date back to ancient times.
The Virtaka petroglyphs are an important part of Latvia’s history. In 2016, the National Library of Latvia opened a lecture room called the Virtaka classroom, named in honor of the Virtaka rock on the Brasla river. Stone motifs have been reproduced graphically on the walls in the room. (Latvian Folklore Archive -LFK)
Piecing together the puzzle of the past
The pagan heritage in Europe is certainly an important aspect of our common history. The Old European period and the emergence of later cultures were shaped by Indo-European carvings, both of which expressed a complex worldview and an extensive mythology. And although much of it remains a mystery, ancient caves and sites like the Virtaka Cliffs can help us greatly in solving countless puzzles of the past.
