Anne Stine Ingstad


Anne Stine Ingstad was a Norwegian archaeologist who, along with explorer Helge Ingstad, discovered the remains of a Viking settlement at L'Anse aux Meadows in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador in 1960.

Biography

Anne Stine Moe was born and raised in Lillehammer, in Oppland county, Norway. Her parents were attorney Eilif Moe and Louise Augusta Bauck Lindeman. Ingstad was the sister of Norwegian art historian and pianist, Ole Henrik Moe and the aunt of his son composer Ole-Henrik Moe. She married Helge Ingstad in 1941, after which she became his scientific collaborator.
She studied archaeology at the University of Oslo in the 1950s. In 1960, her husband discovered settlement traces at L'Anse aux Meadows on the island of Newfoundland. Between 1961 and 1968, Anne Stine Ingstad led an excavation of the settlement with an international team of archaeologists from Sweden, Iceland, Canada, U.S. and Norway. The excavation revealed the remains of an early 11th century Norse settlement. These remains included sod houses, a forge, cooking pits and boathouses. The settlement is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a National Historic Site of Canada.

Later years

In the 1970s, Anne Stine Ingstad worked on the textiles from the Kaupang and Oseberg excavation sites. Anne Stine Ingstad died in 1997 at the age of 79, leaving behind her 98-year-old husband Helge and their daughter Benedicte Ingstad, a professor of medical anthropology at the University of Oslo.

Honors

In 1969, Anne Stine Ingstad was awarded an Honorary Doctorate by Memorial University of Newfoundland. In 1992, she was also awarded an Honorary Doctorate at the University of Bergen. She was a commander of the Order of St. Olav and was made a member of the Norwegian Academy of Science. She appeared with her husband in the 1984 National Film Board of Canada documentary The Vinland Mystery.
The Helge and Anne Stine Ingstad Building on the St. John's Campus of Memorial University is named after her.