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The World Heritage rock carvings in Tanum! The approximately 41 km² large rock carving area in Tanum was listed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List in 1994. Explore the fascinating history and significance of these ancient rock carvings.
The rock-carving area at Tanum was included in the World Heritage List in 1994, as the fifth Swedish contribution. This is the World Heritage Committee’s citation:
"The rock carvings in the Tanum area are a unique example of Bronze Age art of the highest quality. The range of motifs provides rare evidence of many aspects of life in the European Bronze Age. The interplay of continuous settlement and land use, as reflected in the rock carvings, the burial grounds and the landscape, make the Tanum area an outstanding example of uninterrupted settlement for eight thousand years."
In the World Heritage area, there are about 600 rock-carving sites with tens of thousands of images. Four sites—Vitlycke, Aspeberget, Litsleby, and Fossum—have parking, footpaths, and information boards. Litsleby is wheelchair-accessible and includes a tactile information panel.
Visit the Tanum rock carvings 24/7 year-round at the designated visitor sites with free parking. To preserve the carvings, do not walk on them; use the paths and take photos from the platforms.
300 meters from the museum is the Viltlycke panel, the most famous and popular rock carving in the World Heritage Site. The more than 20-meter-long panel contains more than 500 images, including the famous Bridal Couple.
Experience 1000 individual images along a 1-kilometer trail with seven different rock faces. The first rock face is accessible. Distance from Vitlycke museum: 700 meters.
Here you can find the largest rock carving of a human in northern Europe – the 2.3-meter-tall Spear God. A 100-meter-long path leads to an exciting rock depicting horse riders. Distance from Vitlycke museum: 1.8 kilometers.
There are two large and two smaller rock carvings to visit in the area. Here you can find famous carvings such as the Fossum woman and the Sunhorse. The distance between the Fossum panel and Balken is 200 meters. Distance from Vitlycke museum: 5 kilometers.
At the rest area by the E6 highway is an exhibition about the World Heritage Site and a viewpoint overlooking the area. Leading from the rest area, a one-kilometer path takes you to a small rock carving and other points of interest. Distance from Vitlycke museum: 7 kilometers.
This is a 6 km path that takes you to three different places with exciting rock carvings: Lövåsen with its shaman, the Gerum panel with the flying swing and Sotetorp with ships full of people doing backward somersaults. Distance from Vitlycke museum 4,5 kilometers.
