Ruin Island

Ruin Island
Ruin Island with Cape Russell in Background
Ruin Island is located in Greenland
Ruin Island
Ruin Island
Ruin Island (Greenland)
Geography
LocationGreenland
Coordinates78°52.1′N 69°11.3′W / 78.8683°N 69.1883°W / 78.8683; -69.1883 (Ruin Island)
Administration
Greenland

Ruin Island is a small island off the coast of the Inglefield Land region of northwest Greenland. In the 1930s, Danish archaeologist Erik Holtved discovered the remains of human habitation on the island. The culture associated with this archaeological site became known as the Ruin Island phase of Thule Culture.[1] Items traded by the Greenlandic Norse travelled as far as Ruin Island.[2]

  1. ^ Archaeology of Prehistoric Native America: An Encyclopedia. Gibbon, Guy E. and Kenneth M. Ames. 1998
  2. ^ Inuit-Norse contact in the Smith Sound region/Schledermann, P. McCullough, K.M.