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 (Oct. 9) -- Pompeii just moved north.The ancient Roman city, which was covered in ash after the sudden eruption of Mount Vesuvius in A.D. 79, now has competition from a buried town that has been unearthed in Norway.Archaeologists discovered the mini-Pompeii while digging in the headland formed by the Topdalselva River and the North Sea near southern Norway.Under three feet of sand, they found a settlement that has been undisturbed for 5,500 years. “We expected to find an 'ordinary' Scandinavian Stone Age site, badly preserved and small. Instead, we discovered a unique site, buried under a thick sand layer,” lead archaeologist Lars Sundström, of the Museum of Cultural History at the University in Oslo, told Discovery News. Instead, a sudden event caused it to be encased in sand, leaving it hidden for centuries. "Most probably the site was suddenly flooded, and covered with sand by the nearby river," Sundström said.The Norwegian settlement was likely built by people of the Funnel Beaker Culture -- a late Neolithic culture that thrived in northern Europe and Scandinavia between 4,000 B.C. Signs indicate that the settlement wasn't simply deserted over time. So far, the archaeologists have excavated more than 300 square yards, though it appears the settlement extends much further.The eruption of Vesuvius froze the cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum for more than a thousand years.
– Though it was likely flooded with water and sand, not lava, a buried settlement discovered in southern Norway is being touted as a mini-Pompeii. Norwegian archaeologists found the site, which has slumbered untouched for some 5,500 years, beneath about three feet of sand, reports Discovery News. So far they've uncovered shards of beaker-shaped vessels, arrowheads, and stone structures; signs indicate it was buried by a catastrophic event, not abandoned over time. “The formation of the upper layer remains somewhat mysterious. Most probably the site was suddenly flooded, and covered with sand by the nearby river. There are no signs of occupation within this thick sand layer. This is a strong indication of a relatively quick process,” says the lead archaeologist . “The site is lying on top of a silt and clay layer which we know preserves wood, so we have good hopes for finding buried wood from the occupation phase later on in the excavation.” Click here for more on the find.