Land, Sea and Home: Proceedings of a Conference on Viking-period Settlement, at Cardiff, July 2001

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LAND, SEA AND HOME Edited by JOHN

HINES, ALAN LANE and

MARK REDKNAP

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THE SOCIETY FOR MEDIEVAL ARCHAEOLOGY MONOGRAPH 20 Series Editor CHRISTOPHER GERRARD

LAND, SEA AND HOME

THE SOCIETY FOR MEDIEVAL ARCHAEOLOGY ""MONOGRAPHS ISSN 0583- 91o6 1

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G Bersu and D M Wilson (1966) Three Viking Graves in the Isle of Man F W B Charles (1967) Medieval Cruck-building and its Derivatives PA Rahtz (1969) Excavations at King john's Hunting Lodge, Writtle, Essex, 1955-57 AL Meaney and SC Hawkes (1970) Ttt•o Anglo-Saxon Cemeteries at Winna//, Winchester, Hampshire HE J Le Patourel (197 3) The Moated Sites of Yorkshire G T M Beresford (1 975) The Medieval Clay-land Village: Excavations at Go/tho and Barton Blount H Clarke and A Carter (1977) Exca11ations in King's Lynn, 1963- 1970 J G Hurst (general ed) Wharram. A Study of Settlement on the Yorkshire Wolds, vol I: DD Andrews and G Milne (eds) (1979) Domestic Settlement I: Areas 10 and 6 CM Mahany, A Burchard and G Simpson (1982) l·:xc111•ations at Stamford, Lincolnshire, 1963-69 P Mayes and K Scott (1984) Pottery Kilns at Chilvers Coton, Nuneaton J G Hurst and P A Rahtz (general eds) Wharram. A Study of Settlement on the Yorkshire Wolds, vol III: R D Bell, MW Beresford and others (1987) The Church of St Martin D Austin (1989) The Deserted Medieval Village ofThrislington, Co D11rhan1: Excavations 1973-1974 V L Yanin, E N Nosov, A S Khoroshev, A N Sorokin, E A Ryhina, V L Povetkin and PG Gaidukov (1992) The Archaeology of Novgorod, Russia K Parfitt and B Brugmann (1997) The Anglo-Saxon Cemetery on Mill Hill, Deal, Kent D Gaimster and P Stamper (eds) ( 1 997) 'The Age of Transition: the Archaeology of English Cult11re 1400-1600 D A Hinton (2000) A S1nith in Lindsey: the Anglo-Saxon Grt111e at T.1ttersh,1// Thorpe, Lincolnshire S Lucy and A Reynolds (eds) (2002) Buri,i/ in F..irly Medie1"1/ £11y,/,111d and Wales ST Driscoll (2002) Excavations at (;/asgo11· Cathedral 1988- 1997 Philip Mayes (2002) Exc.11•.1tions at a Ten1plar Preceptory: South Witha111, Lincolnshire 196i-67

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LAND, SEA AND HOME Edited by jOHN HINES, ALAN LANE

and MARK REDKNAP

Proceedings of a Conference on Viking-period Settlement, at Cardiff, July 2001

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The Cliff at Penarth, Evening, Low Tide. By Alfred Sisley ( 1897). (© National Museum of Wales ) BACK COVER

Finds from the Minino I dive/ling site and Minino II burial site, c. 9so-1.z.so (see Makarov, p. 68)

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CONTENTS PAGE INTRODUCTION At Home in the Viking Period By jOHN HINES .

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SCANDINAVIA AND NORTHERN EUROPE Danish Coastal Landing Places and their Relation to Navigation and Trade By JENS ULRIKSEN Viking-age Proto-Urban Centres and their Hinterlands: Some Examples from the Baltic Area By MICHAEL MOLLER-WILLE and ASTRID TUMMUSCHEIT . • Viking-period Pre-Urban Settlements in Russia and Finds of Artefacts of Scandinavian Character By TAMARA PusHKINA . Rural Settlement and Landscape Transformations in Northern Russia, A.O. 900-1300 By NIKOLAI MAKAROV . Early Medieval Coinage and Urban Development: A Norwegian Experience By jON ANDERS RISVAAG and AXEL CHRISTOPHERSEN Two Viking Hoards from the Former Island of Wieringen (The Netherlands): Viking Relations with Frisia in an Archaeological Perspective By jAN BESTEMAN . Goldsmiths' Tools at Hedeby By BARBARA ARMBRUSTER

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THE ATLANTIC PROVINCES Settlement and Acculturation in the Irish Sea Region By DAVID GRIFFITHS Viking-age Settlement in Wales and the Evidence from Llanbedrgcich By MARK REOKNAP Social and Economic Integration in Viking-age Ireland: The Evidence of the Hoards By jOHN SHEEHAN. Royal Fleets in Viking Ireland: The Evidence of Lebor na Cert, A.O. 1050-1150 By CATHERINE SWIFT Beyond War or Peace: The Study of Culture Contact in Viking-age Scotland By jAMES H. BARRETT .

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177 189 2.07

VI

LAND, SEA ANO HOMF.

Spatial Analysis and Cultural Indicators: Viking Settlers at Old Scatness Broch, Shetland? By AMANDA K. FORSTER, Jo THOMAS and STEVEN J . DOCKRILL Cille Pheadair: The Life and Times of a Norse-period Farmstead c. 1000- 1.Joo By MIKE PARKER PEARSON, HELEN SMITH, JACQUI MULVILLE and MARK BRENNAND A Find of Ringerike Art from Bornais in the Outer Hebrides By NIALL SHARPLES Narrative Functions of Landscape in the Old Icelandic Family Sagas By IAN WYATT

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ENGLAND ]6r11fk: A Viking-age City By RICHARD A. HALL • Viking-age Settlement in the No rth-western Countryside: Lifting the Veil? By NICHOLAS H IGHAM . Sedgeford: Excavations of a Rural Settlement in Norfolk By SOPHIE CABOT, GARF.TH DAVIES and RIK HOGGF.TT Simy Folds: Twenty Years On By DENIS CoGG1Nst Post-Roman Upland Architecture in the Craven Dales and the Dating Evidence By ALAN KING Timber Buildings without Earth-fast Footings in Viking-age Britain By MARK GARDINER A Push into the ~1argins? The Development of a Coastal Landscape in NorthWest Somerset During the Late 1st Millennium A.D. By STEPHEN RIPPON Place-names and the History of Scandinavian Settlement in England By LESLEY ABRAMS and DAVID N. PARSONS Law and Landscape By ANNETTE HOFF Changing Weaving Styles and Fabric Types: The Scandinavian Influence By PHILIPPA A. HENRY . Saxon Shoes, Viking Sheaths? Cultural Identity in Anglo-Scandinavian York By ESTHER CAMERON and QUITA ~1ou1.o

INDEX .

2.97 .J 13

3i.5

3 .~5

345

359 379 4 .~3 44 .~

457 467

AT HOME IN THE VIKING PERIOD

By j OHN

HINES

The study of human settlement through archaeological and historical sources forms a broad and diverse field. It may reassure us that this field is nevertheless fundamentally coherent to think of it as an area of study to which the concept of 'home' is central. This is not least the case in respect of the Viking Period, a historical phase defined by the forceful and often violent eruptions from Scandinavia that led to new occupation in lands not previously settled by Europe ans across the North Atlantic, as well as the establishment of colonies of Scandinavian cultural character in Britain and Ireland, northern France, around the Baltic Sea, and deep into what is now Russia. At a theoretical level, one might query the denial of any sort of 'settlement' history to nomadic peoples, while indeed relationships between domesticated and agrarian societies a nd communities of nomadic herdsmen and trappers are a major aspect of life as a whole in the Arctic areas of this period. Those whom we call 'Vikings', however, inherited a culture long based in the settled, farming culture of Europe, and in this context we can maintain our focus on the concept of home with confidence. The word 'home' itself was rich in meaning in Viking-period Scandinavia. A number of grammatical variants of the word cover an informative semantic range. ~haimaz can be reconstructed as a Common Germanic, masculine noun, which underlies Modern English home (Old English ham), German Heim, Danish hjem, etc. Old Norse had two principal variants of this noun, a neuter form heima, with the sense of a principal place of residence (and the source of the modern Scandinavian words for 'home'), and the masculine form heimr, which referred to a larger-scale area that one belonged to. Mythologically, the latter is regularly used for the imagined territories of different classes of beings: thus the jotunheim mountains of Norway have a name that can be etymologized and translated as 'Giant-Realm'. Like the English element -ham, this form appears often to have been used in place names to denote some sort of settlement focus or nucleus, be that farm, hamlet or village. But it is also used of our \VOrld, the Earth - perhaps most famously in the title of the Icelander Snorri Sturluson's 13th-century historical work concerned primarily with Viking-period and later Norwegian kings, Heimskringla: 'the circle of the world'. Idiomatically, the term heimr even appears in expressions where it represents human life. heimili is a further neuter variant, of some antiquity, with the geographically narrower sense of a homestead, implicitly in a particular building or building-complex. A further layer of connotations resides in the adverbial uses of Old Norse hein1 and heima. These are found frequently in expressions where the sense and force of the

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LAND, SEA AND HOME

word is similar to that in the English idioms to strike home, to drive a point home. The term thus introduces the sense of some very specific target: the degree of intimacy and fitness that is implied by some person, thing or concept being judged to be absolutely in the place it is supposed to be in, or in the state one wants it to be in. The concept of 'home' could thus suffuse the whole range of perception in the explicit thought of Old Norse speakers of the Viking Period, from strictly local and specific horizons to the global or even universal. It may risk appearing irritatingly glib to glide from this review of semantic diversity to the equally variable senses of the term 'settlement' in modern academic discourse, but the connexion is not an entirely specious one. It is certainly true that using this term in the English-language title of the conference from which this present set of papers derives• gave a degree of imprecision and even vagueness to the scope of the meeting. This was particularly brought home to the local organizers by the need to provide Welsh-language versions of information releases on the conference, where choices had to be made between anheddiad, implying the continuing occupation and settlement of land, cyfanheddiad, implying the settlement of virgin territory, and grvladychiad, signifying the intrusive colonization of already settled land. The ability to avoid being specific by hiding behind an ambiguity is not one enjoyed only by English. In German, the terms Siedlung and Besiedlung encode the difference clearly the former is a static object, 'a settlement', the latter the process of settlement - but in Scandinavian the terms bebyggelse and bosetninglbos001. Pc:rhjp!-! thl· hl·~r r11clJcr11 !!otlr~iti\·(· l·xa11•r1lc i~ l.. BcnJcr Jdu· Hurhu11t der (;(i1terbi/d-Ant11ft•11e '"" ~cn (nl-.) . Fr,1 St.zmme ti/ St.11 i: H01 •dings.1mf1111d .~ Ko11g,•m,1~1 ( Jysk Arka:ol. Sdskabs Skrifter. XXll:l, Arhus, 1991 ) . with Eni:lish summary: idem, Viki1111· A.~·· S/Ji/>s .md S/Jipb ..ilding in Hedel1)•IH.1ithaln1 ,.,,,/ Sch/,•s1.-i.~ (Roskildc, 1997); idem and 0 . Ols.·n k d>-). Tiu• Sk11ltfr/,•1· Ships I (Roskildc, 1ooi.), 11i.-i.o.

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LAND, SEA AND HOME

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I FIGURE 1. Coastal sires 3nd major tr3ding places in Viking·3gc Denma rk . 1) Aggcrshorg, 2.) Alholm, .!) Bistrup, 4) Dalg:ird, 5) Fyn s Hoved, 6) Gcdchavcn, 7) Gcrsh0j, 8) Hedeby, ,) J yllin11c, 10) Karhy. 11 ) Lyndby, 12.) Ly n:i:s. 1.1) NahhcKildc11:\ rd, 14) Nedcrhy, 1s) N :~s. 16) Rihc, 17) Roski ldc, 18) Scbhcrsu nd, 1,) Sd soVcsrhy. 2.0) Sr:.uup 0s1erroft. 2.1) Srrandhy Ga m1ncl toft. 2:l Stuhhcrur. 2.1) Sondcro , :i.4) Vedh:ck Stati(>ll"'ci , 25) Vc$tcr E11eshorg, 2.6) Alhorg. 2.7) Arhu,.

DANISH COASTAL LANDING PLACES

II

The number of coastal sites of the Danish Viking Period that have been archaeologically excavated is not large. The total amount does not yet exceed 30, a number that should be compared to the more than 200 farming settlements of the Viking Period that have been investigated archaeologically in the last 15 years. Thanks to a research project that was carried out in the middle of the 1990s, Roskilde Fjord on Sjrelland is a key area for the study of coastal sites. 5 This systematic survey has meant that such sites are known to occur quite frequently in Roskilde Fjord. Examinations of individual coastal sites in other parts of Denmark have shown, however, that this might be a relatively common type of site, which is to be found particularly in the fjords and creeks of the inner Danish navigable waters.

Functions and date-range The coastal sites served principally as cross-over points between the agrarian and maritime spheres of Viking-period society. They functioned, for instance, as local district havens, as transhipment sites or crafr and trade sites, and indeed are usually mulrifuncrional. With a few exceptions, such as Ribe and Hedeby, the analysis of the hinterland is absolutely crucial in determining the function of the coastal sites. It is necessary to consult as many sources as one can in order to be able to draw the most credible picture of the cultural landscape and settlement pattern of the Viking Period, in order then to examine the relationship between the coast and the interior. Archaeological finds are the primary evidence, but pollen diagrams and place-names are also important factors. All areas of analysis have their own pitfalls in terms of representativity, and conclusions have to be based upon a range of arguments. The coastal sites suddenly become visible in the archaeological evidence in the 6th-7th centuries A.O., which is when the trading wics and emporia of northern Europe were established in considerable numbers. 6 The Danish sites continue to be used down to the 10th-11th centuries, when their special function ceases. The site then either disappears completely or is restructured. It may re-emerge as a major farm and church as early as the 11th century ,7 or it may change its character to that of a village in the course of the Middle Ages. 8 Only exceptionally do coastal sites continue as early Danish towns, although this is the case at Arhus on the east coast of Jutl and .~ In reality there is a marked break between the trading sites of the Viking Age, with

s Thif. 3rti,lc:: is based, inter alia, upo11 the results fa research priccr 1.:arricJ ut h}· rhe authr i11 the mid1990S. An interim report \\'3S puhlishcd in J. Ulrikscr1, 'Danish sites 0111d Sl'tt!.:mcnts '''ith a m:tritimc contcxr , A.u. 100-1100', Antiquity, 68 (1994), 797-~ 11. A mo11ogrnph with 1he results of the proicooo) ,

DANISH COASTAL LANDING PLACES VIKING-PERIOD TRADE IN DENMARK

The Frankish Annals report that in the year 808 the Danish King Godfred destroyed the trading site of Reric, in what is now Germany, and moved the merchants from there to Hedeby. Merchants and their services were highly prized. In the Annals of Fulda it is noted under the year 873 that the peace between King Louis and the Danish Kings Halfdan and Sigurd was confirmed so that trade between the kingdoms could continue unhindered. This sounds practically like a regular trade pact. Other sources refer to quite different categories of goods being imported and exported. ' When Ottarr, a leading farmer and trader, visited Alfred the Great's court towards the end of the 9th century, his account of how he sailed from his home in northern Norway to Hedeby was written down. In Hedeby he traded his goods, which consisted of walrus teeth, hides, pelts, ropes and feathers. And even though the Arab, Ibn Fadlan, is not so derailed on the subject when describing his meeting with Scandinavians on the Volga in the 10th century, he also notes pelts, and slaves as well, as important goods for the Vikings. There is no reason to believe that these reports should not be true. But all the way through they deal with things that could not - or could only in very fortunate circumstances - be found in archaeological excavations. The extent of trade in these types of goods thus cannot be more thoroughly investigated in any sort of systematic way. This is not the place to undertake a full discussion of the concept of trade in the Viking Period. 21 I wish, however, to give a very concise account of some of the problems that one must note in discussing the extent of trade in Viking-period Denmark. It is first and foremost necessary to define what one means by the term 'trade'. A view that I subscribe to is that 'trade' is to be defined as an unforced transaction between two parties, through which a given ware changes hands in return for some payment in the form of some other goods or a neutral medium of exchange such as precious metal or cloth. But the crucial problem is to discover some conclusive archaeological evidence that trade in this sense rook place at a particular site. When everything is considered, Denmark is an area without natural metal resources apart from bog iron. This means that most of her iron and all of her copper, silver, gold, tin and mercury were imported, and thus are reflections of trade in some form or other. Finds typically taken as archaeological evidence of trade are the balances and weights, coins, hacksilver and imported goods already mentioned. Weights - and balances themselves, which are rarer as they are more fragile - are known from many sites of varying size and type from the 3rd century A.D. to the 12th (Fig. 4). These were not only a trader's equipment but were also used in other contexts. Scales would, for instance, have been used in connexion with the payment of fines or rewards in precious metals, and craftsmen would also have used them to weigh metals for alloying and so on. A grave with these objects thus cannot undisputably be said to contain a trader, no more than finds of the same character from a settlement allow one to conclude that trade took place there, let alone that it was a trading place. This is emphasized by the widespread distribution of 6th- to 11th-century settlement sites " A fuller d iscussion of trade and development in the later Iro n Age in Denmark. incl uding the Viking Period. can be found in Ulrikscn ( 1998). op. (afccr Jensen, anti F

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Grof) Stromkendorf/Reric. 1: Distribution of finds in the hinterland (after Schmitz, op. ci1. in noie 19). 2: The political situation in the la te 8th and 9th centuries. F1GURf. 6.

PROTO - URBAN CENTRES

39

constitutum lingua Danorum Reric dicebatur ('the emporium located on the sea coast char is called Reric in the Danish tongue') which is known from the Frankish Annals.20 Even though our knowledge of the local context of the sire is limited, the written source sheds light on the wider political context in which GroB Stromkendorf/Reric must be seen. The account in the Frankish Annals shows that at the beginning of the 9th century Reric was at the centre of military confrontations between the Danish king and the overlord of the Slavonic Obodrites. Apart from the description of the events at the trading site itself, the document contains references to other Slavonic overlords and to the devastation of fortresses, indicating the existence of well-established political units in the vicinity of Reric. In general this was a period of political and military rivalry between the Frankish Empire, which was allied to the Obodrites, and the Danes (Fig. 6.2). The written evidence makes it quite clear that at the emporium of Reric Danish and Slavonic interests collided. As a result Godfred destroyed the trading centre and moved the merchants to Hedeby, which was probably under closer control. When the three proto-urban centres Ribe, Hedeby and GroB Stromkendorf are compared, the hinterland of Ri be stands out most clearly. This is due to the fact that a large number of settlements have been surveyed or excavated in this area. The hinterlands of Hedeby are reflected in the distribution of settlement finds, coo, but a comprehensive survey, concentrating on the banks of the Schleifjord in particular, would probably increase the number of both settlements and cemetery sites considerably. Regarding the lase example, ReridGroB Stromkendorf, it is now a question of future investigations co reveal more of the archaeological evidence which forms the backdrop of the central place. Yet, it is obvious that all three sites were integrated into local networks consisting of various settlement types serving different functions. 21 Prof. Dr Michael Muller-Wille, lnstitut fur Ur- und Fruhgeschichte der Christian-AlbrechtsUniversitiit, D i.4098 Kiel, Germany [email protected] Astrid Tummuscheit, Archiiologisches Landsmuseum, Landesarnt fur Bodendenk1nalpflege lvlecklenburg-Vorpommern, Schloss Wiligrad, D 19069 Liibstorf, Germany [email protected]

"'The Royol Frankish Annals, '·"· 8o8. Q uoted from R. Rau (ed.), Q111:lle11 tier KJrolingisd1en RS/f.t'srlnchte, Tcil 1 (Darmstadt, 1955). 8H. 11 Cf. H. Hamerow, 'Angles. Soxons and Anglo-Saxons: rural 'cmrcs, trade ;rnJ production'. St11dit'P1 zur S,uhsenforsch11ng, 1.1(1999),1 89- !05.

VIKING-PERIOD PRE-URBAN SETTLEMENTS IN RUSSIA AND FINDS OF ARTEFACTS OF SCANDINAVIAN CHARACTER

By

TAMARA PUSHKINA

Questions concerning the origins of the Old Russian towns have been a longstanding problem in Russian historical scholarship. Different authors at various times have made a range of suggestions of what the immediate reasons for the emergence of the towns may have been: a good position on international trade routes; the rapid growth of the agricultural hinterland; the initiative of a ruler; the need for a market place for different tribes; the trading activity of Scandinavian merchants; and more. 1 Scholars have recently also turned their attention to the Scandinavian antiquities found in the territory of Old Russia. That there was occupation by Scandinavians is recognized in general terms, and this is attributed primarily to Scandinavian warriors, as members of a princely retinue. 2 Such a view, however, scarcely touches upon the subject of Scandinavian participation in the development of handicraft, trade, or the emergence of the towns. It is clear that the historical causes of the appearance and formation of the towns may vary greatly. None the less the majority of authorities agree with the view that a town defined as the economic centre of some large agricultural region is not to be found earlier than the beginning of the 11th century. At that time towns such as Ladoga, Novgorod, Smolensk and some others became the centres or the capitals of the principalities and territories. But in the 10th century we find pairs of settlements existing side-by-side, one of which develops into a true town while the other loses its function as a trade and production centre and develops into a small feudal estate centre. Pairs of settlements of this kind are well known in Old Russia. They include

E. N. Nosov, "The prohlcm of rhc emergence of early urhan n·ntcr~ in Norhcrn Rus~i;1', 216-16 in J. Chapman and P. Dolukhanov (eds.), C11/111ra/ TrJ11sformatino111ic: aspc:c..--rs of fine mcral\\'Ork ing i11 Viki rl)t t\Ac Scar1din~t ,.. i~t •, 1- 19 i11 1:,..._.,,nn111i< Aspt•c.:ts of tht• Vikin~ A.~~ (Brirish /\·lu. ,·um Occasional Paper, .1 0, London. 1981 ) . ;11 p. 11, Iii:. 1. 7 A. Z:-irirya. A/1Jl,t1rf,s l .•1tt•i;,1 7.- 1:-. gs. (Rig.1, 1999). 68: B. 11. ,. \c.·n1-tu1c:'ttil, ·c>t; c>. tl';.t>, \l' .,......., .... ..:1u c) 1-t(1rc.,c11H.u •1µc:·n I l('ii l'~ fl-I.. I I 7 i 11 .-\p\·('1) '""'" ~t'( l(Uif fiin/>H"" ( , ., >y,·\hl r·cI( ' " 1a fX't lll' l 11 lt)I () I I«. 'I • 'l) M•1cc'"111'1 I "'Y .tc..: H. 401 i\ll>SC()\\' . 19(,6) IV. I'. Lc"a'h"""· ·on rill' dorhini: of the rural popula1ion in (.)Id RuS>i01', from AT in th ll(w);)('f>hJl Kc>111ta I Ible:. Jt.:1'.{Kat a..\r 113MHTllHKl)H) .' 5- 37 irl 1 \-lnmf'/Jtlll.Jlbl ti() npxro,1011111 ff1,H1,•()pt#K.n1"i Jr,t.t,tU (~1osco'A', 1990) N. Nosuv. 'Archaeological monuments o( 1he hue 1s1 millennium A.O. in !he upper sircam of Volhov river and 1hc ll"mcn 'Apxc1JlfS.tJiK;\Cllll{.' II t('MX('( l,\(ll'lt~t.'t•t\llC' .1,;.11 II fl.I(." () B 1-l~'T flCI 11 tt:ii

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B ELOOZE R O R EG I ON: M ED I EVAL SETTLEME NT PA T TE R NS

T he na 1ne Belooiero is Russia n fo r rhe 'White La ke '. This nan1e refe rs ro a la rge la ke (Figs. 1 a nd 4), ro th e regio n surro undin g rh c lake whi ch fo rn1 ed a rcrrito rial un ir fro m rhe Viking Age to ea rly 1nod ern times, a nd ro rhe rown, \Vhi ch was locared nea r rhc la ke ..s Beloe La ke belo ngs ro rhc Vo lga rive r sys rem , bur fo rn1 s irs n1 os t no rrhern pa rt, neighbo uring the water sysren1s o f rhe O nega Lake a nd th e no rrh ern Dvina ri ver. T hus, lying deep inside co ntinental Ru ssia, Beloozero \Vas connected to t he Ba ltic a nd to the White and Caspia n Seas. The sta tus o f Beloozero as o ne o f the nucleated regions o n rhe north -eastern tn argin o f medi eval Rus' is indicated by both \Vrit ten sources a nd a rch aeo logical da ta. 6 According to th e Prin1ary C hro ni cle - the chro nicle tha t provides rh e mosc significa nc info rn1at ion on th e ea rliest pe riod of Russia n hisro ry - the Beloozero regio n, first serried by rhc Yes', a Finnie people - \Vas o ne of the mosr ancient centres of no rth ern Rus'. Afre r A.O. 862 it \Vas govern ed by Sineus, t he b ro th er of prin ce Rurik \v ho \vas in vited to Novgo rod fro n1 Scandinavia. Records nf the late r perio d give p roof of this regio n's incorpo ra tio n in to rh e Rostov-S uzda l principality that had XV-XVI ,., (tv10!'1CO\\r-Lcr1inp.rad. 19' 1) IA. I. Kopa nc", l. 111rl·Ow11ersl1111 111 tin· /Jeloo•~ro Reg1011in1l1e XV1'1- XVl1'1 Ct•nt11riesl; II . A. MaK;apo11, C. / \. :J:t"al)4.ll\. 1\ . I f. J;)~I L\ttna. (.'f1r->•rrdrJ\Vt1nr/')(trrrrl'~11r ,.n /i,.rn,, , "'"/N (!vlO'-CO\\~, .z.00 1) IN. r\ . /\ t ;ikarov~ S. D. Zakcharcw .ind A. P. B111chilova. Med1t•1•.i S1•11/e111c111111 tbe Beloo~ero Reginrt J. "Kf 1J1:-t 11r n IK(JpanC\'J, OJ'· Cll . in 110 1(.' i: . \ . A. r·,.,,,f";c·n.1, / if'f'h u t tnHHHI' "" 6 1' ,f l \I ' ''''"' (~'I O~CO\\', 197J) IL A. Goluhcv,, Tbr \'es· a111/ 1/u•Slm» 0 11 tfu• Beloe L.1kt'I. 1

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RURAL SETTLEMENT AND LANDSCAPE

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., m t.>p,\fUJx>dllHUt' : orydaJNnlffl'HHOii ml'j1p11n1t1/J1111

c:·,.~·fflt>·8ot'nlt14UOl"i P.W'll 6 X- XI\'

66.

(~1C>S(()~',

1984) JV. A. Kuchkin , Th.f11111,.p11tL,.ltl,\f

apxr1,,111tt' '41!CKCU

u /Joour.Jl(hJr {:\:Iosco\\' , 1997) IN. A. ~13k;1rov. Tl1e nii;1tin oft/,,~ Norther111',•riphcry of /\lkdie1 ·al Rus' in the 1 t1h- 13th Ce11111ri1·s: Arduu·oloi(1t,1/ Sites 011 tht• Portaga 6 Xl Xlll s8. llo .~111nr-pi1a.to, Ce•rp..·Bormo•Hllll PJaHHno rf>'ilHrMKO••• (Leningrad, 1982) [I. V. Dubov, North· f..Jstern R11s' in the Early Mcdicl't1I Period ). "Ma>. 4

HJ Vestfo11dct i f'vll'llomu/dJren (O slo, 197 Ml: idem. 'l\·loncy economy in mcJic>'11 :-;nrw~y '. S. 8. r.lol:tui: kds.). f\,f,1ri1imins in 'omplcx :trch3l'(>l[?.iC31 COtl((;Xt~ - a S(>Urcc: critical sur\'cy ' . 1-7 in H. c1~1rke and E. Schia (eds.). op. cit. in note \. 21 P. Corelli, £11 K.upitulistisk Andu: Kultur..lla F6riJ., II ( 1972): Arma/es Xa11tenses , .140-7 r, il>id., II (t 972); Rev.inn. Chro11i.-.i, 1~cr119. ihid .. Ill ( 197;). For an extensive histork:1I survey sec P. A. Hcndcrikx, ' De Rini:wall>uri:cn in hct l\·l ondi nv.,v.d,icd \'an de Schddc in his1orisch l'crspcctid', 71 - 112 in R . l\f. ,·,111 Hccrinv.cn. P. A. Hendcrikx and A. M.us (eds.), Vroeg-1\lidddee1111'>1' Ri11gwullnland', N.i.11nk1111d1'. ro ( 197~).16-47.

VIKING RELATIONS WITH FRISIA

95

were found in 1995-6 and in 1999 and 2001 by metal-detectorists in a low-lying parcel of giassland in the hamlet of Westerklief, in the municipality of Wieringen (North Holland).

Westerklief I (Fig. 1) The first silver hoard, Westerklief I, contained 6 penannular armrings, 1 twisted armring, l twisted neckring, 1 strap-end, 3 coin ornaments (2 with a Sassanian and one with an Arabic coin), 17 ingots and 78 Carolingian pennies. The hoard, weighing 166 3 g, was found together with the container of the hoard, a medium-sized globular pot of Badorf ware, filled with the remains of a quantity of grass. 4 The neckring, the armring, the coin ornaments and the ingots clearly have a Scandinavian, most probably Danish origin. The coins and the strap-end, however, are Carolingian. The Badorf pot originates from the German Vorgebirge near Bonn. The Carolingian pennies present are representative of the money in circulation in Frisia at that time. There are only two coins from distant mints. The six penannular armrings are probably also Carolingian, on the basis of comparable Dutch finds and the Christian symbols in the decoration on most of them. The Carolingian pennies date the find quite accurately to about 850. The dates of the other components of the find do not conflict with this. Because the giass sample from the hoard contained a gieat quantity of grass pollen and not a single seed, we may assume that the hoard had entered the soil sometime in the first half of May when the grass was Aowering but had not yet produced seeds. 5 Westerklief II (fig. 2) The second silver hoard, Westerklief II, was found in the same field and consisted of one complete ingot, 24 pieces of hacksilver, 95 Arabic coins or imitations of them, 54 of which are deliberately fragmented, 39 Carolingian coins and an imitation solidus of Louis the Pious mounted in a brooch. The hoard, weighing 457 g, was found with fragments of the container, a small globular Badorf pot. 6 Although the find was very different from the Westerklief I hoard, the hacksilver fragments of ingots and ornaments and the dirhams did point to a Scandinavian provenance, as did the bends, nicks and cut marks on the dirhams. Arabic coins from the Near East, hundreds of thousands of which were brought into circulation by the Vikings via the Russian rivers in the north, are hardly found in Western Europe south • The hoard has been published in J. C. lksteman, 'De Vomlsr van Westerklief, Gemccntc \Vieringen: Een Zilvcrschar uit de Vikingpcriodc', Oudheidk. Meded. Rijksmuseum Oudh. Leiden, 77 (1997) , 199- 226; J. C. Besteman, 'Viking silver on Wicringcn: A Viking Age silver hoard from Westcrklicf on the former island of Wieringen (Province of North Holland) in the light of the Viking relations with Frisia', 253- 66 in H. Sarfotij, W. J. H. Verwers and P. J. Woltcring (c.ds.), /n Discussion with the Past: Ard1. ' The publication o f Wcstcrklief II is currently being prepared by the author in cooperation with Dr Simon Coupland {Worrhing) and Dr Gert Rispling (Stockholm Num is matic Institute) and will appear in the }y Dr Gert Rispling (Stockhol m N un11>111a11c Insti tute). The Carolingian coins hJvc been darc:d b )' Arent Pol (Roi•:il Co111 Co hmer IKPK I) and the :iurhor.

V IKI NG RELAT I ONS W ITH F R IS I A

F IGURE :i..

Th.: si lver hoard of Westcrklicf II. (Con1puter sca n and processing, the a uth or)

97

LAND, SEA AND HOME

length of the route the coins had to follow, the hoard would have entered the soil in the early 88os. C OMPARISON OF THE WESTERKLIEF HOARDS WITH SCANDINAVIAN HOARDS

The two silver hoards dating to c. 850 and c. 880 respectively have a definite Scandinavian character and are the first Viking hoards found so far outside the Scandinavian cultural sphere. The composition of the Westerklief I hoard, consisting almost entirely of nonnumismatic silver, shows a clear preference for complete ornaments and objects (Table r). Westerklief I is, as such, representative of the traditional early Viking hoards whose social function is determined predominantly by prestigious valuables and precious metal as prestige money. Though only 30 years younger, the Westerklief II hoard is totally different. It consists mainly of hacksilver and Arabic coins, most of them also fragmented, which is representative of Scandinavian hoards of the late 9th and roth centuries when silver had a more economic function as weight money, used also as a means of payment also in smaller transactions. T he striking differences between both hoards as shown in Table 2 demonstrate the remarkable shift from the social to a more economic significance of silver. Analysis of Scandinavian hoards has made it clear that the presence of lighter ornaments and hacksilver started in Denmark in the late 9th century, earlier than elsewhere in Scandinavia, and was concomitant with the more advanced economic development there. 9 This earlier use of hacksilver in Denmark corroborates the TABLE 1 COMPOSITION AND WEIGHT OF THE SILVER HOARDS WESTERKLIEF I AND II Wesrcrklief I (c. 850) ni,mbt•r 1veiy,ht a1•era1{e

Westcrklief 11 (c. 88o)

''''"'ber

1t•eigh1

11·t~igl11

a1•erJge

weight

Sc.andina11ian onSin 11eckring armr1ng

"oir1 brocH:hcs

ingots hocksilvcr

51.8

151.8

()7,7

67.7

19·7

l .\ . Z.

/ ..\

7.~

72.9 . ·'

45.6

.16.8

.1 6.8

6.8

54

16.1 .0 1 14. i N4.0

>.8 I. 5

I

.I 16

24 41

Arabic Cc.lins Arabic coin> (hackcJ) Carolinsian orisin :1r111r1 n~~

6

564.8

94 .1

str:ip·cnd

I

14..\

78

,~.6

'4·3 1.2

lY

( I .I

1.3

1o6

166.\.l.

' ·7

160

456.9

>.8

l'O I O~

rorol

t

• B. H:\rdh, Silt•er in tht• Vikin/l, Aiw: A Rf'/l,ion.1/ Economic Study (Acta Archacol. Lundensis. Ser. in 8°, 25, Stm:kholm, 1996), 170- 1.

V IKI NG R ELA T I ONS W IT H F RI S IA

99

TABL£1

\'

l ~

•Westerklief II

......

--

O> O> O> ot ot ot ot .,; .,; .,; O> ~ • ~ N U)

a.

0

0

N

..,

0..,

grams

•Westerklief I

supposed Danish origin fo r the Wescerk lief II hoard. If \Ve d isrega rd the Carolingian coins which w ill have been ad ded later in Frisia, \Xlescerkl ief II confo rms to H ard h's criter ia fo r a hacksil ve r hoard and the distribution o f \veighr o f its sil ve r is compara ble co cha t o f Danish hacksilve r hoards. 10 Ir nla kes this hoard a very earl y exa mple o f the chan ging role of silver a nd proves that t he use of silver as a n1 eans of payme nt and t he develo pment o f a we ight mo ney system were a lready well under \vay in th e third qu a rter o f the 9th century in Scandinavia . Westerkl ief II has t\vo separate da ces, o ne based o n the Arab ic a nd o ne o n t he Caro lingia n coins. Caro lingian coins a re exrren1 ely ra re in Scandi navia n hoards \Vi th a compa rable d ace a nd do no t occur in Dan ish hoards, wh ile Arab ic coins only occur in 46 hoards o nly t\vo o f wh ich a re Da nish. 1 1 T he Carolingia n coins wi ll have been added in Fr isia, but the nicks a nd cut 1na rks and the fragn1entat ion prove th at the 10

Ibid ., 91 and 96. Professor Kenneth Jonsson (Stockho lm Numismatic Institute) ki ndly informs me that in the Scandinavian hoards containing more tha n rcn coin> and da red tem(Jore post q ttem to 880 and earlier, 1hcrc a rc only rhrt-c hoa rds that contain Ca rolingia n coins and no ne o f them arc from Denmark. Only rwo contemporaneous Danish hoards are dated by Arabic coins. Sec also S. Coupland, 'Carolingian coi nage and Scandinavian silver', Nordisk Num. Arskr. ( 1985- 6), 1 1-J 1, at pp. 15-6. 11

100

LANO, SEA ANO HOME

Arabic coins passed through the hands of Scandinavians. The youngest date of the Carolingian coins in Westerklief II in 875- 7 fits well with that of the dirhams in 871-2, and confirms that Arabic coins were already in circulation in Scandinavia in the 87os. This conclusion modifies the tendency to assume that Arabic coins older than the late 9th century arrived in Scandinavia with the extensive importation of silver in the 10th century .12 This is endorsed by the dates of other Arabic silver coins found in the Netherlands.13 THE W ESTERKLIEF HOARDS IN RELATION TO DANISH RULE IN FRISIA

Most of the silver and the composition of the two hoards indicate a Scandinavian origin, the greater part of the ornaments and ingots and the early use of hacksilver pointing to Denmark. T his brings us back to the question of who owned the hoards and why they were left behind on Wieringen. Because there is a gap of almost 30 years between them, one and the same owner is unlikely. This is endorsed by the striking difference in composition of the hoards which reflects a totally different attitude of the owner towards hoarding. So there must have been two hoard owners, both Scandinavians and probably Danes, who deposited their silver in about 850 and 880 on Wieringen. These dates coincide with the beginning and end of Danish domination in West Frisia and it is tempting to connect these two Scandinavian hoards with some sort of Danish settlement in the coastal areas as would have been made possible by Rorik's enfeoffment with these regions by Emperor Lothar in 850. The underlying idea is that it is hardly comprehensible that Vikings would bring their personal riches from the north with them to Wieringen in Frisia unless they had high expectations of staying and making a living there. All other explanations are less credible. After all, Viking hoards are not found in Western Europe outside the territories in which they settled. H The fact that there are two Viking hoards from the same field with a gap of 30 years suggests that there was continuity of Scandinavian activities on Wieringen, and that the Danes may have settled there for longer periods during Danish rule in West Frisia. It was also a foregone conclusion for the Carolingians, that the enfeoffment of Rorik and Godfred with the West Frisian territory implied their settlement there. The Annals of Fulda explicitly note that Godfred and his men were granted Rorik 's former benefice to live there. 15

The opportunities for Danish settlement in West Frisia When, in 850, the emperor Lothar granted Rorik benefices in West Frisia, it was not simply a case of setting a thief to catch a thief. We must not forget that some of the earlier Danish attacks may have been instigated by the individual Carolingian rulers in order to cause damage to their opponents during internal conflicts. In the 12

H. Steuer. "Die Handel dcr Wikingcrzcit zwischcn Nord- und Wcstcuropa auf Grund archaologischcr Zcui;nissc". r r J-97 in K. Dowel. H. Jankuhn , H. Siems ct al. (eds.). V11t('rs11cl11mgen Vt Hundel und Vt•rkehr der l'OT· und {rii/Jgcschichtlichen Zcit in Mittel· um/ Nordeuropu, IV: Der Handel der Karolinger- 11111/ Wiki11111•rzeit (Giittingcn. 1987). 127, especially n. 37: Coupland. op. cir. in note r 1• .18. "5,..., further. p . 102 and Fii:. .l· 14 1\io•:sgaard, op. 'it. in r1otc 7. " T/1ce 15. 8.

GOLDSMITHS' TOOLS

115

information on the technological aspects and a complete catalogue of the hoard and four isolated finds of dies from Hedeby. 38 In 1993 Wladyslaw Duczko published a catalogue of 61 dies, including two lead models, from Scandinavia and the British lsles. 3 ' New finds have enlarged the group of goldsmith's tools since then: an isolated find from Hedeby, Germany, an unfinished casting bearing the casting jet from Vestergade, near Odense, Denmark, two dies from Tiss0, Denmark, and two finds from Uppakra, Sweden. 40 At Borgeby, Scane, Sweden, fragments of clay moulds for casting disc-shaped and cross-shaped dies have been found.4 1 Dies are of considerable value for the study of Viking-period goldsmith's workshops. This group of metalworking implements indicates the presence of craft work, as do other metal-working tools, and more precisely of sophisticated gold and silver jewellery production. It differs from most other sets of tools by the fact that these dies bear a characteristic ornamental relief. This is an attribute they have in common with decorative punches, coin-dies and casting moulds. This may be used for further interpretation of jewellery related to the respective styles. If it corresponds with known jewellery-types, die finds can be used for dating. One die represents several items of jewellery because of its function in serial production. Fragments of clay moulds used for casting bronze dies, as known from Borgeby, Sweden, bear a typically negative imprint of both the respective die and the item of jewellery manufactured. A comparative study of the distribution of dies and related jewellerytypes may provide information on trade and cultural contact. There are jewellery finds corresponding to the majority of the dies. On the other hand, several pressed-sheet gold and silver objects have no corresponding items for their manufacture. The variety of Viking-age dies testifies to a great diversity of forms and decoration of filigree and granulation ornaments that is not reflected as such in the archaeological record. This shows that the gold and silver objects actually known represent only a small portion of the original variety and quantity of ornaments. The real level of goldsmiths' production and the extent of circulation of precious metal objects in Viking-period society are difficult to estimate. The set of dies from Hedeby consists of various forms and motifs related to the Hiddensee style: 15 circular dies for disc-shaped brooches or pendants with animal and interlace motifs (first group), 12 dies for cross-shaped pendants (second group), 6 dies for leaf-shaped pendants with bird motifs (third group), 2 dies for rectangular pendants, 2 dies for trapezoid pendants (fourth group) and 4 dies for miscellaneous small decorative sheets (fifth group). 42 The dies have a flat back for functional reasons and raised relief. The dies of the first four groups bear a basic decorative relief that was used, when transmitted to the pressed sheet, as a guide for the complex decoration, executed in filigree and granulation. The pressed sheet itself forms a metal base for applied decorative wires and granules, fixed to it by soldering. Armbruster, op. cit. in note 10; eadem, p. cir. in 1itc 5. 152- 9. " Duczko, op. cit. in note t. 40 Hcdeby: Armbruster, op. cit. in note 10, cat. 43, Pl. 11,1; Odense: L0n bori:, op. cit. in note 17, Iii:. 44: Ti"o: Jorgensen and Pederson, op. cit. in note i5 , .10, fig. 1.1: Upp:\kra: Capdlc, op. cir. in note 24. ' 1 Brorsson, op. cit. in note 1: Svanbcrg, op. cit. in note i , 116- 18, figtc ro, is 1-62. ll

116

LAND, SEA AND HOME

F1 GURF. 4.

Ci rcula r convex dies (max. diamcrer, 68.) 1nm).

The dian1eter of the circular dies varies fro11168.5 to 30 min, their thickness from 19 to 6.3 n1m (Fig. 4). They are convex vvith a flat back. Son1e large examples have a slightly retracced back, due to the shrinking of the copper alloy during cooling (Fig. 5). There arc five circular dies decorated with an animal morif related to the Borre sryle: four anin1als with interlacing bodies \vhosc heads, seen from above, meet in the centre. Four circular dies bear a similar design \Vith three animals. Two circular dies arc decorated in a more abstract animal art related to the j ellinge style, with three or t\VO interlaced animals (Fig. 6). Two small circular dies with abstract interlaced n1otifs seen1 to be cast from a single 1nould. There are t\VO circular dies of the Terslev type (Fig. 7) . One of them is ve ry elaborate, the other shows the characteristic Terslcv niotif only in rudin1entary forn1. The cross-shaped dies vary in size from 56.5 x 54.8 min to .33 x 30.4 mm \Vith a niaximun1 thickness of 1.0 m111 (Fig. 8). Apart fro111 one outstanding massi ve cross, there are four dies \Vith incerlaccd hands and seven crosses with no decoration on the cross body. One cross has free-standing cross bars and one niassive spccin1en bears rhe cross structure onl y in its raised relief. T he cross pendants are all provided \vith a large oval loop at the top. So111e of these loops are forn1ed of parts of a bird's head, the bill directed to the body, \vhile ochers a re undecorated. There arc gold pendants

GOLDS MI T H S' TOOLS

1 17

Recracccd hack of che la rgesr circul ar die. Scale 1: 1. F 1GUR E 5.

(above). Two dies wich 1hrcc o r two interlaced animal> (diamcccrs 54.7 mn1 and 46.} mm). FIGURE 6

Two Tcrslcv-1ypc dies (di:imercrs 36 1nm and 30 mn1).

FIGURF. 7.

r18

LAND, SE A AND HOM E

F 1GU RE 8.

Dies for cross-shaped pendants (n1ax. length with loop, 56 .5 min).

fro m Hiddensee and silver pendants fro m Tolstrup, Denrna rk, closely related to these cross-shaped dies .43 The leaf-shaped dies ca rry a complete bird niotif (Fig. 9) . The b ird's bod y a nd \vings, seen as a sitting bird from the fro nt, fo rn1 the pendant, and the bird's head forms the oval loop, the bill directed to the bo dy. A fragment o f a sin1ilar bird-shaped gold o rnarn ent, d ecora ted \Vith filigree and g ra nula tio n, \Vas fo und at the Danish fo rtress of Fyrkat. 44 Three dies of this group are easil y recognizable as birds, the other three exan1ples are more abstract in decoration. The re are dies fo r tw o rectangula r and the t\\•O trapezoid pendants. The trapezoid examples are supplied with a loop in forrn of a bird's head with che bill curned co the bod)• o r seen fron1 in front. T he t\VO dies for rectangular penda nts have loops in che forn1 of a bird's head, o ne looking away from the body, the o the r seen

°

For the pendant> from Hidde11>re Jnd Tol,trup >ic ~.Khbildunl!- dcr Scheihenfihcl au' Tani:cndorf. Kr. H:trhuri:', Die Kunde. 6 ( 195 5\ . !l- l_I: E. Folrz: ' Tc.:hni« hc Beobachtungcn an Guldhbukrcuzen'. 11-21 in W. Hiilmer (ed.), l>ie Guldh/,111kre11:t• dt·; frii/.•,·11 .\1ittcl.dter; (l\Ohl. 1971). •• ArbmJnn. op. ci1. in note 11: Schulztlrrla mm. o p. in .J. R. Baldwin and I. 0. Whyte (eds.), TheScandin.1vians in CumhriJ (Edinburgh, 1985). " P. Reilly, Computer AnJlysis of an Archaeological Landscape: Mediei1al Land Di1•isions in the Isle of MJn (BAR Brit. Ser., 190, Oxftlrd. 1988). 16 R. D. Oram, 'Scandinavian settlement in south ·west Scotland with a special study of Bysbic', 117-40 in B. Crawford {ed.), Scandinavian S1•ttlement in Northern Britain (Leicester, 19y5). 17 J. G. Scott, 'A note on the Viking scttkment in Galloway', Trans. Dumfriesshire GallowJy Nat. Hist. Antiq. Soc., 5X (1983), 51-5.

SETTLEMENT AND ACCULTURATION

131

Dublin, Waterford, Wexford, Cork and Limerick had become extensive in the 11th and 1:1.th centuries, each of the Hiberno-Norse towns was located within a small but distinct territorial enclave. 18 These may have had very small origins in the second decade of the 10th century following the historical 'return' of the Vikings in 917, but were probably gradually expanded (by alliance, conquest and possibly purchase) to form a viable urban hinterland. I therefore propose in Figure :i. a rough suggestion of the 'primary' 10th-century Viking landholdings around the Irish Sea - from the aftermath of the historical Norse expulsion from Ireland up to the 93os. The exact extents of the shaded areas are meant as an approximation to stimulate further enquiry, rather than as a definitive record at this stage. In contrast to the distribution of place-names, this shows, in outline terms, a series of smaller, more distinct 'pockets' or enclaves of Viking settlement; almost certainly 'elite' in terms of leadership but with an admixture of people who were from Gaelic, Anglian, British, Danish and perhaps in some cases even more obscure origins who had chosen for whatever reason to throw their lot in with the descendants of the Norwegian Vikings from the longphuirt. We must also assume that the inhabitants were a mixture of those who had recently arrived, and those who had been there all the time but whose overlord had just changed whether they liked it or not. LANDED POWER AND SYMBOLIC DISPLAY

The Viking settlement areas are characterized by evidence for territorial distinctiveness: in the case of (famously) the Isle of Man, but also Dublin, Wirral, West Derby and Dumfriesshire the place-name evidence for thing sites (also with a possible thing-mound preserved at Little Langdale, Cumbria) confirms a special Norse dimension to local administration. The grave sites of the Isle of Man and Cumbria are characterized by spectacular mound burial, and there is evidence of this also taking place in Dublin, close to the thing-site known as the Thingmote (levelled in 1685) by present-day College Green (an area arguably a distinct elite focus east of the River Paddle, just across from the most built-up area of the Viking town). 19 One of the remarkable aspects of the Manx burials is their very late date for apparently 'pagan' Viking monuments. GrahamCampbell has dated the so-called Pagan Lady of Peel on the basis of coin evidence from the grave to no earlier than the 94os. 20 The Ballateare, Balladoole and Cronk Mooar burials excavated by Gerhard Bersu in the 1940s all had examples of metalwo rk which could be described as Irish Sea Norse in origin, rather than true Scandinavian.21 These burials, in fact, are a very ' Irish Sea' theme which ultimately harks back to Norwegian burial practice.

J. Bradley, 'The interpretation of Scandinavian settlement in

Ireland', 49-78 in J. Bradlc)' (ed.) Settlement and So~iety in Medie1,al Ireland, Studies presented to F. X. Martin 0.S.A. (Kilkenny, 1988). "R. 0 Floinn, 'The archaeology of the E.irly Viking Age in Ireland', 1.11- 65 in Clarke et al. (eds.). op. cit. in note 5. "' Graham-Campbell, op. cit. io note s, 77; D. Frckc, Exca1,ations on St Patrfrk 's Isle, Pt•el, Isle of ...,,.,,, 1?,82- 88(Livcrpool,1001), 58- 1.11. 1 Bcrsu and Wilson, op. cit. in note 10. 11

r32

LAND, SEA AND HOME

.'

IRISH SEA

D 9

FIGURE 2.

Settlement 905 - 930 i

lf>lull A working suggestion of the extent of ioth-century Scandinavian settlement based on place-names, and archaeological and historical indications.

SETTLEMENT AND ACCULTURATION

133

In the Isle of Man, Cumbria, Lancashire and the Wirral, the areas of 'primary' early to mid-10th-century Norse settlement as suggested above are also characterized by very visible displays of stone sculpture at church sites, with free-sranding crosses, large slabs and hogbacks representing the most common themes. Given the surprisingly late date of the mound burials: we are looking at a situation where some of the earlier stone sculpture may well be near-contemporary (Richard Bailey dates several of the Cumbrian examples to the 94os). 22 This situation speaks hardly of a long-term diffusion of cultural change in a quiet backwater but more of a very dynamic and pro-active display of symbolic lordship in the early to middle 10th century, involving 'conservative' elements (the mound burials) and forward-looking elements more in tune with the contemporary tradition of the host country (namely the sculpture). Where the acknowledged physical manifestations of past landed power do not already exist, because settlement has been a recent or concurrent development, they need to be created none the less! My period as a visiting researcher in Troms0, Norway, gave me the chance to research the geography and symbolism of Iron-age and Viking-period landed power. In northern Norway, for example, distinct chiefdom foci are present at strategic points within the landscape. 23 These are characterized by large mound burials and boat nausts, thing-sites, and tunanlegg or 'courtyard sites' of buildings arranged in sub-circular formation at meeting places (Fig. 3), and also increasingly by evidence for participation in long-distance trade with the rest of the Viking world. These observations led me to propose that the Norwegian chiefdom model was the template, albeit a derivative one by the 10th century, around which the Norse leaders in the Irish Sea region constructed the outward manifestation of their rule. 24 When arriving with a multifarious following on a foreign shore in order to take over the lives and lands of yet more people, the rapid imposition of familiar symbols of chiefly authority was a way of creating a baseline from which the accommodation of new allegiances and the promotion of new identities could then follow. The Gosforth Cross in Copeland, Cumbria, is an oft-quoted example of the clear association of Norse mythological imagery with a Christian message (or perhaps equally a 'modern' message in the context of the 10th century). The spread of circleheaded crosses across the Cumbrian coastal areas, to the Isle of Man, and into the Wirral is more than just a wave of passive influence. I would agree with Hines, Barrett and others that patterns of 'instrumentalist' acculturation, the active promotion of carefully combined cultural messages in order to create a new and more universal u R. N. Bailey and R. J. Cramp, British At.idemy Corp11s of Anglo-St1xon Stone Sn1lpt1tT1'. \!o/11me 1:

Cumberland, Westmorland and Lancashire North·of-the-Sands {Oxfc>rd, 1988): discussion of circlc·hcadcd crossrly Vikin11 Age in Norway', 3-_16 in Clarke ct al. {cJs.). op. cit. in note 5. 24 Tunanley,g, or 'courryard sites', have their origin in the Norwegian Early Iron Age (contemporary with the later Roman Period in Britain), hut at some sites. such as the example rcnirdcd hy Harald F.gnxs Lund on Bjark0y south of Troms0 {Fig. _1). radiocarbon dates SUl\!\l'St that activity condnuC)' and Cadwallon"s victory over Edwin's NorthumbriJ. Sl'< /1.1. RcJknap. Vikings i11 \t1ult-s: An Arc/1 of lrdaml', Proc~ed111gs of the Seventh Viki>1g Cong. MSs in cruciform pattern. Imcrnal diameter 19 mm (Glo2, SF 3208, ploughsoil). Lead f. Lead cross, upper arm perforated for suspension from a necklace. Flat back, cast in open mould. Height 15, width 17.5 mm (GL02, SF2827, ploughsoil).

Dr Mark Redknap, Curator of Medieval & Later Archaeology, National Museurns & Galleries of Wales, Cathays Park, Cardiff CF10 JNP, UK [email protected]

SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC INTEGRATION IN VIKING-AGE IRELAND: THE EVIDENCE OF THE HOARDS

By j OHN

SHEEHAN

Silver hoards constitute one of the more important sources of archaeological evidence for the study of the Early Viking Age in Ireland. Well in excess of a hundred examples are on record, representing an exceptional concentration of wealth that is only rarely surpassed elsewhere in the Viking world. 1 This degree of wealth reflects the distinctive nature of Scandinavian activity in Ireland within the cultural and geographical contexts of the Viking West and North Atlantic regions. In Ireland, the Scandinavians encountered economic and political conditions that differed in several respects from those pertaining elsewhere. The foundation of longphuirt and towns unknown, for instance, in Norse Scotland - formed one such unique response to Irish conditions, while the establishment of a commercially orientated economy constituted another. As silver was the principal medium of exchange in use throughout the Viking world, it is consequently not surprising that such large amounts of it have been found in Ireland. In Viking-age Britain it was only in the Anglo-Saxon economies that silver circulated solely in the form of coin. Elsewhere, as in Ireland, it also circulated by weight and was thus acceptable in alternative forms. 2 Consequently silver hoards in the north-west of England, Scotland, the Isle of Man and Ireland may be composed of ingots, ornaments and hacksilver, with or without coins, a form of composition that is also prevalent in the Scandinavian homelands. Thus many hoards from Britain share imponant and defining characteristics with those from Ireland, even if they occur in smaller numbers. 3 1

The Early Viking Age is here defined as the period comprising the 9th and 10th ccnturics. At presem 1 10 hoards may be assigned to this period. This t1al is comprised of the 108 cx•mplcs listed in Appendix 1 of J. Sheehan, 'Early Viking-age silver hoards from Ireland and their Scandinavi•n elements', 166- 101 in H. Clarke et al. (eds.), Seandinavia and Ireland in the Early Viking Age (Dublin, 1988), along with the recently discovered examples from Dunmore cave, Co. Kilkenny (not yet formally published. though some details of this find are contained in the Sunday Times Magaline, 16 July 1000, 46-s 1) and Clo11hermore cave, Co. Kerry, for which sec M. Connolly and F. Coyne, 'Clo11hcrmorc cave: the Lee Valhalla', Archaeology Ireland, 14:4 (•coo), 16-19. 2 S. E. Kruse, 'Metallurgical evidence of silver sources in the Irish Sea province', 7J-88 in J. Grah•mCampbcll (ed.), Viking Tre.isurc from the North West: The Cucrdale Hoard in its Context (Liverpool, 1991), 7 .l ·

' For instance, for the period between c. A. O. 800 and 1100 there arc three times ;is many hoards containmi: non-numismatic silver known from Ireland 1han from Scorland.

LAND, SEA AND HOME

The study of silver hoards yields information on a number of areas of relevance towards an understanding of the Viking Age in Ireland. These include, for instance, the development of the Scandinavian and Hiberno-Scandinavian economies and the effect of the increased availabiliry of silver on the native Irish metalworking traditions.• Significantly, and due in part to the fact that the deposition of some finds may be closely dated, the hoards have considerably more potential than other forms of archaeological data for the correlation of the historical and the archaeological evidence. The purpose of this paper is twofold: first, to provide a brief and very general overview of Viking-age silver hoards in Ireland and, secondly, to use the evidence of the hoards to examine issues of economic and social integration between the native Irish and the Scandinavians/Hiberno-Scandinavians during the 9th and 10th centuries. It is hoped to demonstrate that this latter approach develops and increases what is known about this issue from other sources. IRELAND'S VIKING-AGE SILVER HOARDS

Ireland's 9th- and 10th-century silver hoards, like those from Scandinavia and elsewhere, may be classified along conventional lines into three categories: 'coinless' hoards (those consisting exclusively of non-numismatic material, ranging from complete ornaments and/or ingots to hacksilver}, of which there are 53 examples on record; 'mixed' hoards (those consisting of coins combined with non-numismatic material}, of which there are 16 examples known; and coin hoards (those consisting exclusively of coins), of which there are 41 examples on record. Recently, the author has proposed a fivefold re-classification of those 69 hoards that contain nonnumismatic material, namely the 'coinless' and 'mixed' categories.5 This scheme, which is outlined below, focuses primarily on the non-numismatic contents of the hoards because it is felt that this allows the varying degrees of complexiry present within the hoards to become evident. The basis for the new classification is the actual composition of the hoards as reAecred through the presence, absence or association of the three non-numismatic phenomena that may form part of Viking-age hoards, namely ornaments, ingots and hacksilver. Prior to considering those hoards containing non-numismatic material some details of the coin hoards should be brieAy noted. The majority of them are small in size and together they represent an insignificant amount of the overall silver wealth of the period in terms of their bullion value. 6 Some 75°/o of the total number were deposited after c. 940 and the types of issues that occur in them are predominantly Anglo-Saxon. However, Arabic and continental coins, as well as those of the Viking 'In 1his raper 1he terms 'Scandinavian ' and 'Hiberno-Scandinavian' ~re used in accordance with the definitions 1hat arc proposed in J. Sheehan, S. S1ummann Hansen and D. 0 Corr:iin, 'A Viking-age maritime ha,·cn: a reassessment of the island scttlemcn! at Beginish, Co. Kerry',}. Irish Archaeol., X (i.001 ), 9}-119, a1 93- 4. 'J. Sheehan, 'Ireland's early Viking-age silver hoards: components, structure •nd classification', AffJ Archueol. (Supplcmcnta II) . 71 (i.ooo), 49- 6.J. at 57- 6uggcstion rhar thl' phrase is here used of the king of Ulaid and t41 (lines11 t6- t7). " Dillon op. cit. in nc>re 3. 1.40-1 (line 1102), 144- 5 (line 1155) and 88 (line 13 t 5); O'Donovan, op. cir. in nOll' 4, 161 and 165: Dictionary of the Irish l.anf!,11age R 11 "; 6: L 5 la II I; [) 171 do Ill. The phrase ocht long,1 do laidengaib lc(t unrranslat 900- 1000', Norwegian Ard1aeolo11.i.:al Rei•ietu, 29 ( 1996), 111 - 114: Barrerr. op. cir. in note 3. u S. Jones, The Archaeology of r:thnicity (London, 1997) , 7.1-6. 14 For a cross-section of current usage s•-c papers in Batey ct al. (eds.), op. cit. in note 8 and Clarke ct al. (ed•. ), 08. cir. in note 4; W.W. Fitzhugh and E. I. Ward (eds.), Viking>: The North Atlantic Sag.i (Washington , 2000). J. H . Barrett, 'Introduction', 1-7 in idem (ed.), Contact, Continuity and Collapse: The Norse Coloniz,11ion o(. the North Atlantic (Turnhout, 2003), 4; Jones, op. cit. in note 13, 65 and rcfrrcnctc 3.

" F. T. Wainwright, 'The Sc:1nc 1 of the Old Scarness cx.:avarions 1995- 8". 19-80 in R. A. Nkholson ;ind S. J. Dock rill (e in tht· An:tirc \.

•• tl::thelred's o rd,·r to c x1 mostly Jis.1ppca red around 2 100 R.L: sec B. Bra yshay and K. Edwards.' l a tc·itb.:i.11 and Holocene vcp;ctatinn:tl history of South llist and Barra', 1.1-26 in D. (;ilhcrtson, M. Kent and J. G rattan (eds.), T iu• Outer Hebrides: T he l.ast 14 .0 0 0 Yt'•lrs (Sheffield, 1'196). '

CILLE PHEADAIR

The pit complex (Phase I) Before the floors of the first stone longhouse (House 700) or its northern outhouse extension were laid, the bottom of the trench was dug into by two N.-S. lines of round, flat-bottomed pits with other pits dug more randomly. These pits were backfilled almost immediately with relatively clean sand and broken pottery, animal bones, ironwork, broken steatite vessels and varying numbers of pins and comb fragments. The bones and pottery were not unusual except that they were not as heavily fragmented as later material from house floors or middens. Also, platter ware was almost entirely absent from these fills despite the relatively large quantities of pottery (Fig. 7) . The nine pins (some may be needles with broken heads) and two toothless combs arc unusual finds for such low densities of material and may have been purposely broken and dropped into the pits as they were being backfilled. Joining fragments of a bone pin were dropped in adjacent pits. Among the iron fittings there was a broken punched strip. The surfaces on top of the pits (Phase II) In the N. end of the sand-walled enclosure a series of finds-rich layers accumulated over the tops of the pit-fills. They may be contemporary with the stonewalled building (House 700) in the southern part of the enclosure (i.e. Phase III) but arc considered to be earlier (Phase II). From these layers came a complete comb, more pins and needles and an array of bone, lead, iron and copper-alloy artefacts and fragments. A lead billet may have been a weight and some of the ironwork probably derives from a broken-up cauldron. A broken iron handle was ornamented on its terminal with a lattice decoration in copper alloy. The combs from these earliest deposits (Phases I and II) are single-sided (as indeed they are from the whole sequence) and simply decorated (Fig. 8}. The whole comb is plain and the others are decorated either with two parallel incised lines running through the rivets or with two rows of dot and circle motifs either side of the two central parallel lines. The pins are more varied. Some are perforated with tapering heads or with expanding heads, some are nail-headed, square-headed and sphericalheaded. The only ornate pin is one of copper alloy from a pit: it has a hemispherical head divided into three segments. House 700 (Phase Ill) The first house with stone walls was set into the southern end of the sand-walled enclosure and had its entrance passage through the south side of the sand-wall's entrance. The sand-wall's northern entrance terminal was then extended to the edge of the entrance passage's north wall. It is most likely that some of the midden layers which accumulated against the outside wall of the sand-walled enclosure were dumped in this phase, but it is not possible to distinguish with certainty between those that belong to this phase and those which belong to the next (Phase IV). Among the metal, ceramic and bone debris on the floor of House 700 were an iron ring-headed pin, an iron chisel, a round-headed bone pin and an antler comb decorated as in the previous phase with two horizontal parallel lines through the rivet holes but with a central decorative portion of 17 vertical lines. One of the earliest

LANO, SEA ANO HO M E

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midden deposirs ourside rhe sand-wall is probably associared \Virh rhis phase and conrains a broken anrlcr comb wirh angled incised decorarion and a cenrral panel of overlapping zigzags, a sryle \vhich \vould norrnally dare ir ro rhe lare 8rh or ea rl y 9rh century.

LANO, SEA ANO HOME

F1GURE9.

The gold s1rip. Scale 1:i.

House 500 (Phase IV)

House 500 \Vas built out of the den1olition of House 700, direccly on cop of it buc extending nluch further at its N. end. The southern part of House 7oo's ease \Vall \Vas used within the build of chis new house, thereby slighting the old yet st ill retaining elen1encs o f it within the new. A ne\v house floor \Vas laid over the old. This process of rebuilding was unexpected for us since we had assumed that the new house would be built next door to the old, as a house is on South Uist today, so chat the occupants could build it while still living in the old house. The other surprise was chis consistent re-use of part of the old house's in situ \val ling, \Vhic h caught us una\vares \vhen \Ve first encountered chis phenon1enon at the cop of the site's sequence. House 500 was rhe grandest building of the entire sequence. Ir was 14 m N.-S. and 5 m \vide. It re-used the door\vay and entrance passage of the earlier house. The house's entrance opened fron1 a long passage onto a wide forecourt on the ease side of the 111ou11d which was beginning co gro\v outwards and upwards on account of the quantities of rubbish being dun1ped around it. The visitor to the house would have passed through the door into a large, IO m-long room with a cent ral fireplace occupying half its length. At the N. end of chis roon1 was a small passage \vhich led into a square storeroom on the N. end of the house. Above knee-height the \Valls would have been constructed from stacked curves, placed on cop of the sand-wall and forming a turf \vall just over a metre chick. T he interior of the long room was probably lined \vith rin1bers bur there \vas no evidence of any revetting - eith er of timber or of scone-on the house's exterior. Along the W. side of the house's interior \Ve recorded the in1pressions left by a line of box beds and a large chest or box h ad sac against the east \Vall just inside the doorway. Although the hearth \vas so long, only its N. end was used for cook ing and food preparation. Many artefacts, so111e complete and ochers fragmentary, were recovered from both the house floor and from the midden associated with chis phase. The suspension lug of a copper-coated iron cauldron or bucket, a ferrule, a variety of iron fittings, and a large assen1blage of boat clench nails can1e our of rhe ni idden, together with a deco rared gold strip which see111s ro have been wound around son1eone's finger before it was lose (Fig. 9). Amongst the nails which littered the edges of the house floor. presun1ably fron1 \vall panelling, roofing and furniture, there were many broken iron artefacts. Teeth fron1 an iron \Vool con1b lay in rhc door\vay. Ocher finds on rhe floor were an iron \Vedge, a lead clench nail and broken knives. Of the i.o or so knives from

C ILLE PHEADAIR

2.47

A selection of bone and copper-alloy pins front Cillc Phcadair. Scale 1 :J.

FIGURE 10.

the sire, all of the Anglo-Scandinavian types are represented except for the anglebacked type. This is particularly interesting because it is the niost commo n t ype in Yo rk and else\vhere in England at rhe ti 1ne. 1• There was also a wide range of bone and steatite spindle \vho rls frotn the floor, one of which was decorated with do ts and incised lines. This is the last period of occupation a r C itic Pheada ir in which artefacts of Shetland sreatite and \vhetsto nes of Norwegian provenance are well represented. In Phase V and after, there are virtually no artefacts traded fron1 the no rth a nd, instead, the impo rts a re alinost all from England and the sout h. T his nio ment in the early 1i.th century signifies t he end of trading connexions to the no rth a nd rhe beginning of links ro Ireland and England. The bone pins of this phase are considerably mo re varied and better made than those fro m earlier phases and some of them can be paralleled \Vi th Irish examples (Fig. ro). Perforated pins wi t h tapered heads were still in use a nd t\VO exa mples are decorated with do t and circle or parallel line motifs. The con1bs of this phase have decorative motifs which a re elaboratio ns on earlier ones. Multiple a ngled parallel lines augment " P. Onaway, A11glo·Scandina11i011 Ironwork front Coppergate (London, 1991) .

LAND, SEA AND HOME

FIGURE 1 r.

The rwo cruciform pendants. Scale

1: 1.

the horizontal pair of parallel lines and dot and circle motifs are also added to son1e. The vertical line decoration continues, augmented by zigzag motifs at rhe centre of the panel. T v,ro of these con1bs were found in construction deposits either side of rhe passage leading inro the north storage roo1n and are interprered as foundation deposits. Foundation offerings (of pins, needles, comb fragn1enrs and an arro,vhead) were n1ade fron1 Phase I to Phase VI but nor thereafter. Closing offerings were left on rhe abandoned floors o f Houses 700 and 500 (a r rhe ends of Phases 111 and IV), consisting of a con1b and pin placed ar rhe norrh end of rhe hearch. There is also a closing deposit of a bone cruciform pendant on rhe floor of H ouse 500, unburnt and pushed inro the heart h at the end of its use. Another bone cruciforn1 pendant \Vas found in rhe niidden (Fig. 1 r ). In the final levels of the 'kitchen' area and rhe passage,vay inro the storeroom we found conjoining sherds of a green-glazed cripod pitcher fro111 Nlinety in Wiltshire. It \vas stratified \veil belo\v an 11th-century pin and an rrth -cenrury coin of C nut and most probably dares to the early ii.th century.

Ref11rbish111e11t of House 500 (Phase V) 1;ouse 500 \v as rebuilt so that its long roon1 \Vas nladc sn1aller borh in \vidth and length and \vas separated from rhe storeroo111, wirh a new door\vay near the N. end of its E. wall. The scoreroon1 became an outhouse, rea ched by a footpath along che cast side of the buildings. Fron1 the niatrix of rhis path\vay we found a perforated bone pin with a tapering head, decorated \virh r 1th-century Ringerike-style ornan1enc. 1\.1etahvork finds fron1 rhis phase include rwo weights. The nlost interesting of rhese is a spherica l weight \Vith a top half of copper a lloy and a nla rking of five dots as in the style of dice. There '"ere also five knives, the base plate of a \vool comb, an iro n pin, a possible broken arro\vhead, a broken chisel or gouge, t\vo cauldron suspension hoo ks and a variety of broken cools a n1ongst rhe n1any nai ls and clench nails. Fron1 the ruins of che house came a silver finger ring and a coin of Cnur (minted in Yo rk, probably bcC\veen i o17 and 1oi.4). There \vere fc\\' pins fron1 this phase, bur the antle r combs show a new sryliscic development on the previous o nes of phase IV. or only \Vere they beco1ning s1naller, but the para llel angled lines \vcre 110 ,v positioned within rhe band between rhe paired hori zo ntal lines, o r in the central band if ho rizontal lines were absent. O ne such

249

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crudely decorated piece, presumably part of a comb, has a large lump of lead embedded in it, perhaps as a repair. The sheds (Phase VI) On top of the abandoned ruins of House 500, two 'sheds' were erected, probably as a single build, on an E.-W. axis. Neither had a hearth and they seem to have been used as storage spaces. The floor of the eastern shed was sunken and had a niche in its north-west corner containing broken ceramic platters. The only other structure was a stone-paved outdoor working area. Relatively linle rubbish was deposited during this phase, but there were three interesting finds. A fine iron chisel was left on the floor in the W. shed and there were two arrowheads (Fig. 12), underneath and within the walls of the W. and E. sheds respectively. The deposition of one of these within a construction deposit should make us wary of interpreting their presence as evidence of politically uncertain times. The pottery in Phase VI is markedly different from other phases, being mostly thickwalled storage vessels with only a small proportion of cooking pots. House 312 (Phase VII) The next stone-walled longhouse, House 312, was aligned E.- W., against the grain of the previous longhouses. Its N. wall cut through the ruins of the two sheds without re-using any of their walling. Instead, the E. end of House 312's south wall was keyed into the S. wall of House 500, thereby establishing and recognizing an ancestral tie to that earlier house. House 312's doorway was near the E. end of its N. wall and an external storehouse was built against the W. end of its S. wall. Some of the best finds within the entire site came from this phase, from the house floor, the sweepings outside the doorway or in the midden. A copper-alloy ornament

LANO, SEA ANO HOME

2.)0

F1GURE 13. a: T he copper-alloy 'c rozier' from Phase VII; b: rhc copper-alloy s1rap-end with a moulded feline. Scale 1: t.

in the shape of a crozier (Fig. r 3a) was found in the floor of H ouse 3ti.. It had been tinned and decorated in stripes with an unknown alloy. Its base terminares in thiee broken prongs and it niay be the base of a drinking horn. Fron1 the area outside the door came a copper alloy belt buckle with two mounts for precious stones \vhich \Vere both niissing. Iron cools included needles, knives, a gouge, an aw l and a billhook. Platter ware had now risen in proportion from around 5 °/o in rhe early phases ro almost half of the ceramic assemblage. Much of it was found in the outhouse which was being used as a bakehouse as \veil as a store. A rim of a Minety-ware pitcher (probably part of rhe san1e vessel as was found associated \vith House 500) was also found outside the main house. A copper-alloy pin with a decorated square head and a shaft ornamented \vith criss-cross lines was found in the niidden. This deco rative theme of criss-cross lines was also found on one of the antler con1bs of this phase. The blocks of angled lines still persist on other combs, most of chem now s1nall, and rwo exploit the intersection of the horizontal lines with the angled lines to produce an effect sin1ilar to the criss-crosses. Angled lines applied neatl y wirhin horizontal lines along the edge of a copper-alloy strip mimic the comb decorations of phase V.

House 007 (Phase VIII ) House 31i. \Vas demolished and levelled, but its E. end was incorporated into the E. \Vall of a sn1all N.-S. longhouse. This differed from previous buildings in having not one bur rwo opposing door,vays cowards irs N. end, alrhough rhe easrern one \vas blocked up during rhe house's use. Ir was also surrounded by a small eavesdrip gully. The thin and clean Aoors of this building arc a niarkcd contrast to those in earlier houses (other rhan H ouse 700) and S\veeping patterns o f debris against the norrh walls indicare rhat it \vas kept scrupulo usly clean. There arc no midden dcposirs associated with rhis building, orher rhan those ripped into its eavesdrip gull y, and perhaps rhey lie o utside rhe edges of rhe excavation. With rhe house's floor being so clean rhere were few a rtefacts other than pottery and nails. Platte r ware srill formed nearly half of the ceramic assemblage and \Vas mostly on the floor of the outhouse rather than within the 1nain building. There were very fe\v tools of either bone or iron other than one or possibly two iron needles. Other finds included a circula r copper-alloy disc, the broken iron handle of a sn1all box o r

CILLE PHEADAIR

2.51

chest, and a copper-alloy strap-end ornamented with a feline (Fig. 13b) which was found in the blocked-up entrance passage.

The re-use and abandonment of House 007 (Phase IX) Two small rooms, each with a hearth, were built at each end within the ruins of House 007. Like that house, they were kept relatively clean. On a floor surface in the northern room someone dropped one half of a short cross penny of King John of England (119cr-1i.16). Other finds from this phase included two blue glass beads, a ferrule for a thin stick or cane, and a comb fragment. Its unusual decoration of six horizontal lines criss-crossed by three blocks of short venical lines was crudely executed. Platter ware was scarce in this period, probably indicating its abandonment from daily use. TIME AND SEQUENCE

Although the radiocarbon dating programme for Cille Pheadair has yet to be carried out, there are already some interesting methodological problems concerning chronology. The first is that the coins and certain metal and bone ornaments such as the Ringerike-decorated pin may be a century or more earlier than the deposits in which they end up. There was potentially a strong degree of curation, presumably of wealth and heirlooms, which needs to be recognized. In deep stratified sequences residuality is always a problem as earlier layers are cut through by pits and post-holes. Within the upper layers there were very few of these intrusive features but the large trenches dug for H ouses 31i. and 007 towards the end of the sequence definitely displaced earlier material. Evidence for this may be provided by the Minery pot, the mass of whose sherds were found in Phase IV but whose probable rim was found in Phase VII. The re-siting of each new house upon the remains of the previous one so as to incorporate part of the in situ walling within the new build was accompanied by a similar concern to ensure that part of the old hearth lay directly above part of the new. This continuous re-statement of ancestral ties to the previous building is of great interest. It may indicate ties of kinship but it may also be considered an act of appropriation. Having noted such a relationship between a Pictish house and a Viking-age house at the Udal, it might have signified an unbroken line of succession or alternatively it might have been a legitimatory act by incoming conquerors to lay claim to land and household. Cille Pheadair represents a new beginning, the founding of a community on uninhabited agricultural land and the building of a house in new materials, in a new way. Thereafter there was a degree of rapprochement with the traditional way of doing things, digging the house into the machair sand and using stone to revet the sand-walls around the house. The new styles of pottery - both platters and rounded cooking pots - also mark a break with the past. Not only were these new styles with new manufacturing techniques (overlapping clay slabs as opposed to tongue-andgroove construction) but they also embodied new cuisine, such as the use of platters for barley cakes, the cooking of stews in cauldrons and smaller cauldron-shaped pots,

LAND, SEA AND HOME

and the use of bowls and cups. Yet on the other hand, the retention of straight-sided vessel shapes and the continued use of pottery in quantity (in contrast to Norway and the Northern Isles) linked aspects of the Iron-age past with the Norse present. Perhaps this cultural melding visible in architectural and ceramic forms from the beginnings of Norse settlement on South Uist may have played a role in fostering the post-Norse period's Gaelicization of language and culture. L IV EL IHOOD AND ECON0 t.11 C SPECIALIZATION

The sea was a resource and highway which was becoming increasingly important in the centuries leading up to the Norse Period. A few days' travel could take Uisters to Shetland or to Man and, beyond them, Kaupang and Bristol. Full of fish, the deep sea provided a harvest which had formerly been largely avoided by islanders in centuries past. Improvements in maritime technology gave the inhabitants full access to this marine resource and made the Western Isles anything but a remote backwater or marginal cultural environment. Ship nail thicknesses from Cille Pheadair indicate the use of boats between 6 and 14 m long, with some probably as long as 18 m. With this 'globalization' of the North Atlantic, even the bulkiest of products such as timber could be hauled hundreds of miles as a profitable cargo. Specialization became a prime strategy for people of Uist, enabling them to provide goods for wider markets where many different products were now obtainable. The pre-Viking-period land economy of South Uist had remained relatively unchanged since the Late Bronze Age. 15 Barley was the principal crop, augmented in the Middle and Late Iron Age with oats and rye, in a climate that did not favour wheat-growing. Sheep were the most numerous livestock, followed by cattle whose neonatal cull parterns are interpreted as evidence for dairying. Pork and venison were more minor contributions to the diet, and sea birds and their eggs even less so. The large animal bone assemblages from Cille Pheadair and Bornais both show the main elements of this pattern but also substantial divergences. With the cultivation of flax, as well as oats and rye in much greater proportions, the barley-based agricultural economy was considerably diversified. Sheep still predominate in the fauna) assemblages bur cattle were now bred for meat, and venison became a larger component of the diet. The greatest change was perhaps in the sea's harvest. Amounts of fish consumed were much higher than before and there was also a specialization in herring fishing. There was greater consumption of seabirds and more use of cetaceans of all sizes, though whether the latter were hunted remains unresolved. This specialization in beef and herring is a particularly interesting phenomenon. Regionally, the Northern Isles economy was specializing in dairying during this period and, locally, the Udal economy also continued with a pattern of dairying. 16 Whereas the Northern Isles fisheries concentrated on cod, saithe and ling, the people of South Uist were catching herring, presumably in community-wide ventures 1 ·'

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Mound 2 showing the area excavated in 2000. The location of the three excavated houses is shown . House 1 is defined by a crench along the north and an internal line of post-holes; House 2 has well-preserved stone revetment walls, a large central hearth and numero us small pits; House 3 has well-preserved stone revetment wa lls but the internal features were not exposed. A small ancillary structure was built into the SW. corner of house 3. F IGURE 2.

"' "" ......

LANO, SEA AND HOME

The early house House 1 is particularly poorly understood as most of this house is currently obscured by house 2.. The floor layers of house 1 were originally exposed during the excavation of house i. and it was initially thought that these were two phases of the same house. 3 However, the excavation of an area to the west of house i. and the dismantling of the west wall of house 2. made it clear that house 1 was a discrete structure that extends a considerable distance beyond the west end of house i.. The excavation of house 1 was limited but indicates that the house was constructed by digging a pit into an existing settlement mound. Structural features included a line of close set post-holes along the inside edge of this pit and cutting the floor deposits were many other post-holes and stake-holes, some of which could be roof supports. Below the floor were several substantial pits with largely sterile sand fills. The evidence suggests we have an E.- W. oriented house with an internal post frame and timber walls. Finds recovered from this house include large fragments of a steatite vessel, a square glass bead, a small lead cross amulet and a bronze mount. The abandonment of this house was almost immediately followed by the construction of house i.. The main house House i. was a subterranean structure, oriented E.- W., with well-built internal stone walls standing 1.3 m high made from very substantial rectangular blocks. The interior of the house was approximately 19.3 m long and was distinctly bow-shaped, expanding from a width of 3.8 mat the west end to a width of 5.8 min the centre. No obvious entrance has been located so it must be in the unexplored eastern half of the house. The construction of this house involved the dumping of a large quantity of relatively sterile sand over the floor of house 1. The principal feature of the occupation is a large hearth extending along the centre of house. This hearth was approximately 1.5 m wide and is over 9.1 m long, extending to within approximately 2. m of the W. wall. The nature of the deposit changed as one n1oved along the house. In the centre of the house there were thick homogeneous dumps of yellow ash but to the west the deposits consisted of many thin layers of red, orange and black ash. All of this appears to be derived from peat fires. The difference between the centre and the periphery may represent an area where the fire is located and a larger area covered by ash raked out from the fire. The edge of the hearth was not formally defined by a kerb, but was marked by a discontinuous line of small burnt pebbles. Part of the process of creating and occupying the house was the digging of a series of features, which included slight shallow scoops and relatively substantial pits. In the excavated area the pits are concentrated in the W. end of the house but the largest pit (not yet fully excavated) was found in the centre, underneath the hearth. Interpreting these pits is difficult as most of then1 were filled with relatively sterile and homogeneous sand. Finds, where present, tend to come from the upper fills and probably represent subsidence from the overlying floor. Around the edge of the house ' Sha rples ( 19~son and Guorgrimr l>orsteinsson. l>orgrimr is in turn murdered by Gisli in vengeance for Vesteinn's killing. Gisli is outlawed for his action, and the story of his survival as an outlaw forms a large part of the narrative. Prior to l>orgrimr's killing the saga tells us that it has been snowing, and that Gisli leaves Holl along a path used for drawing water from the stream, and wades along the stream. He then goes to Sa:bol along the path used there for collecting water, kills l>orgrimr and returns along the same route. So, no tracks are left in the snow to identify the killer as having travelled from Holl. The narrative function of the stream is to conceal the identity of the killer, and in this way operates as a retardation device in order to allow further narrative developments; it is the literary function of the stream that is of fundamental importance to the structure of the saga not its actual geography. 13 By concealing the identity of l>orgrimr's killer in this way the saga author creates the narrative opportunity to illustrate the tension of personal and social loyalties which lie at the core of the saga. Immediately after the murder is discovered a search party is sent out, and Gisli's farm is searched, but his brother l>orkell is a member of the search party and is able to kick the evidence of Gisli's frozen shoes out of sight before anyone else sees them. However, Gisli's brother is then reluctant to be any more involved than is necessary, because he fears for his own life. Gisli's sister l>ordis was l>orgrimr's wife, and when she overhears Gisli admitting to the murder in a verse she informs l>orgrimr's brother Borkr. The narrative now follows Borkr's pursuit of Gisli. Although the use of streams or rivers as retardation devices is relatively common in the sagas, their function in concealment scenes is unusual. 14 Woods are the features most commonly associated with concealment, or more specifically skogr. Indeed, I ' have found that 50 per cent of scenes in the lslendingasogur that contain a sk6gr 15 reference employ this feature as a concealment device. For example, in chapter i.7 of Heioarvfga saga Bar3i Gu()mundarson and his men hide in a wood prior to attacking Gisli l>orgautsson: l>a var skogr• mikill i H virarsiou, sem pa var vioa her a landi. En peir satu fyrir ofan skoginnb sex ok sa gorva tioendi a Gullteig. Bardi var i skoginum• ok snerru eina fra peim, par er peir slogu, ok pcir sex saman. Nu hyggr Baroi at, hve margir menn va:ri at sla:ttinum; nu pykkisk hann eigi vita vist, hvart kona er inn prioi maorinn, er hvitt er til hofuosins at sja, - 'eoa mun par vera G isli?' Ganga nu ofan undan skoginumJ hverr eptir oorum, ok potti peim sva fyrst l>orgauts sonum, sem einn maor gengi par, ok tekr hann til oroa l>ormoor, er sioast slo a teignum: 'Menn fara parna,' kvao hann. 'En mer synisk,' segir Gisli, 'at maor gangi einn.' En peir gengu hart ok runnu eigi. 16 1.1 14

Ed. cit. in note 10, 52- .1 .

Wyatr, op. cit. in note 1. 128-., .1· . "Orher woodland rcrms found in rhc lslending.islil(ttr arc: hnlt [copse/hillock J. /11ndr Ji:rove J, mnrk Jfor."$1[ and vi.Jr [foresrlrimberJ. These rerms primarily represent diffcrini: sizes of woodland, us1rnlly birch. Sec W)'arr, og. cit . in note 1, 85. . HeiJ". \°it. in n1'.)te 1.

I

I

]OR VIK: A VIKING-AGE CITY

By

RICHARD

A.

HALL

A wide range of data indicates that York was the main focus for Scandinavian interests in the late Anglo-Saxon Period. Documentary sources, for example, mention a sequence of political and military events, starting with the capture of York by the Viking 'great army' in 866. 1 For the next 60 years independent kings of Scandinavian ancestry were in ultimate control, until the annexation of York and Northumbria by King .tEthelstan of Wessex/England in 927. Political manoeuvrings and military confrontations in 927-54 ranged southern English kings against rivals from northern England, Scotland, Ireland and Scandinavia in the contest for control of York. King Eadred's success in 954 turned out to be definitive; there were no more independent kings of Northumbria. Yet, until the Norman Conquest and even beyond, York remained a potential bastion for rebellious northerners who drew strength, in part, from the Scandinavian element in their identity. These distinctive traits are epitomized in Earl Siward's (t1055) dedication of his church at York to St Olaf. They were acknowledged by the Wessex dynasty in their diplomatic appointments of AngloScandinavians to positions of secular and ecclesiastical authority in Northumbria, and were recognized by a series of 11th-century Danish and Norwegian kings who were encouraged to invade England via York. The written records of these events ensured that York's reputation as a centre of Scandinavian interest survived the Middle Ages, and influenced historians of the 17th century and onwards. Occasionally in the 18th century and with increasing momentum in the 19th century, antiquarians attempted to identify, to attribute to cultures and thereby to date ancient remains discovered below York. Tangible traces of a Viking presence were amongst the prizes which they pursued. The recognition of coins struck for Scandinavian kings of York initiated the study of artefacts and the discussion of street names of Scandinavian form encouraged the study of urban topography, two important and continuing strands of research. In the early 20th century, for the first time, records were made of pre-Norman timber structures uncovered during building works,2 and further fragmentary building remains were excavated during the period of increased but episodic archaeological excavation in the 1950s and 1960s that included work by Katherine Richardson, Peter Wenham, Ian Stead and Herman Ramm. A sustained campaign of archaeological recording within and immediately around York Minster, carried out in 1966-73, revealed an 1

D. W. Rollason, Sources for York History to AV r 100 (The Archaeology of York [a continuing series of rcr,?.rts published in rhemt:d volumes. edired ( 1\172- 100!) 1'y I'. V. Addy man: hereafter AY J, 1, York. 199K). G. Benson, 'Norcs on cxcava rions ar 15, 16 and 1 7 High Ouscgarc, York'. Yorkshire Philosop/Jit'.il Soc. Ann .

Rt•p.

1901, 64- 7.

LAND, SEA AND HOME

Anglo-Scandinavian cemetery and some evidence for craft activities. 3 Studies of Anglo-Scandinavian sculpture also flourished, building upon the work of Collingwood and encouraged by the discovery of grave markers in the cemetery below York Minster.• Lang prop. (it. ill 0(){1,! 7; T. P. o·clJtlfl(>r. llc11t('$ fro1n 1\1t~f()-.~(dllCli11.11·i,111 /.. (•(!(>/s. t.// 16-!.l Copper~U/f' \ ..\'' 1 ; ! 1, 19K9J: P. W.ilton, Tt'.Ytilt", Cord,1ge ,111cl R,11,. /-"i/1re from 16-zz Coppt•r!!."lt' (AY 17f_ 1 , 19H9): A . j. ~·b inm:in. Tlw A11glo-S.-.i11di11111•i.i11 /'o llt'f\' from 16- 11 Co pp1•rg.ilc>ci .111cl \t'c>ocf1, ·c1rk1ng i11 A 11.~1,,.s.-.111din,11 ·i,111 mu/ A4ooo) : Q . Mou ld. E. C.uncron and I. Carli;lc , /,,.,l//u•rllnd L••atlJP r

l~rr't 1's./1 1\ rch~1eolf>J.:)' )'c>rksl1ire

JORVJK: A VIKING-AGE CITY

293

river's margins on its south-west side is unclear. The existence of comparatively few routes down to the river's south-west edge throughout the later medieval period, compared with the several 'water lanes' on the north-east bank, may be some indication of the relative commercial significance and population density of the two sides of the river before the Norman Conquest. ARTEFACTS, CRAFT, PRODUCTION AND EXCHANGE

Another method of charting York's development, complementary to the topographical and structural evidence addressed above, is to consider the distribution of the ceramic types which were in use during this era. Their chronology allows three main ceramic phases to be distinguished; c. 860-950, c. 950-1050, and post-1050. Preliminary and provisional results seem to indicate changes in the distribution of pottery which may represent an expansion of activity. The completed study will be published by Mainman and Rogers. 46 Further insights into York's role at this time come from a synthesis of the evidence for production. Specialist studies of the range of artefacts and manufacturing debris from 16-22 Coppergate and elsewhere have demonstrated that work was sometimes carried out on a commercial rather than a domestic scale. There are uncertainties in extrapolating from excavated debris which represents an unknown fraction of the amount that was originally generated; it may have been diminished in quantity by removal from site, by complete destruction (e.g. the burning of woodworkers' waste), or by deterioration on sire. Furthermore the duration, continuity and intensity of individual 'productive episodes' cannot be measured to a fine degree of accuracy in the archaeological record. So it is debatable whether the 294 wooden cores and other lathe-turning waste from Coppergate represent full- or part-time work; whether this work was seasonal or year-round; whether it was intermittent or daily; and how many artisans were involved. These arguments could be extended to the metalworkers, leather-workers, textile workers and other craftspeople who evidently worked on the four tenement plots excavated at Coppergate, and applies equally to the potters who mass-produced standardized wares, and to other suppliers based elsewhere in York or beyond. Nevertheless, the mid-9th ro mid-11th centuries can coarsely be categorized as a period within which large-scale production by specialist craftsmen for a mass market became the norm for many products. There was not yet the ultra-specialization of the later medieval craft guilds - it seems, for example, that 'high-temperature specialists' worked with gold, silver, lead alloys, copper alloys and iron as well as with glass. These specialist mass-producers may also have been willing to work for occasional brief periods in very different materials -this is one interpretation that would account for small quantities of some raw materials, such as amber. 47 Perhaps, alternatively, itinerant specialists made occasional forays to York. Whatever the explanation, the links between the suppliers of raw materials in the region and the crafr workers in the city are in need of further probing. .. ~1ainman anJ Roi:cr~. op. cit. in not~ J~ · 1 • Ibid.

z.94

LAND, SEA AND HOME

Studies of the international contacts employed by York's Viking-age merchants and their customers have also been refined over the last decade or so. Elements in the 7th- to 9th-century pre-Viking-age trading network which were identified, for example, in rhe settlement excavated at 46-54 Fishergate, continued into the Viking Age. Links to the norrh-wesr European littoral and inland along rhe River Rhine were maintained, and the importation of Rhenish goods such as quernstones continued. But whereas in pre-Viking-age York there had been little contact with Scandinavia or the Baltic, this changed in the Anglo-Scandinavian period. The amount of amber found in York increases dramatically - although not to the point of sustaining fulltime craftsmen. An even more common Scandinavian import took the form of honestones in Norwegian schist or phyllite; and there is evidence that clubmoss (Diphasium complanatum) was also brought from Norway for use as a dyestuff. More exotic objects such as Byzantine silks, a cowrie shell (cypraea pantherina solander) from the Red Sea and a contemporary Arab counterfeit of a dirham from Samarkand indicate York's more distant links, but the majority of these very distant contacts were sporadic, and were centred chronologically in the first few generations of Scandinavian settlement. A HEA DL I NE AGENDA FOR FUTURE RESEAR C H

There are key gaps in every facet of our knowledge of Viking-age York. Topographically, a fuller comprehension of how the defensive sequence evolved would assist in unravelling the pattern of urban growth. The additional ramparts which link the fortress to the Ouse and Foss are two obvious targets, as are the ramparts around the colonia area and the hypothetical line of the Walmgate bridgehead. The waterfronts - their structural form, and the information about contracts and commerce which they will contain - also deserve attention. Opportunities to establish whether or nor other parts of the city conform to the Coppergate model of early 10th-century plot creation, and share the forms of buildings recorded there, would be welcome, particularly in the southern and eastern quadrants of the fortress and in the upper valley zones of the colonia. The extent of J6rvik's 'industrialization' and the degree of social stratification are two themes which could also be investigated in such excavations. The diagnostic material through which social stratification could be pursued - e.g. structures, artefacts, provisioning - may also assist an understanding of how ethnic and political identities were expressed in the various strata of the city's population. Important arenas for such expression include high-status secular sites, such as the royal, aristocratic and archiepiscopal residences, and also religious ones- parish churches for the well-to-do, the cathedral and its adjuncts at the highest level. The cemeteries around their sites, if relatively undisturbed by later burials, also have much to contribute on these themes, as well as allowing demographical and other study of the urban population. Comparison of that population with its rural counterparts, not just in terms of demography, palaeopathology and place of origin (using oxygen isotope analysis) but also in terms of diet and possessions, would further an understanding of the crucial relationships and interactions between Jorvik and its hinterland.

,

,

i.95

JORVIK: A VIKING-AGE CITY A CKNOW LEDG EMENTS

l am graceful co John Oxley, Cicy of York Council's Archaeologist, for facilicacing access co unpublished reports, and co all chose who have assisted in che preparation of chis essay.

Dr Richard A. Hall, York Archaeological Trust, Cromwell House, 7FC,

UK

[email protected]

13

Ogleforth, York

YOI

VIKING-AGE SETTLEMENT IN THE NOR TH-WESTERN COUNTRYSIDE: LIFTING THE VEIL?

By

NICHOLAS HIGHAM

The notion of a mass migration of Vikings into the north-west of England became something of an historical truism during the course of the 2.0th century. This essay sets out to explore some of the parameters of this vision of the period and suggests both that the scale of this influx may have been exaggerated and that the processes of population movement were arguably a great deal more complex than has generally been imagined. The staging posts in the development of the general notion are comparatively clear-cut. In looking back across a century, we should perhaps begin with volume two of the Victoria County History for Lancashire, published in 1908, in which James Tait briefly surveyed the place-name and literary evidence and concluded that a seaborne settlement of 'western Scandinavians' had occurred early in the 10th century. 1 There followed Eilert Ekwall's seminal wo rks o n the place-names of the region, published in 1918 and 192.2.,2 which set out the case, via a detailed consideration of primarily the major (parish and township) place-names, for a large-scale Scandinavian infl ux resulting in a largely Norse-speaking population. This interpretation was then developed by Frederick Threlfall Wainwright, a pupil of Sir Frank Stenton, who began working in this his home region in the 1930s and was still engaged in resea rch here when he died at the tragically early age of 43 in 1961. A few months after the ending of the Second World War, Wainwright published a detailed study of field-names in the Lancashi re H und red of Amounderness. In rehearsing the historical context of his work, he wrote: 'The known facts, few and easily summarized, are that hordes of Scandinavians settled in what is now Lancashire during the early years of the tenth century, that they came from Ireland not direct from Scandinavia, that they were Norsemen o r Irish-Norsemen not Danes, and that they lacked the military organization which characterized the Danish settlements in eastern England.' 3 His work identified numerous field-names of Scandinavian origin, which led him to conclude 1

J. Tair, ' Polirical hisrory 10 rhe end of rhe reiitn of Henry VI II ". in \VI. Pa!t'" (ed.), A History of the Co1111ty of

l..Jnc.ishire, Vol. 2 (Vicroria Counry History of En!tlanJ, LonJun, 1')08), 17i- H. 1 E. Ekwall , Scandina1•i.i11s and Celts m the North-\Vt"st uf F.ngl.ind (l.unJ , 1918); idem , The l'lucc-N,11111•s of l. F. T. Wainwriitht, ' field -names of AmounJc rncss Hundred'. Tr.111s. Hist. Soc. l.1 S1,ttlem1•111 in Nortl>t•rn Brit.zin (London, 199;) . 8 Wainwright, Scandin,tl'ian Englund, 81 -7, 1.11 - 61: J. N. R:ldncr. Fragme111.1ry Annuls of Ireland (London . 1978).

LIFTING THE VEIL?

299

and east of Widnes. 9 Ekwall amended this picture by drawing attention to a handful of East Norse place-names around Manchester, 10 but these are neither numerous nor particularly indicative of significant Scandinavian immigration. The presence of a few individuals with Viking personal names involved in the construction of several Grimston-hybrids (as Flixton, Urmston) may well derive from the widespread popularity of Norse personal names particularly in northern England in the 11th century. Rather, by far the majority of major place-names in five of the six Domesday hundreds of southern Lancashire are pre-Scandinavian, leaving only (West) Derby, stretching along the coast, with a predominance of Viking names (Figs. 1-2). 11 It does appear, therefore, that the mapping process has on occasion been both overly enthusiastic, and inclined to read very particular meanings into a range of evidence which is, in practice, quite diverse, both qualitatively and quantitatively. INTERPRETING PLACE-NAMES

There is also the issue of what Scandinavian place-names actually mean in historical and archaeological terms. Tait stressed the infrequency with which, outside specific localities, later township and parish names were Scandinavian in origin, and suggested that the incomers had generally taken over previously little-used land. 12 Ekwall made precisely the same points. 13 If township names alone are taken into account, then the pattern does indeed look rather thin, with -by, -kirk and Grimstonhybrids forming the majority. Admittedly, these are common in parts of Cumbria at the level of township and parish, but they are scarce further south, occurring predominantly in a few coastal areas, including the tip of the Wirral peninsula and the vicinity of Ormskirk and Formby. 14 Even in southern Cumbria, it is noticeable just how many pre-Viking place-names survived (as Heversham, Aldingham, Pennington and Whicham) as estate centres occupying good agricultural land in 1086. Nor has the general assumption of a western Scandinavian influx survived unscathed. Gillian Fellows-Jensen has argued that the Danish and Anglo-Danish elements among regional place-names are more significant than had previously been recognized, suggesting that the area had been in part settled from the eastern Danelaw, perhaps even via the Isle of Man. 15 In this interpretation, the north-west was not just an area of Norse immigration but acted as a meeting place for western and eastern Scandinavians, with immigration from the Irish Sea balanced by incomers 'Tait, op. cit. in note 1, 177. 0 ' Ekwall (1911), op. cit. in no1c 1, 2~5. followed by \Xlainwrigh1, Scandinat'iun E11gland, 116-17. 11 Ekwall (1911), op. cit. in note 1, 9.1-125 and 150: sec D. Kenyon , The Origins of LuncushiTn, ZJ Februar)' 1989 (Stockholm, 1989). 21 D. \X'hitclock (ed .}, F,11[(/ish Historic.JI Documents, t (2.nd ed., London, t979l. 548-51: the date of th< original is 9,10 but it is 11cncrally amended to 934. The charter records that 'This aforesaid donation I ha'< bought with no little money of my own', su&!\estin11 that ..£thdstan had only recently acquired it, perhaps from a Scandinavian lord.

LIFTING THE VEIL?

303

by c. 1000 as Inter Ripam et Mersham in the will of Wulfric Spot, and was hidated and treated as if appended to Cheshire in Domesday Book. It had arguably been detached from Northumbria as early as the 92os.22 Such sub-regional naming is indicative of the failure of Northumbria to survive the Viking Age intact, but it also provides some indication of what these communities considered to be the key markers either for themselves or for their neighbours. 'Vikingness' does not seem particularly prominent among these. Nor is it clear that contemporary communities distinguished uniformly between Danes, Norse, Irish, Britons and English in the same ways and for the same reasons as modern scholars have been inclined to do. Indeed, monastic complaints concerning the willingness of King Edgar to patronize and reward heathen foreigners highlights a normal practice of the elite,2.3 which can be traced back well into the 9th century, which was to reward service and promote loyal retainers irrespective of ethnicity or cultural background. A foreign presence within the households of the great and good was expected and might easily filter through into estate tenure or clerical appointment. WIRRAL AND SOUTH-WESTERN NORTHUMBRIA

On the Continent, the establishment of Viking leaders with their followers to hold disputed and often peripheral territory on behalf of the crown was a wellestablished practice in 9th-century Carolingian France. We find the same practice reflected in the putative willingness of Mercia's rulers in the very early 10th century to establish a Viking leader, lngimund, with his followers, on the very edges of their own territory in the far north-west. Supposing our admittedly late and highly rhetorical literary source to be in any sense historical, 24 the incomers were established under overall English control. This was not, therefore, an uncontrolled event, likely to have been accompanied by the eviction or slaughter of the local population. This little Viking colony is reflected in the place-name evidence, with a scatter of Scandinavian and Scandinavianized place-names, plus several Irish place-names, all concentrated in the northern half, and particularly the north-western quarter, of the Domesday hundred of Wilaveston. It had, of course, its own meeting place, at Thingwall ('assembly field') , which, like many others in Cheshire, seems to have been associated with a group of burial-type mounds. 25 This was apparently a multi-racial community, including English, Irish and Scandinavians of various different origins, with perhaps even some Welsh, given that Ingimund had earlier attempted to establish himself in Anglesey. 26 The Grimston-hybrids (such as Thurstaston) and the -by compounds 12 N.

J.

Higham, 'The Cheshire burhs and rhe Mcrcian frontier to 924', Trans . Antiq. Soc. Lancashire Cheshire, 85 (1988), 19J-221. " Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, MSS D, E and f, s.a. 959, in Whitelock (ed .). op. cit. in note 21. 215. 2 • Radner, op. cit. in note 8. 25 A. Pantos, 'Meeting-places in Wilvasc 1'. 641 0 22. J "A.11\'.il' tlt i!f~\\'c..· ~ fttnd ar Sl·.), C11/tur.il Atl.is of the Vikin~ \~1orlcl (Oxford, 1994) .

•• C. D. Morris, 'Commenis on 1he early seukmem of Iceland', Norwegi.111 Ar. EJinhurj!h . lOOO) , 64- 77. fl

0 11

a Fortified Headl.ind (Soc. Antiq. Scocbnd

TIMBER BUILDINGS

.

349

(l

• •

•

\

•

g l.Jic::JoCl3oJ a

b

•• •

• ?

'

:~. ~: ~-- -- --- ?-------- -- ---:

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f

'

c drip-trench

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......................

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c:r --·-· · ··· ·········· · ··· ····· ·····..-?0~ -- -~

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f

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z.. a: Ha rtlepool Building VIII; b: Hardcpool Building VI; c: Hartlepool Building XXVll; d: Hartlepool Building VII (after Daniels, op. cit. in note 1 1 ) ; e: Dunbar Building 6; f: Dunbar Building9; g: Dunbar Building 7 (after Perry. op. cir. in no te 1:z.). FIGURE

350

LAND, SEA AND HOME

It is more satisfactory to interpret Hartlepool VII and Dunbar 6 as masonry buildings with timber reinforcement. Timber reinforcement is unusual, particularly at this period. 13 The hybrid method of construction might suggest that the masons were unfamiliar with techniques of stone building and retained the timbers upon which they knew they could rely. The structural properties of stone were often underutilized even in later masonry buildings and craftsmen continued to employ it and work it as if it was timber. 14 Other buildings at Dunbar suggest a similar ambivalence about masonry construction. The south side of Building 9 had footings formed of two outer faces of larger blocks and a core of smaller stones. It was about 1 m in width and therefore seems to have supported a masonry superstructure. Footings for the two other surviving walls were 0.3 m wide and formed from only a single row (Fig. 2.f). The difference cannot be attributed to later stone-robbing. The narrow wall on the north side was delimited on the outside by an adjoining drip-gulley and it is unlikely that it was any wider on the inside if the band of paving within the building was centrally placed. It seems probable that the building comprised one masonry wall and at least two timber beams set on stone sills. Building 7 appears to have been similar. It also had a broad wall on the south and narrower footings on the other three sides (Fig. 2.g). The use of timber and stone for adjoining walls in Buildings 7 and 9, and the use of timber reinforcement in Building 6 at Dunbar and Hartlepool VII suggests an experimental approach to building construction. The builders were attempting to use materials in new ways. It is not clear whether they were using the stone to provide rigidity and support timber elements, or whether they felt uncertain about the stability of the stones walls and were unwilling to commit themselves to the extensive usage of an unfamiliar material.

Other sites The evidence of buildings from other contemporary sites is less informative, but excavations at Flixborough, Whitby and Sheppey have all uncovered structures which are comparable to those already discussed. Building 1 at Flixborough, constructed in the early or middle 8th century, had stone and gravel footings. It has been tentatively identified as a church or mortuary chapel on the evidence of four burials inside the building and two outside, but the presence of a hearth and the occupation debris found on the floor surface suggests that later it may have been changed to a domestic use. The published details do not allow the nature of the building to be firmly established. It seems to have had stone footings for a ground-level sill beam which supported the walls, and exterior earth-fast posts for the structural timbers. ' 5

" R. P. Wikox, Timber and Iron Reirrforcement;,, Early 81tildi11gs (London, 1981 ). " W. R. Rodwell. 'Anglo· Saxon church building: aspects of design and cons1runion ·, 156-7 5 in L. A. S. Butler and R. K. Morris (eds.), The Anglo-Saxon Church: Papers on History, Architecture, and Archaeology in Honour of Dr H. M. Taylor (CBA Rt'1i. Rep. 60, London, 1986). " C. Loveluck, 'A high-status Anglo-Saxon senlemcnt at Flixborough, Lincolnshire', Antiquity, 71 (1998), 146-61.

TIMBER BUILDINGS

351

Rosemary Cramp and Philip Rahtz have reinterpreted the excavations of the I 92os at Whitby Abbey in the light of more recent discoveries. The original report had suggested that the clay-packed stone foot ings of the Anglo-Saxon buildings supported a stone structure. Rahtz has noted both the absence of stone and mortar, and the presence of numerous fragments of daub. He has suggested that the footings are more likely to have supported buildings with a timber structure and daub-andwattle infill. Doubt remains about even this interpretation, because more recent excavation has suggested that there was considerable redeposition of material. 16 The last building in this group was discovered during excavations in 1999 at Minster in Sheppey (Kent). Earlier work by the local archaeological society in a garden 65 m to the north-east of the church had identified a ditch containing Ipswich Ware. The later excavations showed that the ditch terminated at a contemporary earth-fast building within which was a coin of Offa of the period 792-6. 17 The stratigraphy of the building had been partially truncated by horticultural work, but narrow stone footings were recorded on the south side where a greater depth remained. The footings were only 0.35 m wide and a single course deep, but probably supported a timber building. The footings could not be directly dated, but the coincidence of position and alignment with the earlier earth-fast structure suggests that they may have directly succeeded it, perhaps in the early 9th century (Fig. 3a). It is notable that these buildings all occur on high-status sites of the later 8th and earlier 9th centuries. Some of these have been convincingly identified as monastic Whithorn, Hartlepool, Whitby and Minster in Sheppey. The evidence is less clear for the sites of Dunbar and Flixborough. The former may have been a royal centre, while the latter is considered by Loveluck to have been a high-status secular site during the period of Building x.18 At all of these sites the builders were apparently trying out new methods of construction to provide greater longevity, either for existing buildings or for new ones. It is possible to interpret the desire for more permanent buildings as a wish to avoid the costs of reconstruction, but that would be too reductive. The occupants of high-status sites are unlikely to have been primarily motivated by the matter of the cost of materials and labour. A more plausible explanation is the desire to build structures which through their longevity projected an image of the permanence of sacred or secular power. However, the degree to which builders had truly mastered the methods of timber building to allow them to erect enduring structures remains unclear. URBAN SIT E S

The second group of self-supporting timber buildings are distinguished by their location on urban sites and by their 10th-century or later date. The majority of timber buildings continued to be constructed with earth-fast posts and it remains unclear why a small number were constructed in other ways. Evidently, the advantages of " P. Rahrz, 'The building plan of rhc Anglo-Saxon monastery at Whirby Abbey', 459-61 in D. 1'1. Wilson (ed.) , The Archaeology of Anglo-Saxon England (Cambridge. 1976); Cramp, op. cir. in note 6, 6 5- 6. 17 Unpublished excavations by Queen's University Belfast. 11 Loveluck,op.cit. innorc 15, 115- 17.

352

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LAND, SEA AND HOME

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3. a: Minster·in-Sheppey earth-fast building and its successor with stone footings; b: London, Pudding Lane, PDN3 (after Horsman et al., op. cit. in note 19); c: York, Coppergate Building A, late 1uh-century horizon (after Hall, op. cir. in note i.o, modified); d: Lincoln, Flaxengare Structure 9 (after Perring, op. cit. in note i. r). Posr-pipes are indicated by dark tone.

F1GURt:

TIMBER BUILDINGS

353

self-supporting buildings were not considered sufficient to lead to the general adoption of stone footings. For example, four structures were attributed to the mid-rothcentury phase (Period Ill) at Flaxengate in Lincoln, but only one of these was built with stone footings, and the method of construction was not widely adopted in the city until the 13th century (Fig. 3d). The published buildings from London show an interesting diversity of plan and structure. A number had sunken floors, but with timber sills which were supported on stone footings. These should be probably categorized as earth-fast, although in structural terms they were little different from similar buildings set on the ground surface. The simple distinction between ground-fast and self-supporting is therefore not very useful in this case. The sequence of buildings at Pudding Lane illustrates the point. The first two buildings on the site (PDN r, 2) each had a sunken floor and walls set down below ground-level supported on a timber sill set on a course of ragstone and Roman tile. In the early or middle 11th century a ground-level building (PDN 3) was constructed on the site of the earlier structures with footings of ragstone, tile and lava quern which supported a grooved sill 0.24 m wide (Fig. 3b). The sill evidently held vertical staves for the walls. The authors suggest that PDN 3 was provided with stone footings, not to protect the timbers against the damp, but to provide structural stability where the walls were built over the sunken area of the preceding building, PDN2. The method of construction allowed the building to survive for a considerable period (about a century) during which it was much modified and extended (PON 3 to 5), and it seems improbable that the advantages of stone footings would have gone unrecognized. 1j The survival of extensive evidence from London allows the excavated remains of comparable buildings from York and Lincoln to be interpreted. Remains of two timber buildings were recorded in the mid- to late 11th-century levels at Coppergate (York). The first (A) had a ground sill about 0.2 m wide which was under-pinned by timber set at right-angles. The transverse timbers were to help distribute the weight of the building, but may also have been to level up the sill (Fig. 3c). In the second York building (B) the sills were laid d irectly on the ground and supported what appears to have been a plank floor, although the possibility that the planks were from a stave wall deserves further consideration in light of the discovery of that form of building in London. 20 Structure 9 at Flaxengate, Lincoln, dated to mid-10th century, had footings of tightly packed limestone rubble faced with larger stones and therefore may have resembled the buildings in London. The footings were o.8 m wide on one wall, 1.05 m wide on the other and only one course deep (Fig. 3d). These are wider than the London footings and their width seems quite excessive for a timber sill. It is possible that they provided the base for a stone building, particularly as the floor surface within the building included crushed mortar. However, the excavators " V. Horsman , C. Milne ond G . Milne, Aspt•cts of Saxon-Norman London: 1. Bui/din!( and Street De1•elopment ne.ir Billin!(sg.it" J>td Cheupside (Lo ndon 1\l iddlesex Archacul. Soc. Special Pap., 11, London, 1988), )7- 47. 7 1-4 and 10 2 - 10: D. i\·1. Good hurn, ·Londo n's ea rly med iev:t l timhcr huildin.,.s: little known traditions of .:onstruction', 249- \ 7 in G . d e lloc and F. Vcrhac.,.hc (eds.), Urb.inism in J-:urope: Papers of the Medie1•.il Europe Brugge 1997 · Conft'ff' llCti..· K. z.1. L>o

TIMBER BUILDINGS

357

to devise a method of construction that allowed the use of earth-fast posts which gave structural rigidity but also enabled the timbers to be kept dry and prevented them indefinitely from rotting. This had been the intention of earlier builders but, until the potentialities of the aisled plan were appreciated, it was not possible to make structures which would last. CONCLUSION

The examination of the third category of buildings has strayed well beyond the Viking Period. It has been necessary, however, to trace the changes to their conclusion with the appearance of framed construction in the late 12th and early 13th centuries which obviated the need for earth-fast footings. It is not suggested that the buildings considered here constitute a tradition of construction, nor do they represent a simple developmental sequence. Indeed, it would be more true to say that many of the buildings examined stood outside traditional forms of construction. They demonstrate various anempts to deal with the problems of constructing timber buildings which would not be susceptible to decay. The absence of a single line of technological development can be emphasized by noting the pegged mortise-and-tusk tenon joints used in the wheelhouse of the second mill at Tamworth as early as the middle of the 9th century. In that building they served a necessary structural function to secure the timbers which were liable to considerable stress during the operation of the mill. There is little evidence for the wider use of pegged mortise-and-tusk tenon joints until their appearance in London and elsewhere in the 11th century.30 Though the Tamworth mill demonstrates that the ability to cut such joints existed, the need to use that form of construction and the structural possibilities it offered were not exploited in other 9th-century buildings. It is apparent, therefore, that the adoption of different methods of construction was not a simple consequence of technological innovation. Instead, it reflects changing social demands of the performance requirements of buildings. It has already been suggested that the buildings of the first group, those on high-status sites, did not need to be self-supporting for strictly reasons of economy or function. They were built in that manner to project an impression of longevity for social or spiritual purposes. Their methods of construction were not subsequently adopted on a wider range of sites, because there was not a wider perception in the 9th century of a need for enduring buildings. This makes it all the more interesting that from the 10th century there was renewed interest in methods for constructing buildings with a greater life. The reasons for that need robe considered in the context of wider changes in society. From this time onwards villages became established on permanent sites, and there were more closely defined boundaries and rigid field systems. These changes mark a fundamental shifr in the permanence of the landscape. 31 Settlements were being JO P. Rahtz and R. Mttson, An Anglo-Saxon Watermill at Tamworth: Excavations in the Bolebridge Street area o{Tamworth. Staffordshire in 197 1 and 1978 (CBA Res. Rep. 83, London, 1992), 128-.11: Milne op. cit. in note 4, 101-5: J. Blair, 'Archaeological discoveries ar Woodeaton church', 0.~oniensia, 63 (1998), 211-.17. 31 0. Hooke, 'Anglo·Saxon esrarcs in the Vale of rhc Whirc Horse', Oxoniensia, 51 (1987), 141-53; 0. H. Hall, 'The late Saxon counrryside: villages and rheir fields·. 99-12:1. in D. Hooke (ed.). Anglo-Saxon Settlem1•nts (Oxford, 1988).

LAND, SEA AND HOME

established which were intended to last. The construction of buildings with greater longevity both reflected, and contributed to, the developing appreciation of an increasingly permanent and tightly structured environment. The view of the previous generation of archaeologists which drew a simple contrast between impermanent ground-fast buildings and permanent self-supporting structures has been shown to require revision. It has been possible to outline a more complex interpretation and one which places forms of building construction within a wider social context. However, the distinction between impermanent structures and those which were intended to have a longer life remains important, and it allows insights into the approaches and aims of those who commissioned and erected buildings. A C KNOWLl::DG EMENTS

I am grateful to Dr Chris Loveluck for showing me his article on Flixborough before its publication,32 to Dr Alejandra Gutierrez and Dr Chris Gerrard for advising me on the dating of pottery from Cheddar, to Prof. Barry Cunliffe for information on the revised dating of a building at Manor Farm, Chalton and to the Arts and Humanities Research Board for a itrant for excavation at M inster in Sheppey.

Dr Mark Gardiner, Depart111ent of Archaeology, The Queen's Unir>ersity, Belfast 817 rNN, UK [email protected]

C. Lovcluck. 'Wealth, waste and conspicuous consumption: Flixborough and its imporrance for 1\-iiddle and Late Saxon rural scnlcmcnt studies', 78- 110 in H. Hamcrow and A. 1\-iacGregor (eds.), Image and Power in the Arch.ic•olog)' of f,ir/y lvledirr.il Brit.tin: F.ss11ys in Honour of Rosemary Cramp (Oxford. LOOI ). 12 ·

A PUSH INTO THE MARGINS? THE DEVELOPMENT OF A COASTAL LANDSCAPE IN NORTH-WEST SOMERSET DURING THE LATE 1ST MILLENNIUM A.D.

By

STEPHEN RIPPON

The study of settlement and landscape in Viking-age Britain has been dominated by a number major themes, including the extent of Scandinavian colonization in eastern and northern Britain, the excavation of a relatively small number of sites that had possibly been occupied by Scandinavian settlers (notably in the uplands and western coastal regions of northern Britain}, and the extensive reorganization of rural landscapes in central England that led to the creation of nucleated villages and open fields. What is less clear is how landscapes elsewhere were evolving at this time, and, indeed, what the English landscape was like before the creation of open field-based systems of agricultural production. There has been much debate over the origins of villages and open fields, though their creation clearly reflects the perceived need to exploit the landscape more effectively. This pressure on agrarian resources is also reflected in the expansion of settlement seen at this time in both upland areas (e.g. Ribblehead and Simy Folds) and coastal lowlands (notably the Somerset Levels, Romney Marsh, the North Kent Marshes and Fenland). 1 The colonization of coastal marshlands at this time was an important process in that being created from an entirely natural environment saltmarshes - a cultural landscape emerged that was free from the influence of earlier periods. Clearly, particular conditions within these wetland environments constrained human behaviour to a certain extent, but the landscapes that were created will also reflect the pattern of settlement- and field-systems that was current within society at that time. The study area that is the subject of this paper has another advantage when considering the origins and development of medieval landscapes: there is some debate over the significance of variations in the physical environment in determining when and why open field landscapes emerged, but within this study area such factors were not important as the soils and relief were uniform. Should adjacent areas of marshland 1

S. Rippon, The. Transformation of Coastal Wetlands (London, iooo) .

360

LA N O , SE A ANO HOM E

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BRISTOL

The Somerset Levels, including pl aces mentioned in the text. (D rawn by the FIGU RE l .

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develop nucleated a nd d ispersed settlement pa tterns this canno t be due to e nviro nn1enta l facto rs . The a rea selected for this study lies in the no rth-\ves t of So me rset, a count y that by the n1edieval period h ad a rema rkable di ve rsity o f settlen1ent patterns (Fig. 1). 2 In the east and south, the la ndscape was d o minated by 1\1idland-sryle villages a nd open fields, in the west the re \Vas a la rgely d ispersed St:rtlen1enr pat te rn typical o f Sou th\X'est Engla nd, ' vhereas in rhe no rth \vas a n1o re varied la ndscape \virh areas of borh nucleation and d ispersion. One place ,.,,ith nucleated scttlen1erlt t ha t has seen pa rti cula rl y inte nsive stud y has been the parish o f Shapwick, o n the Po lden Hills bet wee n Bridg,vater and G lastonb ury (Fig. t ). T he wo rk of Mick Ast on a nd his tearn has shown ho ' v the present pla nned village replaced a landscape o f more dispe rsed scttlen1ent proba bly during the coth century, a nd cha t rhis \vas pa rr o f w ider la ndscape ' A. Ello suggestive o f a manure scatte r, a nd testpitting in ad jacent fields suggest a sctrlemen1 focus lies to the east. The distribution of n1edieval materia l is focu sed o n a ra ised platform south·easr of the church. The results of phosphate and hl'avy metal ana lysis sho ws a strong correlati on with the distribution o f n1cdieval material. (Dnnvn by the :iurhor) F IGU R E 4.

NORTH-WEST SOMERSET

that it was part of the royal (and later episcopal) estate of Banwell.21 A range of evidence, however, suggests that Puxton was actually carved out of the neighbouring royal estate of Congresbury. -

The parish boundary of Puxton and Congresbury contains a series of intermingled parcels, which clearly suggest the former was carved out of the latter. The configuration of parish boundaries also suggests that a block of land known as Hewish was carved out of the far western end of Congresbury and transferred to Yatton to the north (Figs. 5.D and 7; and see below). Puxton, Congresbury, and Wick St Lawrence (a parish to the west of Puxton) also shared rights in the common meadows known as the Dolmoors. In (?) 1:z.15 the parson of Congresbury confessed he had no right in the chapel of 'Pokereleston' and sought a pardon from the Prior of Bruton. 22 This may suggest that Puxton was once part of the parish of Congresbury, but that it was now separate and that the new boundary was starting to crystallize. A series of 14th- and 15th-century deeds (notably those of the lands acquired by Merton College, Oxford) refer to Puxton as lying in the manor of Congresbury, but parish of Banwell.23 It would also appear that the tithing of Puxton was part of Congresbury Hundred (which was later absorbed into Winterstoke Hundred: Fig. 5F), though the story is a complex one and involves piecing together fragments of documentary evidence from archives as far afield as Bristol, Taunton, Oxford and London. The 13:z.7 and 1334 Lay Subsidies list Congresbury and Banwell, but there is no reference to Puxton. 24 The Congresbury Hundred court roll for November 134:z. lists its tithings that included Yatton, Cleeve, 25 Wick St Lawrence, Kenn, and Claverham; 26 Puxton is not mentioned, but may be illegible. 27 The court roll for Nov. 1351 includes the same list, and a reference to the libera decenna (free tithing). 28 The roll for May r 379 lists the same tithings as in 1351, but preceded by Libera Decenna: Will. Ruyss1vorth, Will Greve,[?/, john Stretend: assize ofale; cert' redd' 6s.8d. 29 William Rushworth held the lands in Puxton later owned by Merton College. The 'cert redd' money was brought to court by each tithing, to meet the court's expenses which started as rd. per head - the tithingpenny - and became a fixed amount, often called the 'common fine'. The Puxton Account Rolls for 1472- 3, 1474- 5 and 1477-8 all include a payment of 4d. to the 'tithingman of the freemen's tithing' for the common fine (along with a con1mon fine of

" G. B. Grund)", 'The Saxo n •hancr> of SomcrSn ,1t1cl tl1c• ( :/1111iJ« f>rit1ry· r>f A-1,111/,1( 11/t· i11 t/1e ( ;111111/y t1f Somerset, ed. E. H ohho u>1SAS Cf79s . 2 • Lambeth Palace Lihr.irl" · . ED is. 1, f. 1. L
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PLA C E - NAMES AND HISTORY

I I

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y. generally interpreted as an (cxistin~. EnF.lish) ·sc1tlcmcnt with a church': sec hcluw, n. ~05 . .., One simple difference. which ;1ccounrs for the difference in ovcrall to1;1Iclnw. nn. 159, l " l ·

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PLACE-NAM ES AND HISTORY

describing furlongs, streams, hollows and hillocks. 111 No parish in the country shows a comparable effect achieved by any French-speaking lord of the manor, and this is presumably indicative of a quite different sociolinguistic situation. 112 Where this fieldname evidence is found in the same area as a concentration of by-names, as ir is in northern Lincolnshire, ir seems likely rhar the Norse-speaking community implied by the field-names is directly related to the Norse-speaking community implied by the by-names. As Cameron has stated, such a weight of linguistic influence 'cannot have come from rhin air' .113 Personal names also point firmly in the direction of large numbers. Norse personal names became popular all over England in the 11th century, and they remained so in parts of the Danelaw for centuries. In itself this is inconclusive: personal names introduced at the Norman Conquest came utterly to dominate from around the 13th century onwards, and we know that they were introduced by an elite minority. The difference is rhe extraordinary variety and vitality of Norse naming in England. Although nearly everyone came to bear new names introduced from the Continent, these names are derived from a very small stock: William, John, Robert; Alice, Christine, Maud, erc. 114 Likewise, there were some common and fashionable Norse names (some of them (re-)introduced by the Normans); examples include Sveinn, Thorkell and Asgeirr. But in addition we know of hundreds of linguistically Norse names attested in the Danelaw, many of them found only once or twice, some of them paralleled in Scandinavia, some of them probably Norse-language coinages this side of the North Sea.115 Again, iris difficult to see how a model of el ire dominance could explain this situation. English peasants might honour rhe names of their Scandinavian leaders, but how would rhey develop a viral, distinctively Norse, naming tradition? Communities of native Norse-speakers again seem a preferable solution. HI ST ORICAL DISCUSSION: (1) THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE BY-NAMES

In our opinion, therefore, any historical assessment of the Scandinavian settlement should accept (or produce new arguments to counter) rhe following points, on the basis of the place-name and associated linguistic evidence: 111

Many of Lund's criricisms (1981, 156-69) were telling, though he undersrated rhe range of Scandina\'ian vocabulary in some concentrated areas (nor rhat all of them had been studied when he was writing): cf. below n. r 13. He was quire righr 10 stress the impossibiliry of calcularing precise numbers from rhe linguistic evidence. Sec also Sawyer's cogent commenrs in Sawyer er al. 1969, 204-5. Lund's model of not-so-Clite dominance (Scandinavian leaders who had much more to do with rhe farming pcosantry than did rheir Norman successors), and his hypothetical rotal of some 5000 seulcrs, arc inrriguing. Whether the 'large' number required by the names could equate to a huge army (plus hangers-on?) settling as 'gentlemen farmers', wherher it could reflect a larger, second generation of Norse-speakers colonizing from wirhin, or wherher ir implies a secondary migrarion of peasants, is not easy 10 say on the basis of linguistic evidence alone. 111 Gelling1988, 238. 111 Cameron 1996, r 3. The quantity and range of vocabulary in some localized areas ought to pur paid 10 rhc notion that a general dialectal drift across eastern England can account for all Norse linguistic material in the Middle Ages (cf. Lund 1981, 167). To demonstrate the unevenness of spread most effectively, it would be desirable - as far as the rather uneven records allow - to extend the kind of study pursued by Cameron in part of northern Lincolnshire across a much wider area. such as the whole of the county. For comporahlc localized ' hot-spots" of Norse linguistic influence in the person3I name record, see Parsons 2002, esp. 46- 51. '"Reaney and Wilson 1995, xxii-xxiii; Clark 199>. 551 - 6_\, esp. 55.l· 11 ' Fellows-Jensen r968; Insley r9y4.

LAND, SEA AND HOM E

1) the b)l-namcs were in general coined by speakers of Old Norse; 2) there were sizeable communities of Norse-speakers in parts of eastern England; 3) the b)l-names imply a significant role for Scandinavian-speaking individuals in the holding of land in parts of England; 4) many of these land-holdings can be characterized as relatively marginal or low 1n status; 5) there is some reason to suspect that the majority of b)l-names were coined before the I 1th century . 116 This information seems to us to be the 'bottom line', produced by a cautious analysis of the names. The points made here arc all reflected somewhere among the opinions surveyed above, and many of the detailed historical reconstructions can sit comfortably alongside them; they do, after all, allow considerable leeway. Both colonization (the exploitation of undeveloped land) and manorialization (the fragmentation of old multiple estates into more independent parts) are models that could be compatible with the place-name evidence for settlements associated with individual named Scandinavians; if - as it presently seems - there are good reasons to prefer estate-fragn1entation to colonization, then this is established by evidence independent of the place-names themselves. On the other hand, the presenr conclusions conflict directly with some of the historical interpretations revie\ved above - especially concerning the number of settlers or their linguistic (and in thar sense, presumably, 'ethnic') identity. One noteworthy argument that has been made by both Sawyer and Fcllo\\'SJcnsen goes beyond our conclusions. As recorded above, the two scholars have both ascribed the b)l-names with Old Norse personal nan1es to a model o f estate· fragmentation; they have in addition felt able to date this development to the 10th rather than the 9th century. Their dating argument is based principally on place-name distributions which on inspection do not appear to support their case. Sawyer first proposed in 1981 and 1982 that it was possible to date the fragmentation of Danelaw estates to the 10th century, observing that a large Derbyshire estate (Hope and Ashford) recorded as sold to an Englishman some time bet\veen 899 and 911 (and thus presumably in Scandinavian hands for no more than 25 or 30 years) later showed little Norse influence on the names of its n1any parts. 117 Furthermore, he stated that 'Scandinavian settlement names are rare in the parts oi the Danelaw that were recovered by the English soon after 900' and claimed in particular that Cambridgeshire lacked Scandinavian place-names because in 90.~ the

11

To the argumem from the short form of Thor· names, made ahovc p. 400. might tentatively he added the nl»crvarion that live /15··namcs, apart from Dcrhr. arc rc~ordcd in potenth11ly 10th-century sources (SSNY. 11; . and SSNffl,f. 19.1: there would be more if the Historiu J,. $•11100 Cuthberto were included - sec bdow. p. 40Mand nn. 1 _10 . 11>0). Although these arc all preserved in later ,·.,pies, and any individual spelling might he open to 4ucstion (.ibovc. n. ,~). c11111ula1ivcly they do at lc;1st tend to confirm that b51-names arc not as• dJss •

a1l_ 11 rh·c.·c1ltltry t~·pc.

' '- !>.1wyer 19K 1. 119: 19M!. 10 1 (wid1 r.·frrcncc 10 S. .19' IA.II. 926 I. .+:rhclsian ·s confirmarion of the land: rhr ,uh· u11i1' of the cst:itc arc fir. 10.1; cf. 1981, 1>8-9. Jn Sawyer c1 al. 1')69, 171 - >, he had suggesied tha1 an extension of se1tlement in Cambrid11;eshire might have iakcn place at a relatively la1c date, when Old Norse was no longer much SJ>Qken. "' Sa wyer 1998, 11 1. For completeness note also a further point made ibid.: 'if a significant number of names had been given in the ninth century. when Scandinavian speech was still vigorous, many more examples of the use of Scandinavian inflections mi11;ht have been expected, despite the fact th31 almost all names were first recorded in late texts written by scribes who naturally tended to "modernize" them'. The second part of the senience effectively counters the first. Moreover, since most Old Norse and Old English inflections were similar, it might be considered remarkable that so much evidence of distinctively Norse forms survives. 0 " ASC s.a. 917, 918. The submission of Leicester to A::thelff.rd is noted under 918 in the Mercian Register.

LAND, SEA AND HOME

requirements. We do not know the specific circumstances of these places. 121 But to assume that - if left alone for another generation - they would inevitably have developed concentrations of by-names just as parts of Leicestershire and Lincolnshire did is clearly unsafe, yet this assumption is at the heart of Sawyer's argument. Fellows-Jensen echoed Sawyer's argument regarding the early capture of some areas, but added to it some observations on the distribution of different types of bynames, both in eastern England and in the North-West. She suggested that the names incorporating English terms, common nouns ('appellatives'), adjectives and adverbs were likely to belong to a slightly earlier date than those incorporating personal names. 122 She supported this argument partly by the observation that the earliest settlers from Denmark were not used to the personal-name type, but largely by an appeal to the distribution map: in eastern England the former type is said to be relatively common in 'Suffolk, Derbyshire, the West Riding of Yorkshire, Nor· thamptonshire, Nottinghamshire and Leicestershire', 123 with the implication that several of these counties were among those most quickly and effectively conquered by Edward the Elder or A:.thelffred. Although it should be noted that there are numerous by-names combined with Norse personal names in both Leicestershire and the West Riding of Yorkshire, which rather complicate the picture, Fellows-Jensen's claims for distribution are nonetheless of great interest, especially the suggestion that the different types of name tend to imply different types of settlement (she favoured the takeover of English settlements for the appellatives and the break-up of estates for the personal names). 124 Yet, once more, it is not clear that the distribution pattern must have chronological implications: the circumstances of settlement, of land-taking and land-holding, may have varied from area to area; could it not be this, rather than date, that is principally reflected on the map? Moving to the west of the Pennines, Fellows-Jensen identified a marked and interesting distribution pattern along the same lines. In Cumberland and Dumfriesshire b)>-names frequently incorporate personal names, as in much of eastern England; to the south, in Lancashire, Cheshire and Westmorland, however, by-names are very rarely of this type. Again, she has chosen to explain this chronologically - since, she argued, Lancashire and Cheshire were swiftly 'recovered' by the English, and Westmorland by the Britons of Strathclyde, the fragmentation of estates implied by by-names involving personal names had not yet taken place in these counties; further north, where the Scandinavians remained in control for longer, estates were

" ' Ir is notable rhar Fellows·Jcnsen chos.: rhcsc two regions as examples when observing that topographi certainly room fur other hypotheses, such as that rhe impt»ition of \Vest Sa:vian place-names in Amounderness (lanc•shirc), granted to the archbishop of York by King A:thclstan in 934. If the archbishop ever took possession of this very large (and distant} estate. however, his church had lost it by 1066. Sec Sawyer 1981, 129: Wainwright 1975, 181-279. "' Such as Southwell's boundary-clauses and extensive list of dependencies in S. 659 (A.O. 956), preserved in York's Magnum registrum album (s.xiv): surviving pre-Conquest texts include the archbishop of York 's statement regarding church lands in Northumbria (S. 145 ~: A.O. 972 x 992), which occurs in a manuscript of c.1030, and a survey of archiepiscopal estates in Yorkshire added a1 the end of the York Gospels (S. 1461a: C. A.O. 1020). 111 Crastcr1954: Morris 1977: 19R1: Aird 1998. 9-59: Johnson South 2002.

LAND, SEA AND HOME

of power and seized by incoming Vikings generally bear English names, as does the rest of the known endowment; only a handful of bJ-names or Grimston-hybrids exist among the latter.159 On the other hand, it may be significant that two smaller estates - which might have been in secular lordship until the late 10th or early 11th century when they were granted to the church by laymen, Styr, son of Ulf, and Snaculf, son of Cytel - each included a by-name. 160 Another absence of names that has caused much discussion concerns more tangible remains. The lack of correlation noted by W. G. Collingwood (among others) between Scandinavian place-names and so-called Anglo-Scandinavian sculpture - stone crosses with strong Scandinavian affinities in their design and iconography - was taken up by Sawyer in defence of his settlement chronology. 1' 1 Sawyer argued that the sculpture, which is mainly found in centres with English names, was to be identified with sites of early conquest and settlement, before Scandinavian naming patterns were established. It followed that the absence of sculpture from villages with by-names confirmed their later date of foundation. In 1977, however, Chris Morris warned that dates for the monuments were far from secure, and that there was a danger of circularity: the identification of places with such sculpture as existing villages taken over by Scandinavians in the last quarter of the 9th century 'is based on a discussion which in fact uses as one premise the belief that such sculpture represents the work of the men who took over English villages in the ninth century!'162 Richard Bailey likewise queried the early date attributed to the sculpture in Northumbria and further undermined its direct association with an immigrant population (of whatever date) by pointing out that it did not necessarily represent actual Scandinavian patrons, but rather, 'the tastes of the new political masters of York', a point picked up by Hadley.1'3 Whoever commissioned and built the sculpture, Morris argued that it would have been erected at pre-existing churches. •"4 Bailey pointed out that these monuments would naturally concentrate in centres previously settled (and named) by the English, as these - unlike the majority of places with Scandinavian names - would have been on good land which had produced (and continued to produce) the wealth required to erect them. It follows from this that villages with by-names, whatever the ethnic composition or cultural inclinations of their inhabitants, lacked the wealth to produce sculpture. 165 The cultural complexity of the sculpture was discussed by Morris (and further pursued by

11

• Watts 1988- 9. A recent study of two townships near Hartlepool has indic3ted a correspondingly rcstrictrd dc;trce of Old Norse influence on minor names {Watts 1001). 1 Historia, chs 19- _10 (Johnson South 1001. 66-7). It is, however. also notable that Girsby {Grisebr) is located across the boundary in the North Riding of Yorkshire, where by-names are much more plentiful. The other name. NnrthmannJ/1i, is unlocated. but apparently in the Darlington area (Johnson South 1001, 1.16) a nd possibly therefo re also across the southern boundary of county Durham. 161 C:ollinl(wood 1908. 110-1 ; also observed by Alan Binns i956, 5; Sawyer 1971, 16.1-6: Sawyer et al. 1969, 201 - 6; l'dlows-Jcnsen, SSNY, 118- 19 and 118- 1 t. ,., ;\·lorri> 1977, 99- 100. Cf. Wilson 1976, 39-r-400. 161 Bailey 19Xo. 110- 11; cf. Hadley 1997 . 91 - .1: 1000J, .11~ - 1 8; 1ooob, 1J1-.1: 1001 , 19-10: 2001. 62- 5.

IM ~1orris 1y77,

,9- 100.

,.., Bailey 1980, 111- 14.

PLACE-NAMES AND HISTORY

Hadley); he argued that it indicated 'an integration of Scandinavian taste with the native tradition, and not an overwhelming of one by the other'. 166 Clearly there are obstacles to the easy application of this body of evidence to place-name issues (among others). Non-experts, unable to distinguish between 9thand 10th-century sculpture for themselves, have had to face the problem that art historians can assign different dates to the same object, as demonstrated, for example, by the controversy surrounding the Middleton Cross. 167 Much Anglo-Scandinavian sculpture is currently attributed to the 10th century, in some regions even to the second half. 168 But art historians' date-bands are often too broad (viz., '10th-century') to be historically helpful, or are overly dependent on cross-references to a few (possibly irrelevant) dates from the written sources. While chronologies based on art styles can be refined (aided by dendrochronological dates, especially in Scandinavia),'6' Jim Lang warned that 'it is unjust to the sculpture [in Yorkshire] to see the carvings as an insular reflection of mainstream Scandinavian art. The closer the scrutiny of the stones, the less applicable become the Viking art style labels of Borre, Mammen, and Jellinge'.170 This will clearly complicate any effort to date the English material. Most helpfully, recent studies have observed and identified regional groupings and have emphasized that 'Anglo-Scandinavian sculpture' is not a single entity to which one, consistent, explanation could apply, but consists potentially of a variety of local habits with different dates and meanings. 171 Therefore, any attempt to correlate sculpture with place-names needs to be done on a local basis. THE CASE OF FLEGG . . . AND SOME CONCLUSIONS

Finally, we should like to think about an area where absence is crucial: East Anglia, where the place-names exhibit a somewhat different pattern from those of other areas settled by Scandinavians (Fig. 3). In brief, there are fewer names, more spread out, compared with the denser concentrations elsewhere. In Suffolk they are quite thin on the ground: most are hybrids and there are only three or four names in -by (in contrast to the 234 in Lincolnshire). Norfolk preserves rather more Scandinavian place-names than its neighbour, and these are generally scattered across the county, though there is one noteworthy cluster of place-names in -by on the 'island' of Flegg in the south-east of the county. Overall, compared with the rest of the Danelaw, the place-names of East Anglia have been interpreted as indicating less intense Scandinavian settlement, generally limited to inferior land, possibly topped up by later immigration once the armies of the 890s disbanded. 172 Other evidence, however, appears to counter this impression. In Norfolk, for example, Scandinavian personal names and field-names occur in greater numbers and 1.. 167 1.. 16'

Morris 1981, 1.1.1: see also /'vtorris 19R4. 9-1_1. and H:tdley (works ci1ed in n. 16.1). Bailey 1980.109- 11 (sec a lso p. 5~): ,\,1orris 1977. 100. See the various volumes of the British A~tE

•

•

D

e e He ' •

•

••

~$ H Thetfor L.-,,..._""-.---

Key names in -by Norse personal name + -lhorp other wholly Norse names 'Grimston-hybrid' v other hybrid names H Norse-in11uenoed hundred names D English name denoting Danes

• • • 61

F1carin (Sa \••~'t.'r 1978a, 162).

'"' We arc not, of co urse, the lirsr to ca ll for such intcrdis.:iplinary work: see , e.g., Hadley 1000>, .l 4L ""Summ.iriu·d in SSNN W , .119- LO (arguing that there is good reason to suppose that some o f the Gaelic· 'p,c:iking 'Hihcrno·Norsc' proha bly came from Scotland). '* Spt:~ia li"Scd t c>n1mcnr 11 su-.:11 na111c~ is 11clt lacking: sec.\'.~. A11dcrso11 19 .\..f- 9: Can1cron ry65. 117-18: Fdlows· Jensen 19'/0: 1991: /l.1can«r 1997: l'amos 199N-~: Sand rod 1994.

PLACE -NA MES AND HISTORY

names. 210 Should these be regarded as evidence for administrative control without substantial settlement, or might things be more complicated? There also remains room for more work - again, preferably multidisciplinary and collaborative - on another of the major classes of Scandinavian place-names, the Grimston-hybrids. Recent study of the personal names of I Ith-century landholders indicates that the ratio of Norse to English in the name-stock is identical (33 °/o to 67°/o) in the adjacent counties of Suffolk and Essex. 211 How, then, should we explain the fact that there are around 25 Grimston-hybrids (combining Norse-named landholders with Old English -tun) in Suffolk, and no certain instances amongst the major names of Essex?212 This might confirm that Suffolk was part of the East Anglian region that was divided up between the Danish army in 880, that Essex effectively lay outside the Danelaw,213 and that Grimston-hybrids (despite recent doubts} are indeed generally to be dated to the settlement period. A further factor needs to be taken into consideration, however, for Domesday Book reveals a marked distinction in I Ith-century social organization between Suffolk and Essex - the former (like Norfolk) abounds in free peasants, and the latter does not. 214 Perhaps it is this distinction, the Scandinavian origin of which has been disputed,215 which has determined the place-name pattern. Much thought still needs to be devoted to the relationship, if any, between free peasants, Grimstonhybrids and Scandinavian settlement - it might be hoped that a multi-disciplinary approach to studying the names, sites and status of settlements either side of the Suffolk/Essex boundary would shed some light on the subject. In conclusion we would say that, despite the enormous range of conflicting opinions that have gone before, place-names carefully treated remain a valuable historical source. Further research into them - especially in a collaborative, interdisciplinary context - might yet improve our understanding of one of the most obscure periods in the history of England. BIBLIOGRAPHY ANI> ABBR£VI A T10r-;S

Abrams, L., 1001, 'The conversion of the Danelaw', 31-44 in Graham-Campbell er :ti. 2oor. Abrams, L. , forthcoming, 'Scandinavian place-names and secrlement history: Fie~. Norfolk', Proceedings of rhe Fourteenth Viking Congress. Aird, W. M., 1998, St Cuthbert and the Normans. The Church of D11rba111, 1071 - 11.rJ (Woodbridge). Anderson, 0. S., 19.14- 9, The English H11ndred-N11111es • .l vols (Lund).

"° For Thinghoc. see Ekw3JI

1. ~-6, lU p

1914, 81, and Anderson 19.14-9, I, 95-(,; for Da(orum, sec Go\'11s ioo2 • .Jl.

zu For a provial Scandinavia, 2, 16.1-z.07. Lund, N., 1976, 'Thorp-names', 223-5 in P.H. Sawyer (ed.), Medieval Settlement: Continuit)' .ind Change (London). Lund, N., r98r, 'The seitlers: where do we gel chem from - and do we need chem?', 147-71 in H. Bekker-Nielsen et al. (eds.), Proceedings of the Eighth Viking Congress (Odense). Maitland, F. W., 1897, Domesday Book and Be)'ond (Cambridge). Margeson, S., 1996, 'Viking set1lemen1 in Norfolk: a study of new evidence', 47-57 in S. Margeson er al. (eds.), A FestitJal of Norfolk Archdeology (Norwich). 1\1argeson, S., 1997, The Vikings in Norfolk (Norwich). Mawer, A., 1931-:t, 'The Scandinavian senlemen1s in England as reflected in English place-names". Acta Philologica Scandinavica, r- 30. t.1eaney, A. L., 1997, 'Hundred mcc1ing-places in the Cambridge region', 195- 140 in A. R. Rumbl~ and A. D. Mills (eds.), Names, Places and People. An Onomastic Miscellany in Memory of john McNeal Dodgson (Stamford). lvlorris, C. D., 1977, 'Northumbria and the Viking se1rlemcn1: the evidence for land-holding', Archaeologia Aeliana, 5th scr. 5, 8 r-102. tvlorris, C. D., 1981, 'Viking and native in northern England: a case-study', 2.2.J-44 in H. BekkerNiclsen ct al. (eds.), Proceedings of the Eighth Viking Congress (Odense). Morris, C:. D., 1984, 'Aspects of Scandinavian settlement in northern England: a review', Northern His1ory ro, 1- 22. 1,

PLACE - NAM ES AND HISTORY

Nelson, J. L. (crans.) 1991, Annals of St Bertin (Manchester). Page, R. I., 1971, 'How long did the Scandinavian language survive in England? The epigraphical evidence', 165-81 in P. Clemoes and K. Hughes (eds.), England Before the Conquest (Cambridge); reprinted with postscript at 181-96 in his Runes and Runic Inscriptions. Collected Essays on Anglo-Saxon and Viking Runes (Woodbridge, 1995) [cited from the reprint]. Pantos, A., 1998-9, 'Meeting-places in Wilvaston hundred, Cheshire',]. of the English Place-Name Soc., 31, 91- 11:1.. Parsons, D. N., :1.oc>1, 'How long did the Scandinavian language survive in England? Again', :1.99-3 TJ. in Graham-Campbell et al. :1.001. Parsons, D. N., :1.00:1., 'Anna, Dot, Thorir .. . counting Domesday personal names', Nomina, :1.5, :1.9- 5:1.. Parsons, D. N., and T. Styles, :1.000, The Vocabulary of English Place-Names: Brace-Ca?ster (Nottingham). Phythian-Adams, C., 1996, Land of the Cumbrians. A Study in British Provincial Origins A.D. 400-11io (Aldershot). Radner, J. N. (ed. and trans.) 1978, Fragmentary Annals of Ireland (Dublin). Reaney, P.H., x935 , The Place-Names of Essex (EPNS, 1:1., Cambridge). Reaney, P.H., and R. M. Wilson, x995, A Dictionary of English Surnames, 3rd ed. (Oxford). Ridel, E., :1.000, 'Viking maritime heritage in Normandy from a British Isles perspective', Northern Studies, 35, 79-93· Ridel, E., forthcoming, 'The linguistic heritage of the Scandinavians in Normandy', in J. Adams and K. Holman (eds.), Scandinavians and Europe 800- 1350. Contact, Conflict and Coexistence. Roberts, B. K., 1989-90, 'Late -by names in the Eden Valley, Cumberland', Nomina, 13, :1.5-40. Roesdahl, E., t991, The Vikings (Harmondsworth). Roffe, D. R., 1990a, 'An introduction to the Derbyshire Domesday', The Derbyshire Domesday (London), 1-:1.7. Roffe, D. R., 1990b, 'From thegnagc to barony: sa ke and soke, title, and tenants-in-chief', AngloNorman Studies, 1:1., 157-76. Roffe, D. R., 199:1., 'An introduction to rhe Lincolnshire Domesday', The Lincolnshire Domesday (London), 1- 31. S. +number- see Sawyer 1968. Sandrcd, K. I., 1979, 'Scandinavian place-names and appellatives in Norfolk: a study of the medieval field-names of Flitcham', Namn och Bygd, 67, 98- 1:1.:1.. Sandrcd, K. I., 1986-7, 'The Scandinavians in Norfolk: some observations on the place-names in by',]. of the English Place-Name Soc., 19, 5- :1.8. Sandred, K. I., 1994, 'Viking administration in the Danelaw: a look at Scandinavian and English hundred-names in Norfolk', 269- 76 in B. Ambrosiani and H . Clarke (eds.), Developments around the Baltic and the North Sea in the Viking Age (The Twelfth Viking Congress] (Birka Studies, 3, Stockholm). Sandred, K. I., 1996, The Place-Names of Norfolk. Part Tivo: The Hundreds of East and West Flegg, Happing and Tunstead (EPNS, 72, Nottingham). Sawyer, P.H., 1957- 8, 'The density of the Danish settlement in England', Unil'ersity of Birminghan1 Historical]., 6, 1-17. Sawyer, P.H., 1962, The Age of the Vikings, 1s1 ed. (London). Sawyer, P. H., 1968, Anglo-Saxon Ch.irters. An Annotated List and Biblioy,raphy (London) [abbreviated as S. J. Sawyer, P. H ., 197 1, The AJ:t' of tht• VikinJ:s, 2nd ed. (London).

430

LAND, SEA AND HOME

Sawyer, P. H., 1975, 'The charters of Burton Abbey and the unification of England', Northern History, xo, 28-39. Sawyer, P. H., 1978a, From Roman Britain to Norman England (London; 1st ed. 1978; :z.nd ed. [substantially unchanged] x998). Sawyer, P. H., 1978b, 'Some sources for the history of Viking Northumbria', 3-7 in R. A. Hall (ed.), Viking Age York and the North (CBA Research Reporr, 17, London). Sawyer, P. H., 1981, 'Conquest and colonization: Scandinavians in the Danelaw and in Normandy', 113-31 in H. Bekker-Nielsen et al. (eds.), Proceedings of the Eighth Viking Congress (Odense). Sawyer, P.H., 1982, Kings and Vikings. Scandina11ia and Europe AD 700-1100 (London). Sawyer, P. H., 1994, Scandinavians and the English in the Viking Age (H. M. Chadwick Memorial Lecture, 5, Cambridge). Sawyer, P.H., 1998, Anglo-Saxon Lincolnshire (Lincoln). Sawyer, P. H., et al. 1969, 'The two Viking Ages of Britain: a discussion', Mediae11al Scandinai•iJ, 1, 163-107. Sidebottom, P., 2000, 'Viking age stone monuments and social identity in Derbysh ire'. 213-35 in Hadley and Richards 2000. Simpson, L., 1989, 'The King Alfred/St Cuthbert episode in the Historia de sancto C11thbcrto: its significance for mid-tenth-century English history', 397-411 in G. Bonner ct al. (eds.}. St Cuthbert, his C11lt and his Community to A.D. 1200 (Woodbridge). Smart, V., 1986, 'Scandinavians, Celts, and Gerrnans in Anglo-Saxon England: the evidence of moneyers' names', 171- 84 in M.A. S. Blackburn (ed.), Anglo-Saxon Monetary History. f.sss11d,,iklingt•n i Dunmark ca. 900- 1250 (A rhus. 1997) .

434

LAND, SEA AND HOME

comprehensive understanding of the agrarian provisions of the provincial laws. This can contribute, in turn, to a fuller view of the development of agriculture and the landscape in the late Viking Period and early medieval times in Denmark. Comparative legislation from Sweden, England, Ireland and the early Frankish law codes has also been consulted. It has proved possible to demonstrate a close relationship between the Danish and Swedish sources, while it has not been possible to show any such relationship in the remainder of northern Europe. I shall return to the comparison of English and Danish laws later. Altogether, then, the objective was to reveal the actual reality that lay behind the production of the various laws, and subsequently to find out how agricultural conditions developed during this period. I have analysed all of the sections of the law that regulate the various elements of the culturally controlled landscape of the time: the village with its farms, the cultivated land with its fields and meadows, and the uncultivated land with its pastures, forests and tracks. In connexion with the analysis of the clauses on farm buildings, it has been possible, for instance, to demonstrate an agreement between the description of dwelling houses in the law codes and the houses known from archaeological excavations. I have, however, also been able to provide new explanations of certain key archaeological building features - in Old Danish the so-called la!garth {sheltered enclosures) and fa!garth (paddocks). It has also been possible to achieve a new perception of the use of the farm toft - the area within which the farm buildings were enclosed - as analyses of the legal provisions concerning the toft demonstrated that in the Viking Period the toft was so large that it functioned as a home field for the farm. This is not a revelation for English specialists, as it has long been known that the large tofts in the Danelaw were used as home fields. Another topic which the research project was able to improve understanding of was a road-term that is known in both England and Denmark via regia or hcerstrat. 5 3nJ fig. 2 .1. 17

no. 7 ; Thc>rr1tn , p. cit. in ntc 10. fi~ . .lSt

O(>S. 10- 1 1.

LAND, SEA AND HOME

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Shoe styles found at Anglo-Scandinavian York: (a) Vbacked shoes with a single side seam: (b) round-backed shoes with a single side seam. (Drawn by Quita Mould) FIGURE 4.

•

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single example with a sole with a rounded seat was found in earlier excavations at Hungate. 18 The few Anglo-Saxon shoes from England of late 8th- and earlier 9th-century date have soles with rounded seats, and appear to ha ve one-piece uppers joining with a single side seam. The earliest appearance of the V-shaped heel extension found so fa r in England, comes from St Aldates, Oxford where two flap- and toggle-style shoes with V-shaped heel extensions were found in early to mid-9th-century contexts. 19 On a simplistic level, current evidence suggests that shoes with round backs were worn in Anglo-Saxon England. The wearing of shoes with V-backs, first seen in the middle "R.1c hardst.,n. p. cit. . .an note: 15, Iig. i.2, no. 7. Thc.>rnron . op. c.:it. in note 10, fi~. \ 5. ns. 10-1 1 .

19

SAXON SHOES, VIKING SHEATHS?

years of the 9th century, quickly spread across the country, apparently under Scandinavian influence. They fell out of use in the 11th century, both in York and throughout the rest of the country, as Scandinavian influence declined. Similarly, the tunnel-stitched sole seam passed out of use rapidly during the middle years of the 11th century in favour of the edge/flesh seam. At York from the later 9th century onwards we see the contemporaneous use of two different heel shapes within the same shoe styles. 20 Why would shoemakers in York use fundamentally different techniques to make what would appear to be the same product? Could it reflect the merging of local, Anglian shoemaking traditions with those of the incoming Scandinavians? Craftsmen are by nature conservative. Traditional methods of working, handed down from one generation to the next, are often closely guarded, and new techniques only adopted if they bring obvious financial benefits or are necessary to accommodate the use of new materials. The change of sewing medium from leather thong to a woollen thread and eventually flax, may account for the final replacement of the tunnel-stitched sole seam by the edge/flesh seam by the middle years of the 11th century. At York, however, these two types of seam had been in use, side by side, for the best part of the previous i.oo years. Similarly, the round-backed and the V-backed soles were used concurrently, neither one inherently better nor substantially quicker to manufacture than the other. Technological advances do not appear to have governed the differences we see in the York shoes. One may speculate on the significance of the round-seated shoe and its more fashionable V-backed counterpart, but on present evidence we cannot say who was making the latter, or for whom, in 10th-century York. It can be proposed with greater certainty, however, that leatherworkers at York adopted Scandinavian fashions while retaining certain traditions of their own. Further evidence of native adaptability at York may be seen in bone-working and textile production. 21 At the beginning of this paper we described how an earlier Anglo-Saxon sheath-making tradition was visible within the Anglo-Scandinavian assemblage from Coppergate. It appears that elements of Anglo-Saxon traditio n were also present in a substantial proportion of the footwear made and worn in York. ACKNOW Lf.DG f.M ENTS

The authors thank staff of the York Archaeological Trust, in parricular Dave Hooley for cataloguing the bulk of the Coppergate leather, Ian Ca rlislc for completing this work and essential data gathering, and Richard H all, Director of the Trust, for permission to publish this paper. We also thank the staff of the Museum of London Archaeology Service for providing contextual information on excavated leather from The Poultry, Bull Wharf and The "'~.1% of the total "'~cmbl;111-c of shoe> from Ani:lo-Scand inavian deposits at Cupperi:ate haJ V·baeks, 17'X, round backs. " A. ~l acCrq:or, A. J. Ma inman and N. S. Roi:Ordis 277 Tilred 305 Tostig J02. Ua Beoain i.03 Ua Conchobair (king of the Ciarraige) 203 Ulf (moneyer) 84 Ulfcel (moneyer) 89 Valdemar (king) 4.19 Vesteinn Vcstcinsson 277 Wihtred 438 William the Conqueror 288, _171 William the Lion 212 William Rushworth 369 Wulfred (moneyer) 340 Wulfric Spot 303 Wulfstan 25 Perejaslavl Zalessky (Russia) 61 personal names (general) 403, 415 -ketill, -kell name elements 400 Thor-, Toki-, Toli-, Tosti name clements 400 pick, antler 259, 264 Pictish houses 2 36, 241, 251 picture stones (Gori and) 9 pins 135, 150, 168,i.15,i.43,i.47,i.48,318 bone :z.41, :z.43, 246, 247, 248, 25 1, 264 copper-alloy i.46, 247, 250, 264, 265, 320, 337 iron 248 pits r48, 243, :z.58, 291, .\18 ccss-pits 287 rubbish pits 287 place-names 11, 14, 117, 128, 1i.9-_11, 1_16, 139, 140, 143, i.16, tuse 287,290,292 Rhine 294 Ribble 298, 3o6, 335 Shcksna 70 Schlci 109 Solway 198 Tees .l:Z.9 Thames 459 Volga r9, 60 Volkhov 45 Volyn' 43 Wharfe (Egland) .l 35 Witham .l37 roads 364 Rollesby (England) 420-1 Romney Marsh (England) 359 Rooskey (Co. Donegal, Ireland} 181 Roskildc Fjord (Denmark) 8, 10, 11-12, 14-1 >. 36, r89 harbour 16 Rostov (Russia) 55, 61 Rostov-Suzdal principality 58 Rudham (Norfolk, England) 320 Runcorn (ferry point, Mersey, England) z.98 runes 43 Rus' 2., 56, 58, 69, 72. Russia (ancient}, Russia 4, 4r-5_i. 55-7_1. 57 Russian Primary Chronicle 41-3, 46, 52, 58 rye 66, z.51 Ryurik Gorodishche (Russia) 42, 44. 45, 52-.1 Sa:bol farm, Iceland 275, 276 sagas Bar8ar saga Sna:fellsass 28o Eiriks saga rau8a 282 Gisla saga Surssonar 273, 276-7 Hei()arviga saga 277-J Hrafnkels saga 279 islcndingas6gur :i.73- 82. Nj:lls saga 273, :i.80 of C>lav Tryggvasson 87 Orkncyinga Saga 210 salt/salt production 172, 361. 418 Sandbach (England) 307 saw 158 scales 5.r1, 89, 111 Scalloway (Shetland, Scotland) 12.1 Scatncss Brough (Shetland, Scotland) 211 C>ld Scatness 220 Schlei (region) .15 Schleifjord l l, 16

219- .13,

INDEX

Schleswig 27, 33, 11 r S.:huby (Germany) 33. 35 Scotland 126, 207-17, 235-54, 331, 389, 445 scythes 49, 52 sea birds 252 sea-level 8 scam-smoothers 18 sea walls 361, 364 Sebbersund (Denmark) to, 16 Scdgeford (Norfolk, England) 31 .1- 23, 314, 317 Sels0-Vestby (Denmark) 10, 12 scnlement mounds 235-54, 255-7, 256 senlcmcnt panerns (see also towns) Denmark 7- 26 Baltic area 27- 39 England 379- 42,1, 383 Irish Sea area r32 rural 308- to Somerset Levels 369- 77 Severn Estuary (England, Wales) 362-.1 shale vessels 328 Shannon estuary (Ireland) 196 Shapwkk (Polden Hills, Somerset, England) 36o sheaths 457-60, 458 sheep 168,252,338,340 Sheppey (Kent, England) ,150 Minster 351, 352 Sherborne (England) .171 Shestovica (Russia) 42 Shetland 235 shields 196, 202 shield -boss 136 ships (longship, warship, transport ship, cargo ship) 9, 24, 16, 85, IO I, 105, 107, 189- 205, 291 (see also clenched nails) construction t2 donations 190-205 fleet 194, 19j-8 /onga 200 repair 12 ship-men 304 shoes 79,457,460-5,46o,462,464 Shuklino (Russia ) 7 1 Sigtuna (Sweden) 84. 109 sil k 443- 55 silver (general) 19, 21, 67, 194 hacksilver 11, 14, 19, 21, 9.l• 97, 98, 146, 150, 157, 158, t64, 168. 17_1. 177-88, .144 ingots 95,96,97, 98. 110, 146, 150, 157, 158. 177-88 objects (Sl'y (England) _150-1 White Earth (England) .129 Whitford 137, 140 Whit horn t JO, 1 59, 161, 168, ,146- 8, 347, .15 t Whi11ington (England) 302 wics and emporia (see rradc) Wi