The Flow of Resources in a Changing World

Abstract

The influx of prestigious foreign objects into Southern Scandinavia throughout the Iron Age and Viking Age is well-documented. For example, Roman or Frankish luxury objects would find their way north via trade or through dynastic gift exchanges as part of a conspicuous elite culture. Access to crucial raw materials has in many ways been formative for both prehistoric and historic societies. The availability – or lack thereof – of specific resources could determine technological developments, and the need for nonlocal raw materials could shape evolving networks. For prehistoric and early historic times in Southern Scandinavia, the written sources and typological studies have limited value in determining the provenance of various raw materials. A typological deduction based on design can indicate the area of production for certain artefacts, but the raw materials used might originate from elsewhere. Based on scientific methods, this study sets out to map and analyse the geography of the available provenances of materials used in archaeological objects. From where did the raw materials found in Southern Scandinavia originate? Was there a connection between the flow of raw materials and the political situation?

Keywords

• Raw material
• Provenance
• Iron Age
• Viking Age
• Southern Scandinavia
• Britain