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Acta Archaeologica vol. 71, 2000, pp.

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Copyright C 2000

ACTA ARCHAEOLOGICA
ISSN 0065-001X

THE EARLY VIKING AGE IN NORWAY


by B M

NEW LIGHT ON THE DARK 600s The rich archaeological nds from the Viking Age in Norway are traditionally explained by rapid cultural and social advances following new contacts with Western Europe after 793. An argument for a rather sudden change of the society at that time is the hypothesis that the 600s was a Dark Age of stagnation in South Norway after an economic and political collapse of society in the late sixth century (Gudesen 1980, 124, 136; Helgen 1982, 51; Magnus & Myhre 1986, 398). In North Norway and Trndelag it seems that the economic, social and political situation was stable throughout these centuries. Recent archaeological research in South Norway may indicate that the proposed stagnation of the 600s was not so dramatic as earlier believed. New intensive investigations in marginal agrarian areas like the mountains, the woodlands and along the outer coast show that hunting, the use of summer pastures, iron extraction, shing a.s.o. continued, and at some places even were expanding during the seventh century (Myhre 1993; based on Alsaker 1989; Bjrgo 1986; Bjrgo et al. 1992, 302308; Magnus 1974; 1986; Martens 1988, 8285). Clearly the marginal areas must have been exploited from neighbouring agrarian settlements and population centres, but we have until now not been able to nd these sites. In my opinion one of the reasons is the lack of intensive investigations. The recent investigations at Borre in Vestfold is an example of how intensive studies at a central agrarian area may give us a new understanding of the settle-

ment development during the so-called dark 600s (Myhre 1992a; 1992b). We know Borre as a Viking Age cemetery of large mounds where the rich ship burial from about AD 900 was found in 1853. The new investigations showed that the earliest large mounds were built already about AD 600, and the others during the following centuries until 900. Pollen analyses and landscape studies tell about a continuity of land use and settlement since the Early Iron Age in the neighbouring area (Jerpsen 1993; 1996, 88, 109, 163) (Fig. 1). From about AD 600 the cultivation was intensied, large elds were taken into use, the woodland disappeared and new kinds of herbs and crops were introduced. Instead of a dramatic stagnation during the seventh century, we are now able to demonstrate settlement expansion and a development into an intensively used agrarian landscape. Such a change of the landscape happened at the same time as the rst large mounds were built, probably as burial places for a political elite of chieftains or petty kings. But we have not yet found the houses and the graves of the ordinary people in the Borre area. Further investigations must be carried out, not only at Borre, but in other central agrarian areas in South Norway, if we shall be able to demonstrate clearly a continuity of settlements and land-use through the seventh and eighth centuries. Probably many farms and settlements in South Norway were left during the sixth century, and in some areas the population was reduced in number. This may not have been the result of a general crisis in society, but rather, as found in Denmark, the result

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Fig. 1. The cemetery of large mounds at Borre, Vestfold, which can be dated to c. 600 (Mounds 6 and 7) and to c. 900 (Mound 1 where the rich ship-burial was found in 1853). Map, Myhre 1992a, g. 57.

of a reorganisation of settlements, a new settlement pattern and another way of using the landscape (Hedeager 1992, 224; Nsman 1991, 168; Nsman & Lund 1988, 22750). The hypothesis is that a new economic and social organisation may have led to a centralisation of farms and agrarian settlements, allowing for a better control of the land and the agrarian resources in the hands of the aristocracy and the richest farmers. These major landowners may also have organised a major part of the exploitation of resources in the mountains and along the coast.

AGRARIAN SETTLEMENTS In South Norway few farms and houses from the seventh and eighth centuries have, as indicated, been found and excavated. But strangely enough the situ-

ation is not so much better when we take a look at the archaeological material from the ninth century, the Early Viking Age. The traditional view of a settlement expansion and increase in population during the ninth century has mainly been based on the large number of grave nds, and on the study of the chronology of farm names. However, many of the farm names that traditionally were dated to the Viking Age, like those ending on -stad and -land, now seem to have been in use already during the earlier centuries (Salvesen 1990; Lken & Srheim 1990). The arguments for a strong settlement expansion during the Early Viking Age, built on farm name studies alone, are not convincing any more. Archaeological investigations in West Norway have demonstrated that many farms from the Migration Period were deserted during the sixth and seventh

The Early Viking Age in Norway


centuries. If there was a population pressure during the Early Viking Age, we would have expected a resettlement on these deserted farms. In SW Norway several hundred farm houses from the Roman and the Migration Periods have been excavated, as well as about 50 from the High Middle Ages (10501350). The number of excavated houses from the Viking Age can, however, be counted on a few hands (Myhre 1980, 94140). It is surprising that most of the investigated deserted farms from the Migration Period were not resettled until the High Middle Ages, only very few during the Viking Age. Even large deserted farms in central parts of the plain of Jren, like Lyngaland and Hanaland in Time county were not re-settled before AD 1000 (Petersen 1936, 37, 81; Myhre 1980, 125, 236, 348). The general impression is that the Early Iron Age settlements, as well as those from the Viking Age, were concentrated to what has always been considered the best agrarian areas. From these population cores a strong settlement expansion to more marginal areas can be documented during the Roman and Migration Periods, as well as the High Middle Ages, but only on a small scale during the Merovingian and Early Viking Age. At Borre in Vestfold, during the Iron Age and the Viking Age, most farms are found in the valleys and on the ridges where also the majority of barrows are mapped. Not until the High Middle Ages is a strong settlement expansion documented into the neighbouring areas, previously used for arable elds. The Medieval farms often had names ending on -rud (Jerpsen 1993; 1996, 29, 127). The settlement development has been well studied in the Lofoten area in North Norway, especially on the island of Vestvgy. Olav Sverre Johansen has come to the conclusion that the number of farms were kept on the same level from the Migration Period through the Viking and High Middle Ages. This extraordinary result is explained by a stable economy based on husbandry and shing in a special coastal climate throughout the centuries (O.S. Johansen 1982, 63). A conclusion to be drawn from such local studies is that generally speaking, a major settlement expansion to marginal agrarian lands started during the

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Late Viking Age or the High Middle Ages. A population pressure during the Merovingian Period and the Early Viking Age can so far not be documented.

VIKING AGE HOUSE STRUCTURES The few excavated Viking Age house structures from South Norway are, generally speaking, rather small. Some are of the same type as the well-known Viking halls found in Scandinavia and on the Atlantic Islands, e.g. at Oma in Time on Jren (Petersen 1933, 66; Myhre 1980, 345) and at Sndre Nygrd in Fberg, East Norway (Komber 1989, 153). At Ytre Moa in Sogn the small structures were rectangular with an entrance at one end, actually a house type not so very different from the Dublin Viking houses (Bakka 1965). The Ytre Moa farmhouses are exceptional among the excavated Viking Age structures; they indicate that the parting up of the Iron Age longhouse into smaller buildings with different functions had started about AD 800 or earlier. Characteristic for most Viking Age house structures is that the byre is no longer a part of the long-house, as normally during the Migration Period. The byre was now usually a separate building (Myhre 1982, 195). In North Norway, however, several later longhouses with a byre have been excavated. They are parted up in smaller rooms, as in the Migration Period. The best example is the great building from the eighth century at Borg in Lofoten, 83 m long (Munch 1991). A 40 m long long-house with a byre, dated to the eighth and ninth centuries has recently been excavated at ker, Hedmark in East Norway (Pil 1994). The corner timbering technique, known e.g. from the Gokstad grave chamber, has been documented in domestic houses from the Late Viking Age at Vesle Hjerkinn, Dovre (Weber 1986, 197). A kind of stave construction in three-aisled buildings seems to be the dominating building technique during both the Merovingian Period and the Early Viking Age. Differentiated building customs during the Viking Age have been documented. There are regional and social differences to be seen. A clear change of house types about AD 700, as has recently been documented in Denmark (Hvass 1993), cannot be demonstrated in Norway as of yet, but it is highly probable

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Fig. 2. Radiocarbon dates from thirty-three house sites in the mountain valleys at Nyset-Steggje in Sogn. These were used as settlement sites. After Bjrgo et al. 1992, g. 213.

that new house types were introduced before AD 800 also in South Norway.

Fig. 3. Radiocarbon dates from iron extraction sites at Msstrand, Hardangervidda. After Martens 1988, g. 101.

EXPLOITATION OF NON-AGRARIAN RESOURCES Intensive archaeological investigations in the mountain areas, in the woodlands and along the outer coast have produced a large amount of empirical data on the exploitation of non-agrarian resources during the Viking Age and the centuries before. Of special interest is the extraction of iron, and the quarrying of soap stone and slate for hones, the hunting of reindeer and elks and the use of summer pastures in the mountains (Magnus 1986; Bjrgo et al. 1992, 285) (Fig. 2). Along the coast specialised shing sites have been found (Magnus 1974), and in North Norway it can be shown that shing activities became more important for farmers particularly in the outer coastal districts. The so-called farm mounds which really are tells created by continuous settlement through the centuries until today, have presented us with excellent evidence for intensive shing activities and husbandry after the localisation of farmsteads during the Viking Age, at some sites even earlier (Bertelsen 1984, 144; 1989; Urbanczyk 1992, 105).

The process of iron extraction has been well studied at Dokky, Msvatn, and Hovden in South Norway, and in the Trndelag (Fig. 3). At Dokky and in the Trndelag the production started around the birth of Christ (Jakobsen and Larsen 1992, 73; Farbregd et al. 1985), at Msstrand during the sixth century (Martens 1988, 85), and at Hovden about AD 900 (Bloch-Nakkerud 1987, 135). Generally speaking the production during the Early Viking Age seems to have been on a level not so much higher than during the Iron Age. A major expansion is very well documented from about AD 900 and into the High Middle Ages. A similar development is found when it comes to hunting of reindeer and elks. On the Hardangervidda and in the Dovre area hunting structures, bone and garbage deposits, pit falls, and intricate trapping systems for large scale hunting have been excavated. At Dovre Egil Mikkelsen found that both the large trapping system and the pit falls were mainly Medieval, earlier hunting mostly carried out by bow and arrow

The Early Viking Age in Norway


(Mikkelsen 1994, 98111) (Fig. 4). On the Hardangervidda trapping systems seem to have been used on a moderate scale already in the Migration Period, but also here mainly in the Middle Ages (Blehr 1973, 108). The large scale trapping systems for elk hunting at Dokky are dated to the Roman and Medieval times, respectively (Jakobsen and Larsen 1992, 131 35). Also in North Norway (Olsen 1987; Storli 1994, 78) and in North Sweden (Mulk 1994, 168, 249) most large trapping systems are Medieval. Generally speaking, the exploitation of non-agarian resources was carried out on a similar scale during the Roman/Migration Period and the Early Viking Age. It was intensied enormously during the Late Viking Age, and especially during the High Middle Ages. We must conclude that it is not possible to show that there was a special pressure on these resources during the eighth and ninth centuries.

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Fig. 4. Radiocarbon dates from house sites and middens at Hardangervidda. After Mikkelsen 1994, g. 75.

DEMOGRAPHIC DEVELOPMENTS Many publications indicate that there was a considerable population growth in Norway during the eighth century, and population pressure is often mentioned as the factor that might explain the rst emigration to the Western Isles. Recent archaeological investigations (referred to above) do not support such a conclusion. Most important in this connection is the indication that so many farms with names ending on -land and -stad seem to have been settled already during the Migration and Merovingian Periods and cannot be taken as evidence for a settlement expansion in the Early Viking Age, at least not without excavations on each site (Salvesen 1990; Lken and Srheim 1990, 184190). The number of grave nds from the Viking Age is in some regions much larger than during the Merovingian Period, but there is a continuous increase through the centuries, more graves from the 9th and early 10th centuries than from the 8th century. A possible change in burial customs should also be taken into consideration when interpreting the increase in numbers of graves. The agrarian settlements seem to have been concentrated in the same central areas during both the Iron and the Viking Age, and a major expansion into marginal agrarian areas did not start before the Late Viking Age and, especially, the High Middle Ages.

One explanation for such a development may be that when the settlement abroad came to an end during the 10th century, more marginal land at home had to be taken into use. It is a major problem that we have found so few of the major farms or even houses from the Viking Age. The long-houses at Borg in Lofoten, at ker in Hedmark, and at Oma on Jren are exceptions. On sites to be excavated in the future we should expect to nd groups of long-houses and small, specialised structures. Villages, similar to those found in Jutland (Hvass 1993; Bender Jrgensen and Eriksen 1995), may also have existed in Norway. For these reasons, it is very difcult to calculate the number of population. One of the major future tasks of Norwegian archaeologists should be to locate and excavate major agrarian settlements from the Viking Age.

TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS Major technological improvements have been mentioned as important for the understanding of the development of Viking Age society. I shall shortly comment upon the techniques of soil cultivation, the techniques of iron extraction and the change from rowing to sailing ships. An intensive way of cultivating the soil of the elds is well-known from post-medieval times. In West Norway it is called mould or turf manuring. Earth, mould, turf, and humus were brought into the the cattle byre, mixed with animal manure, and later used as fertilizer on the elds. Through the years,

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800 is thus quite possible (Crumlin-Pedersen 1990; Haywood 1999). Peter Sawyer has recently published a new reading of a part of Alcuins letter on the raid at Lindisfarne, which is of great interest for the discussion about an early use of sailing ships (Sawyer 1995). The passage nec eiusmodi naufragium eri posse putabatur is usually read nor was it thought that such an inroad from the sea could be possible. Traditionally, it has been suggested that Alcuin by this meant that the use of sailing ships coming in from the sea was something new. According to J.F. Niermeyer, naufragium in Alcuins time did not mean shipwreck as in classic Latin, but the meaning is clearly loss or ruin with no maritime association (Sawyer 1995, 3). So, according to Sawyer, Alcuin was not referring to the use of sailing ships and a crossing of the North Sea as something unusual, but the destruction of the holy place. We must admit that we have very limited knowledge about the introduction of sails in West Scandinavia, and we can therefore not use the introduction of sailing ships to explain the rst Viking raids. It may just as well be that the sail was introduced because the Scandinavian chieftains of the eighth century wanted to intensify the trading and raiding across the open sea (see also Hines 1996, and Herns 1997).

thick layers of soil accumulated, and very high linchets developed at the lower edges of the elds. As a consequence of this intensive soil preparation and manuring the elds did not have to lie fallow. Even rather small elds, that could be tilled by spade, gave very high yields of barley or oat. A similar cultivation technique is called Plaggen Dngung in North Germany, and documented from the Roman Period onwards. In Norway, this kind of turf manuring was long thought to be a Medieval invention, but is now proven to be at least from the eighth century, may be from the Migration Period (Kvamme 1982, 129; Myhre 1985, 81; Opedal 1994; ye Slvberg 1976, 110). In the Early Iron Age, iron was produced in shaft ovens, built over a pit dug into the ground. The slag was collected in the pit, and the process had to be stopped when the pit was full. To continue, new pits were often dug, and a new shaft of burnt clay made. During the Viking Age and the High Middle Ages another technique was introduced; permanent shaft ovens. In these, it was possible to tap the slag by collecting it at the side of the oven. The works around the furnace were better organized, with special pits for charcoal burning and roasting of the bog ore. The oven was often covered by a roof, and even special structures were built. The extraction was highly effective, and it was possible to produce a large amount of iron. Recent investigations in Norway and Sweden have shown that this new technique was introduced long before the Viking Age, probably as early as the seventh century (Larsen 1991, 275; Jakobsen & Larsen 1992, 80; Espelund 1989). The introduction of the sailing ship has by many been mentioned as the decisive factor that triggered the Viking activities across the open sea. The Oseberg ship, now dated to c. 820 (Bonde 1994, 141), is the oldest preserved ship built for sailing and ts well with the earliest known Viking raids. The badly preserved ship from the grave mound Storhaug near Avaldsnes in Rogaland, probably from about AD 700, seems to have been built mainly for rowing (Opedal 1998). So is apparently the Kvalsund ship from the seventh century (Shetelig & Johannesen 1929). But ships with sails are presented on the Gotland Picture Stones from the late seventh century onwards. The use of sailing ships in the North Sea area long before AD

ECONOMIC AND POLITICAL CENTRES To identify economic and political centres of the Viking Age, archaeologists have studied the distribution of richly equipped graves, treasure nds, imported precious objects and coins, large monuments, like grave mounds, special house sites, large boat houses, and trading sites (e.g., Fabech & Ringtved 1991; Mikkelsen & Larsen 1992; Ringstad 1991; Sognnes 1979; Wik 1991). I would like to present shortly some examples of recent studies on political centres in different parts of Norway. In this connection the earliest dating of such central places will be of special interest. In North Norway centres have been predicted on the basis of special clusters of houses, so-called court sites (Fig. 5). At the largest court sites as many as 16 houses may be found. They have been interpreted as military sites, barracks where the chieftains men could gather when needed. Another interpretation is

The Early Viking Age in Norway

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Fig. 5. Aerial photo over the Kaupang area. Photo, Department of Archaeology, University of Oslo.

that they were thing-sites laying close to the chieftains farm. Large boat houses, numerous grave nds and a concentration of farm sites are often found near the court sites. On such a basis a chieftains center at Borg in Lofoten was predicted before the large longhouse was found on the site (O.S. Johansen 1982, 65). The 83 m long building with very special nds of imported goods gives us an impression of how such aristocratic sites may have looked like during the eighth and ninth centuries. At least eleven court sites have so far been found in North Norway. The largest ones, at Bjarky, Steigen, Leknes, and Tjtta, have been dated from the Roman until the Viking Age. Some smaller sites are from the rst period, the largest ones mainly from the later. Only few sites have so far been totally excavated, thus

there are still chronological problems to be solved (Johansen & Sbstad 1977, 13; O.S. Johansen 1989, 30; Wik 1983). A special study of possible political centres on the Helgeland coast in North Norway shows that these are to be found on islands along the main sailing route, where there is also good arable land. Most centres are found at the mouth of large ords going into the mountainous inland that seem to have been settled by Saami people. The sites have been interpreted as centres in redistributive economic systems reaching from the sea to the North Scandinavian inland (Wik 1985, 231). The written sources indicate a close co-operation between the Saami and the Norse populations during the Viking Age. The Saami may have paid some sort

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the Migration Period, enlarged to 83 m in the seventheighth centuries (Munch 1991). In the region of Trndelag, distribution maps of Viking Age material indicate two central areas in the inner parts of the Trondheimsord. Around Levanger/Steinkjer in the North and at Stjrdal in the South, rich nds have come to light from all periods from the Roman Age onwards. Iron extraction sites are numerous in the nearest inland, and the archaeological material indicates contacts eastwards along the valleys and through the woodland to the Baltic Sea (Sognnes 1991, 260). Notably, there are no indications of an earlier central place near the Late Viking and High Medieval city of Nidaros. Viking Age central places in West Norway are found in the ord areas, where the main trading routes are crossing the mountains, and where utility goods could be collected (Sognnes 1979, 4549, 87). At the mouth of one of the largest ordsystems, the central place Avaldsnes is situated at a strategic point along the main coastal sailing route. Close to the site of the Medieval church, possibly also the royal site of king Harald Fairhair, the rich ship burials at Storhaug and Grnhaug, probably from about AD 700 and the tenth century, have been excavated. Another large mound, where no grave have so far been found, is C14 dated to the sixth-seventh centuries (Opedal 1998). As earlier shown, the cemetery of large mounds at Borre in Vestfold has a history from about 600 until 900. During the early part of this period large mounds of a similar size were built in some of the central areas of East Norway, along the main river valleys, and at the Oslo Fiord, at sites with a good agrarian potential, and a dense population, and where it was possible to exercise some control over the important communication and trading routes between the coast and the inland. While large mounds from the Early Iron Age were mostly built at ordinary cemeteries belonging to a farm or a group of farms, after AD 600 we often nd the large mounds isolated from other monuments, and placed individually in the landscape (Gansum 1995, 228). In South Vestfold, the Kaupang area must have been a central place during the Early Viking Age (Blindheim, Heyerdahl-Larsen & Tollnes 1981; Blindheim & Heyerdahl-Larsen 1995; Hougen 1993) (Fig. 5). We shall probably look for the seat of a petty

Fig. 6. Norwegian central places (in capitals) and mountain sites mentioned in the text. The central places in northern Norway are so-called court-sites. After Myhre 1998, g. 16.

of tax to the chieftains, as the famous Ottar told king Alfred of Wessex at the end of the ninth century. They may also have been incorporated into the redistributive system and even been protected by the chieftains as important producers of valuable goods (Odner 1983, 85; 1985). In the mountains and the nearest valleys on the Swedish side of the border, many Saami house sites and settlements have been excavated and are shown to be from the sixth century onwards (Storli 1994, 45; Mulk 1994, 141). An archaeological indication of trade and exchange of goods across the Scandinavian peninsula is the many items of Finnish or Baltic origin found along the outer coast of North Norway, already from the eighth century onwards (Sjvold 1974, 360364; Storli 1991; 1994, 108). It is important to note that the archaeological material indicates a continuous economic, social, and demographic development in North Norway from the sixth century into the ninth and tenth centuries (Vinsrygg 1979, 7377). Even at the main site at Borg in Lofoten there was a 55 m long house already in

The Early Viking Age in Norway


king at Huseby-Tjlling, a few kms inland from the trading site itself. The excavators have come to the conclusion that the earliest nds from the Black Earth area are older than AD 800, probably from the second part of the eighth century. At the well excavated cemeteries in the neighbourhood very few graves can be dated to the seventh and eighth centuries (Blindheim, Heyerdahl-Larsen & Tollnes 1981, 39 47; Blindheim & Heyerdahl-Larsen 1995, 12; Forseth 1993), but with the new research results from Borre in mind and remembering that only a very small part of the Black Earth has been excavated so far it would not be surprising if the earliest phase of the trading site at Kaupang once will be dated back to about the early part of the eighth century, like Ribe in Jutland. New trading places from the Migration and Merovingian Periods have recently been found in Denmark and Sweden.They are situated at good harbours close to rich settlement sites where political centres existed long before the Viking Age, e.g. Gudme on Funen (Jrgensen 1995), and Helg in Scania (Callmer 1995, 53). In Norway, Kaupang in Vestfold is still the only trading place found. As mentioned above, central places in North Norway and Trndelag, at Avaldsnes in Rogaland, and Borre in Vestfold seem to have a history going back several centuries before AD 800. Continuity, and a gradual development from the sixthseventh centuries have been demonstrated. One of the major future tasks of Norwegian archaeology is to search for trading sites from the Merovingian Period and the Early Viking Age, similar to the ones recently found in Denmark and Sweden.

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HISTORICAL CONCLUSIONS In this short review, it has been shown that according to the available archaeological material, the years around AD 800 were not a period of dramatic economic and cultural change in Norway, as often postulated. New house types appear, the sailing ship is possibly introduced, and the number of grave nds is larger than before. But when it comes to settlement patterns, numbers of farms and the exploitation of non-agrarian resources, major new developments have not been documented. It is not possible to nd

evidence for a strong population pressure which should make it necessary to start an emigration westwards. Important technological improvements connected with iron extraction and manuring of elds were introduced already in the seventh century. Many of the strong political centres have a long history before 800. The traditional hypothesis of an economic and demographical crisis in the late sixth and early seventh centuries have been questioned. At least in North Norway, Trndelag and in some districts of East Norway settlement continuity is demonstrated. The major changes that we note in the archaeological record from South and West Norway are tentatively interpreted as a consequence of re-organisation of settlement, and of a social and political development that led to centralisation of power in the hands of the aristocracy and leading farmers. During the seventh and eighth centuries a few strong, petty kingdoms were established, and from their centres widespread redistributive economic systems were established. To these centres various goods from different ecological zones could be transported and converted into prestige and authority through gift exchange, generousity, feasts and administrative trade (see Christophersen 1989, 121). From such strongholds it was also possible to exercise some control over important communication routes along the coast and ords and through the inland valleys up to the mountain plateaus. I have argued that these Norwegian petty kingdoms were integrated into the large scale economic and political networks that developed around the southern shores of the North Sea during the late seventh and the eighth century (cf. Appendix). On both sides of the English Channel, major emporias and market places were established. After AD 700 not only prestigious goods were exchanged, but also commodities produced by craftsmen and specialists in the emporias. The long distance trade also included products like iron, hones, lava for quernstones, antlers, whalebones, and probably furs and hides (Hodges 1989, 162; Jensen 1991, 23; Nsman 1990; 1991, 171; Myhre 1992a, 1992b & 1993). Norwegian petty kings and chieftains seem to have participated in such a network of trade, alliance, and warfare between the political centres in Scandinavia

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construction of advanced sailing ships in Scandinavia during the eighth century might be an answer to the need for regular crossing of the rough northern seas (Herns 1997; Hines 1993; 1996; Myhre 1993; 1998). According to this hypothesis, the plunderings should not be explained by population pressure at home, the invention of the sailing ship, or, as actions of pirates. Many of the Viking raids in the late eighth and the early ninth century may be considered as actions by the chieftains to acquire wealth and treasures, but probably they were also incidents in a conict between the powers around the North Sea. In a broader perspective, the raids may be seen as parts of a conict between a heathen Germanic culture in the North and Christian kingdoms in the South and West. From written sources, we know that the Viking activities abroad were important for the economic and political organisation in Scandinavia during the ninth and tenth centuries. What we need now is new archaeological research and investigations to understand more of the economic and political developments during the formative centuries between AD 600 and 800. We need both more empirical data and a better chronology, just as much as we need bold hypotheses and ideas to inspire us.

and the North Sea region. The exchange system brought valuables like glass, bronzes, beads, jewellery, and weapons from the Continent, and probably also from the British Isles, to Norwegian chieftains as far north as Borg in Lofoten already during the eighth century. In addition to the mentioned commodities, ideas, ideologies, and knowledge were probably also exchanged. Therefore, the Scandinavian upper social strata was not isolated from the rest of Northern Europe during the Merovingian Period, but shared cultural ideas and values with other Germanic kingdoms, also Christian ones. Christian symbols and impulses may even have been introduced into Norwegian societies during the eighth and ninth centuries (Herns 1993, 108; Fuglestvedt & Herns 1996). Some Insular, ecclesiastical objects may have come to Norway already during the eighth century, but the vast majority of such objects is found in Norwegian graves from the ninth century. There must be a direct connection between the plundering of churches and monasteries on the British Isles, as told by the written sources, and the many Insular objects found in Norwegian graves (Bakka 1963; 1971; Wamers 1985). Such objects, as well as treasure nds of gold, silver and coins, show that the chieftains now were able to enlarge their income through plundering and valuables paid as ransom. It seems that a relative peaceful period of trade and interaction across the North Sea was followed by a more warlike period in the eighth century, at the same time as Insular missionary activities on the Continent were intensied. The Carolingians expanded northwards until the Elbe, threatening the Danes. This ideological and military conict probably also included the control over the long distance trade and the emporias of the North Sea. An interesting hypothesis is that the political situation on the Continent may be one of the reasons for the interest among the Norwegian chieftains for contact and trade with Picts, Scots, and Irish groups across the northern part of the North Sea (Hines 1996). Conict between heathen Scandinavian kingdoms and the Christian powers on the Continent and in England may be one of the reasons for the Viking raids and plundering of churches and leading monasteries after AD 790. Indeed, the

APPENDIX Several archaeologists have argued for a direct line of communication between Norway and the British Isles in the Migration Period and later (Carver 1990; Hines 1984, 293; 1993; 1996; Vierck 1970). A debate is also going on about the possibility of contacts across the North Sea to the North Atlantic islands during the seventh and eighth centuries, not mentioned in the written sources. Some of the arguments are, in short, as follows. Early radiocarbon dates from settlement sites and houses of West Scandinavian type on Iceland (Hermanns-Audardottir 1989, 46 53; 1991. For a discussion, see Nordahl 1988, 113; Sveinbjarnardottir 1990; Theodorsson 1998; Vilhjalmsson 1990; Crawford 1991; Kaland 1991; Mahler & Malmros 1991; Morris 1991a). Early radiocarbon dates of the rst indications of agriculture (pollen analyses) on the Faroe Isles (J. Johansen 1985, 5660; Hannon & al. 1998; Hannon 1999. For a discussion, see Arge 1990, 1416; Krogh 1986). The use of reindeer antlers for comb making on Pictish as well as Early Norse sites on Orkney and Shetland (Smith 1995, Weber 1991, 171; 1995. For a comment, see Roesdahl 1994, 112). A few grave nds from the British Isles and Ireland might be of the late eighth century (Brgger 1930, 282; Myhre 1993, 190; Shetelig 1954, 102. For a discussion see Crawford 1987, 40,

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206; Graham-Campbell 1990; 1994; Morris 1985, 221; 1991b; Sawyer 1982; Wilson 1976). Insular objects found in Norwegian graves might be earlier than 790 (Vinsrygg 1979, 6770; Myhre 1993, 189. For a discussion see Bakka 1971; 1973; Geber 1991; Hines 1996; Vierck 1970; 1978; Wamers 1985).

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However, rm evidence for a direct contact across the North Sea between Norway and the Western Isles during the Merovingian Period have not yet been presented. The discussion, therefore, should be seen as a challenge and an inspiration for further research on early Norse settlement and trade in the Western Isles before Viking raids are mentioned in written sources.

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Authors address: c/o Arkeologisk Museum i Stavanger Pb. 478 N-4001 Stavanger Norway bm257/cam.ca.uk

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