Scale and Weights from the Hebrides
These small, decorated metal items were found alongside a Norseman within a grave which has been dated to the years 875 to 925 CE.1 The site is located in Kiloran Bay on the island of Colonsay, one of the Inner Hebrides. In 1882, archaeologists discovered this burial.2 They uncovered a man enclosed within the remains of a Norse ship that was about 30 feet in length. Buried along with him were many personal effects and military tools.3 Also found with the man were these small metal objects, made of lead and decorated with ornamental bronze plates featuring Celtic designs.
These objects were not merely decorative—they were weights for a scale, which was also found in the burial. These weights and the scale serve a vital role in the regulation of trade. While some goods, such as livestock, can be easily counted and numbered during trade, other items must be weighed out to ensure fair exchange. Small metal objects of a known weight, such as these, would have been used on a balance to measure the desired amount of the substance being traded.4
The presence of these scale weights in the burial points to the existence of complex trade relationships between the colonizing Norse and the native Picts. We know from the excavation of other Viking-age sites that trade was important to the local economy; emporia like Hedeby and Dorestad were centers for both local and long-distance trade. Here at Kiloran Bay, trade was clearly important and complex enough to warrant the use of weighted scales. Additionally, the designs on the weights are Celtic, rather than Norse, which points to the blending of Norse and Scottish culture that was occurring at the time.
The presence of these scale weights in the burial points to the existence of complex trade relationships between the colonizing Norse and the native Picts. We know from the excavation of other Viking-age sites that trade was important to the local economy; emporia like Hedeby and Dorestad were centers for both local and long-distance trade. Here at Kiloran Bay, trade was clearly important and complex enough to warrant the use of weighted scales. Additionally, the designs on the weights are Celtic, rather than Norse, which points to the blending of Norse and Scottish culture that was occurring at the time.
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