The Viking World: A History in ObjectsMain MenuGallery viewA galleryTag Cloudtag cloud pageThemesA path of thematic categoriesAuthor IndexExplore the collection by authorWorks CitedReferencesAdam Bigelow3afa9c7ecebf516bba6609664b1b12f79c54bf77Caitlin Donahue61b7e986e7c71d400e5c803912ed83c0cf65252fCaroline Harvey1783f21a5882b5b4d3d0b6c174d058052a5ff7eaEdward Hershewee701ef220480b51ca728fc9c719bc094cf813655Martin Hoffmana1fd203afd9a84ee8db567e188cf6ed1d269386eTyler Hruby23493f763b312110686cfafc62578fd0ab5f3833Brittany N. Johnsonc1c1763339f8fa953e3c907c6bb8a3bad0c28b2cCarlos Lua Pineda0a28cc23b0aa00b4f24a9e205aeb57fbdb07ff01Moira McConnell710633400590ea38533ea3412c01fc5056288180Clara McCurdy9aec76477d0b55f9c685c47330d6786ec98182e1Elise McIlhaneyef48481634ff342c8b43c9d56f678b2d3562fb69Cameron Meikle669a5682bfbfd603130a26e25628f24eb07e6295Alexander Christopher Newkirk019c2f5b38c043507251d1789e2fdf47e61c3b7fBenja Reilly816c23aa0d444213fb2d1ef33555a15617e08228Oliver Statenc625ae8c3926f5e1a4268bc91d6a6f4cdb1e7fb6Liam Sullivanaa3a1dccb90c7fe4646b61c4af594abbb0c5574aRead Wilder31bf4715220144a665996f2e6cae80a1a8611eadAliza Yazdanicd49f227d88c72331226ddf574bf56c37308cd10Austin Masonf6137011c68eb792c6e14634815583b15e707dea
A Lead Weight Plate
12017-05-21T17:48:08-07:00Edward Hershewee701ef220480b51ca728fc9c719bc094cf813655164562A lead weight from Englandplain2017-05-21T18:10:47-07:00Foreman, Martin. EARLY MEDIEVAL Weight, 2013. NLM-CE80A5. Portable Antiquities Scheme. http://finds.org.uk:443/database/artefacts/record/id/842134.850-925 ACENLM-CE80A5The British Museum, Great Russell Street, London WC1B 3DG.53.446328, -0.167772leadPortable Antiquity SchemesSwinhope, EnglandEarly MedievalEdward Hershewee701ef220480b51ca728fc9c719bc094cf813655
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12017-05-24T10:09:20-07:00Austin Masonf6137011c68eb792c6e14634815583b15e707deaMap ViewAustin Mason2An interactive map of all the objects in the collectiongoogle_maps2017-05-24T11:39:30-07:00Austin Masonf6137011c68eb792c6e14634815583b15e707dea
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1media/2014147jpg.jpg2017-05-21T19:25:22-07:00Lead Weight10Object Pageplain2017-09-20T19:07:26-07:00Thisweight found at Lincolnshire, England in 2017 and was created between 850-925 AD. It is made of lead, which was cast into a flat disc shape, it weighs in at three units equaling 4.43 grams, which was the transaction weight for silver bullion at that time. These factors indicate that this was probably a common design of weights at that time as well as suggesting that there was as standardization of weights, value, and measurements across different kingdoms or at least by the Vikings.
Weights such as this one were a necessity if one wished to conduct trade and business in the Viking world, because otherwise it was impossible to ensure a fair deal. As a result, sets of weights were highly prized. There have been several different types of weights found, made from different materials and sizes, ranging from coins of different civilizations to plates of metal such as this one. Some are specific sets tailored to certain items or civilizations, such as silver bullion or the Byzantine Empire. One example of this is a Anglo-Saxon balance set found in Watchfield, Oxfordshire, in which there are Roman, Greek, and Byzantine coins, this suggests that different units were used to measure for different civilizations, allowing for trade but also the transaction of wealth from different mediums for example converting Roman currency to Byzantine currency.[1]
The evidence of such an extensive amount of weights and measures shows that the Norse and Anglo-Saxon societies were highly predicated on trade, having trading centers scattered across Europe. Due to their affinity for sailing and their superior technology Norse and Anglo-Saxon traders could travel far and wide without needing to stop, as they could navigate the both the open sea, the rivers, and the coastline efficiently. As accounts have them going so far as to meet with Muslim traders on the Volga river and sailing the Mediterranean to Constantinople, thus it is clear that the Norse had established an unprecedented trading empire.[2]
Weights would have been necessary to support a trading lifestyle, especially those who did business with people from the places such as the Mediterranean and Constantinople, because otherwise business would have been impossible due to the fact that the Norse people especially people who were Vikings did not usually use standard coinage instead preferring hack-silver, which was just chopped up pieces of silver.[3] Even still those who used standard coinage would have had varying amounts of silver and gold in the coins as seen. The standardization and use of weights throughout Viking society is what allowed many traders to establish highly profitable enterprises and bring goods back to their settlements. The goods that they would trade for would eventually end up as part of grave goods, which were goods buried with the dead, allowing scholars to be able to record and discover just how far the Vikings influence reached.